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BY BRITTANY AGRO
Medill News Service | Wednesday, November 15, 2006 | (No comments posted.)
A Juvenile Court judge Tuesday found that a state facility, and not a home setting, is the best place for a 19-year-old mentally disabled Chicago girl to live.
The girl, who is in the custody of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, has been living at a center run by Individual Advocacy Group, an organization that DCFS uses to place children. The girl has been waiting since August to transfer into another facility that prosecutors believe can treat her clinical needs better.
DCFS spokesman Michael Wunderlich said although there are no openings at residential homes or mental hospitals for the girl, she is at the top of the waiting lists.
Prosecutors believe a more restrictive environment is best for the girl because of her aggressive nature. But DCFS officials say a less restrictive facility will help the girl become more independent.
DCFS caseworker Dina Gosha said during a Cook County Juvenile Court hearing that, because the girl cannot keep herself safe, she is not ready for independent living.
The girl, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, mental retardation and traumatic brain injury, has spent more time in hospital settings than in treatment centers, according to prosecutors.
Not only has the girl expressed suicidal tendencies to the staff at Individual Advocacy Group, but she has escaped several times, said Augustine Brown, of the advocacy group home.
Brown added that as a result of telephone calls and e-mails from residents in the Kankakee neighborhood where the group home is located, the staff moved the girl to a remote area without access to public transportation.
When the girl graduated from high school in May, Gosha said, she expressed an interest in pursuing a career in cosmetology. Although Individual Advocacy Group does not provide formal education, Brown said the girl is being taught independent living skills and receiving informal vocational training and therapy.
Assistant State's Attorney Chris Costello said it would be "a mistake" to send the message to DCFS that Individual Advocacy Group would be inappropriate for the girl. He said DCFS used its placement discretion well, and the judge has no authority to order a specific placement for her.
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