Believe or not, I really hate it when I'm right.
We've posted on this case several times as it's developed. I wondered about abuse when it was first reported that this little boy had died at the home of his custodial UNNAMED DAD under "mysterious" conditions. I wasn't surprised when the boy's death was ruled a homicide. I was appalled--but not truly shocked--when it was reported that the little boy's sister had died in the home a few months before, supposedly from an "accidential" drowning. I wondered if there was a track record with this father that had been ignored.
And yes, it appears there was a track record. When the 3-year-old sister died, the maternal grandfather and other relatives "hounded" children's services for answers. It's not clear--surprise!--the children's services did a damn thing. Meanwhile, the father adopted the classic coercive control behavior often seen with abusive custodial fathers--cutting off phone contact with the rest of the family, even refusing to let the little boy talk to his maternal relatives at the sister's funeral.
Meanwhile, one of the central unasked questions--what happened to the mother of these children?--is still being tiptoed around. Though this would seem to me to be the giant elephant in the room. Is this how marginal mothers have become these days? That their existence doesn't even need to be accounted for? So what happened to her? Did Mom lose custody to this abusive father? Wouldn't be the first time such a thing has happened. On the other hand, if she suffered an "accidental" death or passed away from a "mysterious illness," it might be useful to revisit this issue. Or if she seemingly "disappeared."
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/12/23/16653826.html
Second child dies at Sask. home
By NADIA MOHARIB, QMI Agency
Last Updated: December 23, 2010 1:24am
CALGARY -- Five months to the day after a three-year-old tot died in a drowning deemed accidental, her brother was found dead in his bed -- a case ruled a homicide by Mounties.
Devastated family in Alberta, who said they repeatedly hounded children's services in Saskatchewan, where the siblings lived and died, want police to revisit the death of the three-year-old.
They want to know what, if anything, was done by officials to look into their concerns about her brother before he was allegedly killed on the weekend.
The identity of the siblings is protected by child welfare legislation. No one who would identify the children can be named.
In July, the little girl, who lived with her brother, father and his girlfriend, was found unconscious in a container of water outside their rural home, near Swift Current, Sask.
RCMP told family she was playing unattended when she fell into a trash can used as a rain barrel.
Skeptical of those claims and concerned about her brother, family in Alberta repeatedly contacted children's services, claiming they were bounced from office to office and given no assurances anything was being done to allay worries about the surviving sibling.
When they went to his sister's funeral, the boy was not there and his father refused to let them see him.
In the months to follow, relatives said the father didn't let them talk to the boy on the phone.
On Saturday, their worst fears were realized, with the boy found dead in his bed.
Police won't say how he died, only that it is a homicide.
RCMP Sgt. Paul Dawson said police and the coroner's office deemed the girl's death accidental at the time, but now they have not ruled out revisiting it in light of her brother's homicide.
"Any time we are provided with new information if it is relevant, of course we will look at it," Dawson said.
Andrea Brittin, an executive director with Saskatchewan social services ministry's child and family services division, said she cannot speak to "specifics" on any individual case or "even confirm or deny involvement."
She said when concerns are raised by anyone, it is "certainly our obligation" to look into them.
If a child who dies is involved with the ministry, or has been within the past year, an investigation is ordered.
"A complete and comprehensive review is done to look at the services provided to the family to ensure if there are any lessons we can gain from these unfortunate events," Brittin said.
The children's maternal grandfather and numerous other relatives said any review is too late and they will never know if the little boy's life might have been spared.
"I'd like to know why they didn't listen to us," said the grandfather, who raised the children for months prior their father taking them to Saskatchewan.
An aunt said she wants answers about what child welfare did or did not do.
"It breaks my heart," she said. "The last time I talked to (the girl) on the phone I remember her saying, 'I love you, auntie,' and within four months, she was dead.
"The sad part is, there is no reverse switch to bring these children back."
No charges have been laid in the boy's homicide.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Babysitting dad charged with child abuse; left infant, toddler home alone (Beaufort, North Carolina)
Dad BRANDON ADKINS has been arrested on child abuse charges after he left his 2-year old and 5-month old home alone. Given that mom found that the TV had been thrown near the baby's crib, and that a bottle of bleach had been dumped all over the floor, it sure looks to me like Daddy was having a temper tantrum over something. One of the commenters to this article said something about the mom cutting off contact with this idiot. Nice sentiment, but the courts don't allow mothers to act authoritatively on behalf of their offspring. And certainly not in North Carolina.
http://www2.wnct.com/news/2010/dec/23/beaufort-father-charged-child-abuse-ar-640754/
Beaufort father charged with child abuse
Beaufort Police arrested Brandon Adkins last Saturday after his wife told police she came home that afternoon and actually had to crawl through a window to get inside.
By Lindsay Landry
Published: December 23, 2010
BEAUFORT, N.C. - A father has been charged with child abuse after police say he left his two small children home alone.
Beaufort Police arrested Brandon Adkins last Saturday after his wife told police she came home that afternoon and actually had to crawl through a window to get inside.
Once inside she said she found her two children ages two and five months alone in the apartment when Brandon was suppose to be watching them.
The wife told police a television had been thrown near the baby's crib and a bottle of bleach had been poured all over the living room floor.
