Does MSM KNOW ABOUT CPS AND CASA ABUSE AND NEGLECT?
This story came out of Austin:
CPS: Protecting Children or Destroying Families?
BY JORDAN SMITH
Robin Cash
Photo By John AndersonRobin Cash is on a mission: to win a battle against the state’s Child Protective Services arm of the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services. The department, she charges, is doing more harm than good to Texas families and their children. “Don’t get me wrong, we need CPS, there are children who are really abused,” she said. “But there are also a lot of abuses in the system that need to be addressed.” To Cash, those abuses include under-trained caseworkers, caseworkers lying in court documents, kids being sent to unqualified therapists, and parents who are railroaded into relinquishing their parental rights.
Two months ago Cash placed an ad in the Chronicle. “Do you feel CPS has hurt your family?” it read. “Do you have concerns about your children and the system?” Cash says she was overwhelmed by the response. “I got 1,000 e-mails in the first week.” From that one ad arose a new parents advocacy group: Parents Get United, composed of parents who, like Cash, feel the CPS system is in need of reform. Through meeting with other parents, Cash said she has learned that her struggle with CPS is, unfortunately, not that unusual.
Cash’s version of her own experience is harrowing. In January 2000, Cash told the Chronicle, she was trying to get herself and her two twin boys out of an abusive home. She asked her pastor to care for her kids while she got a protective order against her common-law husband. But before she could do so, Cash was arrested on charges filed by her husband — who had gone to the police first, claiming she had hit him. Cash says her husband was already a two-time loser, potentially facing a long stint in jail as a result of their most recent fight. This time Cash had actually fought back. “So, he had to beat me to the paperwork,” she said. Cash spent four days in jail, while her sister called CPS to see if there were any services they could provide to help Cash and her children get things together on their own.
According to Cash, instead of offering help, a CPS caseworker came to her pastor’s house, told him Cash would be in jail for at least four months (although she was scheduled to be released that day), and took the kids into CPS custody. Cash began a protracted fight to get her kids back, she said, thus far to no avail. Her parental rights have since been taken away, and she hasn’t seen her boys in months.
“If you don’t think this is ripping my heart out … I’ve got to do something,” she said. In response to her Chronicle ad, Cash has been contacted by parents, lawyers, an investigator from the human rights commission, even a former CPS caseworker — all agreeing that CPS needs taming. “This is a wide, sweeping problem across the country, and Texas has its share,” said Chuck Ragland, a former CPS caseworker in Van Zandt County. “And we are seeing a groundswell of parents getting upset.” Ragland spent eight years as a caseworker and says he saw so many problems with the system that he dedicated his last three years with CPS to “making a concerted effort to try and figure out exactly what is going on.” What he saw, he says, was troubling: caseworkers falsifying documents and removing children from families for very little, if any, cause. “They feel like they are above the law because they are doing something noble,” he said. “They think, we might make some mistakes, but so what?”
To Aaron Reed, CPS spokesman for the Central Texas region, the allegations are frustrating. “Mostly we get accused of not taking enough action,” Reed said, citing two Central Texas child deaths in the past two weeks, in families where CPS had made contact but had not removed the children. Reed says the charges of caseworker misconduct and railroading of families are inaccurate. “There’s a law against perjury,” he said. “When a caseworker is sworn in [by the court], it is just as any other witness, they are bound by the law.” Reed said the agency now uses a more proactive model of trying to assess at-risk families and take action before abuses occur, but he doesn’t believe this leads to more mistakes by caseworkers. The agency tries to identify at-risk families by a host of objectives, he said, most notably by reviewing abuse- and neglect-related deaths. “We look at those to see what factors are common between them and identify behaviors that place families at risk,” he said. “It’s not perfect, but it’s a better system and a fairly accurate system. If we err, we would prefer to err on the side of safety.”
Reed estimates that in the 30-county Central Texas region, CPS removes from their homes about 100 children per month. During 2000, in Travis County alone, there were 1,653 CPS confirmed cases of child abuse or neglect, and CPS spent $13.8 million on foster care services. Numbers for 2001 will not be ready until next month, but the problem is not disappearing.
To Cash and Ragland, the agency’s mistakes have gotten out of control, and they place some of the blame on the agency’s “at-risk” focus. “A lot of the caseworkers are trained with the mindset that there are all these problem families, and they are out to get them,” Ragland said. While Cash and Ragland agree that CPS serves a vital function, they believe the strong emphasis on at-risk situations — largely found among low-income and minority families — puts some healthy families, or families actively trying to better their situations, at an even bigger risk. Ragland adds that since federal grant funding has become increasingly tied to at-risk management in lower-income families, CPS’s focus has become more of a funding necessity. “Listen to the storm,” he said. “You’ll see a pattern. Their responsibilities have become way too broad.”
CPS’s Reed and spokeswoman Marla Sheeley say the goal of the agency is to protect children and, in every possible situation, keep families together. “The first thing we do,” said Sheeley, “is make every reasonable effort to keep children in the home or to return the child to the home.”
Cash, Ragland, and the other parents and advocates involved in Parents Get United say they are in the fight for the long haul, and the group has been meeting with a group of state legislators interested in CPS reform. “They want to know what, really, the true issues are as a foundation for their work and what issues need to be added to legislation,” said Ragland. “Really, for things to change, and to stop the corruption, the whole system really needs to be turned on its head.”
Well, now that they know the true nature of CPS and CASA, will things change?
Shit no, this story was written in 2001 and is as relevant today as it was 9 long years ago, but don’t expect Texas to make any changes until they get their asses sued off.
http://www.flds.ws/2009/12/06/does-msm-know-about-cps-and-casa-abuse-and-neglect/
Isabella Brooke Knightly and Austin Gamez-Knightly
In Memory of my Loving Husband, William F. Knightly Jr. Murdered by ILLEGAL Palliative Care at a Nashua, NH Hospital
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy
Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy
How should teachers punish your children? What if your child has special needs? News 3 has uncovered a case where a special needs child was punished when her teacher would shut her in the bathroom with the lights out on several different occasions.
Posted: 7:57 PM Dec 8, 2009
Reporter: Shannon Dillon
Email Address: dillon@kbtx.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy
Story 19 Comments Font Size: Kiersten Jordy is like most 7-year-olds, but in many ways she's not. Doctors have diagnosed Kiersten with mental retardation and carries traits of autism and Down's Syndrome. Doctors also say Kiersten may never have a classic diagnosis. Larry and Janet Jordy say their daughter can't speak in full sentences and is only able to communicate a word or two. The Jordy's say they were surprised to learn in late May 2009, that their daughter's teacher, Sharon Figueron, put Kiersten in a dark, closed restroom as a form of timeout.
"We would never, never agree with putting her in a dark bathroom, there's nothing right about that," said Larry Jordy.
Progress reports of Kiersten's daily activities were sent home weekly for the Jordys to sign. However, the Jordy's say they were aware of Kiersten being placed in timeout but not being put in a dark, closed restroom as timeout.
"Honestly I don't remember signing it or reading it. Maybe I talked to her about it. Did I tell her it was okay? Absolutely not. I'm sure I would not just let it go," said Janet Jordy.
According to a 16 page document released by a Certified Hearing Examiner, the Jordy's found out about the restroom punishment from a Bonham Elementary teacher's aide. The report says on May 13, 2009, the aide went to get Kiersten for inclusion class and found her in the restroom with the lights out. After learning of the restroom punishment, the Jordy's filed a complaint with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) on June 1, just one day before Bryan I.S.D. administrators received information that the restroom had been used as timeout for Kiersten.
Progress notes written by Figueron show the dark, closed restroom was used as punishment on February 12, 2009 as well. Figueron wrote, "I put her sitting on the bathroom and shut the door. To make it short, she (student) turned the light on, got a mat, opened the door and constantly defied me. We then had a snack, and I left her sitting there watching us and told her she couldn't have one. The snacks were for the children that listened and behaved."
The Hearing Examiner's report also said progress notes Kiersten was placed in the restroom as a consequence for behaviors on May 12, 2009 and May 15, 2009. Based on the February 12, 2009 progress note the TEA initiated a complaint of suspected child abuse to the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services.
The Jordy's say regardless of when Bryan I.S.D. administrators found out about the incidents they would have still filed a complaint with the TEA. The Jordy's say the district dropped the ball by not taking enough action after the Jordy's say they withdrew a May 2008 complaint with the TEA at the request of the school district. The Jordy's say during the 2007-2009 school years Kiersten was a student at Bonham Elementary, the school district has made broken promises that the situation between Kiersten and her teacher would improve. Shortly, after filing their complaint with the TEA the Jordy's sought legal counsel.
"I think the public should know the administration was pretty much prepared to sweep it under the rug," said the Jordy's attorney, Ty Clevenger.
"We certainly didn't try to sweep it under the rug. We moved forward on it in a very fast moving way," said Bryan I.S.D. Superintendent, Mike Cargill.
While the TEA was investigating the restroom incidents, Bryan I.S.D. also launched its own investigation. In April 2009, Bryan I.S.D. hired a consultant to help Figueron in developing behavior modification strategies for Kiersten. The hearing examiner's report says the consultant provided training on the behavior plan that was implemented and modeled appropriate behavior for Figueron. The consultant did not recommend the use of timeout, and Figueron did not discuss her use of timeout with Kiersten with the consultant. The report also shows Figueron received training in August 2007 and July 2008 on positive behavior intervention strategies, including required procedures for using timeout as a behavior strategy with disabled children. Figueron also received training on instructional interventions for students exhibiting non-compliant behavior and de-escalating techniques.
