JFS records release called "circus"

County Commissioners Todd Portune and David Pepper on Wednesday criticized the "circus-type atmosphere" surrounding the release of information on county foster parents' criminal records.

The Enquirer reported Wednesday that background checks on Hamilton County foster parents and other adults living in their homes revealed that 12 percent have arrest records, something County Clerk of Courts Greg Hartmann called "shocking."

County commissioners had approved the ongoing background checks at the urging of Commissioner Pat DeWine, following the death of Marcus Fiesel, who died in foster care in Clermont County in August.

But the media attention, according to Pepper and Portune, may prompt knee-jerk decision making that actually harms children and families, they said.

"We are creating this very risky circus-type atmosphere that could lead to bad decisions," Pepper said. "I’m worried that we literally could be removing (children) from a home when they need to be in that home because they’re overreacting."

DeWine, a Republican who pushed for the legislation, defended the scrutiny.

"I don’t know that you can call too much attention to that," he said. "The reality is, problems in the system have been swept under the rug for far too long. People in this county ought to know about this.

"I think sunlight is the best disinfectant," he said. "At the end of the day needy families are going to suffer because of the mistakes that were made there(at the Department of Job and Family Services.)"

Pepper and Portune, both Democrats, said while it's OK to call attention to the issue, officials need to let the investigations run their course. They have hired an independent consultant to review the flagged foster case files.

"Let's not over hype this stuff," Portune said. "Let’s let the process work and let those individuals do their jobs correctly."

Even County Administrator Pat Thompson agreed.

"It’s frustrating when we have to deal with this on the front page of the newspaper," he said. "Though we’re all for sunshine, we need to give him (the consultant) a chance to do his job.