ELEPHANT BUTTE—Today, parties to the Kevin S. Lawsuit held a hearing to hear updates from the Children, Youth, and Families Department regarding their progress on the reform agreements reached in the 2020 settlement. Some agreements to be met included trauma-informed care, stable placements, access to services, and data monitoring and collection.
During testimony, Secretary Teresa Casados was questioned as to why many of those agreements had not been met. Secretary Casados was confirmed to her post at CYFD in January, receiving 8 dissenting votes in the Senate.
Senator Crystal Brantley (R-Elephant Butte), who voted against the confirmation of Secretary Casados, issued the following statement regarding the hearing:
"The excuses that CYFD continually rattles off for failing our vulnerable children is infuriating. I am not alone in my frustration—nearly every examination and testimony today proved that. The department under Secretary Casados spends more time spinning its failures than striving to meet their legal obligation to reform the agency. This department continually takes a back seat on the Governor's priority list and today's floundering testimony has, unfortunately, become par for the course.
"No more excuses. I expect Secretary Casados and this administration to come forward with concrete requests and legislation to implement the reforms they are obligated to make by law. It's time for the Secretary to stop protecting the Governor and start protecting children."