On July 31st, a hearing examiner recommended the school board terminate Figueron's contract. The investigation showed their was no legitimate reason for Figueron to place Kiersten in a restroom as Figueron described to have a "few minutes to eat lunch."
The TEA found that Figueron violated her term contract, board policies and directives of the Texas Administrative Code by "placing a mentally retarded child with limited speech capabilities in the restroom for timeout behavior consequences and shutting the door."
On October 28th, Figueron's termination was finalized. News 3 spoke to Figueron and her attorney, and both say she should not have lost her job. Figueron's attorney says she is being used as a scapegoat because Bryan I.S.D. did not provide her with information as far as training on how to handle timeout situations specifically involving Kiersten. Figueron's attorney said the consultant Bryan I.S.D. hired in April 2009 never addressed the timeout method Figueron should use with Kiersten. Her attorney also said Figueron was not aware she was breaking the Texas Administrative Code by using a dark, closed restroom as punishment for Kiersten.
Meanwhile, the Jordy's say Figueron's termination is not their biggest concern.
"We're already having to deal with the counseling and everything for Kiersten and so we can't go backwards to help that. But maybe we can help the one child who might be struggling through the same thing that can't talk like Kiersten," said Janet Jordy.
The Jordy's say this whole ordeal has had a severe impact on Kiersten. Because she's now afraid of the dark and can't sleep alone at night. In early December, the Jordy's removed Kiersten from Bonham Elementary and enrolled her in another school.
Sharon Figueron is not eligible to be re-hired in Bryan I.S.D. although she has 15 years of experience in education, and 10 years with Bryan I.S.D. Her attorney says since she was terminated she hasn't taken any legal action, and will "move on with her life."
Meanwhile, the TEA said the procedures Bryan I.S.D. took in handling the matter were properly done.
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/78830752.html?storySection=story
How should teachers punish your children? What if your child has special needs? News 3 has uncovered a case where a special needs child was punished when her teacher would shut her in the bathroom with the lights out on several different occasions.
Posted: 7:57 PM Dec 8, 2009
Reporter: Shannon Dillon
Email Address: dillon@kbtx.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Special Needs Student Put in Restroom Timeout Sparks Controversy
Story 19 Comments Font Size: Kiersten Jordy is like most 7-year-olds, but in many ways she's not. Doctors have diagnosed Kiersten with mental retardation and carries traits of autism and Down's Syndrome. Doctors also say Kiersten may never have a classic diagnosis. Larry and Janet Jordy say their daughter can't speak in full sentences and is only able to communicate a word or two. The Jordy's say they were surprised to learn in late May 2009, that their daughter's teacher, Sharon Figueron, put Kiersten in a dark, closed restroom as a form of timeout.
"We would never, never agree with putting her in a dark bathroom, there's nothing right about that," said Larry Jordy.
Progress reports of Kiersten's daily activities were sent home weekly for the Jordys to sign. However, the Jordy's say they were aware of Kiersten being placed in timeout but not being put in a dark, closed restroom as timeout.
"Honestly I don't remember signing it or reading it. Maybe I talked to her about it. Did I tell her it was okay? Absolutely not. I'm sure I would not just let it go," said Janet Jordy.
According to a 16 page document released by a Certified Hearing Examiner, the Jordy's found out about the restroom punishment from a Bonham Elementary teacher's aide. The report says on May 13, 2009, the aide went to get Kiersten for inclusion class and found her in the restroom with the lights out. After learning of the restroom punishment, the Jordy's filed a complaint with the Texas Education Agency (TEA) on June 1, just one day before Bryan I.S.D. administrators received information that the restroom had been used as timeout for Kiersten.
Progress notes written by Figueron show the dark, closed restroom was used as punishment on February 12, 2009 as well. Figueron wrote, "I put her sitting on the bathroom and shut the door. To make it short, she (student) turned the light on, got a mat, opened the door and constantly defied me. We then had a snack, and I left her sitting there watching us and told her she couldn't have one. The snacks were for the children that listened and behaved."
The Hearing Examiner's report also said progress notes Kiersten was placed in the restroom as a consequence for behaviors on May 12, 2009 and May 15, 2009. Based on the February 12, 2009 progress note the TEA initiated a complaint of suspected child abuse to the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services.
The Jordy's say regardless of when Bryan I.S.D. administrators found out about the incidents they would have still filed a complaint with the TEA. The Jordy's say the district dropped the ball by not taking enough action after the Jordy's say they withdrew a May 2008 complaint with the TEA at the request of the school district. The Jordy's say during the 2007-2009 school years Kiersten was a student at Bonham Elementary, the school district has made broken promises that the situation between Kiersten and her teacher would improve. Shortly, after filing their complaint with the TEA the Jordy's sought legal counsel.
"I think the public should know the administration was pretty much prepared to sweep it under the rug," said the Jordy's attorney, Ty Clevenger.
"We certainly didn't try to sweep it under the rug. We moved forward on it in a very fast moving way," said Bryan I.S.D. Superintendent, Mike Cargill.
While the TEA was investigating the restroom incidents, Bryan I.S.D. also launched its own investigation. In April 2009, Bryan I.S.D. hired a consultant to help Figueron in developing behavior modification strategies for Kiersten. The hearing examiner's report says the consultant provided training on the behavior plan that was implemented and modeled appropriate behavior for Figueron. The consultant did not recommend the use of timeout, and Figueron did not discuss her use of timeout with Kiersten with the consultant. The report also shows Figueron received training in August 2007 and July 2008 on positive behavior intervention strategies, including required procedures for using timeout as a behavior strategy with disabled children. Figueron also received training on instructional interventions for students exhibiting non-compliant behavior and de-escalating techniques.
On July 31st, a hearing examiner recommended the school board terminate Figueron's contract. The investigation showed their was no legitimate reason for Figueron to place Kiersten in a restroom as Figueron described to have a "few minutes to eat lunch."
The TEA found that Figueron violated her term contract, board policies and directives of the Texas Administrative Code by "placing a mentally retarded child with limited speech capabilities in the restroom for timeout behavior consequences and shutting the door."
On October 28th, Figueron's termination was finalized. News 3 spoke to Figueron and her attorney, and both say she should not have lost her job. Figueron's attorney says she is being used as a scapegoat because Bryan I.S.D. did not provide her with information as far as training on how to handle timeout situations specifically involving Kiersten. Figueron's attorney said the consultant Bryan I.S.D. hired in April 2009 never addressed the timeout method Figueron should use with Kiersten. Her attorney also said Figueron was not aware she was breaking the Texas Administrative Code by using a dark, closed restroom as punishment for Kiersten.
Meanwhile, the Jordy's say Figueron's termination is not their biggest concern.
"We're already having to deal with the counseling and everything for Kiersten and so we can't go backwards to help that. But maybe we can help the one child who might be struggling through the same thing that can't talk like Kiersten," said Janet Jordy.
The Jordy's say this whole ordeal has had a severe impact on Kiersten. Because she's now afraid of the dark and can't sleep alone at night. In early December, the Jordy's removed Kiersten from Bonham Elementary and enrolled her in another school.
Sharon Figueron is not eligible to be re-hired in Bryan I.S.D. although she has 15 years of experience in education, and 10 years with Bryan I.S.D. Her attorney says since she was terminated she hasn't taken any legal action, and will "move on with her life."
Meanwhile, the TEA said the procedures Bryan I.S.D. took in handling the matter were properly done.
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/78830752.html?storySection=story
Toddler's death a blow to family, child welfare guardians
Toddler's death a blow to family, child welfare guardians
BY JAMES BURGER, Californian staff writer
jburger@bakersfield.com | Saturday, Nov 28 2009 07:00 PM
Last Updated Saturday, Nov 28 2009 08:22 PM
Seventeen children died in Kern County in 2008 and 2009 as a result of abuse or neglect.
A new law allows the public to view details of those deaths.
While public attention often focuses on Child Protective Services when a child dies here, the reports show CPS shares no blame in most of the 17 fatal neglect or abuse cases.
Here's a breakdown:
* In six cases, CPS had not had any previous activity in the deceased child's life.
* In five cases, the agency had contact with the family but social workers did not make mistakes and did not have any indication children were in mortal danger.
* In three cases, CPS' involvement is not clear because final reports from law enforcement are pending.
But social workers did make mistakes in three cases where children died. And at least two social workers lost their jobs.
Fighting the abuse or neglect they do hear about is the daily life of Kern County social workers.
Those in the Emergency Response division -- the front-line team that investigates abuse reports -- carry an average load of 17 to 19 cases.
That caseload should be about 12 per social worker, according to the Child Welfare League of America.
But to get there, the Department of Human Services would have to hire 24 new social workers.
That, said Director Pat Cheadle, isn't going to happen with the state slashing funding each new fiscal year.
So those social workers are left to deal, as best they can, with an everlasting flow of new cases.
In 2008, according to DHS reports, workers investigated an average of 1,196 cases a month.
