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Postby Marina » Fri Dec 05, 2008 9:37 pm

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article. ... OVEA564159

Hearing delayed for Grove foster dad charged with rape

By The Associated Press
Published: 12/2/2008 12:00 AM
Last Modified: 12/2/2008 8:40 AM

GROVE — A court hearing in Delaware County for a Grove man accused of impregnating a foster child placed in his care has been delayed.
Timothy Joe Mountford is charged with felony second-degree rape and child sexual abuse of a 14-year-old placed in his home by the Department of Human Services.

The 50-year-old Mountford, who is related to the girl, appeared in court Monday for a scheduled hearing, which was postponed until March 6.

Prosecutors asked for a continuance, saying a witness was medically unable to testify.

Special Judge Alicia Littlefield says if the state is not ready to proceed in March, the case will be dismissed.

Mountford is free on $150,000 bail. The victim is now in another foster home.

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Postby Marina » Fri Dec 05, 2008 9:50 pm

http://www.adn.com/matsu/story/596865.html

Grandfather sentenced in adopted child abuse case

911 CALL: He says he knew kids would be taken from Valley home.

By ZAZ HOLLANDER
[email protected]

Published: November 21st, 2008 04:32 AM
Last Modified: November 21st, 2008 02:34 PM

PALMER -- George Long, the adoptive grandfather at the center of an infamous Valley child-abuse case, for the first time spoke publicly Thursday about his role -- four years after he kicked off a major investigation by picking up the phone.

Long made the 911 call in July 2004 that eventually alerted authorities to the grim living conditions at the compound he and his wife, Shirley, shared with Sherry and Patrick Kelley off Misty Lake Road: five adopted children without access to running water or toilets or bedrooms, sleeping under tarps, going hungry, and suffering sometimes bizarre punishments.

Stories emerged of a 13-year-old boy chained to a tree or confined, naked, in a coffin-like box. A younger boy suffered from untreated maggot-infested burns his mother cleaned with peroxide or rubbing alcohol.

On Thursday afternoon, Long spoke publicly before the Palmer District Court judge about to sentence him for chaining his adoptive grandson to a dog run, which resulted in a misdemeanor assault charge.

Long told Judge William Estelle he called 911 around midnight July 8, 2004, because he needed help with the children, who were out of control, tearing up a garden and fighting instead of doing the watering. His daughter, Sherry Kelley, wouldn't discipline them and was tending her 6-year-old adopted daughter in the greenhouse. Their adoptive father, Patrick Kelley -- who only spent weekends at the compound -- worked at a nearby pond.


Long said he chained up his grandson to "save him from being thumped around by the others."

Then he called emergency dispatchers, he said, though it meant authorities would likely break up the family.

"When I called 911, I knew it was over," Long said. The call led to the arrest of the Kelleys and the Longs and the removal of the kids from the home.


On Thursday, the judge sentenced George Long, who was convicted by a jury of the single assault charge, to parenting classes, two years probation, and to a jail term that amounts to the roughly 75 days he's already spent behind bars. Nearly 70, Long wears a pacemaker after suffering a heart attack, attorney John Pharr said.

Earlier, Long and his wife were both acquitted of failing to report abuse against children because of a lack of evidence.

The resolution of the Long case marks the end of a high-profile saga that stirred public outrage and sparked changes in the state foster care system, including more careful home studies of prospective foster parents and greater public access to some court hearings.

The Kelleys originally faced dozens of serious charges, among them kidnapping and assault. But after questions about evidence surfaced, they served 17 months in jail in a plea deal that dismissed all but three charges.

Prosecutor Rachel Gernat said in court Thursday that the Longs originally agreed to testify against the Kelleys, but later reneged.

Gernat, asked if she felt satisfied with the outcome of the larger case, said she was: The children were removed from a dangerous situation.

"They're able to live their lives," she said. "That's the ultimate goal of any prosecution involving children, to be sure the children are safe."

George Long, outside the courtroom after the hearing ended, said he was trying to "do good in my old age" when he called authorities but also acknowledged his own delays in intervening as things spiraled out of control.

"As the situation progressed, I saw less and less," he said.

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Postby Marina » Wed Dec 17, 2008 6:16 pm

http://timesunion.com/ASPStories/Story. ... nkFrom=RSS

No jail time for Troy woman who abused adoptive son

By BOB GARDINIER, Staff writer
First published in print: Tuesday, December 16, 2008

TROY -- A longtime county foster mother who was charged in May with forcing her 11-year-old adoptive son to live in deplorable conditions was sentenced today to probation and must give up custody of the boy.