Adkins received a two thousand dollar bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 22nd.
http://www2.wnct.com/news/2010/dec/23/beaufort-father-charged-child-abuse-ar-640754/
Beaufort father charged with child abuse
Beaufort Police arrested Brandon Adkins last Saturday after his wife told police she came home that afternoon and actually had to crawl through a window to get inside.
By Lindsay Landry
Published: December 23, 2010
BEAUFORT, N.C. - A father has been charged with child abuse after police say he left his two small children home alone.
Beaufort Police arrested Brandon Adkins last Saturday after his wife told police she came home that afternoon and actually had to crawl through a window to get inside.
Once inside she said she found her two children ages two and five months alone in the apartment when Brandon was suppose to be watching them.
The wife told police a television had been thrown near the baby's crib and a bottle of bleach had been poured all over the living room floor.
Adkins received a two thousand dollar bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 22nd.
Supervised visitation center closes from lack of dedicated funding (Columbia County, Oregon)
This drives me freaking crazy, that a "women's resource center" would be wasting precious fundraising dollars on such a stupid scheme. And now that the supervised visitation center is closing for lack of funding, they all act helpless. As if murders by abusive dads will automatically go up because there is nothing they can do, poor darlings. It doesn't occur to any of these nitwits that these abuser dads don't DESERVE visitation. Period. End of problem.
The problems with the whole supervised visitation center concept are legion by now. By now, it should be more than apparent that this was one of those "bright new ideas" that should be consigned to the dustpan of history. Do you really think that a father--like the father of the murdered 10-year-old boy whose name was given to this center--should be "visiting" with his kids at all? If there is enough evidence to suggest that unsupervised visitation is dangerous, then why are we granting these criminals or would-be criminals supervised visitation?
Even back in 2002, there was mounting evidence that these supervised visitation centers were financial boondoggles that were failing both the interests of abused children and the safety of domestic violence victims. See one report here:
‘Shane’s Place’ closes from lack of dedicated funds
By Darryl Swan
The South County Spotlight, Dec 22, 2010, Updated 12.9 hours ago
Despite Columbia County Women’s Resource Center fundraising successes this holiday season, the board for the domestic abuse prevention agency earlier this month canceled a program that provided a supervised location where parents who have a history of abuse could safely visit their children.
The WRC in November 2009 started “Shane’s Place,” a name given after Shane Davis, the 10-year-old St. Helens boy who was killed in a murder-suicide by his father.
Davis’ case exposed a shortcoming in Columbia County regarding how separated parents who have a history of domestic abuse, either as the perpetrator or victim, share custody with a child.
Typically it is up to the parent with custody to establish a location where the other parent, restrained under court order, could meet with his or her children. In most cases a relative’s house is used. When conflicts arise, such as when no relative is available, there has been little alternative and the court-allowed visitations and exchanges have taken place without supervision.
Over the last year, Shane’s Place has served 60 people from 17 families, most from St. Helens. It was the only service of its type in Columbia County.
The absence of a dedicated funding source due largely to the flagging economy and a referral system that relied on participation from Columbia County Circuit Court judges proved too cumbersome to keep Shane’s Place going, said WRC Director Rachael Barry-Dame.
“To find a dedicated funding stream...at this time was not really possible,” Barry-Dame said. “At this time we really need to be strategic with our resources.”
WRC relies heavily upon state grants for the majority of its services, though other funding sources are needed for supplies and some administration costs.
Shannon Davis, Shane’s mother, said she was disappointed upon learning the program had been cancelled.
“The only thing I can think of is that it’s sad,” Shannon said. “It’s heartbreaking to me to think that kids are going to be put back in harm’s way again.”
Barry-Dame said this has been a positive year for fundraising, and that other programs, such as job training through Norma’s Place Thrift Store, are showing success. She also said several donors have contributed enough supplies — about $900 worth — to cover the immediate needs identified by the women and children sheltered at the center.
For more information about the Women’s Resource Center or to learn how to contribute, visit http://www.noexcuse4abuse.com./
The problems with the whole supervised visitation center concept are legion by now. By now, it should be more than apparent that this was one of those "bright new ideas" that should be consigned to the dustpan of history. Do you really think that a father--like the father of the murdered 10-year-old boy whose name was given to this center--should be "visiting" with his kids at all? If there is enough evidence to suggest that unsupervised visitation is dangerous, then why are we granting these criminals or would-be criminals supervised visitation?
Even back in 2002, there was mounting evidence that these supervised visitation centers were financial boondoggles that were failing both the interests of abused children and the safety of domestic violence victims. See one report here:
http://www.thelizlibrary.org/site-index/site-index-frame.html#soulhttp://www.thelizlibrary.org/liz/
http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story_2nd.php?story_id=129305078486253400
‘Shane’s Place’ closes from lack of dedicated funds
By Darryl Swan
The South County Spotlight, Dec 22, 2010, Updated 12.9 hours ago
Despite Columbia County Women’s Resource Center fundraising successes this holiday season, the board for the domestic abuse prevention agency earlier this month canceled a program that provided a supervised location where parents who have a history of abuse could safely visit their children.
