CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A task force has found the Cuyahoga County child-welfare department doesn't go far enough to protect children, after the agency made disastrous decisions to leave four children with mothers who prosecutors say later killed or starved them.

The panel appointed by Department of Children and Family Services Director Deborah Forkas is expected to issue a long list of recommendations this month. But the chairman said there is a lack of urgency at the agency to address ongoing risks to children from parents' mental illness, addictions, domestic violence and other problems.

These problems underlie a large percentage of the agency's cases, and they often persist for generations. While the department typically requires parents under its watch to undergo counseling and various programs, the panel is urging the department to focus longer term.

"Immediate safety issues are addressed, but risk is not addressed," said Chairman David Crampton.

The department needs to stay on top of families in which such things as mental illness and partner violence are a concern, he said. "There isn't that sense of urgency we need to get those issues addressed," he said.

The findings are not unexpected. The task force was asked to recommend how the agency can improve the way it reunites families after it takes temporary custody of children because of maltreatment.

Questions about whether the county adequately protects children in high-risk households surfaced after Angel Glass beat her 5-year-old son to death last October and Tyesha Hamilton was charged with the scalding death of her 2-year-old daughter in February. Another mother, Phineas Scovil, was charged with starving two toddler sons nearly to death.

All three mothers had been under the watch of child-welfare authorities, and the agency had recently returned the children of Hamilton and Scovil to their custody.

Crampton said shortcomings were evident in the case of Glass, who was sentenced Sept. 1 to 30 years to life in prison. Her violent relationship with a man brought the agency into her life in 2007.

After Glass completed parenting classes and counseling, the county closed her case in 2008. But she subsequently lost two part-time jobs and went off her medication for depression, the agency learned.

"We clearly need some system after the department closes the case to make sure they stay on their medications and are getting mental health treatment," said Crampton, an associate professor at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University.

Crampton spoke about Glass based on known information on the case. The agency denied the task force access to files of the high-profile cases that prompted the review, saying the county prosecutor's office considered them confidential.

From the start, the county's influence on the outside review raised questions about the panel's independence. Director Forkas not only selected the members, but she also assigned the areas of focus and brought in facilitators to lead meetings. In addition, several members of the 32-person panel represent private agencies that contract with the department.

Crampton has objected to suggestions that credibility was compromised. He said in a recent e-mail that the focus on "politics of the panel" is taking away from "the real need to make changes to improve our community's efforts to address child abuse and neglect."

The findings mirror observations made by others about "cookie cutter" case plans. The plans typically require parents to enter parenting-education programs and counseling and find appropriate housing.

"Case plans should be individualized, which too often they're not," Bill Meezan of Children's Rights, a national advocacy group, said in a recent interview. "They should be comprehensive. I think where the system goes wrong is when [they] are not."

Crampton said a review of 52 county children who were returned to their parents since January 2009 showed about half the children had parents with serious mental illness and a history of domestic violence. Percentages of parents with addictions and criminal histories were also high.

Panel members also found that meetings in which individual cases are discussed often don't include important parties such as court-appointed child advocates. And they have said the department should include experts in mental health and other areas in the meetings when reunification is considered.

Forkas, who was appointed director in January 2009, has declined to talk to The Plain Dealer. Both Crampton and a department spokeswoman said the agency alone can't address enduring risks to children. The agency needs help from a network of other social services agencies, said Mary Louise Madigan of the county Department of Health and Human Services.

"High risk means ongoing issues with domestic violence, alcohol -- mental health is especially huge," Madigan said. "This is a problem that's bigger than one social worker can handle on her own. We need the resources. We need every provider out there."

Madigan said that county departments face a 5.5 percent budget cut next year but that children's services will undergo a separate budget review in light of the panel's recommendations.

The child-welfare agency budget has been cut about 20 percent over the past eight years. Last year, Forkas cut several million dollars more than required. The cuts included fewer placements in foster care and residential facilities.

Computer-assisted-reporting editor Rich Exner contributed to this story.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: hspector@plaind.com, 216-999-4543