In 38 percent of those cases, the allegations of abuse or neglect were found to be true.
Cheadle said Senate Bill 39 allows her to tell the positive stories of her division's work too.
"They need to be recognized for the difficult job they have to do," she said.
The price on social workers is high, said Bethany Christman, who recently retired as assistant director of Child Protective Services.
"We have serious death threats that come up against staff. We've had staff that have had serious dog attacks," Christman said. "Many of them, the very next day, they're out there again."
Former Emergency Response training supervisor Howie Acosta, who lost his job in 2008 as part of a review of the death of Reanna Alderette, said social workers believe in what they do and fight on despite the dark truth that they can't save every child.
Social workers don't like to acknowledge that truth, Christman said, and when a child dies it's a blow to every social worker.
"Social workers feel they can save everybody," she said. "There are some you just can't prevent."
But Acosta said social workers continue their work because it would be worse not to have them on the streets.
"Because they are not super-human, some children will still fall through the cracks," he said. "But it's better to save some children than none at all."
- Staff writer James Burger
Images:
Alex Horvath
Alex Horvath / The Californian Pat Cheadle, director of the Kern County Department of Human Services. Juan Pilar is still haunted by a 2-year-old girl he never met.
Reanna Marie Alderette's battered body was found in her grandmother's home on June 1, 2008, amid piles of filth, dog feces and rotting food.
Pilar was supposed to be the cherub-faced toddler's guardian.
But he didn't find Alderette in time. It cost him his job at the Kern County Department of Human Services.
"I think about this every day," said the 35-year-old custodian-turned-social worker. "Even though I didn't see the kid, but I picture a little Hispanic girl."
Reanna's death and its aftermath offer a rare glimpse into how this county's child guardians grapple with the loss of someone they are tasked with protecting.
The information is based on reports that a new law has made public plus rare, candid interviews with the social workers involved and their bosses.
THE BEGINNING
Bakersfield Police Department burglary detectives discovered more than a burglary suspect when they tracked down Crispin Alderette at his home in November 2007.
They found Alderette and his girlfriend, Jessica Alvarez, living with their four children in conditions similar to those they'd find daughter Reanna's body in six months later.
Trash was everywhere and there was "practically no food or facilities to care for the children," police reports state.
A kitchen knife was hidden blade-up among piles of clothes. The toilet didn't work. Alvarez said the home was in disarray because Alderette had lost his job and they were being evicted.
Police told Alvarez the children could not stay there.
She begged them not to call Kern County Child Protective Services, reports state.
They didn't - at least not immediately.
Police gave the children to Alvarez's mother, Margo Vasquez, who had shown up during the arrest. She took them home.
Bakersfield police Detective Mary DeGeare said the detectives were trying to deal with a terrible situation and felt that Vasquez was truly eager to keep the children safe.
In hindsight, she said, the detectives might have been wise to check Vasquez’s home and background.
“They (trusted) that this was a better choice, to leave them with a seemingly caring grandmother,” DeGeare said.
Police instead made a referral to Child Protective Services several days later.
Juan Pilar was assigned that referral.
"UNABLE TO LOCATE"
Pilar was a fresh new recruit to CPS' emergency response team in late November 2007 when the referral landed in his computer in-box.
He had just graduated from college and been on the job for about six months.
Pilar needed to check that the children were safe and that the home was habitable and wrap up the referral within 30 days of his first contact with the children.
He didn't yet have the police report on the case. But he did have another experienced social worker with him.
They couldn't find the family.
Alvarez said that was because her boyfriend was in jail and she had moved in with her aunt.
When a social worker is unable to find a family, there is an "unable to locate" protocol the social worker must follow before a case can be closed.
Pilar visited the home three or four times. He left his card and literature about how the family could receive help.
He got no response.
So Pilar took his completed "unable-to-locate" protocol on the case to his boss for review.
BOUNCED BACK
Howard "Howie" Acosta, Pilar's training supervisor, was a popular and respected 16-year veteran social worker in emergency response in December 2007. He had helped write the "unable to locate" protocol for emergency response.
When Pilar came back to him with a completed "unable to locate" protocol, Acosta reviewed it and noticed the rookie had missed something. The police report noted the children had been placed at the Vasquez home.
Pilar would later say he missed it in the dense, unique verbiage of police reports.
"I don't remember seeing the address," Pilar said.
Acosta gave him the address and told Pilar to push harder on the case.
Then he gave Pilar an extra resource: a paternal great-grandmother who might have more information about the family's circumstances.
Pilar misunderstood Acosta's advice.
WRONG GRANDMOTHER
When Pilar started searching for the family again, he focused on the home of the great-grandmother Acosta had mentioned.
It was the wrong home.
Once again, Pilar completed an unable-to-locate protocol.
Once again he brought it back to Acosta.
And for a second time the pair miscommunicated.
Acosta asked Pilar if he had checked the grandmother's home. Pilar, thinking Acosta meant the great-grandmother's residence, answered that he had.
Pursuit of the apparently routine case had, by now, lingered well into the new year and Acosta said he knew he was going to have to explain the delay to his boss.
He closed the case in March without checking the final contacts Pilar had made.
That, Acosta said, was the mistake he'll have to live with for the rest of his life.
In June, Reanna Alderette was found dead in the Vasquez home.
TERMINATED
"My first thought was, 'What could I have done different?'" Pilar said. "Am I responsible?"
Department of Human Services Director Pat Cheadle, who had taken the top job less than a year before, had the same question about Pilar and Acosta.
"Initially my feelings were that the infraction was enough to take action alone," Cheadle said.
But her top brass in CPS wasn't sure, Cheadle said.
Cheadle ordered a review of the two employees' overall error rates to clear up the issue.
Acosta told his supervisors what they would find before they did the six-month audit: mistakes. A lot of mistakes.
Department figures show average social worker caseloads in emergency response hover around 50 percent higher than what is recommended by the Child Welfare League of America.
Acosta said mistakes are unavoidable.
As he remembers it, the audit found an average of 16.7 mistakes per month in his work.
Those errors included failing to check with other Department of Human Services divisions on referrals, missing interviews with extended family members and spelling errors, Acosta said.
None of the mistakes triggered a re-review of any of his other cases, he said.
But his employment was terminated.
When he appealed his firing to the Civil Service Commission, Acosta said, three other supervisors "fell on their swords" for him and admitted higher error rates than his.
The commission still voted down his appeal.
UNFORGIVABLE
Cheadle said Acosta's mistake on the Alderette case cost him his job.
In light of the heavy caseloads social workers face, Cheadle said, she has told her staff some errors are forgivable.
But there are unforgivable errors, too, she said.
Cheadle said she doesn't believe closing a case on an "unable to locate" protocol is justified if the social worker hasn't followed up on all the information they have about where the family might be.
Cheadle said this case was her first major child death incident as director of Human Services.
"Nothing before and nothing after that has risen to the same level as this case," Cheadle said.
Acosta said Cheadle, aware of the criticism her predecessor Beverly Beasley-Johnson suffered as a result of high-profile child death cases, completed an unfair review of his work in order to justify his termination.
"There's never been an audit like the one they did on me and they've never done one since," he said.
FALLOUT
Cheadle acknowledges that the impact of a popular department leader's termination has sent ripples through Child Protective Services.
"There's an impact to the entire organization. They're wondering, 'Could I be next?'" Cheadle said. "We tell them we can't compromise."
She sees her tough stance in this case as evidence everyone will be held accountable.
"It's not our intent to create an environment of fear," Cheadle said. "The unknown, sometimes, creates fear. When you start to remind staff that the ratio of major disciplinary actions to child deaths is minor, that fear goes down."
When the Child Welfare League of America was hired to audit the Department of Human Services' troubled Child Protective Services function under Beasley-Johnson, staff felt there was no accountability, Cheadle said.
Morale was low because some people were treated differently, she said.
Cheadle feels accountability has returned and that has "helped steady the organization."
Acosta said people are being disciplined because the system is too overloaded to work well.
"This isn't about people's incompetence," he said. "This about people not being superhuman."
NO CLOSURE
Juan Pilar never found out exactly how Reanna Alderette died.
Coroners ruled the case a homicide.
"On the autopsy it said blunt force trauma to the stomach" as if Reanna had been kicked or kneed, Jessica Alvarez said. "I wasn't there so I'm not sure."
She said she was still living with her aunt at the time.
Alvarez said her family told her Reanna vomited and died in her sleep.
No one has been charged with a crime in Reanna's death.
But Alvarez said their family is living with the price of her loss.
Her three other children, all boys, remain in the custody of the courts.
She goes to court next month in the hopes of earning the right to live with them again.
"It's been hell for me and my boyfriend," she said. "I miss my daughter."
Pilar, meanwhile, was allowed to resign from Kern County CPS.
He and his 11-year-old daughter have left Kern County and he has a new job as a social worker.
But the little girl he never met still lives in the back of his mind, making him question everything he does.
"It's still haunting me," he said.
THE CASES
Sadly, the deaths of 17 children in 2008 and 2009 can be summed up in numbers.
Three died in tragic accidents parental responsibility might have avoided.
One was smothered while sharing an adult's bed.
One drowned.
Details of two deaths remain a public mystery pending the release of law enforcement reports.
And the other 10 children were killed -- five reportedly by a parent's boyfriend or girlfriend, one by a parent and four by unknown hands.
