Settlement Of Oklahoma DHS Lawsuit Still Unclear

The state's top political leaders voted to settle the federal class-action lawsuit against the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, but they changed the settlement agreement which may have scuttled the whole process. 

The speaker of the house is calling Thursday a good day for Oklahoma, but the folks suing DHS call the new action "surprising and disappointing." 

A child advocacy group called Children's Rights filed the class action lawsuit against DHS back in 2008.

They pointed to high rates of abuse in care, child welfare workers juggling too many cases, and overcrowded shelters as proof that DHS was actually endangering the children they were supposed to be taking care of.

Last week, the commission overseeing DHS worked out an agreement with the plaintiffs to bring the three-year legal fight to an end. That proposal needed final approval from the Contingency review board which is made up of the governor, House Speaker Kris Steele, and Senate President Pro Tem Brian Bingman.

12/29/2011 Related Story: Oklahoma Board Recesses Meeting On DHS Lawsuit

After five hours of discussion, they tinkered with that proposal. But the vote wasn't quite what many were anticipating.

The plaintiffs say they don't know what is in the new proposal, and they haven't agreed to it.

"The contingency review board approved an agreement dated today, which is not the agreement that the plaintiff children entered into with the Department of Human Services. So there is no agreement at this point in time," said Fred Dorwart, attorney for Children's Rights. 

Dorwart went on to say that he hadn't seen the agreement and that, for now, he's moving forward as if they're going to trial in February.

Governor Mary Fallin says she wants a proposal fair to all parties that will end this fight.

"We take an important step to move forward to get this lawsuit behind us so we can start with the improvements, taking care of our Department of Human Services and our children of state of Oklahoma," said Governor Mary Fallin.

This isn't behind the state just yet. DHS has called a commission meeting for next Wednesday at 5:30.

The commissioners have to sign off on this proposal. And again, so do the plaintiffs - which hasn't happened yet.

The details of the settlement approved by the Contingency Review Board is under wraps, so we don't know how many changes were made.

"That's what a settlement is about, negotiation," Fallin said. "There are some things we agreed to, some we didn't. Some things they agreed to, and some they didn't."

The head of Children's Rights, which represents all of the children in Oklahoma foster care, says there's no settlement, because they haven't agreed to this latest proposal.

"I don't know where it's going to lead. What I do know is that we certainly need to continue preparation for trial at this stage," said Marcia Lowry, Children's Rights executive director.

The proposal approved Thursday still needs to get the thumbs up from the commission that oversees DHS. If DHS and Children's Rights both agree, then a federal judge would have to sign off on it. If they don't, the federal trial could start at the end of February.

House Speaker Kris Steele, who voted to approve the settlement, issued the following statement:

"This is a golden opportunity to improve the agency under Oklahoma's terms instead of a court's terms. I'd like to thank Attorney General Pruitt and our DHS commissioners for their leadership in steering this process to a path that is truly in the best interest of Oklahoma, its taxpayers and its vulnerable citizens. Make no mistake: This is a good day for Oklahoma."