Sharmon "Sherry" Evans, 57, of Troy appeared before Family Court Judge Linda Griffin to enter a plea to a misdemeanor charge of endangering the welfare of a child.


...

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Postby Marina » Thu Dec 18, 2008 9:45 pm

http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/loca ... -Case.html

Suspected 'Cameraman' Charged in Child Sex Assault Case

By AMANDA RAUS

Updated 6:34 AM EST, Thu, Dec 18, 2008




Court documents detail the alleged sexual abuse of a child.


Police have arrested the suspected cameraman in what they've called a kiddie porn operation headed up by a foster father.

Stephen Turkington, 60, lived in the barn on property owned by Craig Niles of Stafford Springs.

Last month police arrested Niles on charges he was having a sexual relationship with an 11-year-old girl. During a search of his home, police said they found photos and videos of child pornography filmed by Turkington.

In an affidavit, police said, "There were several video clips that clearly documented a second individual filming the sexual acts between Craig Niles and the victim. This individual operating the video camera was referred to as 'Steve' by Craig Niles."

Police said Turkington was later identified by the 11-year-old victim. He is a lifelong friend of Niles and was currently renting a barn on Niles' property.

The affidavit said, "Turkington explained he went along with video taping these incidents for Craig because he believed Craig would go easy on his rent for the barn."

It said Turkington also told police he was thinking of turning Niles in, but ultimately decided not to when another friend advised against it. Police said they're still actively investigating.

Turkington was arraigned in Rockville Superior Court and was ordered to be held on $250,000 bond.

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Postby Marina » Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:19 pm

http://politicom.moldova.org/news/polic ... 2-eng.html

Police searching for boy missing for years
January 04, 2009

Police in Kansas are investigating the disappearance of a boy who ran away from his adoptive parents nine years ago but was not reported missing until recently.

The adoptive parents, who took the boy in as a foster child when he was 2, did not report him missing when he disappeared at age 11 or 12, The Wichita Eagle said. Warner Eisenbise, a Wichita lawyer representing the couple, said they feel horribly guilty.

They assumed that he was somewhere -- either a homeless person or back with members of his family, Eisenbise said. They assumed that he was OK.

Police, who opened the investigation after getting a tip, said they have no evidence the boy -- who was born Irvin Groeninger III in 1987, but who went by Adam -- is alive. Police have been searching a trailer park in Towanda, Kan., where the adoptive parents lived at the time of the disappearance.

The boy's biological father, Irvin Groeninger II -- now divorced from the biological mother -- told the newspaper he thinks his son wouldn't be missing if he would have been in my custody. Gerri George, the biological mother, said she last saw her son when he was 4.

Adam's adoptive parents listed him in their 2003 divorce case and identified him as their son in a 2002 bankruptcy petition -- two to three years after authorities say the boy disappeared -- the newspaper reported.

The biological parents and a biological sister said they have been asked for DNA samples.

Police have scheduled a news conference Monday.

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Ex-foster dad gets prison term

Postby Marina » Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:20 pm

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ss ... ntenc.html

Ex-foster dad gets prison term in attack on toddler
by Aimee Green, The Oregonian
Tuesday January 06, 2009, 12:56 PM


Stephen Kuntupis and Monique Peals had long awaited Monday -- the day the man who beat or shook their 2-year-old daughter blind was sentenced to prison.

But 2 1/2 years behind bars just didn't seem like enough to Kuntupis and Peals. Their daughter, Stephanie Kuntupis, spent nearly three months in the hospital, is still blind in one eye and now struggles with developmental delays.

"Thirty months? It should be 30 years," said Stephen Kuntupis, as he sat in Multnomah County Circuit Court.

Former foster dad Cesar Cruz-Reyes Sr. had been charged with the June 2007 first-degree assault of Stephanie, who was living in his state-certified foster home. Cruz-Reyes admitted he was alone with the child when prosecutors believe he either bashed or shook her head so violently she immediately fell unconscious with bleeding around her brain and eyes.

Cruz-Reyes faced 7 1/2 years if convicted of the original charge. He pleaded no contest to the lesser charge of attempted first-degree assault.

Cruz-Reyes, 38, stared straight ahead as Kuntupis and Peals told him how he'd changed their daughter's life. After they were done, he insisted upon his innocence.

"The truth will come out," Cruz-Reyes said, "because I know I didn't do this."

Stephanie entered state custody in January 2007 when she was 22 months old after her parents were arrested on charges of possessing meth.

Stephanie settled into the home of Cesar and Michele Cruz-Reyes, a Gresham couple with two children of their own. After Stephanie collapsed with brain injuries June 22, 2007, the Oregon Department of Human Services identified mistakes in placing the toddler with the couple.