All died because someone abused or neglected them.
Here are their stories, based on reports by police, social workers, coroner's officials and the media:
MURDER CASES
These children died, according to law enforcement and Child Protective Services investigations, because someone chose to end their lives.
Name: Kayli Bearden
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 26, 2008
Kayli died from blunt-force trauma to the skull. Father Matt Bearden had left his daughter with his girlfriend, Melissa Blanchard. Police reports say Blanchard admitted causing the trauma while he was gone. She's being tried on charges of second-degree murder and assault by a custodian.
Name: Guillermo Gonzalez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 31, 2008
Josue Daniel Palma Herrera has been charged with first-degree murder of girlfriend Sabrina Romero's son, Guillermo, in Shafter. Guillermo died from head injuries. A trial for Herrera is scheduled to begin in January.
Name: Nadely Gutierrez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Nov. 12, 2008
Nadely died from blunt-force trauma to the head. Her mother, Kassandra Bailey, and Bailey's boyfriend, Victor Morales, initially told police the child jumped from her bed and landed on her head while both adults were with her. Bailey later admitted she had been at work and been called home by Morales, who was watching Nadely. Morales had told her the child was Ill. Morales is awaiting trial on charges of second-degree murder and assault by a custodian. Bailey pleaded no contest in May to charges of being an accessory to a crime and served two days in jail.
Name: Kevin Michael King
Age: 5 years
Date of death: March 8, 2009
Kevin died from blunt-force trauma to his body that ruptured his heart and liver. Police reports say his adopted mother, Gloria Grayson, admitted to losing her temper with Kevin while he was eating dinner, grabbing him by the throat and shoving him down the hallway to the bathroom. Grayson later contacted 911 and Kevin was taken to the hospital, where he died. Grayson has been charged with second-degree murder and assault by a custodian and is scheduled to be tried by a jury in March.
Name: Ayonna Thompson
Age: 6 months
Date of death: Nov. 18, 2009
Ayonna died as a result of blows to her head delivered by Roman Ray Brand, her mother's boyfriend, because the child was crying and he was tired, Brand admitted to KBAK Channel 29. Brand is scheduled to be arraigned on second-degree murder and assault by a custodian charges Monday. Kern County Child Protective Services has not yet issued a report on this case under the rules of Senate Bill 39.
AN UNKNOWN HAND
These children were intentionally killed, according to law enforcement and Child Protective Services investigations. But police have have not arrested anyone.
Name: Anthony Angel De La Rosa
Age: 4 months
Date of death: March 30, 2008
Child Protective Services ruled the death was a result of abuse or neglect. The coroner's office ruled the cause of death unknown. The child's mother was at the store when the father said he checked the child and found him lying on a toy car. The father later said he threw the child up in the air, failed to catch him and the child landed on the television. Police checked the television and did not find that dust on the television had been disturbed. No arrest has been made, according to Child Protective Services.
Name: Isabella Tran
Age: 1 year
Date of death: May 28, 2008
Isabella died from blunt-force trauma to the head, delivered in an unknown manner. More information about this case was not available through Child Protective Services.
Name: Arianna Cuevas
Age: 3 months
Date of death: Dec. 8, 2008
Arianna was rushed to the hospital Dec. 4 after her mother, Claudia Cuevas, left her with a friend to go shopping. Cuevas returned to pick up her daughter after the babysitter called her and told her there was a problem with Arianna. Cuevas found her daughter in distress and called 911. The child died four days later at Children's Hospital of Central California in Madera. The coroner later ruled the child died of blunt-force trauma to the back of the head. The cause of those injuries remains a mystery and no suspects have been identified.
Name: Karlyn Audrey Mae Uribe
Age: 5 weeks
Date of death: Jan. 26, 2009
Karlyn died at Tehachapi Hospital in January. Kern County sheriff's investigators couldn't find enough evidence of foul play to convince the Kern County District Attorney's office to prosecute any of the three adults who were with the child around the time they believe she was injured.
Kern County Child Protective Services closed the case, pending a final report from the Kern County coroner's office. The coroner's office took its time with the case, calling in independent consultants from Stanford University to inspect Karlyn's remains and double-check opinions.
Nine months later, in September, the report came back stating that Karlyn was killed. She had four broken ribs and multiple hemorrhages on her brain that were inflicted within the hours that led up to her death. Sheriff's officials said they were aware of the injuries in the initial coroner's report and that there is still not enough evidence to charge anyone.
ACCIDENT AND NEGLECT
These deaths were terrible accidents, but CPS ruled the adults involved made serious judgment errors that resulted in the accident or complicated the situation after the fact.
Name: Maryonna Wooten
Age: 1 month
Date of death: July 12, 2008
Maryonna Wooten's mother left her child with the child's uncle Charles Wooten while she and others visited a party, police reports say. Wooten said he fell asleep, drunk, on his couch and woke up when a neighbor knocked at the door. When he turned around, Wooten said, he saw Maryonna bleeding on the couch and summoned medical help. "It was an accident, but there was some things we as a family could have done to prevent it," he told reporters. No charges have been brought in the case. The cause of death is undetermined. Reports say the soft part of the child's head was swollen and there was blood coming out of her nose.
Name: Carl Deloney
Age: 5 months
Date of death: Dec. 18, 2008
Carl was a foster child living with Oswaldo and Luz Peralta. He died while in the care of Oswaldo Peralta. Peralta tripped on a piece of carpet Dec. 15 while holding the child and attempting to throw Carl away from him so he would not fall on and crush the infant. Instead the child hit the floor head-first. The impact resulted in his death days later at Children's Hospital of Central California in Madera. The case was ruled neglect because Oswaldo Peralta called his wife before calling for medical help, and later lied to police about the causes of Carl's injuries.
Name: Ruben Soto Jr.
Age: 2 years
Date of death: May 27, 2009
Ruben Soto Jr. died when a single hollowpoint bullet from his father's Glock handgun hit him in the chest. The 2-year-old and his 3-year-old sister, Ariana, had found the weapon under their parents' mattress. Arianna pulled the weapon out and pulled the trigger. Ruben was hit and later died. Usually their father, Ruben Cirilo Soto, pulled the gun out from under the mattress each morning, locked it up and put it away on a high shelf in his closet. On May 27 he forgot to put away the weapon. After Ruben's death, Soto surrendered all of his weapons and moved to his father's home to get his family away from the rough neighborhood.
Name: Edward Shotwell
Age: 6 weeks
Date of death: July 26, 2009
No other information was available through Child Protective Services because completion of reports is still pending.
Name: Edgar Munoz
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 19, 2009
The young boy drowned. No other information was available through Child Protective Services reports, pending the release of a coroner’s report.
MISTAKES
Child Protective Services missed a step or two in their processes that could have made a difference in these cases. There is no way to know if the child would have lived if the social workers had not made the mistakes.
Name: Reanna Marie Alderette
Age: 2 years
Date of death: June 1, 2008
Reanna died at the home of her maternal grandparents, Margo and Cesar Vasquez. The cause of death was blunt-force trauma to the body. The child and her three siblings moved in with the Vasquezes after Bakersfield police found them living in filthy, unsafe conditions with their mother and father, Jessica Alvarez and Crispin Alderette, in November 2007 while looking for Alderette on unrelated burglary charges. Social workers failed to locate the children at their grandmother's home. The grandparents' home was in similar condition when Reanna died in June. There have been no arrests in Reanna's death.
Name: Alena Breann Garcia
Age: 2 months
Date of death: Feb. 20, 2009
Two-month-old Alena Garcia was smothered in February while sleeping with her mother, Brenda Plata, who had been using methamphetamine and marijuana, Child Protective Services officials said. Plata placed her daughter on her belly next to her in bed after an early morning feeding and then slept until noon, according to police reports. The child suffocated.
Social workers had counseled the mother repeatedly not to sleep with her newborn after the family was referred to Child Protective Services in late December. Social workers didn't have grounds to pull the children from the home in December, despite the fact the parents were drug users, CPS supervisors said. But workers also didn't promptly check the results of the drug tests the parents agreed to take in December. The results could have justified a follow-up investigation that could have revealed the risks to the child.
Plata was charged with three felony counts of willful cruelty to a child and pleaded no contest to one count. She served 115 days in jail.
Name: Guillermo Alvarez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: June 22, 2009
Guillermo died in June of blunt-force trauma to his body caused by blows that ruptured his spleen. His mother, Gina Serna, had been referred to Child Protective Services three times for neglect -- she had been a heavy drug user and left her children with other people for long stretches of time -- before her son died.
Department of Human Services officials acknowledged that social workers did not do the proper check-up of the mother's new home after the most recent referral and failed to check results of a drug test and assign the case the proper "substantiated" tag.
Kern County sheriff's deputies arrested her then-boyfriend, Joshuae Preston, 28, in Guillermo's death but charges were later dropped.
http://www.bakersfield.com/news/local/x1596957328/Toddlers-death-a-blow-to-family-child-welfare-guardians
BY JAMES BURGER, Californian staff writer
jburger@bakersfield.com | Saturday, Nov 28 2009 07:00 PM
Last Updated Saturday, Nov 28 2009 08:22 PM
Seventeen children died in Kern County in 2008 and 2009 as a result of abuse or neglect.
