Assemblymember Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale, responded to a state audit of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) Tuesday after they allegedly failed to remove children from abusive living conditions, officials said.

The audit found that the department allegedly failed to remove children from abusive situations for months longer than necessary and put children at risk by delivering late and inaccurate safety and risk assessments, according to the report.

“This audit proves what we’ve suspected for a long time — we need to fix things at the Department of Children and Family Services to protect the most vulnerable kids in our community,” Lackey said. “We need major changes at the department to protect children and make sure reports of abuse don’t fall through the cracks.”

The report called on the department to improve staff training and supervision, enhance its quality control processes and develop a process to ensure investigations, risk assessments, home inspections and background checks are completed quickly, according to officials.

The audit was conducted following a bipartisan request by Lackey and other members of the Legislature following the death of Gabriel Fernandez, an 8-year-old Lancaster boy who was tortured to death, allegedly by his mother and her boyfriend, officials said.

Despite receiving multiple reports of abuse, the Department of Children and Family Services did not remove Gabriel from his abusers and place him in a safer environment, according to officials.

In addition to the audit request, Lackey has introduced Gabriel’s Law (AB 1450) to improve how counties handle cross-reports of child abuse and neglect.

“I appreciate the department’s commitment to implementing the auditor’s recommendations and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Legislature and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to make the changes we need to keep children safe,” Lackey said.

A fact sheet about the audit is available here and the full report is available here.