St. Petersburg, Florida -- A 5-year-old's tragic death has raised serious questions about how cases of possible child neglect are investigated.
Right now, St. Pete City Council members are deciding what changes it will recommend to the State to better protect children who might be in danger.
Before Phoebe Jonchuck's death, the Florida Department of Children and Families was working on cases concerning her and her parents. Just before her death, a 911 call was even made to the sheriff's office and deputies responded to evaluate her father, John Jonchuck.
"Tallahassee has done a disservice to our child. There is no magic answer that will guarantee a tragedy won't happen again but we can do much better," said City Councilman Steve Kornell.
Some state lawmakers have pointed the finger at workforce shortages and case overload as a serious problem.
The DCF department head called for change -- mandating crisis teams respond immediately to hotline calls.
And now today, Kornell and the rest of the council suggested this as a start: limit case load, require training with individuals who have master's degrees in social work, and increase pay for investigators.
"This is not just about Phoebe Jonchuck - it's about her and many other kids," said Kornell. "These ideas will be brainstormed and a resolution will be drafted and passed."
A DCF spokesperson told 10 News via email Thursday:
"Last legislative session Governor Scott recommended, and the Legislature funded, an increase of $8 million to sheriff's offices in six counties -- Hillsborough, Pinellas, Manatee, Seminole, Pasco and Broward -- who perform child protective investigations in order to fund additional resources they need to protect the children in their counties.
DCF was provided additional funding to hire 270 new frontline staff, in order to reduce caseloads below the national recommendation from the Child Welfare League of America.
The department has worked to quickly recruit more than 245 new child protective investigators and supervisors throughout the state with the goal of hiring individuals with social work degrees or other human service-related educations. As positions are filled, DCF is committed to increasing staff retention to ensure a stable and professional workforce."
As for DCF, it has not yet concluded it's policy review and investigation. No more changes have been announced yet.
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