A new law allows the public to view details of those deaths.
While public attention often focuses on Child Protective Services when a child dies here, the reports show CPS shares no blame in most of the 17 fatal neglect or abuse cases.
Here's a breakdown:
* In six cases, CPS had not had any previous activity in the deceased child's life.
* In five cases, the agency had contact with the family but social workers did not make mistakes and did not have any indication children were in mortal danger.
* In three cases, CPS' involvement is not clear because final reports from law enforcement are pending.
But social workers did make mistakes in three cases where children died. And at least two social workers lost their jobs.
Fighting the abuse or neglect they do hear about is the daily life of Kern County social workers.
Those in the Emergency Response division -- the front-line team that investigates abuse reports -- carry an average load of 17 to 19 cases.
That caseload should be about 12 per social worker, according to the Child Welfare League of America.
But to get there, the Department of Human Services would have to hire 24 new social workers.
That, said Director Pat Cheadle, isn't going to happen with the state slashing funding each new fiscal year.
So those social workers are left to deal, as best they can, with an everlasting flow of new cases.
In 2008, according to DHS reports, workers investigated an average of 1,196 cases a month.
In 38 percent of those cases, the allegations of abuse or neglect were found to be true.
Cheadle said Senate Bill 39 allows her to tell the positive stories of her division's work too.
"They need to be recognized for the difficult job they have to do," she said.
The price on social workers is high, said Bethany Christman, who recently retired as assistant director of Child Protective Services.
"We have serious death threats that come up against staff. We've had staff that have had serious dog attacks," Christman said. "Many of them, the very next day, they're out there again."
Former Emergency Response training supervisor Howie Acosta, who lost his job in 2008 as part of a review of the death of Reanna Alderette, said social workers believe in what they do and fight on despite the dark truth that they can't save every child.
Social workers don't like to acknowledge that truth, Christman said, and when a child dies it's a blow to every social worker.
"Social workers feel they can save everybody," she said. "There are some you just can't prevent."
But Acosta said social workers continue their work because it would be worse not to have them on the streets.
"Because they are not super-human, some children will still fall through the cracks," he said. "But it's better to save some children than none at all."
- Staff writer James Burger
Images:
Alex Horvath
Alex Horvath / The Californian Pat Cheadle, director of the Kern County Department of Human Services. Juan Pilar is still haunted by a 2-year-old girl he never met.
Reanna Marie Alderette's battered body was found in her grandmother's home on June 1, 2008, amid piles of filth, dog feces and rotting food.
Pilar was supposed to be the cherub-faced toddler's guardian.
But he didn't find Alderette in time. It cost him his job at the Kern County Department of Human Services.
"I think about this every day," said the 35-year-old custodian-turned-social worker. "Even though I didn't see the kid, but I picture a little Hispanic girl."
Reanna's death and its aftermath offer a rare glimpse into how this county's child guardians grapple with the loss of someone they are tasked with protecting.
The information is based on reports that a new law has made public plus rare, candid interviews with the social workers involved and their bosses.
THE BEGINNING
Bakersfield Police Department burglary detectives discovered more than a burglary suspect when they tracked down Crispin Alderette at his home in November 2007.
They found Alderette and his girlfriend, Jessica Alvarez, living with their four children in conditions similar to those they'd find daughter Reanna's body in six months later.
Trash was everywhere and there was "practically no food or facilities to care for the children," police reports state.
A kitchen knife was hidden blade-up among piles of clothes. The toilet didn't work. Alvarez said the home was in disarray because Alderette had lost his job and they were being evicted.
Police told Alvarez the children could not stay there.
She begged them not to call Kern County Child Protective Services, reports state.
They didn't - at least not immediately.
Police gave the children to Alvarez's mother, Margo Vasquez, who had shown up during the arrest. She took them home.
Bakersfield police Detective Mary DeGeare said the detectives were trying to deal with a terrible situation and felt that Vasquez was truly eager to keep the children safe.
In hindsight, she said, the detectives might have been wise to check Vasquez’s home and background.
“They (trusted) that this was a better choice, to leave them with a seemingly caring grandmother,” DeGeare said.
Police instead made a referral to Child Protective Services several days later.
Juan Pilar was assigned that referral.
"UNABLE TO LOCATE"
Pilar was a fresh new recruit to CPS' emergency response team in late November 2007 when the referral landed in his computer in-box.
He had just graduated from college and been on the job for about six months.
Pilar needed to check that the children were safe and that the home was habitable and wrap up the referral within 30 days of his first contact with the children.
He didn't yet have the police report on the case. But he did have another experienced social worker with him.
They couldn't find the family.
Alvarez said that was because her boyfriend was in jail and she had moved in with her aunt.
When a social worker is unable to find a family, there is an "unable to locate" protocol the social worker must follow before a case can be closed.
Pilar visited the home three or four times. He left his card and literature about how the family could receive help.
He got no response.
So Pilar took his completed "unable-to-locate" protocol on the case to his boss for review.
BOUNCED BACK
Howard "Howie" Acosta, Pilar's training supervisor, was a popular and respected 16-year veteran social worker in emergency response in December 2007. He had helped write the "unable to locate" protocol for emergency response.
When Pilar came back to him with a completed "unable to locate" protocol, Acosta reviewed it and noticed the rookie had missed something. The police report noted the children had been placed at the Vasquez home.
Pilar would later say he missed it in the dense, unique verbiage of police reports.
"I don't remember seeing the address," Pilar said.
Acosta gave him the address and told Pilar to push harder on the case.
Then he gave Pilar an extra resource: a paternal great-grandmother who might have more information about the family's circumstances.
Pilar misunderstood Acosta's advice.
WRONG GRANDMOTHER
When Pilar started searching for the family again, he focused on the home of the great-grandmother Acosta had mentioned.
It was the wrong home.
Once again, Pilar completed an unable-to-locate protocol.
Once again he brought it back to Acosta.
And for a second time the pair miscommunicated.
Acosta asked Pilar if he had checked the grandmother's home. Pilar, thinking Acosta meant the great-grandmother's residence, answered that he had.
Pursuit of the apparently routine case had, by now, lingered well into the new year and Acosta said he knew he was going to have to explain the delay to his boss.
He closed the case in March without checking the final contacts Pilar had made.
That, Acosta said, was the mistake he'll have to live with for the rest of his life.
In June, Reanna Alderette was found dead in the Vasquez home.
TERMINATED
"My first thought was, 'What could I have done different?'" Pilar said. "Am I responsible?"
Department of Human Services Director Pat Cheadle, who had taken the top job less than a year before, had the same question about Pilar and Acosta.
"Initially my feelings were that the infraction was enough to take action alone," Cheadle said.
But her top brass in CPS wasn't sure, Cheadle said.
Cheadle ordered a review of the two employees' overall error rates to clear up the issue.
Acosta told his supervisors what they would find before they did the six-month audit: mistakes. A lot of mistakes.
Department figures show average social worker caseloads in emergency response hover around 50 percent higher than what is recommended by the Child Welfare League of America.
Acosta said mistakes are unavoidable.
As he remembers it, the audit found an average of 16.7 mistakes per month in his work.
Those errors included failing to check with other Department of Human Services divisions on referrals, missing interviews with extended family members and spelling errors, Acosta said.
None of the mistakes triggered a re-review of any of his other cases, he said.
But his employment was terminated.
When he appealed his firing to the Civil Service Commission, Acosta said, three other supervisors "fell on their swords" for him and admitted higher error rates than his.
The commission still voted down his appeal.
UNFORGIVABLE
Cheadle said Acosta's mistake on the Alderette case cost him his job.
In light of the heavy caseloads social workers face, Cheadle said, she has told her staff some errors are forgivable.
But there are unforgivable errors, too, she said.
Cheadle said she doesn't believe closing a case on an "unable to locate" protocol is justified if the social worker hasn't followed up on all the information they have about where the family might be.
Cheadle said this case was her first major child death incident as director of Human Services.
"Nothing before and nothing after that has risen to the same level as this case," Cheadle said.
Acosta said Cheadle, aware of the criticism her predecessor Beverly Beasley-Johnson suffered as a result of high-profile child death cases, completed an unfair review of his work in order to justify his termination.
"There's never been an audit like the one they did on me and they've never done one since," he said.
FALLOUT
Cheadle acknowledges that the impact of a popular department leader's termination has sent ripples through Child Protective Services.
"There's an impact to the entire organization. They're wondering, 'Could I be next?'" Cheadle said. "We tell them we can't compromise."
She sees her tough stance in this case as evidence everyone will be held accountable.
"It's not our intent to create an environment of fear," Cheadle said. "The unknown, sometimes, creates fear. When you start to remind staff that the ratio of major disciplinary actions to child deaths is minor, that fear goes down."
When the Child Welfare League of America was hired to audit the Department of Human Services' troubled Child Protective Services function under Beasley-Johnson, staff felt there was no accountability, Cheadle said.
Morale was low because some people were treated differently, she said.
Cheadle feels accountability has returned and that has "helped steady the organization."
Acosta said people are being disciplined because the system is too overloaded to work well.
"This isn't about people's incompetence," he said. "This about people not being superhuman."
NO CLOSURE
Juan Pilar never found out exactly how Reanna Alderette died.
