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• Autistic teen found naked living in filth, charges against caretakers suspended Play Video

  May 17, 2013 10:07 PM

  Police found shocking discovery at a home on the northeast side of Colorado Springs when they responded to a welfare check Thursday night: a 13-year-old autistic boy naked, living among dead and live rodents and human and animal excrement. The boy has been in the care of a former... more »

• Edible pot treats pose problem for kids Play Video

  April 1, 2013 7:43 PM

  April is National Child Abuse Awareness Month, and some doctors are pointing to Colorado's lax marijuana laws as potential risks for children. Doctors at Children's Hospital in Denver are reporting a significant increase in hospital visits due to kids getting their hands on marijuana treats like brownies. Between 2005 and... more »

• Extra security in place at county buildings in Colorado Springs after alleged harassment Play Video

  February 8, 2013 1:10 AM

  There is heightened security at El Paso County office buildings across Colorado Springs. On Friday 25-year-old Jessica Tuckness and 35-year-old Burnest Johnson went to the Department of Human Services office after hours, wanting to speak to a case worker about a child custody case. A security guard informed them... more »

• 2 dead, missing 12-year-old girl returned to Little Rock

  July 29, 2012 12:39 PM

  LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - A 12-year-old girl whose parents were slain is back in Arkansas after her adopted brother took her to Memphis. Authorities say 33-year-old Antonio Whitlow is suspected in the deaths of his parents, whose bodies were found in their Little Rock home Saturday. Whitlow also is... more »

• Toddler found walking alone on Murray Blvd. at 2:37 a.m.

  June 9, 2012 11:29 AM

  Colorado Springs police are investigating after a young boy (possibly one or two-years-old) was found walking along Murray Blvd just after 2:30 Saturday morning. Police say they took the boy to the Sand Creek substation where Department of Human Services officials met them and took custody of the child.... more »

• Troubled kids relocated after alleged sexual assault by home director Play Video

  June 1, 2012 8:12 PM

  "Anytime somebody goes from one living situation to another there is some adjustment period," Lee Hodge, a Child Welfare Manager for the Colorado Department of Human Services tells News 5. DHS is placing troubled kids living at the Axios Youth Community in Green Mountain Falls into new homes after... more »

• Neglect case highlights issue of elder abuse Play Video

  March 6, 2012 5:40 PM

  A Colorado Springs man faces a felony charge of neglect after it was discovered that his 86 year old mother was left lying on the floor in her own waste for 5 days. Dennis Foust, 50, was arrested last Tuesday on a charge of Crimes Against At-Risk Adults. According... more »

• "Christmas for Kids" fundraiser

  October 16, 2011 12:31 PM

  For a number of years our local four-wheel drive community has been assisting the Department of Human Services with their "Christmas for Kids" program. Today, the Colorado Southern District Four Wheel Drive Club presents their 4th annual "Christmas for Kids" fundraiser. It runs from 10 am - 3... more »

• Investigation into two missing Monument boys continues

  March 13, 2011 7:26 PM

  Investigators continued into the weekend, scouring near the home that Edward Bryant junior and his brother Austin were last know to live at on Granite Circle in Monument; but they wouldn't have known there was a disappearance to look into at all if it wasn't for family friends saying the... more »

• Bill would ban public assistance at strip club ATMs

  January 30, 2011 9:23 PM

  A bill in the Colorado State legislature would prohibit people from using strip club ATMs to withdraw welfare cash benefits. State law already prohibits welfare recipients from withdrawing at ATMs in liquor stores and casinos, but the law hasn't been enforced. "I don't see any problem with the bill... more »

• Adoptive parents: Every day is a blessing

  November 22, 2010 12:52 AM

  November is National Adoption Month. The choice to adopt a child is never an easy one. It takes a certain type of person. "It takes special people to take other children into their home. These people are magnificent." says Yvonne Sletta with the Department of Human Services in El Paso... more »

• County mulls move to old Intel building

  June 1, 2010 5:21 PM

  El Paso County Commissioners are considering a $50 million consolidation project that would relocate several of their offices into one central building.  Should the Sustainable Facilities plan be approved, a vacant office building at the former Intel Processor Plant on Garden of the Gods Road could house the Health... more »

• Changes at DHS

  April 20, 2010 11:25 PM

  A disturbing recording from a baby monitor. "That recording apparently wasn't shared with anyone outside the individual case workers," said Rick Bengtsson, Director of the El Paso County Department of Health. Bengtsson was not in charge when 2-year-old Alize Vick died in 2007. She was in the care... more »

• State-run social services idea not getting local approval

  October 5, 2009 10:38 PM

  Seven children have died from abuse in El Paso County so far this year, according to the Department of Human Services (DHS). Many of those cases never made it to DHS. “That worries me,” says Child Protective Services Intake Manager Marian Percy, “the calls we... more »