Settlement AgreementThe Braam v. DSHS lawsuit was filed in August 1998 on behalf of a class of foster children who had three or more placements while in foster care. The lawsuit alleged that DSHS does not provide constitutionally required care to foster children. In December 2001, a Whatcom County jury agreed with the plaintiffs and, in May of 2002, the trial judge issued an injunction requiring several changes in the foster care system. That injunction was put on hold while the state appealed. In December 2003, the Washington Supreme Court reversed the injunction and sent the case back to trial. A settlement agreement was reached in August, prior to trial, and was approved by the court in November 2004. Early this year, the Braam plaintiffs went back to court, arguing that Children's Administration wasn't making adequate progress toward complying with the Braam Settlement Agreement. On June 30, a Whatcom County Superior Court judge agreed and gave the agency 30 days to draft detailed compliance plans for three benchmarks -- monthly visits, CHET screens and lowering social worker caseloads. The proposed compliance plans were sent to the Braam Panel on July 30, 2008. Letter to Members of the Oversight Panel Proposed Compliance Plan - CHET ScreensProposed Compliance Plan - Monthly VisitsMonthly Visits Outcome Compliance Plan Regional Workload Reduction Plans Social Worker Monthly Health and Safety Visits Screen Shots from FamLink and CAMIS/GUI Proposed Compliance Plan - Caseload ReductionCaseload Action Step Compliance Plan |