The contempt orders all stem from the department's ongoing failures to place youth properly, such that they end up stuck in in psychiatric facilities long after they are ready to be released.
Cook County Juvenile Court Judge Patrick Murphy – who previously served as Cook County Public Guardian – has been hearing these cases, issuing the orders, and slapping the director with steep fines of $1,000 per day per case. The fines are on hold until an appellate court ruling.
During court, it was said the little girl suffered sexual abuse when she was as young as 8 years old and the system failed to treat her underlying issues related to her trauma. Twice, she has been psychiatrically hospitalized and then left in those facilities long after she was ready to be released. The most recent and ongoing hospitalization led to the latest contempt of court order.