When Cindy Lankenau called for help, Florida’s Department of Children and Families and the National Youth Advocate Program turned her life upside down. Her daughter Grayce, diagnosed with ADHD, ODD, and autism, was taken from her care after Cindy defended herself during a violent outburst. Although criminal charges were dropped, DCF refused to reunite them, canceled medical care, ignored court orders, and placed Grayce in a home with no structure or therapy. Cindy’s story exposes how Florida’s child welfare system fails families who seek help, replacing treatment with bureaucracy, compassion with negligence, and justice with silence.

A shocking case out of Sebring, Florida has exposed the horrific abuse and death of 13-year-old Selena at the hands of her adoptive mother, Diane Mack. Once a Florida DCF worker and Guardian Ad Litem, Mack now faces capital murder charges for keeping her autistic daughter chained, starved, and surveilled in her own garage. This case raises damning questions about oversight failures in Florida’s child welfare system.