WRAL's revealing new documentary, "Broken: Foster Care in North Carolina," premieres Thursday, Feb. 6.

The documentary exposes serious failures within the foster care system – following the tragic deaths of Blake and London Deven, two adopted siblings in North Carolina.

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Blake Deven and London Deven
In addition to trying to find 17-year-old Blake Deven (left), Fayetteville police are searching for his relative, London Deven (right). Both pictures Fayetteville police provided were taken years ago.

WRAL News got involved after it was reported that Blake and London hadn't been seen in years. The story gained national attention after their adoptive mother, Avantae Deven, was arrested and charged with their murders.

Cherish Deven, the adoptive sister of Blake and London, later spoke out – exposing the horrifying accounts of abuse they endured while in Avantae's care. Cherish's confession that she was forced to dismember her brother's body was as shocking as it was heartbreaking, and it brought to light the failures of the North Carolina foster care system.

WRAL's Chris Lovingood has been investigating this story for more than a year. His relentless reporting on the Deven case provided exclusive and unprecedented access to key figures in the story, including members of the children’s biological family and the surviving adopted daughter of Avantae Deven.

"When I continued to investigate the deaths of Blake and London Deven, I began to learn more about Avantae and how she was able to adopt her 5 children," Lovingood said. "That led me down the path of focusing on the foster care system. When I pitched the documentary to Cristin, she immediately saw what I saw and we began collaborating."

"The expectation of the foster care system is that children are moved from Home A to Home B under the impression they'll be cared for in a safer capacity than their previous home. When a child endures further abuse and is even killed, that's a problem. That's a problem worth digging into and exposing."

You can watch it all Thursday night when "Broken: Foster Care in North Carolina" premieres.

The Deven siblings' case and the need for systemic change are the driving forces behind the documentary, hosted and produced by WRAL Investigative Documentary Reporter Cristin Severance and Documentary Photojournalist Dwayne Myers.

"Working on this documentary is likely one of the most important things I've ever done while working in journalism," Lovingood sid. "People ask me about the Deven murders and get caught up with the true-crime aspect of it, but the case is a part of something bigger: a foster care system that is deeply challenged. And that's not just my observation but also that of those we've interviewed, including lawmakers and people with connection to the system.

"My hope is that we bring change."

"Broken: Foster Care in North Carolina" premieres at 7:30 p.m. ET Thursday.