Arizona Lawmakers Call for Major Reforms in DCS After Multiple Child Deaths

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Arizona lawmakers are calling for urgent reforms in the state’s Department of Child Safety (DCS) following a series of child deaths that have raised serious questions about the agency’s handling of vulnerable cases.

State Senator Carine Werner, chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, has become one of the leading voices pushing for change after the deaths of Emily Pike, Zariah Dodd, and Rebekah Baptiste, three children who had prior contact with DCS before their deaths.

“The system failed these children,” Senator Werner said in an interview. “We cannot allow more preventable deaths because of poor communication or lack of accountability.”

During a recent closed-door stakeholder meeting, lawmakers, tribal leaders, law enforcement officials, and DCS representatives discussed ways to fix long-standing issues in Arizona’s child welfare system.

One of the biggest problems identified was communication failures between state agencies, group homes, and tribal authorities. Out of Arizona’s 22 federally recognized tribes, only a few currently have formal agreements with DCS to share information about tribal children placed in state-run or licensed group homes.

Stakeholders agreed that improving coordination with tribes is essential to ensuring children’s safety, particularly in rural areas where oversight is weaker.

The meeting resulted in a set of early reforms. DCS will now create “critical information packets” for police when children go missing from group homes, and group homes will face stricter reporting timelines for notifying DCS and law enforcement.

Werner also pointed to major flaws in the DCS hotline system, which currently does not allow operators to view a child’s complete history when responding to new reports. She called for urgent upgrades, saying that missing context has led to poor decisions and, in some cases, tragedy.

DCS Director David Lujan acknowledged the agency’s shortcomings and confirmed that internal reviews of the high-profile cases are underway. “We are taking this very seriously,” he said.

Senator Werner’s committee will present a detailed set of reform recommendations in the coming legislative session, focused on improving oversight, communication, and transparency within DCS.