Among them, child-welfare workers didn't interview Cesar Cruz-Reyes during a recertification of the home, didn't make sure he had completed the required 10 hours of foster-parent training and didn't do a criminal background check on a number of his aliases. Workers, however, were aware that he had been convicted of lying to police in 1992, but they determined that was long enough ago that it wouldn't affect his eligibility to be a foster dad.

Stephanie's parents say they complained to a caseworker about bumps on their daughter's head, scratches on the cheeks and chunks of missing hair in the months before Stephanie was hospitalized, but they said they were ignored.

Kuntupis and Peals are still fighting to regain custody nearly two years after losing both children: Stephanie, now 3, and her older brother, 14-year-old Romero. Their struggle stings all the more because the Cruz-Reyeses regained custody of their children -- then 11 and 13 -- roughly two months after Stephanie was hospitalized.

"It's a living hell -- a nightmare still," Peals said.

Kuntupis says he's remained sober since entering drug treatment shortly after his January 2007 arrest. Peals says she'd been sober for about 1 1/2 years, but had a relapse last summer because she was so depressed about the lengthy custody battle.

"No matter how good I did, nothing was changing," Peals said.

Peals said she has remained clear of drugs since, and both are living in drug-free housing and attend treatment.

Both Kuntupis and Peals are nervously awaiting a March court hearing in which they say the state is moving to terminate their parental rights.

The Department of Human Services has declined to talk about the case, citing child privacy. The department also has refused requests from a reporter to see Stephanie, saying it is not in her best interests. Kuntupis and Peals had invited The Oregonian to write about their custody battle, Stephanie's recovery and accompany them during one of their twice weekly visitations.

Her parents report that she's undergone two eye surgeries, and will undergo a third. Although developmentally she lags behind other children, she is walking and talking with zest, they say.

"She's a very happy little girl," Peals said, breaking into a smile. "I don't think she remembers what happened to her."

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Postby Marina » Sat Feb 14, 2009 8:32 pm

http://arkansasmatters.com/content/full ... cid=175251


Update: Stolen SUV and 17-Month Old Found

Reported by: Lauren Lea, KARK 4 NEWS
Monday, Jan 12, 2009 @05:48pm CST


Little Rock police have found a stolen SUV with a 17-month-old boy inside, and the boy is now safely in DHS custody.

His foster mother, Marian Moore, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child.

Little Rock Police say Moore pulled up to the Children's House Montessori School at 4023 Lee Street at five o'clock this afternoon. She left her SUV running with the child inside. When she came back outside, her SUV and child were gone.

Police scoured the nearby area street by street and detectives went door to door, looking for possible witnesses.

Fifty minutes after the SUV and child went missing, the police chief found them in the 100 block of Beechwood, not far from the crime scene. The 2004 Land Rover Discovery was still running and the boy was inside and unharmed.

Police have no information about the person who stole the car, but they believe he or she did not know the boy was inside.

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Postby Marina » Sat Feb 14, 2009 9:41 pm

http://www.kxly.com/global/story.asp?s=9676247

As child lies in coma, mom demands answers

Posted: Jan 14, 2009 08:55 PM EST

Updated: Jan 14, 2009 09:46 PM EST

Story by:

McKay Allen / KXLY4 Reporter

POST FALLS -- A two-year-old North Idaho girl is in a coma after being badly hurt in her foster home and now both the Post Falls Police and the girl's biological mother are trying to figure out what happened.

Two-year-old Karina Moore is fighting for her life at Sacred Heart Medical Center. Her biological mother Samantha Moore got the call after midnight that she'd been in a terrible accident and had been airlifted to Sacred Heart.

"When I got there Karina was on life support, she was in a coma, she has massive brain damage," Samantha said.

Samantha says that her daughter had reportedly fallen down a flight of stairs at her foster home. Police are now investigating the foster family while other foster children in the home have been removed.

Moore says she saw abuse in the foster home and says she spoke to her caseworker at least twice about her concerns but nothing was done.

"This could've been prevented ... this could've been prevented," Samantha said.

She admits she's made some mistakes in the past but now with the foster family under investigation and her daughter in a coma and not expected to survive Samantha is furious with how Child Protective Services has handled her daughter's case.

"For CPS to be so-called protecting my kids ... is this protection?"

The Post Falls Police Department confirmed they were investigating the case but had no further comment. CPS officials say they have no comment on this case or any allegations of abuse and will not comment until the police conclude their investigation.

