The shocking case of a Waterbury man allegedly held captive for 20 years is fueling calls for more state government oversight.

On Thursday, Republican leaders renewed their push for an inspector general – with subpoena power – to investigate state agencies.

But critics called the move a political gimmick designed to deflect attention from the Trump administration in Washington.

Waterbury firefighters were shocked when they rescued a 32-year-old man who weighed just 68 pounds. The victim said he set a fire because his father and stepmother locked him a room for two decades.

"I wanted my freedom," the victim told investigators, according to an arrest warrant.

Kimberly Sullivan, 56, now faces multiple felony charges. Her attorney says she plans to plead not guilty on Friday.

“I understand the whole world has jumped on those allegations and has already convicted my client,” Sullivan’s lawyer, Ioannis Kaloidis, told reporters on Wednesday. “But the good thing about America is, that’s not how we work. She’s presumed innocent until proven otherwise in court.”

On Friday, a judge will consider whether to place Sullivan under house arrest or constant GPS monitoring. In a court filing opposing the request, Sullivan asserts that “she cared for the complainant for many years” and “there is little independent evidence to support the charges” of holding her stepson in captivity for 20 years.

The case has drawn intense scrutiny to the Connecticut Department of Children and Families. A former elementary school principal claimed that he contacted the agency more than a dozen times in 2004 and 2005, but DCF said it has no record of any interactions with the family.

“DCF is such a broken system,” said Tracy Vallerand, the victim’s birth mother, who gave up custody when he was 6 months old. “And it really needs to be revamped.”

That’s one reason Republicans at the state Capitol are renewing calls for an inspector general to oversee state employees.

“It’s just hard to believe that an individual was kept in captivity for that long, with that many calls to DCF, and nothing was done about it,” said Connecticut House GOP leader Vin Candelora (R-North Branford). “We are here today to say, we need to pay attention to what is going on in the gold dome and start putting forth meaningful reforms.”

An inspector general already investigates deadly police encounters.

The job could be expanded to probe DCF, as well as corruption cases like former state budget deputy Kosta Diamantis. An indictment claims that Diamantis pressured former Department of Social Services commissioner Deidre Gifford to help kill a Medicaid fraud investigation.

Gifford now heads the state Office of Health Strategy and has declined to comment.

“The governor hasn’t even asked the commissioner whether she is a subject or a witness to that investigation,” said Candelora. “And the most we’ve gotten out of that office is ‘no comment.’”

Top Democrats called the move a political stunt to distract from the Trump administration in Washington. They said that Connecticut already has prosecutors to handle corruption cases and bipartisan state auditors.

“We appoint the Auditors of Public Accounts. It’s a bi-partisan group – there’s a Democrat and a Republican – with staff behind it. They audit every single agency,” said state Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk). “We take responsibility for those things and we make our changes. But, you know, again, we can go back to the days of hot tubs and [former Gov.] John Rowland if they want to.”

As for the Waterbury case, Duff said that Connecticut needs more oversight over home schooling to make sure that it isn’t used to hide kids who are being abused.