Posted on Monday, 5th October 2009 by Glenn D. Frankovis
On the front page of the Sunday, October 4th, 2009 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is a “Watchdog” article written by Gina Barton and Crocker Stephenson titled Deadly mistakes doom children which plays off the excellent series of articles written by Investigative Reporter Raquel Rutledge on the Wisconsin Shares welfare scam and apparent total lack of accountability as relates to those responsible for oversight of the program. As written in a subtitle, Social service agency fails to heed warning signs as nearly 2 dozen die over 4 years in Milwaukee County, the article reveals a system of incompetence protected by walls of silence and obstruction to transparency; payment of an incredible salary to someone who subsequently “stepped aside” for “almost nine months” (keeping her $108,919 salary) and then later was given a job “by a former Wisconsin child welfare official to a top position in Washington state’s Department of Social and Health Services”; and a Department which makes excuse after excuse.
If this was a series about the incompetence in the Police Department and cops who were responsible for nearly 2 dozen deaths because they felt overworked and failed to followup on reports of child neglect/abuse, there would be marches and demands for firings from the top on down and calls for Justice Department investigations – and rightly so. Instead, we read here about demotions and shifts in work assignments with a statement by the administrator of the Department of Children and Families, Cyrus Behroozi: “The failure to act is inexcusable”. Well, I’d say the failure to exercise proper supervisory oversight is also inexcusable.
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3 Responses to “At what point do “mistakes” become malfeasance in public office?”
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October 5th, 2009 at 10:34 am
This shouldn’t be too much of a shock.
Once secured, most government jobs have little to no danger of terminations or loss of pay raises. Because of this, government has historically attracted the imcompetent in droves, simply because it is a place that not only tolerates incompetence, but also excuses and actually protects it.
October 5th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
That ‘accountability’ is exactly the issue on DNA sampling (DoC and various Sheriffs), too.
There’s more to TEA Parties than just “lower taxes.”
October 6th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
Nobody should be surprised that there is a lack of accountability here when so many think that dismembering a baby is an acceptable “woman’s health option.”