Officials with Child Protective Services (CPS) announced the termination of an employee last week after a cell phone video came to light of said worker a young and hungry 14-year-old-girl that was in foster care to just go prostitute herself in order to get food.
“If you gonna be a ho — be a real ho,” expressed the unidentified CPS employee in the video clip that was recorded by the teenage girl.
The mother of the young girl, Keisha Bazley, explained to Fox 26 that the CPS employee told the teen girl to just go out and prostitute herself in order to make the money she needed to get food because she used to “do the same thing.”
“When I saw the video with the lady,” Bazley stated. “It’s like — like my soul left my body.”
The mother of eight other kids, Bazley stated that her daughter had been showing behavioral issues, prompting her to reach out the Child Protective Services for help.
But after finding out just how one of these CPS employees treated the young girl, the family chose to bring the case directly before a judge.
The attorney for the family, Mike Schneider, explained to Fox 26 that the employee from CPS told the girl, who had been living in a hotel before being sent to a new foster home, could just “basically” make $1,500 a day if she went out and sold her body for sex.
The attorney, who specializes in family law, stated that CPS had hoped to throw the case out and get the teen out of the state’s care. When speaking with the judge, the agency claimed nothing about the video’s existence during a recent hearing about the incident.
“I think they’re threatened by the fact that this video even exists,” stated Schneider. “They know about it.”
“The fact that they didn’t think it was relevant that their own agency is trying to prostitute a child, that’s incredibly disingenuous, to have a hearing and not bring that to the court’s attention,” he stated.
State officials from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) issued an official apology to the Bazley family and put out their own statement to Fox 26 about the video and the employee.
“DFPS is aware of the video and has taken action,” stated Melissa Landford to Fox 26. “The person in the video – who was employed as CPS support staff — was dismissed from her position August 10.”
“The safety and appropriateness with which children in care must be treated is our paramount concern,” she stated. “Nothing less will be tolerated.”
According to Texas family law, compelling or encouraging of children to take part in sexual conduct through prostitution or trafficking is a felony in the third degree.
