KARA is seeking volunteers & funding to increase in depth reporting on child abuse death and tracking of egregious incidents against our nation’s most vulnerable citizens. Read this investigative report from Minnesota & help KARA assemble this information for your state.
Recent child deaths tied to CPS
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Kern County – death of Genesis Mata (2025): An 8‑year‑old girl was found dead in a Bakersfield hotel, prompting protests and a grand jury–driven call to investigate Kern County Child Protective Services for delays, staff shortages, and failure to act on clear abuse indicators.
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L.A. County – Noah Cuatro case settlement (2025): Los Angeles County agreed to pay $20 million to the family of 4‑year‑old Noah Cuatro, who was tortured and killed by his parents in 2019 after DCFS ignored a court order to remove him despite multiple abuse reports.
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Recent homicide charges in individual cases (2026): In early 2026, multiple California parents or caregivers were charged with homicide and felony child abuse after young children were killed, including a 17‑month‑old in Santa Monica and a separate Sacramento‑area case where police reported “felony child abuse resulting in death.”
Systemic, egregious abuse in foster care and institutions
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L.A. County foster care and juvenile facilities (historic but settled in 2025): Los Angeles County approved a record $4 billion settlement resolving nearly 7,000 claims of “horrific” child sexual abuse in foster homes, juvenile halls, and facilities such as the former MacLaren Children’s Center, reflecting decades of staff‑on‑child and institution‑enabled abuse.
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Additional AB 218 sex‑abuse settlements (2025): The county later announced tentative agreements to pay up to $828 million more to victims of alleged childhood sexual abuse in county facilities under California’s AB 218 revival window.
County‑level audits and “criminal neglect” findings
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Alameda County audit and “criminal neglect” (2025): A state audit of Alameda County’s child welfare system found it failed to start about half of investigations on time, neglected to ensure prompt medical and mental‑health care for foster youth, and failed to report critical incidents, leading State Sen. Aisha Wahab to label the pattern “criminal neglect.”
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Workforce crisis affecting child safety: The same audit documented vacancy rates doubling for child welfare workers (to 34%) and supervisors (to about 18%), driving dangerously high caseloads in Emergency Response and undermining basic safety checks for abused children.
KARA / KIDS AT RISK ACTION / INVISIBLECHILDREN.ORG
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