Coroners ruled the case a homicide.
"On the autopsy it said blunt force trauma to the stomach" as if Reanna had been kicked or kneed, Jessica Alvarez said. "I wasn't there so I'm not sure."
She said she was still living with her aunt at the time.
Alvarez said her family told her Reanna vomited and died in her sleep.
No one has been charged with a crime in Reanna's death.
But Alvarez said their family is living with the price of her loss.
Her three other children, all boys, remain in the custody of the courts.
She goes to court next month in the hopes of earning the right to live with them again.
"It's been hell for me and my boyfriend," she said. "I miss my daughter."
Pilar, meanwhile, was allowed to resign from Kern County CPS.
He and his 11-year-old daughter have left Kern County and he has a new job as a social worker.
But the little girl he never met still lives in the back of his mind, making him question everything he does.
"It's still haunting me," he said.
THE CASES
Sadly, the deaths of 17 children in 2008 and 2009 can be summed up in numbers.
Three died in tragic accidents parental responsibility might have avoided.
One was smothered while sharing an adult's bed.
One drowned.
Details of two deaths remain a public mystery pending the release of law enforcement reports.
And the other 10 children were killed -- five reportedly by a parent's boyfriend or girlfriend, one by a parent and four by unknown hands.
All died because someone abused or neglected them.
Here are their stories, based on reports by police, social workers, coroner's officials and the media:
MURDER CASES
These children died, according to law enforcement and Child Protective Services investigations, because someone chose to end their lives.
Name: Kayli Bearden
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 26, 2008
Kayli died from blunt-force trauma to the skull. Father Matt Bearden had left his daughter with his girlfriend, Melissa Blanchard. Police reports say Blanchard admitted causing the trauma while he was gone. She's being tried on charges of second-degree murder and assault by a custodian.
Name: Guillermo Gonzalez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 31, 2008
Josue Daniel Palma Herrera has been charged with first-degree murder of girlfriend Sabrina Romero's son, Guillermo, in Shafter. Guillermo died from head injuries. A trial for Herrera is scheduled to begin in January.
Name: Nadely Gutierrez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Nov. 12, 2008
Nadely died from blunt-force trauma to the head. Her mother, Kassandra Bailey, and Bailey's boyfriend, Victor Morales, initially told police the child jumped from her bed and landed on her head while both adults were with her. Bailey later admitted she had been at work and been called home by Morales, who was watching Nadely. Morales had told her the child was Ill. Morales is awaiting trial on charges of second-degree murder and assault by a custodian. Bailey pleaded no contest in May to charges of being an accessory to a crime and served two days in jail.
Name: Kevin Michael King
Age: 5 years
Date of death: March 8, 2009
Kevin died from blunt-force trauma to his body that ruptured his heart and liver. Police reports say his adopted mother, Gloria Grayson, admitted to losing her temper with Kevin while he was eating dinner, grabbing him by the throat and shoving him down the hallway to the bathroom. Grayson later contacted 911 and Kevin was taken to the hospital, where he died. Grayson has been charged with second-degree murder and assault by a custodian and is scheduled to be tried by a jury in March.
Name: Ayonna Thompson
Age: 6 months
Date of death: Nov. 18, 2009
Ayonna died as a result of blows to her head delivered by Roman Ray Brand, her mother's boyfriend, because the child was crying and he was tired, Brand admitted to KBAK Channel 29. Brand is scheduled to be arraigned on second-degree murder and assault by a custodian charges Monday. Kern County Child Protective Services has not yet issued a report on this case under the rules of Senate Bill 39.
AN UNKNOWN HAND
These children were intentionally killed, according to law enforcement and Child Protective Services investigations. But police have have not arrested anyone.
Name: Anthony Angel De La Rosa
Age: 4 months
Date of death: March 30, 2008
Child Protective Services ruled the death was a result of abuse or neglect. The coroner's office ruled the cause of death unknown. The child's mother was at the store when the father said he checked the child and found him lying on a toy car. The father later said he threw the child up in the air, failed to catch him and the child landed on the television. Police checked the television and did not find that dust on the television had been disturbed. No arrest has been made, according to Child Protective Services.
Name: Isabella Tran
Age: 1 year
Date of death: May 28, 2008
Isabella died from blunt-force trauma to the head, delivered in an unknown manner. More information about this case was not available through Child Protective Services.
Name: Arianna Cuevas
Age: 3 months
Date of death: Dec. 8, 2008
Arianna was rushed to the hospital Dec. 4 after her mother, Claudia Cuevas, left her with a friend to go shopping. Cuevas returned to pick up her daughter after the babysitter called her and told her there was a problem with Arianna. Cuevas found her daughter in distress and called 911. The child died four days later at Children's Hospital of Central California in Madera. The coroner later ruled the child died of blunt-force trauma to the back of the head. The cause of those injuries remains a mystery and no suspects have been identified.
Name: Karlyn Audrey Mae Uribe
Age: 5 weeks
Date of death: Jan. 26, 2009
Karlyn died at Tehachapi Hospital in January. Kern County sheriff's investigators couldn't find enough evidence of foul play to convince the Kern County District Attorney's office to prosecute any of the three adults who were with the child around the time they believe she was injured.
Kern County Child Protective Services closed the case, pending a final report from the Kern County coroner's office. The coroner's office took its time with the case, calling in independent consultants from Stanford University to inspect Karlyn's remains and double-check opinions.
Nine months later, in September, the report came back stating that Karlyn was killed. She had four broken ribs and multiple hemorrhages on her brain that were inflicted within the hours that led up to her death. Sheriff's officials said they were aware of the injuries in the initial coroner's report and that there is still not enough evidence to charge anyone.
ACCIDENT AND NEGLECT
These deaths were terrible accidents, but CPS ruled the adults involved made serious judgment errors that resulted in the accident or complicated the situation after the fact.
Name: Maryonna Wooten
Age: 1 month
Date of death: July 12, 2008
Maryonna Wooten's mother left her child with the child's uncle Charles Wooten while she and others visited a party, police reports say. Wooten said he fell asleep, drunk, on his couch and woke up when a neighbor knocked at the door. When he turned around, Wooten said, he saw Maryonna bleeding on the couch and summoned medical help. "It was an accident, but there was some things we as a family could have done to prevent it," he told reporters. No charges have been brought in the case. The cause of death is undetermined. Reports say the soft part of the child's head was swollen and there was blood coming out of her nose.
Name: Carl Deloney
Age: 5 months
Date of death: Dec. 18, 2008
Carl was a foster child living with Oswaldo and Luz Peralta. He died while in the care of Oswaldo Peralta. Peralta tripped on a piece of carpet Dec. 15 while holding the child and attempting to throw Carl away from him so he would not fall on and crush the infant. Instead the child hit the floor head-first. The impact resulted in his death days later at Children's Hospital of Central California in Madera. The case was ruled neglect because Oswaldo Peralta called his wife before calling for medical help, and later lied to police about the causes of Carl's injuries.
Name: Ruben Soto Jr.
Age: 2 years
Date of death: May 27, 2009
Ruben Soto Jr. died when a single hollowpoint bullet from his father's Glock handgun hit him in the chest. The 2-year-old and his 3-year-old sister, Ariana, had found the weapon under their parents' mattress. Arianna pulled the weapon out and pulled the trigger. Ruben was hit and later died. Usually their father, Ruben Cirilo Soto, pulled the gun out from under the mattress each morning, locked it up and put it away on a high shelf in his closet. On May 27 he forgot to put away the weapon. After Ruben's death, Soto surrendered all of his weapons and moved to his father's home to get his family away from the rough neighborhood.
Name: Edward Shotwell
Age: 6 weeks
Date of death: July 26, 2009
No other information was available through Child Protective Services because completion of reports is still pending.
Name: Edgar Munoz
Age: 2 years
Date of death: Aug. 19, 2009
The young boy drowned. No other information was available through Child Protective Services reports, pending the release of a coroner’s report.
MISTAKES
Child Protective Services missed a step or two in their processes that could have made a difference in these cases. There is no way to know if the child would have lived if the social workers had not made the mistakes.
Name: Reanna Marie Alderette
Age: 2 years
Date of death: June 1, 2008
Reanna died at the home of her maternal grandparents, Margo and Cesar Vasquez. The cause of death was blunt-force trauma to the body. The child and her three siblings moved in with the Vasquezes after Bakersfield police found them living in filthy, unsafe conditions with their mother and father, Jessica Alvarez and Crispin Alderette, in November 2007 while looking for Alderette on unrelated burglary charges. Social workers failed to locate the children at their grandmother's home. The grandparents' home was in similar condition when Reanna died in June. There have been no arrests in Reanna's death.
Name: Alena Breann Garcia
Age: 2 months
Date of death: Feb. 20, 2009
Two-month-old Alena Garcia was smothered in February while sleeping with her mother, Brenda Plata, who had been using methamphetamine and marijuana, Child Protective Services officials said. Plata placed her daughter on her belly next to her in bed after an early morning feeding and then slept until noon, according to police reports. The child suffocated.
Social workers had counseled the mother repeatedly not to sleep with her newborn after the family was referred to Child Protective Services in late December. Social workers didn't have grounds to pull the children from the home in December, despite the fact the parents were drug users, CPS supervisors said. But workers also didn't promptly check the results of the drug tests the parents agreed to take in December. The results could have justified a follow-up investigation that could have revealed the risks to the child.
