Custodial dad, stepmom charged in death of 10-year-old girl; "one of the worst cases of child abuse they have seen" (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Custodial dad DOMINGO FERREIRA and the stepmom have been charged with murder in the death of dad's 10-year-old daughter. The police say what the girl suffered was "nothing short of torture" and that it was "one of the worst cases of child abuse they have seen." She had numerous healed and fresh injuries, including a severe head gash, a hip fracture, and untreated broken ribs (she apparently died from an infection that collapsed her lungs brought on by the rib injuries). There was also evidence that the little girl had been sexually abused.

Once again, this is a case where CPS totally dropped the ball. There were reports of abuse three years ago, but CPS was unable to "substantiate" them. A dedicated school nurse was convinced of the abuse early on, but was unable to get any traction, even with doctors who presumably specialize in diagnosing child abuse.

This case is similar to one we have posted here from Canada, where the mom was from Jamaica and wanted her child to have a better life with the dad in Canada. But in the end the child was brutally murdered by psychodad and the stepmonster:

http://dastardlydads.blogspot.com/2009/09/custodial-dad-stepmother-want-new-trial.html

Here the mother was from Puerto Rico, and was not able to provide for the child. So she sent the child to the father up north--presumably for a better life, but in reality for torture and death. In this case, the child was apparently malnourished when she arrived in Philadelphia--which is a symptom of systematic poverty, not out-and-out evil, like we see the from the custodial dad-stepmom "parents." It's interesting that the girl apparently told the doctor that she had been abused by her mother, yet seemingly kept quiet about about the ongoing abuse she had been experiencing in the here-and-now. However, it's also possible that we're seeing a little @$$ covering now that the little girl is dead, and everybody (but the school nurse) utterly failed to do their jobs right, especially the doctor.

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/front_page/20091023_Parents_charged_in_death_of_girl__10.html
Posted on Fri, Oct. 23, 2009

Parents charged in death of girl, 10
By John Sullivan and Troy Graham

Inquirer Staff Writers

What 10-year-old Charleeni Ferreira suffered at the hands of her father and stepmother was nothing short of torture, police officials said yesterday, calling her death one of the worst cases of child abuse they have seen.

Charleeni, who died Wednesday, had numerous healed and fresh injuries, including broken bones and a severe head gash that had been stuffed with gauze and concealed with a hair weave. Ultimately, she died of an infection that collapsed her lungs and that had been caused by untreated broken ribs.

Her father, Domingo Ferreira, 53, and stepmother, Margarita Garabito, 43, of Feltonville, both were charged yesterday with murder and endangering the welfare of a child. They were being processed at Police Headquarters.

"It's unconscionable that someone could have done this to a 10-year-old girl," said Homicide Capt. James Clark. "You could say it was ongoing torture."

Charleeni also had injuries that showed she had been sexually abused, but neither parent was charged yesterday with a sex crime. The investigation into those injuries was continuing.

Questions also remained, Clark said, about what motivated the abuse and how such a severe case could have been concealed from the numerous people who would have had contact with girl.
Despite her injuries, which included a recent hip fracture that caused her to limp, Charleeni had a perfect school-attendance record until Monday, officials said.

She was a fifth grader at Feltonville Intermediate, where grief counselors were on hand yesterday to assist students and staff.

Three years ago, the city's Department of Human Services investigated claims that Charleeni was being abused, visiting the girl in her home several times a week for months. In the end, the agency had to close the case after being unable to substantiate the claims, according to sources who reviewed records in the case.

Clark also said investigators were trying to determine whether police had been called to the home before, but he was unaware of any previous incidents yesterday.

Police and medics responded to the home, in the 4700 block of C Street, about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, after Charleeni's stepmother found her unresponsive in the bathroom. She died at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children.

Two other people living in the home - Garabito's 16-year-old and 19-year-old sons - showed no signs of abuse, Clark said. They were staying with relatives yesterday, he said.

It was unclear how long Charleeni had been abused, but the seven-inch gash on her forehead was so old that skin had begun to grow over the gauze, officials said.

In 2006, a nurse at Charleeni's previous school, Clara Barton Elementary, was adamant that the girl was being abused, according to sources familiar with the case.

After the nurse's first report in October of that year, DHS took the child to a pediatrician specializing in child abuse, but the doctor could not substantiate the claim.

The nurse was so insistent that DHS initiated services anyway, the sources said.

For 12 weeks, a private child-welfare agency hired by the department visited the home at least twice a week under a now-defunct program called Family Preservation. The program was the most invasive of the in-home services and usually was employed as a last-ditch effort to keep a child in the home.

Although the family was cooperative and there was no indication of abuse, the agency extended the 12-week service, the sources said.

In February 2007, the school nurse made another call to DHS alleging abuse. By this point, DHS was engulfed in a public maelstrom after revelations by The Inquirer that 20 children had died of abuse after they or their families had been known to the agency.

Under the heightened scrutiny, the agency again made an appointment for Charleeni to see the child-abuse pediatrician.

The doctor indicated that there might have been past abuse, but that there was no evidence the girl was being mistreated at present, the sources said.

When asked, the girl told the doctor that she had been abused by her biological mother, who lived in Puerto Rico, according to sources. In fact, the sources said, she was significantly malnourished when she came to stay with her father in Philadelphia.

With two unsubstantiated cases of abuse, DHS closed out the case. The department has no procedure for revisiting an unsubstantiated abuse case once it has been closed, and those cases are eventually expunged.

DHS Commissioner Anne Marie Ambrose declined to discuss the specifics of Charleeni's case yesterday, citing state confidentiality laws.

"However, as the facts of this case become known to DHS, we will have lots of work to do in looking at the recent events that could have led to or prevented this tragedy," she said in a statement.

Ambrose was appointed in June 2008 and has overseen significant reforms at an agency that gets about 10,000 abuse and neglect calls a year.