The WRC in November 2009 started “Shane’s Place,” a name given after Shane Davis, the 10-year-old St. Helens boy who was killed in a murder-suicide by his father.
Davis’ case exposed a shortcoming in Columbia County regarding how separated parents who have a history of domestic abuse, either as the perpetrator or victim, share custody with a child.
Typically it is up to the parent with custody to establish a location where the other parent, restrained under court order, could meet with his or her children. In most cases a relative’s house is used. When conflicts arise, such as when no relative is available, there has been little alternative and the court-allowed visitations and exchanges have taken place without supervision.
Over the last year, Shane’s Place has served 60 people from 17 families, most from St. Helens. It was the only service of its type in Columbia County.
The absence of a dedicated funding source due largely to the flagging economy and a referral system that relied on participation from Columbia County Circuit Court judges proved too cumbersome to keep Shane’s Place going, said WRC Director Rachael Barry-Dame.
“To find a dedicated funding stream...at this time was not really possible,” Barry-Dame said. “At this time we really need to be strategic with our resources.”
WRC relies heavily upon state grants for the majority of its services, though other funding sources are needed for supplies and some administration costs.
Shannon Davis, Shane’s mother, said she was disappointed upon learning the program had been cancelled.
“The only thing I can think of is that it’s sad,” Shannon said. “It’s heartbreaking to me to think that kids are going to be put back in harm’s way again.”
Barry-Dame said this has been a positive year for fundraising, and that other programs, such as job training through Norma’s Place Thrift Store, are showing success. She also said several donors have contributed enough supplies — about $900 worth — to cover the immediate needs identified by the women and children sheltered at the center.
For more information about the Women’s Resource Center or to learn how to contribute, visit http://www.noexcuse4abuse.com./
Jury: death for dad, son in bank bombing (Salem, Oregon)
Dad BRUCE TURNBRIDGE and son are pretty dispicable creatures. Bigoted, Nazi-sympathizers who have been convicted of planting a bomb at a bank that killed two police officers and maimed a third. And they have shown no remorse at all. Oh, they were just so beside themselves with the idea that President Obama might take away their precious guns. Well, some freaks NEED to have their little private arsenals taken away because they are, in fact, a menace to other human beings.
So, do you still think every child needs a father? Did this child benefit by close contact with his father, who brought him up to be a violent, paranoid, ultra-rightwing militia creep just like the old man?
And why is the son's 12-year-old daughter in the custody of the grandparents? What happened to her mother? And note the defense attorney's tearful appeal, that this child not be left without a parent! Wouldn't she have a parent if her mother is still alive? Or did the Nazi daddy strip the mother of custody somehow?
And what about the police officers that were killed? Were they fathers? Didn't they leave loved ones behind? Oh right. We only cry about the need to keep (crappy) dads in the lives of their children. Not good dads who actually are employed and support their families. Because they already ARE involved.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/death-for-dad-son-in-bank-bombing-jury/story-e6frf7jx-1225975378173
Last Updated: December 24, 2010
Death for dad, son in bank bombing - jury
By Jonathan J Cooper in Salem, Oregon From: AP December 23, 2010 11:01AM
A JURY recommended that a father and his son be sentenced to death for planting a bomb that exploded inside an Oregon bank two years ago, killing two police officers and maiming a third.
In a trial that spanned three months, prosecutors portrayed Bruce and Joshua Turnidge as bigoted men who hated authorities, were desperate for money and feared that newly-elected President Barack Obama would take away their guns.
Both defendants stood with their lawyers and stared straight forward, showing no emotion as Marion County Circuit Judge Tom Hart read the jury's decisions. Sheriff's deputies handcuffed them and led them away to be jailed until Judge Hart formally sentences them on January 24. The judge is bound by the jury's death sentence and cannot impose a lesser penalty. However, because the case involves capital punishment, it automatically will be appealed to the Oregon Supreme Court.
"It's all in God's hands. We don't know what's going to happen eventually," said Janet Turnidge, who is Bruce Turnidge's wife and Joshua Turnidge's mother. "We want to express our deep, deep sorrow for the loss that the victims' families have endured. We have been praying for them."
The same jury convicted the men December 8 on 18 counts each of aggravated murder and other charges in the December 2008 bombing at the West Coast Bank in Woodburn, about 48km south of Portland. The homemade bomb killed state police bomb technician William Hakim, who was trying to dismantle it, and Woodburn Police Captain Tom Tennant, who was helping.
"This is a murderer with no remorse," prosecutor Matt Kemmy said in his closing argument of the penalty phase on Tuesday (local time).
Both men have maintained their innocence. Father and son turned on each other in trial, each pointing the finger at the other for building and planting the bomb, which prosecutors said was part of a plan to rob the bank.
Prosecutors urged jurors to sentence the men to death to prevent them from endangering prison staff or preaching their hatred for authorities to young prisoners who will someday be released. As convicted cop killers, the Turnidges will be popular in prison, they said.
Witnesses testified that Bruce Turnidge, 59, had previously hatched detailed plans to kill people he didn't like and once fantasised about killing then-President Bill Clinton. Prosecutor Courtland Geyer told jurors that a death sentence would mean "safety from crimes that lurk inside the mind of Bruce Turnidge."