Plata was charged with three felony counts of willful cruelty to a child and pleaded no contest to one count. She served 115 days in jail.
Name: Guillermo Alvarez
Age: 2 years
Date of death: June 22, 2009
Guillermo died in June of blunt-force trauma to his body caused by blows that ruptured his spleen. His mother, Gina Serna, had been referred to Child Protective Services three times for neglect -- she had been a heavy drug user and left her children with other people for long stretches of time -- before her son died.
Department of Human Services officials acknowledged that social workers did not do the proper check-up of the mother's new home after the most recent referral and failed to check results of a drug test and assign the case the proper "substantiated" tag.
Kern County sheriff's deputies arrested her then-boyfriend, Joshuae Preston, 28, in Guillermo's death but charges were later dropped.
http://www.bakersfield.com/news/local/x1596957328/Toddlers-death-a-blow-to-family-child-welfare-guardians
NC agents probe child welfare agency in Davis case
NC agents probe child welfare agency in Davis case
The Associated Press Published: Monday, December 7, 2009 at 1:18 p.m.
Last Modified: Monday, December 7, 2009 at 1:18 p.m.
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Agents with North Carolina's criminal investigative agency are launching a probe into whether child welfare workers turned over complete records of their contacts with the family of a slain 5-year-old.
The State Bureau of Investigation said that agents will look into whether Cumberland County's Department of Social Services gave incomplete records to police investigating the slaying of Shaniya Davis, SBI spokeswoman Noelle Talley said Monday.
Fayetteville Police Chief Tom Bergamine requested the probe and Cumberland County District Attorney Ed Grannis added his weight after police homicide investigators discussed their experiences.
"I share their concern and have requested the assistance of the SBI to assist us," Grannis said in a letter released Monday.
The girl was reported missing by her mother on Nov. 10. Police said she was killed the same day.
Her mother, Antoinette Davis, 25, is charged with filing a false police report, trafficking her daughter and child abuse involving prostitution.
Mario McNeill, 29, an acquaintance of Davis, is charged with the girl's murder, rape and kidnapping.
A search warrant says McNeill picked the girl up in front of her home and drove her more than 30 miles to a hotel in Sanford, where she was last seen alive. Surveillance video captured McNeill carrying the girl in the building.
DSS Director Brenda Jackson has declined to comment on the agency's involvement with the Davis family because of the homicide investigation and confidentiality rules for child protective services cases.
County child welfare workers had previously investigated Antoinette Davis's care of her 7-year-old son, according to her uncle, Michael Davis.
Antoinette Davis is pregnant and was being held at a state women's prison in Raleigh for her protection.
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20091207/APN/912071862
The Associated Press Published: Monday, December 7, 2009 at 1:18 p.m.
Last Modified: Monday, December 7, 2009 at 1:18 p.m.
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Agents with North Carolina's criminal investigative agency are launching a probe into whether child welfare workers turned over complete records of their contacts with the family of a slain 5-year-old.
The State Bureau of Investigation said that agents will look into whether Cumberland County's Department of Social Services gave incomplete records to police investigating the slaying of Shaniya Davis, SBI spokeswoman Noelle Talley said Monday.
Fayetteville Police Chief Tom Bergamine requested the probe and Cumberland County District Attorney Ed Grannis added his weight after police homicide investigators discussed their experiences.
"I share their concern and have requested the assistance of the SBI to assist us," Grannis said in a letter released Monday.
The girl was reported missing by her mother on Nov. 10. Police said she was killed the same day.
Her mother, Antoinette Davis, 25, is charged with filing a false police report, trafficking her daughter and child abuse involving prostitution.
Mario McNeill, 29, an acquaintance of Davis, is charged with the girl's murder, rape and kidnapping.
A search warrant says McNeill picked the girl up in front of her home and drove her more than 30 miles to a hotel in Sanford, where she was last seen alive. Surveillance video captured McNeill carrying the girl in the building.
DSS Director Brenda Jackson has declined to comment on the agency's involvement with the Davis family because of the homicide investigation and confidentiality rules for child protective services cases.
County child welfare workers had previously investigated Antoinette Davis's care of her 7-year-old son, according to her uncle, Michael Davis.
Antoinette Davis is pregnant and was being held at a state women's prison in Raleigh for her protection.
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20091207/APN/912071862
Child Custody GAL - Advice on How to Handle False Allegations of Drug, Alcohol Abuse, Child Neglect
Dec 09 Child Custody GAL - Advice on How to Handle False Allegations of Drug, Alcohol Abuse, Child Neglect
Most any parent in a high conflict child custody battle will likely have felt the sting of false allegations at some point. These types of allegations are deeply disturbing and hurtful not to mention the harm they can do to your custody visitation schedule. In some states a Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) is used as an advocate for the child when allegations have been made against a parent. The GAL’s responsibility is to investigate the allegations and make a recommendation to the court.
I recently had a request from a father to help him sort through the process of dealing with false allegations being investigated by a GAL. Those allegations were, drug abuse, child neglect, and alcohol abuse. Here is the advice I gave him.
You have three excellent things going in your favor.
1: You don’t do drugs.
2: Your ex has repeatedly requested you take the child in the past.
3: Alcohol is legal (and you only drink lightly and occasionally).
Temporary visitation schedules have a way of becoming permanent. I would build my strategy around removing that temporary visitation barrier.
First thing that you can do is ask the GAL f they have come across any information that they would like to ask you about or that they need clarification on. What you are looking for is dialogue that plays to the known allegations or new allegations. You do NOT want to be blindsided later on.
Let’s assume they ask you about drug abuse. Even if they don’t you should bring it up. You can tell them that you are not a drug user, never have been and that this is a tactic by the mother. I would go so far as to flip false the allegations to be concerned for my child. I would suggest they are just like me and if she cannot cope with me, then how will she react to them as they get older? A legitimate concern.
The reason I bring that up is that allegations of abuse, drugs, alcohol, etc are taken seriously by the authorities. And rightly so. Appreciate their point of view. They aren’t trying to be mean to you. They just want to protect the parties from injury. As concerned as they are about getting to the truth, you can flip that and use that concern to your advantage.
You see the point is that you can prove you don’t use drugs, using alcohol is a bit different but then it’s legal, BUT the you have proof she has made allegations. If she uses a tactic to pretend she is concerned about something she knows to be false, then what other lengths will she go to? She has already tried to damage the relationship between you and the child by making false allegations. Now YOU have the legitimate concern that she has handed you. In many states false allegations can result in losing custody.
I went a bit in depth because I want you to get your head around it. You will not likely get to explain it to the GAL, but if you understand the point you want to make and why, I think you’ll be in good shape.
Now you should understand that if you go in and say, “I’m concerned about the temporary visitation schedule and I’m willing to help in any way I can. I would be happy to drug test for you today if that would help. “I’m concerned that if she is angry enough to falsely accuse me of using drugs instead of finding a way to cope with me, then I don’t know how she would handle the child when they do things that remind her of me.” the GAL should then make the connection from her allegations and to her.
You see if you go with concern for your child, leave no stone unturned, I want to help, I’m not angry, I’m just concerned about our child. That attitude alone should benefit you.
Now let’s do the list.
#1 Suggest that the GAL present the mother with the idea of court ordered random drug testing twice per month at her expense (unless of course it’s positive). Make sure they tell her that she will be required to pay that expense until the child is 18. Suggest that the mothers reaction will tell them everything they need to know.
#2 Take email, text messages, anything that shows she has asked you to take the child for additional time. (If this is part of a court process you may need to give copies of documentation to her before seeing the GAL - You can always add other stuff to her pack so that she can wonder what you’re going to do with it?). The point here is that if she was really concerned about child neglect, drug use, drinking, these would have been issues years ago and she would not have asked you to spend more time with your child. The things she has accused you of did not pop up overnight. They are long term issues that she would have been well aware of. Also, question why she didn’t call child protective services years ago? Was she really concerned?
#3 I assume you don’t have any DUI’s. That being said, offer to not drink when you have the child. Period. No matter how much you love a beer or two, figure out what’s important to you. I’m guessing time with your child.
What you should have done by this time is convince the GAL that they need to talk to mom and confront her to see her reaction. She will not want to pay $100/month for a test she knows will be negative. Why do that when she can do nothing and leave doubt?
Finally, ask that you be given back the time you lost due to the investigation so that you can rebuild the bonds with your child.
Do you want to learn more about child custody resolution? Receive my brand new series Child Custody Court Processes.
Do you want to learn more about how to win child visitation battles? Download my brand new free series Child Visitation strategies here.
Ed Brooks knows firsthand how painful a High Conflict Child Custody battle can be and has created a site where parents can get advice on how to handle all aspects of a high conflict Child Custody battle.
http://www.drugsandhelp.com/child-custody-gal-advice-on-how-to-handle-false-allegations-of-drug-alcohol-abuse-child-neglect
Most any parent in a high conflict child custody battle will likely have felt the sting of false allegations at some point. These types of allegations are deeply disturbing and hurtful not to mention the harm they can do to your custody visitation schedule. In some states a Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) is used as an advocate for the child when allegations have been made against a parent. The GAL’s responsibility is to investigate the allegations and make a recommendation to the court.
