PHOENIX — A state representative is seeking answers about Arizona's Department of Child Safety (DCS) after the agency blamed attorneys for high legal costs in a case where a jury found the department violated a family's constitutional rights.
In an email, Rep. Rachel Keshel called DCS's response to ABC15’s report on the case "complete BS" and said it "epitomizes the agency not taking responsibility for the egregious things they did to this family."
The criticism comes after DCS issued a statement about a federal lawsuit filed by the Stein family, who the agency fought for six years.
The state’s defense failed at almost every step, losing motions and appeals, ultimately costing taxpayers nearly $3 million combined for legal fees and a verdict.
In that statement, DCS said it was "unfortunate that this case has resulted in significant legal fees, with the attorneys walking away with more compensation than the family, rather than resources directly benefiting children and families."
Keshel, a Republican whose district covers parts of Pinal and Pima counties, said in a follow-up interview with ABC15 that DCS's attempt to blame the lawyers was misguided.
"Yeah, blaming the lawyers as money hungry when they were the ones that could have put a stop to it and admitted their fault with that beautiful little boy," Keshel said. "And what a terrible thing for him to go through."
The Stein case began in 2019 when the family called DCS for help with their severely autistic, non-verbal son Corran, who was in crisis and hurting himself and others. DCS caseworkers told the family the only way they could quickly get respite care for their son was if they signed a document saying they were neglectful.
Desperate, the family signed, not knowing it could mean losing custody. When they tried to get their son back, DCS fought them in court.
A federal jury later found DCS engaged in judicial deception and violated the family's constitutional rights. The case cost taxpayers $2 million just in legal fees.
The state paid $1.3 million to its outside counsel and more than $700,000 to the family’s attorneys.
"It's complete excuses and not taking ownership of what happened and taking responsibility for the fact that they could have stopped that lawsuit much earlier on than all of those wasted resources that ended up happening there," Keshel said.
Keshel previously raised questions about DCS legal costs during a special committee hearing in August. She said lawmakers don't have complete numbers on how much the state spends defending the agency in lawsuits.
"No, I would love to tell you I have gotten the amount and the number you're looking for. And I still have yet to hear what that number is," she said.
When asked whether DCS is unable to provide the numbers or simply doesn't want to share them, Keshel said she believes it's the latter.
"I think I would error on the side of they don't want people to know… I just think it's something they don't want us to know, potentially," she said.
Keshel said lawmakers will continue pushing for answers.
"We'll keep trying to figure out how much taxpayers have been on the hook for because I think they deserve to know, we deserve to know," she said.
The Stein case is one of several costsly DCS cases. The agency has paid out more than $30 million to settle lawsuits since 2016, with wrongful removals being the most common allegation.
Lawmakers say they're conducting their own investigation into DCS practices and plan to make significant changes to the agency next year.
This digital article was produced with the assistance of AI and converted to this platform based on broadcast stories written and reported by ABC15 Chief Investigator Dave Biscobing. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