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Postby Marina » Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:01 am

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090 ... 1001/RSS01

Spring Hill foster mother charged with abuse

Shelley Blair was charged this week with 15 counts related to the abuse of two children who were found running away from her Spring Hill home last fall.

...

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Postby Marina » Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:10 am

http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/39600132.html

Foster father charged with failing to protect Christopher Thomas' sister
By Crocker Stephenson of the Journal Sentinel

Posted: Feb. 13, 2009


The man whose wife has been charged with the beating death of 13-month-old Christopher Thomas was charged Friday with failing to report months of abuse endured by Christopher's 2-year-old sister.

Reginald Keith is the children's uncle. He and his wife, Crystal Keith, became the children's kinship foster parents in June 2008, several months after the state-run Bureau of Milwaukee Child Welfare removed the siblings from their parents' home and placed them in temporary foster homes.

...

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Postby Marina » Fri Feb 20, 2009 9:45 pm

http://www.katu.com/news/local/39799812.html

Foster parent arrested for sex abuse, deputies look for more victims


Story Published: Feb 18, 2009 at 12:48 PM PST

Story Updated: Feb 18, 2009 at 12:57 PM PST

By KATU.com Staff Video ALOHA, Ore. - An Aloha man has been charged with sexually abusing one of his former foster children and investigators believe there may be more victims.

Deputies arrested 59-year-old Warren Tripp last month after a former 15-year-old foster child told a school counselor about being sexually abused.

Tripp now faces charges of rape, sodomy, sex abuse and sexual penetration with an object.

Those alleged crimes are some of the worst Measure 11 crimes listed

...

http://www.kmtr.com/news/local/story/Or ... px?rss=191

...has been a foster parent since 1995 and has had at least 90 children placed in his home during that time...

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Postby Marina » Wed Feb 25, 2009 4:37 pm

http://wnyt.com/article/stories/s802755.shtml?cat=10114

Testimony to begin in child assault trial

FORT EDWARD -- Testimony is expected to begin today in the case of a Hebron man who has been accused of injuring a 17-month-old foster child.

Jury selection began Monday in Washington County Court in the case of Clarence P. Stone-Wright, a 28-year-old county Route 30 man who is accused of squeezing and severely bruising the child's face last May.

State Police said Stone-Wright initially told police the child fell against a crib. But investigators said he later confessed to causing the toddler's injuries.

Washington County Assistant District Attorney Christian Morris told Judge Kely McKeighan he has learned of other injuries Stone-Wright allegedly inflicted on another child before the incident last spring. He was not charged in that case, but Morris hopes to use evidence in that case in this week's trial.

Stone-Wright could face up to 7 years in state prison if convicted of the weightiest charge against him, second-degree assault.

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Postby Marina » Wed Mar 11, 2009 10:14 am

http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/38512349.html

Man Charged With Sexually Assaulting Foster Child


Posted: 9:20 PM Jan 27, 2009
Last Updated: 9:20 PM Jan 27, 2009



A Prosecutors say a man is accused of sexually assaulting a 17-year-old foster child. The 44-year-old Phillips man is facing a charge of sexual assault of a child by a foster parent or treatment foster parent. The Price County Sheriff says he has not been arrested, but is scheduled to be in court February 18th.

According to the court documents, the man had sex with the 17-year-old foster child in November. Investigators say when he was interviewed, he admitted he had sex with the teen. If convicted, he faces 40 years in prison and a fine of $100,000.

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 5:29 pm

http://www.hometownlife.com/article/200 ... 1033/rss21

Police probe boys' claim they were locked up, beaten

By Matt Jachman • OBSERVER STAFF WRITER • January 29, 2009

Ten children ranging in age from 2 to 17 were taken from a home in central Redford Township earlier this month after three of them told police they slept in a locked basement room and were sometimes assaulted by their foster father.

...

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 5:33 pm

http://www.heraldnews.com/news/x8822326 ... -stay-away

Accused foster mom told to stay away
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Will Richmond
GateHouse News Service
Posted Jan 30, 2009 @ 01:19 PM
Last update Jan 30, 2009 @ 08:53 PM

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fall River — The woman accused of burning her foster son with a hair-straightening iron has been ordered to stay away from the child.

Kelly O’Brien, 29, of 915 Walnut St., was arraigned Wednesday on charges of wanton or reckless endangerment of a child and permitting substantial injury to a child. She was released from jail on personal recognizance.

...

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/region ... 7&srvc=rss

Cops: Foster mom burned boy with hair iron
By Jessica Fargen
Saturday, January 31, 2009 - Updated 42d 12h ago

The state has removed a 4-year-old boy from the Fall River home where his foster mom allegedly burned him with a hair-straightening iron, but the woman’s biological children remain in the house.

