Missouri child abuse investigators are overwhelmed again as backlogs return

By: Steph Quinn

Outlets: Missouri Independent

Published: August 17, 2026

Words: 2,467

Last Updated: 1 day, 10 hours ago

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JOPLIN — Ashley Allen had worked almost four years as a child abuse and neglect investigator for the Missouri Children’s Division when she quit in April.

Some days it seemed like the printer in her Jasper County office never stopped churning out reports from the state’s child abuse and neglect hotline, Allen told The Independent. She’d get two or three reports each day — more, if colleagues called out.

Usually, she had 24 …

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