NC lawmakers propose new watchdog office to oversee foster care system

State lawmakers are proposing legislation to fix North Carolina’s foster care system  — a move that comes just weeks after WRAL’s documentary, “Broken: Foster Care in North Carolina,” exposed significant failures.

 The legislation would establish a new watchdog office called the Child and Family Welfare Ombudsman. If passed, this office would review foster care cases and advocate for what is best for the children involved.

 The push for reform follows the case of Blake and London Deven, two children who investigators say died from abuse and starvation after Avante Deven adopted them. Avante Deven adopted five children from three different counties. Fayetteville police detectives say she changed the children's names, homeschooled them and used multiple aliases. One of the children, Blake, was the son of Felicia Chandler, who lost custody of her three boys more than a decade ago.

“When you take a child out of their home and put them in custody, that child becomes your responsibility,” Chandler told WRAL News in an interview featured in the documentary.

Advocates say it is time for change. Gaile Osborne, executive director of the Foster Family Alliance of NC and a foster parent to 40 children, supports the creation of the ombudsman position.

“It seems that there are a lot of questions and things happening across the state that make you wonder who is really watching over this,” Osborne said.

Osborne was recently recognized as the 2025 National Advocate of the Year by the Family Focused Treatment Association for her work on policies that improve child welfare, family support and youth mental health.

Osborne believes the system too often prioritizes strict policy over what is actually best for children.

“A lot of times we get away from following what is in the best interest of the child and try to follow policy to the letter,” she said. “Sometimes the happy medium is somewhere in between.”

According to Osbourne, each case should be treated differently.

“Sometimes it is best for a child not to return home, even though policy says they should,” she said. “But then there are other times when they must return home for that reunification piece.”

State Sen. Steve Jarvis, R-Davison and Davie counties, also believes an ombudsman position would help the struggling system. He grew up in a home where his mother fostered 18 children. He shared his personal story of a foster child who was taken from his family at age 4, despite his parents’ efforts to adopt her.

Jarvis believes an ombudsman would provide oversight outside of the Department of Health and Human Services and county agencies.

“You have an outside source looking at it from a different lens,” he said.

The bill was recently filed in the North Carolina House and includes a funding request of $282,000 to create the office and hire staff. Supporters say the ombudsman would be able to review decisions, answer questions and step in when needed to protect the best interests of the children.

“You need someone who can pick up the phone and ask, 'is this the best decision for this child?'” Osbourne said.

For families like Chandler’s, supporters say the office could have made a difference.

The bill passed its first reading and is now headed to the Appropriations Committee.