Kelly O’Brien, 29, is facing charges she burned the foster child so severely he needed skin graft surgery. The child was removed from O’Brien’s care after her live-in boyfriend brought the burned boy to a hospital last week. Another foster child living with O’Brien also was removed.

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 6:08 pm

http://www.waff.com/global/story.asp?s=9763556

Foster care dad charged with rape and torture of kids

Posted: Jan 30, 2009 06:36 PM EST

Updated: Feb 2, 2009 09:51 PM EST


By Bobby Shuttleworth - Bio | Email
Posted by Fred Davenport - Email

COURTLAND, AL (WAFF) - An intense investigation by the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department and the Department of Human Resources into incidents of child abuse netted one arrest,41-year-old Gregory Lee Terry of Courtland.

"After speaking with him and receiving a confession from these events, he's charged with rape 1st degree," said Tim McWhorter, an investigator with the Lawrence County Sheriff's office.

Terry was charged with rapping a 14-year-old girl and tortured or willful child abuse to her brother.

"There was a 16-year-old white male who was also in his care and the allegations were made the child was struck several times with a fishing rod across the child's back," said McWhorter.

McWhorter said the boy had whelps and scars.

What's surprising is Terry was the foster dad to these children, and because the state is hurting for foster families, there's concern this arrest could further hurt the program.

Screenings for foster care parents are strenuous and prospects go through special training.

"These training's last for ten weeks, not consecutive weeks. It's one night a week, you do have homework. Once that is completed, then we go in and do a home study," Tyron Newton, Lawrence County DHR Director.

Newton said they look at where the child will eat, sleep and more.

"And also for no safety hazards in the home, a place to put their clothes, so they will feel like they're a part of the family," said Newton.

Newton said the need for foster parents is great;in the meantime, Terry is free on an 80-thousand dollar bond.

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 6:43 pm

http://wcco.com/local/sexual.abuse.foster.2.925779.html

Feb 3, 2009 7:47 pm US/Central

Foster Dad, Teacher Charged With Molesting Teens
CRYSTAL, Minn. (WCCO) ―


Prosecutors charged a 49-year-old foster father and teacher with sexually abusing two teenagers in his care.

Pen Dwaine Standifer, of Crystal, Minn., was charged with three counts of felony criminal sexual conduct. Standifer is a special education teacher at North View Junior High in Brooklyn Park, Minn.

According to the criminal complaint, police were called to a gas station on Dec. 30, on a report of sexual abuse. When they arrived, they found a teen, 15, who said he ran from his foster father's house after Standifer, the teen's foster father, molested him.

The teen told police that on Dec. 28, he and Standifer smoked marijuana together, talked about having sex with both men and women and talked about how Standifer used to be a stripper. The teen said Standifer then massaged him with oils, kissed him and performed oral sex on the teen.

After searching the house, police found 140 grams of marijuana and a red pouch containing numerous lotions, which the teen said Standifer used on him.

Police also talked to several other foster children who had lived in the house. One man, now 19, had filed a report in 2006, saying that Standifer had molested him after the two smoked marijuana together in late 2005.

Another former foster child of Standifer's said Standifer often smoked marijuana in the house.

Standifer is charged with one count of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for the incident in December. He is also charged with second-degree and fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct for the 2005 incident.

If convicted on all counts, he faces up to 65 years in prison and a $95,000 fine.

The Osseo School District has placed Standifer on paid administrative leave, pending the outcome of the investigation.

Standifer is currently in custody and unavailable for comment.

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 7:38 pm

http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005124691

Wednesday, February 4, 2009



Carey couple surrenders foster care license

Loss of license follows conviction


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By TERRY SMITH
Express Staff Writer

Brian Jake Adamson



A Carey couple whose son was convicted of having sex with a seventh grader in their care have relinquished their license for foster children to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.

Tom Shanahan, an IDHW spokesman in Boise, said Craig and Betty Adamson surrendered their license voluntarily, thereby avoiding the department's having to make a determination.

...

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Postby Marina » Sat Mar 14, 2009 8:07 pm

http://wcco.com/local/sex.abuse.teacher.2.927195.html

Finger-Pointing After Teacher's Sex Abuse Arrest Reporting

James Schugel MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―

The woman in charge of the foster care program in Hennepin County is defending her department in the wake of a teacher's alleged sexual abuse.

Deb Huskins says her workers did a full investigation when a boy claimed his foster dad sexually abused him three years ago.

Pen Standifer was charged on Tuesday with abusing two other boys in his care. He's now out of jail and back home in Crystal.