Prosecutors portrayed Joshua Turnidge, 34, as selfish and hostile to jail staff.
Jail staff testified that the younger Turnidge made rude, "hateful" and disrespectful comments that resulted in him losing privileges, the Salem Statesman Journal reported.
Jail Sergeant Megan Gonzalez said Joshua Turnidge drew a swastika over a US flag on a postcard that shows the jail facility and wrote other things including "pigs for sale!" "human rights?" and "gas chamber" on the card before trying to send it. The postcard was deemed a violation of policy.
According to testimony, father and son exulted in the Oklahoma City bombing, and Bruce Turnidge viewed Timothy McVeigh as a hero.
Defence attorneys said the men would want to behave well in prison so they could continue seeing visitors. Evelyn Knight, Bruce Turnidge's mother and Joshua's grandmother, testified that a death sentence would be devastating for Joshua's 12-year-old daughter, who is in the custody of her grandparents.
"No child should be left without a parent," defence attorney Steven Gorham said in his closing argument. "Not the survivors' children, not Joshua Turnidge's children."
The defence also argued that Joshua Turnidge would not be revered in prison but rather reviled as a snitch for testifying against his father.
The men were convicted after prosecutors argued that the Turnidges had fantasies of building bombs, robbing banks and starting an anti-government militia. They hatched the bank robbery plan because they needed money to keep their struggling biodiesel company afloat, prosecutors said.
Witnesses testified that Bruce Turnidge, who grew up in a farming family in the Willamette Valley but could not make a go of farming himself, wanted to live in a tent city with people who shared his political beliefs but couldn't get money to build an arms stockpile for a militia.
Bruce Turnidge did not take the stand, but family members denied he hated police or held extremist political views.
Joshua Turnidge testified that he bought two mobile phones and materials used to build the bomb without knowing his father planned to use them to rob a bank. He said he only figured out what happened after hearing his father muttering that no one was supposed to get hurt.
Woodburn Police Chief Scott Russell, who lost a leg in the explosion, said it was terrible that the plot ended with the murder of two police officers.
"It's really an attack on every citizen because they're the ones we protect," Chief Russell said after the jury's decision was announced.
Since 1962, only two condemned inmates have been executed in Oregon - both were men who gave up their appeals. The state has 34 men on death row, including some who were sentenced more than 20 years ago.
Oregon State Police Superintendent Chris Brown said in a statement following the verdict that the bombing has forever changed the victims' families and the police forces that employed them.
"We are grateful to the men and women who served on the jury for their attention to the facts that led to the decisions they were asked to make during this difficult trial," Superintendent Brown said.
So, do you still think every child needs a father? Did this child benefit by close contact with his father, who brought him up to be a violent, paranoid, ultra-rightwing militia creep just like the old man?
And why is the son's 12-year-old daughter in the custody of the grandparents? What happened to her mother? And note the defense attorney's tearful appeal, that this child not be left without a parent! Wouldn't she have a parent if her mother is still alive? Or did the Nazi daddy strip the mother of custody somehow?
And what about the police officers that were killed? Were they fathers? Didn't they leave loved ones behind? Oh right. We only cry about the need to keep (crappy) dads in the lives of their children. Not good dads who actually are employed and support their families. Because they already ARE involved.
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/death-for-dad-son-in-bank-bombing-jury/story-e6frf7jx-1225975378173
Last Updated: December 24, 2010
Death for dad, son in bank bombing - jury
By Jonathan J Cooper in Salem, Oregon From: AP December 23, 2010 11:01AM
A JURY recommended that a father and his son be sentenced to death for planting a bomb that exploded inside an Oregon bank two years ago, killing two police officers and maiming a third.
In a trial that spanned three months, prosecutors portrayed Bruce and Joshua Turnidge as bigoted men who hated authorities, were desperate for money and feared that newly-elected President Barack Obama would take away their guns.
Both defendants stood with their lawyers and stared straight forward, showing no emotion as Marion County Circuit Judge Tom Hart read the jury's decisions. Sheriff's deputies handcuffed them and led them away to be jailed until Judge Hart formally sentences them on January 24. The judge is bound by the jury's death sentence and cannot impose a lesser penalty. However, because the case involves capital punishment, it automatically will be appealed to the Oregon Supreme Court.
"It's all in God's hands. We don't know what's going to happen eventually," said Janet Turnidge, who is Bruce Turnidge's wife and Joshua Turnidge's mother. "We want to express our deep, deep sorrow for the loss that the victims' families have endured. We have been praying for them."
The same jury convicted the men December 8 on 18 counts each of aggravated murder and other charges in the December 2008 bombing at the West Coast Bank in Woodburn, about 48km south of Portland. The homemade bomb killed state police bomb technician William Hakim, who was trying to dismantle it, and Woodburn Police Captain Tom Tennant, who was helping.
"This is a murderer with no remorse," prosecutor Matt Kemmy said in his closing argument of the penalty phase on Tuesday (local time).
Both men have maintained their innocence. Father and son turned on each other in trial, each pointing the finger at the other for building and planting the bomb, which prosecutors said was part of a plan to rob the bank.
Prosecutors urged jurors to sentence the men to death to prevent them from endangering prison staff or preaching their hatred for authorities to young prisoners who will someday be released. As convicted cop killers, the Turnidges will be popular in prison, they said.
