Father files lawsuit against DCFS for overdose death of 2-year-old son

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Mitchell Robinson, the father of Mitchell Robinson, III, has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and leaders at the agency for the child’s overdose death.

The 2-year-old child died June 26, 2022 and it was determined that fentanyl was in his system at the time.

The lawsuit alleges that DCFS was notified that the child’s mother was addicted to drugs and that it would endanger the welfare of Robinson. The lawsuit also alleges that the child’s grandmother asked the agency to intervene in 2021 on behalf of the child.

The lawsuit claims that on April 12, 2022 hospital staff notified DCFS that the child had arrived at a hospital unresponsive and that he had to be administered Narcan. Despite having that evidence along with previous information about Robinson’s safety, the agency did not initiate an investigation, according to the lawsuit.

Robinson was taken to the hospital again on June 17, 2022 and it was determined that he was exposed to fentanyl at the time. He would later die after being rushed to the hospital for a third time on June 26, 2022.

The father alleges that DCFS, its employees and leaders were negligent by failing to investigate multiple claims that were reported regarding Robinson’s safety. The lawsuit also claims that DCFS was in violation of their legal mandate to open an investigation.

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