Many are asking why, even after that first allegation of abuse in 2006, Standifer was allowed to care for young men. He fostered thirteen children the last six years.

"People, as well as we, are asking, 'Is there something we missed?' Absolutely, we should be asking that. 'Is there something we can do to make sure that this never happens again?' Absolutely. That's a very legitimate question," said Huskins.

He held two important jobs where he was supposed to be protecting children: teacher and foster parent. He was a special education teacher at North View Junior High in Brooklyn Park, which is in the Osseo School District.

Now investigators say he hurt children, and problems with his parenting could reach back three years.

Huskins vows a full review of the Standifer case after allegations from late 2006 recently became public. Standifer was caring for two teenagers at this home in Brooklyn Center. They claimed he smoked marijuana with them and touched them inappropriately.

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman talked about it on Tuesday at a news conference.

"That matter was reported to the Brooklyn Center Police. It was investigated. It was turned over to Hennepin County Child Protection and no further action was taken at that time," he said.

But Huskins defends her department. In fact, she says child protection investigators and Brooklyn Center Police worked together on that case.

"We did a thorough investigation. We examined the evidence with the police, and we both came to the same conclusion," Huskins said. "I understand what Mr. Freeman said. I think that's an unfortunate conclusion. We did not drop the ball."

The allegations, she says, weren't true, so Standifer kept his foster care license. Since allegations surfaced on this case from 2006, and since he's been charged with molesting two other teens, the State of Minnesota has taken away his foster care license.

"We wouldn't have a child placed there, if we knew it was an unsafe place for that child," Huskins said.

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Postby Marina » Wed Mar 18, 2009 5:16 pm

http://www.itemlive.com/articles/2009/0 ... news05.txt

Revolting rape rap for Lynner


By Dan O'Brien / The Daily Item

LYNN - A Lynn foster dad was arrested Monday and charged with sexually assaulting a mentally handicapped girl in his care over several years, police said.

Paul MacDuff, 53, of 26 Broad St. #10, Lynn, was arre-sted and charged with two counts of indecent as-sault and battery on a mentally retarded person.

...

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She didn't look like this when she went into foster care.

Postby tommixx » Mon Mar 23, 2009 6:52 pm

She didn't look like this when she went into foster care'
BY CHIP OLSEN AND KARYN SPENCER
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITERS

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2 ... d=10592375

An Omaha girl was put in foster care 2½ years ago when a state worker questioned whether the girl was safe with her mother.

Click to Enlarge

An Omaha girl got 42 stitches after she was bitten by her foster parents' dog. Last year, the girl was driven in a car by a worker with a blood-alcohol level five times the legal limit.
Now the mother is questioning how safe her daughter is in the state's care.

The girl was a passenger in a car driven by a drunken worker who was arrested in a highly publicized case. More recently the 9-year-old was mauled by her foster parents' dog.

"It's the second time they have almost killed her," her mother said.

Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services staff described the incidents as a rare but unfortunate coincidence.

As of January, about one-half of 1 percent of foster children had suffered maltreatment in state custody, said Todd Landry, children and family services director.

"We continuously strive to keep children safe, particularly while they're in foster care," he said in a written statement. "While issues such as these are very infrequent in foster care, we take each one very seriously. We're saddened that this child has experienced this type of trauma."

The executive director of the Nebraska Foster Care Review Board, Carol Stitt, said she knows of a few other foster children who have been mauled by dogs.

In 2007, according to the most recent data available, her agency concluded that 1.4 percent of foster children - or 77 - were in unsafe placements, which can include a lack of supervision, assaults by other children, neglect and other situations.

"All children and youth placed in the care of the state are entitled to be well cared for and to be safe," the review board's 2007 annual report said. "It is only rational to expect that the conditions in foster homes and group homes would be much better than those endured by the child prior to coming into care."

The child in this case was 6 when she was put in state care after her mother was jailed on a drunken-driving charge.

Their house was littered with dirty clothes and unwashed dishes, according to court records. Friends, family, school and day care employees told an HHS worker that they worried about the girl, who often had an unpleasant odor.

The mother, then 35, struggled with eating disorders and anxiety. She ended up in prison for her sixth drunken-driving conviction while her daughter lived in foster homes.

Then, in February 2008, drivers called police to report a sedan swerving on Interstate 80 west of the Gretna exit.

Driver Denise M. Thomson, working for an Omaha company that transported foster children for HHS, was taking the girl to visit her mother, court records say.

Police determined Thomson's blood-alcohol level was .40 - five times the legal limit - and found an open vodka container on the front seat.

The girl, then 8, was found crying in the back seat.

The driver was fired and pleaded guilty to attempted negligent child abuse and driving under the influence.