Witnesses testified that Bruce Turnidge, 59, had previously hatched detailed plans to kill people he didn't like and once fantasised about killing then-President Bill Clinton. Prosecutor Courtland Geyer told jurors that a death sentence would mean "safety from crimes that lurk inside the mind of Bruce Turnidge."
Prosecutors portrayed Joshua Turnidge, 34, as selfish and hostile to jail staff.
Jail staff testified that the younger Turnidge made rude, "hateful" and disrespectful comments that resulted in him losing privileges, the Salem Statesman Journal reported.
Jail Sergeant Megan Gonzalez said Joshua Turnidge drew a swastika over a US flag on a postcard that shows the jail facility and wrote other things including "pigs for sale!" "human rights?" and "gas chamber" on the card before trying to send it. The postcard was deemed a violation of policy.
According to testimony, father and son exulted in the Oklahoma City bombing, and Bruce Turnidge viewed Timothy McVeigh as a hero.
Defence attorneys said the men would want to behave well in prison so they could continue seeing visitors. Evelyn Knight, Bruce Turnidge's mother and Joshua's grandmother, testified that a death sentence would be devastating for Joshua's 12-year-old daughter, who is in the custody of her grandparents.
"No child should be left without a parent," defence attorney Steven Gorham said in his closing argument. "Not the survivors' children, not Joshua Turnidge's children."
The defence also argued that Joshua Turnidge would not be revered in prison but rather reviled as a snitch for testifying against his father.
The men were convicted after prosecutors argued that the Turnidges had fantasies of building bombs, robbing banks and starting an anti-government militia. They hatched the bank robbery plan because they needed money to keep their struggling biodiesel company afloat, prosecutors said.
Witnesses testified that Bruce Turnidge, who grew up in a farming family in the Willamette Valley but could not make a go of farming himself, wanted to live in a tent city with people who shared his political beliefs but couldn't get money to build an arms stockpile for a militia.
Bruce Turnidge did not take the stand, but family members denied he hated police or held extremist political views.
Joshua Turnidge testified that he bought two mobile phones and materials used to build the bomb without knowing his father planned to use them to rob a bank. He said he only figured out what happened after hearing his father muttering that no one was supposed to get hurt.
Woodburn Police Chief Scott Russell, who lost a leg in the explosion, said it was terrible that the plot ended with the murder of two police officers.
"It's really an attack on every citizen because they're the ones we protect," Chief Russell said after the jury's decision was announced.
Since 1962, only two condemned inmates have been executed in Oregon - both were men who gave up their appeals. The state has 34 men on death row, including some who were sentenced more than 20 years ago.
Oregon State Police Superintendent Chris Brown said in a statement following the verdict that the bombing has forever changed the victims' families and the police forces that employed them.
"We are grateful to the men and women who served on the jury for their attention to the facts that led to the decisions they were asked to make during this difficult trial," Superintendent Brown said.
Dad charged with homicide in beating death of infant daughter; human services found him no "threat" last year (Easton, Pennsylvania)
Last time we posted on this case, the baby was hospitalized but still alive. After being removed from life support, she has now passed away. Rest in peace, little Joselynn.
Joselynn's father, JOSEPH A. URQUIA has now been charged with homicide.
Once again, we see the same theme again and again. A "caretaking" or "babysitting" father who gets "frustrated" or "angry" because he can't deal with a crying baby.
Also notice that this guy was a TWO-TIME LOSER, that he had abused another infant in his care before! For that, he got probation and very likely a lot of useless therapy and classes. No doubt there were "professionals" (who, of course, will never be named in public) who ruled in their infinite wisdom that Daddy wasn't a "threat" and that he should be "allowed" to return to his children.
Now it's easy to do the knee-jerk blaming that a lot of people will do here, which is automatically blame the mother for not leaving him. But really, she's between a rock and a hard place. If she were to leave this father, he would no doubt get visitation and maybe even custody--given the testimony of the "professionals" in the previous abuse case. You know, that Daddy was contrite and had reformed himself, and all that happy horsesh**.
This is why mental health idiots need to be eliminated from the criminal justice system-- pronto. They're not smarter in predicting who is going to commit another crime than your hairdresser, your corner bartender, or your grandmother. In fact, I'd bet my money that these latter three are better judges of human nature than the vast majority of shrinks.
http://articles.mcall.com/2010-12-22/news/mc-easton-baby-murder-autopsy-20101222_1_easton-baby-district-attorney-terence-houck-autopsy
Autopsy conducted in Easton baby killing
December 22, 2010By Riley Yates and Pamela Lehman, OF THE MORNING CALL
The cause of death for an 11-week-old Easton baby who was allegedly fatally beaten by her father is pending further test results, Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim said Wednesday.
While Grim ruled Joselynn Urquia's death a homicide, he said toxicology and other medical tests still need to be completed.
Joseph A. Urquia, 21, is charged with homicide on accusations he punched Joselynn "at least two times" Sunday at their N. Seventh St. apartment. Shortly after the girl was removed from life support Tuesday at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, police arrested Urquia in the killing.
