The same thing that happened in Langley Park happened in Prince William County Virginia where CASA has a major presence.

It really pisses me of that these a-holes stole the name CASA and use it for this crap.

This is the real CASA: https://nationalcasagal.org/

When we did foster care we often had CASA workers assigned to one or more of our foster kids. The were there to represent their interests - whether in court, in CPS, or even just to come and take them to McDonald's for lunch (on the CASA worker's own dime). It gave the kids someone they could count on through multiple placements. Kids withh CASA (or a GAL) usually did better in the program as well.

Online definition:

A CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) is typically a trained community volunteer, while a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) can be a volunteer or a professional (like a lawyer or social worker); both advocate for a child's best interests in court, but the main difference often lies in the professional background and whether they are paid, with CASA volunteers focusing on abuse/neglect cases and GALs serving in broader family law matters, though in some jurisdictions, the terms are used interchangeably for trained advocates.

Years after we did foster care my wife became a Guardian ad Litem in Florida until we moved back to Texas. Since she is not a social worker or lawyer she helped them and the kids with stuff that didn't require being a lawyer/social worker. She would even go to court to help the kid(s) and also had a court-issued badge.

Not to be confused with the very excellent Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) for children!!