The girl was living with foster parents in Omaha, HHS spokeswoman Jeanne Atkinson said.

Almost a year later - on New Year's Day 2009 - the girl tried to nudge her foster family's black Labrador, Stitch, off her bed, said Mark Langan of the Nebraska Humane Society.

The dog bit her face, leaving gaping wounds on her cheek, and tore a 2-inch strip from her upper arm, exposing tissue, according to medical records. Her mother said she needed 42 stitches.

The foster parents released the dog to Humane Society staff, who euthanized him, Langan said.

HHS staff investigated the incident, and while the girl was removed, the couple remain licensed and have one foster child.

The couple, who declined to comment, have been foster parents for seven years and adopted five children, Atkinson said.

The appropriateness of a pet in a foster home is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

About two weeks after the attack, HHS staff placed the girl with her mother's sister, who now serves as her foster parent, Atkinson said.

The mother, released from prison a year ago, was pleased with that decision but worried because her sister also has a black Lab.

The mother's attorney, Carol Pinard-Cronin, filed a motion to return the girl home, saying she has "suffered significant injury, trauma and psychological upheaval in the department's custody."

The motion says the mother has complied with court orders to remain sober, pass drug tests, attend therapy and have a job.

However, a prosecutor filed a motion to terminate the mother's rights, saying her compliance has been inconsistent. Hearing dates have been set in April and June.

The mother's lawyer and the guardian ad litem, assigned to represent the child's best interests, declined to comment because of the pending case.

Taxpayers have footed the bill for the girl's injuries through the Medicaid program, Atkinson said. The mother said her daughter may need plastic surgery.

"She didn't look like this when she went into foster care," her mother said. "She is scarred for life, and it is not fair."


• Contact the writer: 444-1208, [email protected]
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA/CIA WIRETAPING PROGRAM....

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Sacramento County CA- Foster Dad Accused Of Abusing Kids Die

Postby tommixx » Tue Mar 24, 2009 6:55 pm

Foster Dad Accused Of Abusing Kids Dies
Reporting
David Begnaud
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―

http://cbs13.com/local/foster.father.ab ... 65642.html

A local foster parent accused of brutally beating and sexually abusing the children in his care in the early 1990s, has died.

Renn, 70, was arrested last week after police investigated claims from his foster children that he violently abused them since they were toddlers. From 1991 to 2001, the three foster children say they suffered while living with him in his Land Park home.

Renn was taken from the Sacramento County Main Jail to a hospital in San Joaquin County, where he died Sunday.

"He's the devil," said Chris Renn, one of Renn's foster children. "It's pretty bad."

Police say Darryl would give Chris and his two foster sisters 12 Ritalin pills a day to keep them submissive, forced them to cut the lawn with sewing scissors, watched and fondled them in the showers, and forcing one of them to sleep in his bed every night, where he allegedly raped them.

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA/CIA WIRETAPING PROGRAM....

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WHITE PLAINS NY- foster father gets 8 years for raping girls

Postby tommixx » Tue Mar 24, 2009 7:24 pm

Mt. Vernon foster father gets 8 years for raping girls, 12 and 14

http://lohud.com/article/20090324/NEWS0 ... /newsfront

By Rebecca Baker
The Journal News • March 24, 2009

WHITE PLAINS - A judge said he was disgusted by a Mount Vernon man who raped his two foster children last year, and sentenced him to eight years in state prison today under a plea deal that spared the girls from a trial.

Reginald Duncan, 49, pleaded guilty last month to first- and second-degree rape, felonies, for having sex with the girls, 12 and 14.


Duncan kept his head bowed as Westchester County Judge Jeffrey A. Cohen condemned him for abusing the girls, and impregnating the younger child.

"It boggles the mind," he said. "You knew their mom was addicted to drugs, and you took advantage of them."

Cohen said prosecutors were "hamstrung" into accepting a plea to avoid putting the girls on the stand. Cohen said if a jury had convicted Duncan, he would be serving many more years behind bars. First-degree rape is punishable by up to 25 years in prison.

Duncan's attorney, Barry Warhit, said his client regretted his actions but acknowledged that his client's remorse "is not good enough, and he knows that."

The judge said he believed Duncan would have kept denying that he had sex with the girls had it not been for DNA evidence proving he had.

"You're a very serious danger to society," he said.

Duncan will be registered as a sex offender when he is released. He is barred from having any contact whatsoever with the girls until 2030.

Read more about this story tomorrow in The Journal News and on LoHud.com.
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA/CIA WIRETAPING PROGRAM....

