Michigan’s Alternatives for Children and Families Closes Down

Good Riddance!

“The foster placement center Alternatives for Children and Families is now closed by the state for several violations.

Alternatives made an agreement with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services that included it would voluntarily surrendering its license and ceasing options as of the 1st of this month.

This comes after 9-year-old foster child  Omarion Humphrey went missing under the watch of his foster parent last year and later turned up dead.

The state recommended revoking the license after an investigation the department conducted in the July 2015 death.

Omarion, known as “Mars” went missing while visiting Lake Callis with his foster parent on the Fourth of July holiday weekend last year.

A six-day search turned up Omarion’s body in the lake.

The boy’s biological mother filed a lawsuit against the foster agency that placed Omarion, as well as the foster parent who was watching him when the incident happened.

Since this all happened more than a year ago, the State Department of Health and Human Services looked into the agency.

It found all 95 children placed by Alternatives or who were transferred to private foster care homes are safe, but still recommended the foster placement service be shut down.

The foster agency was still handling about 40 cases as of June.

All cases were transferred as of the beginning of this month.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services says Alternatives worked collaboratively with the state department to reach an agreement and surrender its license.”

Foster agency closed by the state for several violations [WSMH 7/6/16]

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