Suicide attempt, trafficking, meth: TN Dept. of Children's Services faces mounting complaints

From Local 3 News: A child was reported using methamphetamine while staying in a Tennessee Department of Children's Services (DCS) office, according to the state's Second Look Commission, which reviews child abuse cases and makes recommendations to the state's General Assembly.
 
The commission's 2025 annual report found the child surrendered the substance and underwent a drug test, but there was no recorded follow-up or investigation.
 
The same report found a child in custody ran away, and "was trafficked or sexually assaulted on the run at least five times." The child even trafficked another.

This comes after Local 3 obtained a 911 call from October 2024, in which a DCS employee at a Bradley County office reported an 11-year-old "trying to self-harm himself with a broken piece of plastic from a broom."
 
The 911 operator asked, "Is this because of the situation going on, being in DCS custody, or what is he upset about?"

The employee replied:

"So, unfortunately, these kids are currently stuck being at the office for 24 hours, days on end right now... some stuff that's happening with DCS right now, so these kids don't have placement, and they've gotten stir crazy. We've tried to do what we can and try to take them outside, play with them, do what we can, but as soon as we de-escalate them, about an hour later, they re-escalate, and unfortunately, they escalate each other as well."

'A point of no return'
 
Now, Representative Aftyn Behn, a democrat representing Nashville in the General Assembly, wants intervention from the federal government.
 
Behn, a social worker elected in 2022, first filed a complaint last week with the Department of Justice (DOJ), alleging "unnecessary segregation of children with disabilities" and "placement instability."
 
The complaint asks for a "pattern-or-practice investigation."

The representative told Local 3 Tuesday DOJ redirected her to the Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights, where she'll refile her complaint.
 
"Our office has received numerous calls and emails alleging negligence from DCS, and not only that, but we have found a systemic pattern of neglect, of coercion, really serious accusations," Behn said. "These families are hurting and they're struggling, so this comes from a place of caring for these families that feel that no one else has their backs."
 
The complaint also cites a 2024 determination, in which the Department of Health and Human Services upheld a 2022 decision by the Administration for Children and Families to withhold $770,550 for DCS. A review found "Tennessee was not operating these programs in substantial conformity with applicable federal requirements."
 
The Department of Children's Services did not address Local 3's request for comment regarding Representative Behn's complaint when responding to multiple questions for this story.
 
Class Action Complaint

Behn's complaint is far from the only one DCS faces. In May 2025, A Better Childhood, a nonprofit litigation firm, filed a class action complaint alleging placements "lack the basic necessities of life" and that DCS "allows frequent moves among homes and institutions."
 
"The state of foster care in Tennessee is in a real crisis," said Marcia Lowry, executive director of A Better Childhood. "The people who are in charge of the system are not taking the steps they need to take to end that crisis, and kids are suffering, and that really is very, very troubling."

The state motioned to dismiss the case, but a judge has yet to rule. A spokesperson for the Office of the Tennessee Attorney General said they will comment once there's a ruling.
 
This isn't Lowry's first time pushing for change at DCS. She was part of the group which originally filed Brian A. v. Haslam in 2000, which led to nearly two decades of reform.
 
A judge dismissed the case in 2019, only after meeting mandated improvements, including increased placement of children with families, rather than in institutions.
 
"That's really tragic to see a system that can do it and stops doing it, and goes backwards," Lowry said. "That's what's happening in Tennessee."
 
Reducing Office Stays
 
Lowry wants state leaders to turn their focus to boosting the number of foster families.
Governor Bill Lee joined President Donald Trump's "A Home for Every Child" initiative last month. It aims to expand the number of licensed foster homes and retain current families, while also preventing children from having to enter foster care in the first place.

In 2025, the number of foster care youth outpaced the number of homes by 3,000.

Since 2019, the number of foster homes statewide has slightly declined.

DCS has worked to reduce the number of children staying in offices, as they await placement.

The department reports no children have stayed in its offices since late January. However, the Tennessee Comptroller's audit of the department found 172 children spent at least one night in an office between March and September 2025, and one child stayed as long as 104 nights.
 
"We just flat, have no other option," said Margie Quin, commissioner of the Department of Children's Services, to the state's House Finance, Ways and Means Committee in October 2025. "We want to be transparent about that. The reasons for that are very high acuity needs or violent behaviors, or kids who have been bench-ordered into our custody with pre-adjudicated delinquent charges, significant delinquent charges, and they cannot be co-mingled with other kids in transitional houses – true dependent neglect kids, and they have to be kept separate. So, they are staying overnight in an office."
 
Office stays typically last an average of 5 to 10 nights, according to DCS.
 
The department has also worked to prevent children from having to move multiple times.
"DCS has reduced the frequency of placement moves from 7.87 moves per 1,000 days in custody to 4.47 moves per 1,000 days in custody," said Ashley Zarach, DCS director of communications in December.
 
Growing Real Estate

DCS plans to open new facilities across the state to accommodate children awaiting placement.
 
The $421 million effort includes six welcome places, including in Tullahoma, three wellness places and two youth development campuses.

The welcome places are designed for short-term stays immediately after a child enters DCS care, while wellness centers intend to accommodate 30-day stays for children with higher levels of care. The youth development campuses, located in Somerville and Nashville, will support rehabilitation and have vocational opportunities.
 
Some could open as soon as this year.
 
But Lowry believes these spaces are the wrong answer.
 
"Anybody who is connected with child welfare knows that if you put kids with problems together, their problems only get worse," she said. "What the state really needs to do is create and educate foster parents who have special training to take care of some of these kids."

Behn agrees, citing the expensive price tag.
 
"The fact that DCS is interested in asking for more money from the state of Tennessee to expand these congregate care facilities is a big red flag," she said.
 
Representative Behn will hold a livestream Wednesday night, in which she'll discuss her "children over checks" campaign.
 
She started a petition last week, inviting families to share their experiences with DCS.
 
The petition had nearly 400 responses by Tuesday, with some responses from concerned Tennesseans, but mostly from families with personal trauma.
 
In the short-term, Behn said she'd like to see a stop to all pending cases and instead have them be reviewed by an independent commission.
 
In addition to injunctive relief, she even would consider calling to "sunset" the agency and reconstitute it.
 
"Governor Lee could do a few things," Behn said. "He could remove Margie Quin immediately. He could commission an independent audit, order internal policy reforms, replace regional leadership and extract external consultants."
 
Behn's livestream begins Wednesday at 8:00pm EST.