Pennsylvania permits the death penalty is cases of first-degree murder with at least one aggravating circumstance. Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli has said prosecutors need to review the autopsy's findings before determining whether to seek Urquia's execution.
On Wednesday, First Deputy District Attorney Terence Houck declined to comment about the extent of the girl's injuries until a full autopsy report is available.
According to court records filed by police, Urquia at first told investigators he had dropped Joselynn in the bathroom, but later admitted hitting her in the head because he was "frustrated and angry because the baby would not stop crying."
Urquia has a history of child abuse. Last year, he pleaded guilty to assaulting another daughter, who was 3 months old at the time, by spanking her and causing a large bruise across her buttocks. Urquia told a detective he struck the baby "out of frustration," police said.
Originally charged with felony aggravated assault, Urquia pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of simple assault, a misdemeanor. He received 18 months of probation.
Joselynn is the younger sister of the other girl and both were born to the same mother, Brenda Delacruz, who wasn't home on Sunday, authorities said.
County human services officials have declined to comment specifically on Urquia's case, citing confidentiality law. But in general, parents who complete courses and therapy are allowed to return to their children, provided professionals believe they are not a threat, human services director Ross Marcus has said.
Urquia is in Northampton County Prison without bail.
Joselynn's father, JOSEPH A. URQUIA has now been charged with homicide.
Once again, we see the same theme again and again. A "caretaking" or "babysitting" father who gets "frustrated" or "angry" because he can't deal with a crying baby.
Also notice that this guy was a TWO-TIME LOSER, that he had abused another infant in his care before! For that, he got probation and very likely a lot of useless therapy and classes. No doubt there were "professionals" (who, of course, will never be named in public) who ruled in their infinite wisdom that Daddy wasn't a "threat" and that he should be "allowed" to return to his children.
Now it's easy to do the knee-jerk blaming that a lot of people will do here, which is automatically blame the mother for not leaving him. But really, she's between a rock and a hard place. If she were to leave this father, he would no doubt get visitation and maybe even custody--given the testimony of the "professionals" in the previous abuse case. You know, that Daddy was contrite and had reformed himself, and all that happy horsesh**.
This is why mental health idiots need to be eliminated from the criminal justice system-- pronto. They're not smarter in predicting who is going to commit another crime than your hairdresser, your corner bartender, or your grandmother. In fact, I'd bet my money that these latter three are better judges of human nature than the vast majority of shrinks.
http://articles.mcall.com/2010-12-22/news/mc-easton-baby-murder-autopsy-20101222_1_easton-baby-district-attorney-terence-houck-autopsy
Autopsy conducted in Easton baby killing
December 22, 2010By Riley Yates and Pamela Lehman, OF THE MORNING CALL
The cause of death for an 11-week-old Easton baby who was allegedly fatally beaten by her father is pending further test results, Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim said Wednesday.
While Grim ruled Joselynn Urquia's death a homicide, he said toxicology and other medical tests still need to be completed.
Joseph A. Urquia, 21, is charged with homicide on accusations he punched Joselynn "at least two times" Sunday at their N. Seventh St. apartment. Shortly after the girl was removed from life support Tuesday at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, police arrested Urquia in the killing.
Pennsylvania permits the death penalty is cases of first-degree murder with at least one aggravating circumstance. Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli has said prosecutors need to review the autopsy's findings before determining whether to seek Urquia's execution.
On Wednesday, First Deputy District Attorney Terence Houck declined to comment about the extent of the girl's injuries until a full autopsy report is available.
According to court records filed by police, Urquia at first told investigators he had dropped Joselynn in the bathroom, but later admitted hitting her in the head because he was "frustrated and angry because the baby would not stop crying."
Urquia has a history of child abuse. Last year, he pleaded guilty to assaulting another daughter, who was 3 months old at the time, by spanking her and causing a large bruise across her buttocks. Urquia told a detective he struck the baby "out of frustration," police said.
Originally charged with felony aggravated assault, Urquia pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of simple assault, a misdemeanor. He received 18 months of probation.
Joselynn is the younger sister of the other girl and both were born to the same mother, Brenda Delacruz, who wasn't home on Sunday, authorities said.
County human services officials have declined to comment specifically on Urquia's case, citing confidentiality law. But in general, parents who complete courses and therapy are allowed to return to their children, provided professionals believe they are not a threat, human services director Ross Marcus has said.
Urquia is in Northampton County Prison without bail.
"Caretaker" dad convicted of 2nd-degree murder in death of 1-year-old daughter; gets 10 years in prison (Springfield, Missouri)
We've reported on "caretaker" dad KYLE BAYLOR before. At the time of the little girl's murder, he had been separated from the girl's mother, who was then living elsewhere. For some reason, Daddy had been acting as "caretaker" for the week before the murder--whether this was by court order or informal agreement has never been explained.
What is typical is that Daddy got "frustrated" by all the baby crying and acted out. In fact, "the acting" out killed the child. This kind of shaken baby/abusive head trauma--as we have mentioned many, many times before--is most commonly found among fathers, followed by other male caretakers. Whether you want to blame nature or nurture doesn't much matter to me. Most young, healthy human males do not not interact with babies in the same way that mothers, grandmothers, and other women do. Yes, I know there are evil women on drugs and so forth who do all kinds of mean, nasty things. But as a basic generalization, this is true. Mothers tend to be more nurturing and attentive with babies than fathers. And yet we persist in thinking young guys like this can do infant caretaking for a week or more and that they'll be fine with that. Sure, exceptionally nurturing guys may be fine. But most are not equipped that way.