I recently had a request from a father to help him sort through the process of dealing with false allegations being investigated by a GAL. Those allegations were, drug abuse, child neglect, and alcohol abuse. Here is the advice I gave him.
You have three excellent things going in your favor.
1: You don’t do drugs.
2: Your ex has repeatedly requested you take the child in the past.
3: Alcohol is legal (and you only drink lightly and occasionally).
Temporary visitation schedules have a way of becoming permanent. I would build my strategy around removing that temporary visitation barrier.
First thing that you can do is ask the GAL f they have come across any information that they would like to ask you about or that they need clarification on. What you are looking for is dialogue that plays to the known allegations or new allegations. You do NOT want to be blindsided later on.
Let’s assume they ask you about drug abuse. Even if they don’t you should bring it up. You can tell them that you are not a drug user, never have been and that this is a tactic by the mother. I would go so far as to flip false the allegations to be concerned for my child. I would suggest they are just like me and if she cannot cope with me, then how will she react to them as they get older? A legitimate concern.
The reason I bring that up is that allegations of abuse, drugs, alcohol, etc are taken seriously by the authorities. And rightly so. Appreciate their point of view. They aren’t trying to be mean to you. They just want to protect the parties from injury. As concerned as they are about getting to the truth, you can flip that and use that concern to your advantage.
You see the point is that you can prove you don’t use drugs, using alcohol is a bit different but then it’s legal, BUT the you have proof she has made allegations. If she uses a tactic to pretend she is concerned about something she knows to be false, then what other lengths will she go to? She has already tried to damage the relationship between you and the child by making false allegations. Now YOU have the legitimate concern that she has handed you. In many states false allegations can result in losing custody.
I went a bit in depth because I want you to get your head around it. You will not likely get to explain it to the GAL, but if you understand the point you want to make and why, I think you’ll be in good shape.
Now you should understand that if you go in and say, “I’m concerned about the temporary visitation schedule and I’m willing to help in any way I can. I would be happy to drug test for you today if that would help. “I’m concerned that if she is angry enough to falsely accuse me of using drugs instead of finding a way to cope with me, then I don’t know how she would handle the child when they do things that remind her of me.” the GAL should then make the connection from her allegations and to her.
You see if you go with concern for your child, leave no stone unturned, I want to help, I’m not angry, I’m just concerned about our child. That attitude alone should benefit you.
Now let’s do the list.
#1 Suggest that the GAL present the mother with the idea of court ordered random drug testing twice per month at her expense (unless of course it’s positive). Make sure they tell her that she will be required to pay that expense until the child is 18. Suggest that the mothers reaction will tell them everything they need to know.
#2 Take email, text messages, anything that shows she has asked you to take the child for additional time. (If this is part of a court process you may need to give copies of documentation to her before seeing the GAL - You can always add other stuff to her pack so that she can wonder what you’re going to do with it?). The point here is that if she was really concerned about child neglect, drug use, drinking, these would have been issues years ago and she would not have asked you to spend more time with your child. The things she has accused you of did not pop up overnight. They are long term issues that she would have been well aware of. Also, question why she didn’t call child protective services years ago? Was she really concerned?
#3 I assume you don’t have any DUI’s. That being said, offer to not drink when you have the child. Period. No matter how much you love a beer or two, figure out what’s important to you. I’m guessing time with your child.
What you should have done by this time is convince the GAL that they need to talk to mom and confront her to see her reaction. She will not want to pay $100/month for a test she knows will be negative. Why do that when she can do nothing and leave doubt?
Finally, ask that you be given back the time you lost due to the investigation so that you can rebuild the bonds with your child.
Do you want to learn more about child custody resolution? Receive my brand new series Child Custody Court Processes.
Do you want to learn more about how to win child visitation battles? Download my brand new free series Child Visitation strategies here.
Ed Brooks knows firsthand how painful a High Conflict Child Custody battle can be and has created a site where parents can get advice on how to handle all aspects of a high conflict Child Custody battle.
http://www.drugsandhelp.com/child-custody-gal-advice-on-how-to-handle-false-allegations-of-drug-alcohol-abuse-child-neglect
Over 28 licenses revoked in crackdown
Wisconsin News and Sports
Over 28 licenses revoked in crackdown
by Andrew Beckett on December 9, 2009
in Politics & Government
Efforts to uncover fraud in the Wisconsin Shares program appear to be paying off.
Department of Children and Families Secretary Reggie Bicha says the agency has been aggressively cracking down in recent months, following the discovery of widespread fraud in the childcare subsidy program.
The Department has drawn criticism after audits and press reports showed multiple cases of providers falsifying attendance records, sex offenders living in home daycare facilities, and widespread corruption in the program.
Bicha says they’ve been holding providers accountable when fraud or other problems are uncovered. So far, the agency has revoked the licenses of 28 providers and suspended 130 after potential fraud was uncovered.
The crackdown appears to be having a deterrent effect for some, according to Bicha. He says many have started to keep better attendance records, which is producing cost savings for the state. In Milwaukee County, the cost per child decreased five to six percent over last year. Statewide, it was down about three percent.
Bicha says DCF will continue efforts to uncover fraud in the program in the coming months.
http://www.wrn.com/2009/12/over-28-licenses-revoked-in-crackdown/
Over 28 licenses revoked in crackdown
by Andrew Beckett on December 9, 2009
in Politics & Government
Efforts to uncover fraud in the Wisconsin Shares program appear to be paying off.
Department of Children and Families Secretary Reggie Bicha says the agency has been aggressively cracking down in recent months, following the discovery of widespread fraud in the childcare subsidy program.
The Department has drawn criticism after audits and press reports showed multiple cases of providers falsifying attendance records, sex offenders living in home daycare facilities, and widespread corruption in the program.
Bicha says they’ve been holding providers accountable when fraud or other problems are uncovered. So far, the agency has revoked the licenses of 28 providers and suspended 130 after potential fraud was uncovered.
The crackdown appears to be having a deterrent effect for some, according to Bicha. He says many have started to keep better attendance records, which is producing cost savings for the state. In Milwaukee County, the cost per child decreased five to six percent over last year. Statewide, it was down about three percent.
Bicha says DCF will continue efforts to uncover fraud in the program in the coming months.
http://www.wrn.com/2009/12/over-28-licenses-revoked-in-crackdown/
Couple's adoption petition denied
Couple's adoption petition denied
Posted: Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009 - 10:05:43 am PST
By MARLISA KEYES
Staff writer
SANDPOINT —Tuesday Judge Debra Heise denied Anna and Lacey Blackford’s petition to adopt their 2-year-old foster son.
The couple had no legal standing in Idaho law.
“I am just so mad that there isn’t a law that a judge can rule on,” Anna Blackford said via Facebook chat.
“I am sad that I have to make sure a law or a few laws are made and that I won’t get to use it for my own case,” she wrote.
The state is one of 34 without a Foster Parents Bill of Rights.
An Adoption Selection Committee appointed by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare selected a different couple as his potential adoptive parents in October.
The Blackfords became Joey’s foster parents when he was 8 days old. He was addicted to cocaine when he was born and tested positive for hydrocodone and marijuana.
The toddler’s biological mother has had six children, none of whom live with her. Three children are living with relatives and a four child was adopted. Joey has a younger brother living in Washington, however Blackford is unsure if his mother’s rights have been terminated.
Unfortunately, Judge Heise had to rule against our petition for adoption. Foster parents in Idaho have no rights to “their” children. They have no rights to adopt, no rights to question what is in their best interest and no rights to fight for what is right,” Blackford wrote on the Save Joey Facebook site.
“ I wish that it was about whether the judge had compassion ...”
(Now maybe they'll understand how biological families feel)
http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com/articles/2009/12/08/news/doc4b1df344a5ad8589371447.txt
Posted: Tuesday, Dec 08, 2009 - 10:05:43 am PST
By MARLISA KEYES
Staff writer
SANDPOINT —Tuesday Judge Debra Heise denied Anna and Lacey Blackford’s petition to adopt their 2-year-old foster son.
The couple had no legal standing in Idaho law.
“I am just so mad that there isn’t a law that a judge can rule on,” Anna Blackford said via Facebook chat.
“I am sad that I have to make sure a law or a few laws are made and that I won’t get to use it for my own case,” she wrote.
The state is one of 34 without a Foster Parents Bill of Rights.
An Adoption Selection Committee appointed by the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare selected a different couple as his potential adoptive parents in October.
The Blackfords became Joey’s foster parents when he was 8 days old. He was addicted to cocaine when he was born and tested positive for hydrocodone and marijuana.
The toddler’s biological mother has had six children, none of whom live with her. Three children are living with relatives and a four child was adopted. Joey has a younger brother living in Washington, however Blackford is unsure if his mother’s rights have been terminated.
Unfortunately, Judge Heise had to rule against our petition for adoption. Foster parents in Idaho have no rights to “their” children. They have no rights to adopt, no rights to question what is in their best interest and no rights to fight for what is right,” Blackford wrote on the Save Joey Facebook site.
“ I wish that it was about whether the judge had compassion ...”
(Now maybe they'll understand how biological families feel)
http://www.bonnercountydailybee.com/articles/2009/12/08/news/doc4b1df344a5ad8589371447.txt
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