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WA State, others will pay $6 million to boy who nearly starv

Postby tommixx » Tue Mar 24, 2009 7:32 pm

State, others will pay $6 million to boy who nearly starved to death

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/404206_abegg24ww.html

By VANESSA HO
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

A 6-year-old Everett boy who was found beaten and starving to death will receive $6 million from the state and two other defendants in an court settlement reached Tuesday.

The state's portion - $5 million - is the largest payment to a child victim ever by the Department of Social and Health Services. The boy's therapist and a social-service agency that employed the therapist are the two other defendants.

The agreement ends a lawsuit filed against the agency in Snohomish County Superior Court last year on behalf of the boy, Shayne Abegg, who was a skeletal weight of 25 pounds when police rescued him in March 2007.

The boy's body was covered in bruises and sores, his temperature had dropped to 87 degrees, and he could not sit or stand without help. A judge compared the sight of him to someone in a Nazi concentration camp.

The lawsuit accused DSHS of failing to adequately investigate many signs of abuse while the boy lived with his father. It said four caseworkers had missed a pattern of abuse and neglect, including reports that the boy was malnourished and had hoarded food.

"This little boy who was neglected by the state for 14 months while they received warning after warning that he was being starved and neglected will now have the resources to take care of himself for the remainder of his life," said the boy's lawyer, David Moody, of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro law firm in Seattle. Moody has a long history of successfully suing DSHS.

The boy's father, Danny Abegg, and his girlfriend, Marilea Mitchell, were sentenced to eight years in prison last year. They were convicted of criminal mistreatment for withholding food from Shayne as punishment.

The lawsuit alleged that the family's therapist had failed to report signs of abuse, despite billing for work for regular visits he allegedly did up until Shayne's rescue, Moody said.

Moody said Shayne is now living with his third foster family since his rescue. "DSHS continues to get it wrong for this little boy, and has now placed him in three separate foster homes," he said. The money will be placed into a fund managed by the court until he is at least 18.

Sherry Hill, a spokeswoman for the Children's Administration in DSHS, said Shayne is in "good health." She could not comment on his foster-care status.

"Any child who has endured what Shayne did so early in his life may face challenges throughout the rest of his life," she said. "We're pleased the state can provide some financial assistance to help him face those challenges."
Vanessa Ho can be reached at 206-448-8003 or [email protected].
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA/CIA WIRETAPING PROGRAM....

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Postby Marina » Sat Apr 25, 2009 8:02 am

http://www.news-press.com/article/20090 ... 1002/RSS01

DCF pleads case of former Immokalee woman in need of state help

By JANINE ZEITLIN [email protected] • April 22, 2009


The Department of Children and Families secretary is pleading with state leaders to siphon a slice of $2.4 million in federal dollars to pay a mentally disabled woman who was raped by her former foster father in Immokalee.



“There can be no more appropriate or just use of these funds than to use them to make good on our promise to those children and families irreparably damaged while in our foster care system,” Secretary George Sheldon wrote.


Sheldon’s Wednesday letter was addressed to Senate President Jeff Atwater and House Speaker Larry Cretul. Calls placed to their offices were not immediately returned.


Bills to pay the $1 million-plus settlement forged with DCF have stalled this year and last in the state legislature. Lawmakers had offered scant hope the proposal would pass year.


The 27-year-old woman, Pierreisna, was impregnated by her former foster father and has a 9-year-old as a result. DCF ignored her younger sister’s warnings about the abuse.


Her sister, Darlene Achille, 25, now shoulders care for her and the 9-year-old girl in central Florida.


The former Lee County residents moved to central Florida less than a year ago. Pierreisna's IQ is below 40 and she has the cognitive ability of a 6-year-old.


Richard Filson, a Sarasota lawyer representing the sisters, said he appreciated the push.


“On behalf of my clients, I appreciate Secretary Sheldon’s efforts and hope this solution is acceptable to the Senate and the bill moves forward quickly,” he said. “I can only pray that it does.”


Sheldon said the money would come from the rescinding of a federal penalty DCF paid related to placement stability in foster care. He also noted a second claim in the letter that deserves payment. It involves three boys who were physically and sexually abused in foster homes.


“In both of these cases innocent children were victimized at the hands of those who were supposed to be their caretakers,” he wrote. “Even worse, employees from the Department of Children and Families who were given a sacred trust to oversee the safety and care of these children broke that trust and failed them.”


Filson said the woman remains in the hospital in Seminole County for testing after she was hospitalized over the weekend due to chest pains.


Doctors found she had diabetes and an enlarged thyroid, he said.


“The family is stressed,” he said. “The state really needs to step in and help.”


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