Interesting facts about this case. Three months before the shaking death/murder of the 1-year-old daughter, the family was visited by the Missouri Children's Division for "alleged" abuse against the 1-year-old's half sister, who was 2. The abuse was not substantiated, though an unidentified caller had described the abuse in some detail. What else is new....
Some other interesting observations about this case.
Springfield man gets 10 years for shaking death of one-year-old.
Jess Rollins • News-Leader • December 23, 2010
A Springfield man was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in prison for the death of his 1-year-old daughter.
Kyle Baylor, 25, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as part of a plea agreement with Greene County prosecutors for violently shaking his infant daughter, causing her death Feb. 12.
"He was remorseful and he took responsibility from the very beginning," Assistant Prosecutor Jill Patterson said of the decision to make a deal.
The class A felony is punishable by 10 to 30 years or life in prison.
Baylor admitted shaking Vaniessa Baylor after getting frustrated with the girl's crying, according to court documents.
He showed police how he shook the girl -- described as "a violent shaking motion" in the probable cause statement -- and then threw her on the couch.
Baylor said he then covered the girl in a blanket and went to help another child he was taking care of in the bathroom.
He told police he heard her fall off the couch. When he found her unresponsive, he called police, only saying she had fallen.
According to the police incident report, the girl's eyes were open but she was not responding when officers arrived at the home at 920 E. Adams St.
Vaniessa was rushed to Cox South hospital Feb. 10, where she was treated for a subdural hematoma (bruising of the brain) and fluid buildup in her lungs.
She died in the hospital two days later.
Vaniessa's mother, Misty Dart, 22, was not at the home at the time. Kyle Baylor told police he had been the only caregiver for the week prior to the incident.
The Missouri Children's Division had been at the home of Kyle Baylor three months before the shaking incident to investigate allegations of abuse of another child in his care, but investigators did not find significant evidence of abuse.
What is typical is that Daddy got "frustrated" by all the baby crying and acted out. In fact, "the acting" out killed the child. This kind of shaken baby/abusive head trauma--as we have mentioned many, many times before--is most commonly found among fathers, followed by other male caretakers. Whether you want to blame nature or nurture doesn't much matter to me. Most young, healthy human males do not not interact with babies in the same way that mothers, grandmothers, and other women do. Yes, I know there are evil women on drugs and so forth who do all kinds of mean, nasty things. But as a basic generalization, this is true. Mothers tend to be more nurturing and attentive with babies than fathers. And yet we persist in thinking young guys like this can do infant caretaking for a week or more and that they'll be fine with that. Sure, exceptionally nurturing guys may be fine. But most are not equipped that way.
Interesting facts about this case. Three months before the shaking death/murder of the 1-year-old daughter, the family was visited by the Missouri Children's Division for "alleged" abuse against the 1-year-old's half sister, who was 2. The abuse was not substantiated, though an unidentified caller had described the abuse in some detail. What else is new....
Some other interesting observations about this case.
1) For all the fussy distinctions that are made between boyfriends and fathers, note that in this case, the father killed his own child and apparently "merely" abused his girlfriend's child.
2) Also note that not only was the mother was no longer living with Baylor at the time of the murder, she was in fact scheduled to start receiving child support for the 1-year-old. This wouldn't be the first time a father killed a child during "visitation" to avoid child support....
http://www.news-leader.com/article/20101223/NEWS01/12230344/Father-sentenced-for-baby-s-death
Father sentenced for baby's deathSpringfield man gets 10 years for shaking death of one-year-old.
Jess Rollins • News-Leader • December 23, 2010
A Springfield man was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in prison for the death of his 1-year-old daughter.
Kyle Baylor, 25, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as part of a plea agreement with Greene County prosecutors for violently shaking his infant daughter, causing her death Feb. 12.
"He was remorseful and he took responsibility from the very beginning," Assistant Prosecutor Jill Patterson said of the decision to make a deal.
The class A felony is punishable by 10 to 30 years or life in prison.
Baylor admitted shaking Vaniessa Baylor after getting frustrated with the girl's crying, according to court documents.
He showed police how he shook the girl -- described as "a violent shaking motion" in the probable cause statement -- and then threw her on the couch.
Baylor said he then covered the girl in a blanket and went to help another child he was taking care of in the bathroom.
He told police he heard her fall off the couch. When he found her unresponsive, he called police, only saying she had fallen.
According to the police incident report, the girl's eyes were open but she was not responding when officers arrived at the home at 920 E. Adams St.
Vaniessa was rushed to Cox South hospital Feb. 10, where she was treated for a subdural hematoma (bruising of the brain) and fluid buildup in her lungs.
She died in the hospital two days later.
Vaniessa's mother, Misty Dart, 22, was not at the home at the time. Kyle Baylor told police he had been the only caregiver for the week prior to the incident.
