State Of Mississippi Agrees To Hire Child Welfare Consultants To Prevent Contempt Hearing Over Failure To Comply With Settlement Agreement

On July 23, 2015, the Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) conceded that it had not meet the terms of the Olivia Y settlement agreement to improve its child welfare system, agreeing to hire consultants to recommend changes to the child welfare system.  A federal court trial on the contempt motion was scheduled to begin on August 10, 2015. The July 23, 2015 agreement canceled the contempt hearing.

On March 9, 2015, advocates for the plaintiffs in the Olivia Y class action filed a motion asking the court to find MDHS in contempt of the Olivia Y modified settlement agreement . . .