Duncanville PD investigating death of 11-month-old in foster care
Duncanville police are investigating the death of an 11-month-old boy who died in the care of a Child Protective Services foster family.
The medical examiner hasn't determined the cause of death, but Duncanville police say there were no outward signs of foul play.
The boy’s mother says she saw him on Thursday and nothing seemed wrong. She now wants to know why her seemingly healthy baby suddenly died in someone else's care. She says it all happened as she was fighting to get him back.
Aaziyah Wright died on Saturday. His mother, Miracle Washington, last saw him at a supervised visit on Thursday with the baby's father.
Washington says she called CPS to intervene in late January when she'd fallen on hard times and feared being homeless. Her 3-year-old son was already staying with relatives. CPS says it stepped in due to neglect.
Washington says since Aaziyah went into CPS care, she got a job and an apartment. She never missed a weekly visitation, complied with all court ordered requirements and requested for him to be returned to her care.
But two days after Washington’s last visit with Aaziyah, she got a call from a CPS supervisor.
“I said, ‘What do you mean an accident?’ Washington said. “Because I'm thinking, I'm hoping it was just an injury. I never ever thought that she would be calling me to tell me about the death of my child.”
In a statement, the Department of Family and Protective Services which oversees CPS said, “DFPS is investigating the death of Aaziyah Wright, who died while in a foster care placement. While the cause of his death is still unknown, the loss of this child's life is a tragedy and DFPS investigators are rigorously examining the foster home and the agency that operates it."
A CPS spokesperson says it uses contractors that handle family placement and monitor the family's care.
In this case, it was a company called the Giocosa Foundation.
A Giocosa spokesperson said they're grieving for both the biological and foster families and are investigating the death. He said he could not talk about the family's history as foster parents.
Giocosa Foundation has been working with CPS since 1988. This was the first time a child has died in its care.
The company did have 10 various violations over the last two years. All were classified by as medium to high risk levels.
CPS says a judge would have to make the determination if a child is able to go back to the biological parents. Washington said she'd done everything she could to get her child back. Her next court date was set for July 18, which would have been Aaziyah's first birthday.