Philadelphia's foster care oversight questioned after death of Malayshia Allford

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- The death of 10-year-old Malayshia Allford has raised questions about oversight within Philadelphia's foster care system, including whether warning signs may have been missed before the child was killed.

Carprice Williams, Malayshia's foster mother, is a Philadelphia School District teacher who holds a Ph.D. in education from Drexel University.

She is charged in connection with Malayshia's death.

The case has prompted scrutiny of the agencies responsible for monitoring children in foster care.

The city's Department of Human Services, or DHS, contracts much of its foster care work to Community Umbrella Agencies, known as CUAs, which manage and oversee foster home placements.

Those agencies have faced dozens of lawsuits over the years, including litigation related to Malayshia's case.

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Attorney A.J. Thomson, who has previously sued CUAs in cases involving children who were killed or died while under DHS care, questioned whether there were indicators of problems before Malayshia's death.

"This didn't just happen one day. This happened months beforehand because there had to be signs," Thomson said.

Thomson said Catholic Community Services, which operates under the Philadelphia Archdiocese, had oversight of Malayshia's case. Catholic Community Services is one of 10 CUAs contracted by DHS in Philadelphia.

According to an annual DHS report released a few weeks ago, Catholic Community Services recorded a monthly visitation rate of 85%, below the department's 90% benchmark.

Thomson said multiple safeguards are intended to protect children in foster care.

"There's multi-mechanisms to make sure that kids in foster care are not being abused. One is the monthly check. But two is the responsibility of other mandatory reporters," Thomson said.

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The mayor's office declined to comment on when Malayshia was last seen by officials responsible for her care.

While Thomson said DHS and the CUAs generally perform important work, he argued that more must be done to protect children in foster care. He cited four child deaths during the past four years involving children under DHS supervision.

Among those cases, 3-year-old Hope Jones died in 2022 after being beaten and starved. In 2023, 2-year-old Sul'yah Williams, the subject of an Action News investigation, was beaten to death by a foster mother. In 2025, 20-month-old Sy'Vir Hill drowned after being left in a bathtub with two other foster children.

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None of those cases involved Catholic Community Services. However, the nonprofit is currently being sued in another case alleging abuse and a failure to conduct home visits. In court filings, the organization denied wrongdoing.

Thomson said some children in foster care may be unable to report abuse.

"How many children are abused in their foster care homes and are so powerless to even report it? That they go to bed every night and think, 'Well, this is the best I can do,'" Thomson said.

The Archdiocese had not returned requests for comment. Action News is awaiting a statement from the city.