TOLEDO, Ohio — In the wake of child sex crime allegations against Maumee foster parent Jeremy Chesser, WTOL 11 wanted to find out how a person with these types of allegations could become a foster parent and seemingly fly under the radar while committing the alleged crimes.
Lucas County Children Services explained the process of choosing a foster parent and what it does to protect children who cannot protect themselves.
"Know that we do conduct monthly home visits and we're routinely in the home assessing safety and meeting with the children alone and away from the foster parents," said Katie Bertsch, the assistant manager of the placements department for LCCS.
She said the process to become a foster family is a thorough one.
"You have to undergo a pre-service program where you learn about child development and learn about different aspects of fostering," Bertsch said. "Once that is completed, then it will take about six months for the actual home study process."
The home study process is where there are home visits and interviews with everyone living at the residence. At the same time, there is an extensive background search of the applicants, including FBI criminal records checks and fingerprinting. LCCS also takes into account personal and professional references.
"If there's something that comes up of concern during the process of your application or your criminal background check, we would let them know there is a denial and we would not be able to proceed with the process," Bertsch said.
While LCCS couldn't comment on Chesser's case due to the nature of the alleged crimes, Bertsch said even after an applicant has been approved and a child has been placed in the home, there are check-ins and recertifications that the family must go through all to make sure the kids are in a safe environment.