The Missouri Children's Division had been at the home of Kyle Baylor three months before the shaking incident to investigate allegations of abuse of another child in his care, but investigators did not find significant evidence of abuse.
Dad arrested on child support, witness intimidation charges; unofficial suspect in murder of 3-year-old daughter, her mother (Winter Haven, Florida)
We first posted on this case yesterday, when the remains--presumably of the mother and daughter--were first discovered. At that time, I suggested that the little girl's father was the likely suspect, as he had apparently resisted returning the child to the mother. Abusive, control freak fathers who want "ownership" of their kids are often prone to homicidal behavior. Taking somebody's life is the ultimate power high for these guys, don't you know.
And now dad LESTER ROSS has been arrested on child support and witness intimidation charges related to this case. Hmmm. His story about returning the child to her mother in a Wal-Mart parking lot is not backed up by video evidence. What a surprise....
http://www.cfnews13.com/article/news/2010/december/186187/Police-Chief:-Skeletal-remains-found-in-shallow-grave-belong-to-an-adult,-child
Police Chief: Skeletal remains found in shallow grave belong to an adult, child
By Rick Elmhorst and Laurie Davison, Team Coverage
Last Updated: Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Authorities acting on 'tip' in search for mom, child
WINTER HAVEN --
The search for a missing mother and daughter led to the discovery of a shallow grave with skeletal remains in a Winter Haven orange grove and an arrest of the girl's father Wednesday afternoon.
Winter Haven Police, the Polk Sheriff's Office and the FDLE were acting on a 'credible tip'.
Authorities used ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs after receiving a tip that Ronkeya Holmes, 29, and her 3-year-old daughter Masarah Ross may be buried in the orange grove near Dundee Road and Sage Road.
The remains belong to an adult and child. While it hasn't been confirmed, Winter Haven Police Chief Gary Hester suspects the remains belong to the missing mother and child.
"There's two sets of skeletal remains in the same shallow grave." he said, "It's pretty apparent this is our little girl and her mama."
Hester said he's now working a murder investigation.
"It's obvious folks just don't end up in a grove by natural means," he said. "It's a bittersweet day. We wish we would've found these folks alive."
Again, the remains found are that of an adult and a child, but have still not been positively identified as Holmes and Ross. Forensics experts are now trying to determine the gender, race, and age of the remains found.
Background info
Holmes and Ross have been missing since last December. Winter Haven Police said before they disappeared, Holmes was desperately trying to get her daughter back from the child's father, Lester Ross, and was also questioning where their daughter was.
And now dad LESTER ROSS has been arrested on child support and witness intimidation charges related to this case. Hmmm. His story about returning the child to her mother in a Wal-Mart parking lot is not backed up by video evidence. What a surprise....
http://www.cfnews13.com/article/news/2010/december/186187/Police-Chief:-Skeletal-remains-found-in-shallow-grave-belong-to-an-adult,-child
Police Chief: Skeletal remains found in shallow grave belong to an adult, child
By Rick Elmhorst and Laurie Davison, Team Coverage
Last Updated: Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Authorities acting on 'tip' in search for mom, child
WINTER HAVEN --
The search for a missing mother and daughter led to the discovery of a shallow grave with skeletal remains in a Winter Haven orange grove and an arrest of the girl's father Wednesday afternoon.
Winter Haven Police, the Polk Sheriff's Office and the FDLE were acting on a 'credible tip'.
Authorities used ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs after receiving a tip that Ronkeya Holmes, 29, and her 3-year-old daughter Masarah Ross may be buried in the orange grove near Dundee Road and Sage Road.
The remains belong to an adult and child. While it hasn't been confirmed, Winter Haven Police Chief Gary Hester suspects the remains belong to the missing mother and child.
"There's two sets of skeletal remains in the same shallow grave." he said, "It's pretty apparent this is our little girl and her mama."
Hester said he's now working a murder investigation.
"It's obvious folks just don't end up in a grove by natural means," he said. "It's a bittersweet day. We wish we would've found these folks alive."
Again, the remains found are that of an adult and a child, but have still not been positively identified as Holmes and Ross. Forensics experts are now trying to determine the gender, race, and age of the remains found.
Background info
Holmes and Ross have been missing since last December. Winter Haven Police said before they disappeared, Holmes was desperately trying to get her daughter back from the child's father, Lester Ross, and was also questioning where their daughter was.
Father arrested twice
Lester Ross was arrested last Friday on child support charges, but police say that arrest had nothing to do with the search for Holmes and Masarah Ross. He bonded out of jail late Wednesday morning.
Officers later re-arrested him Wednesday for tampering with a witness, a first-degree felony. Police say the latest charge is related to the case.
Winter Haven Police are not calling Ross a suspect in the disappearance of Holmes or his daughter, but they do say he has been a "significant part" of their investigation.
Ross left the Winter Haven Police Department Wednesday night, saying he did not murder his 3-year-old daughter or her mother.
Police chief Hester said they had a reason to re-arrest Ross.
"It's based on him attempting to intimidate a witness in this case," he said.
In October, police searched for the bodies of the mother and daughter at Ross' former home. That dig turned up no evidence. Ross told police he last saw Holmes and Masarah Ross at a local Walmart, but surveillance tapes according to police revealed the two were never there.
Family looking for closure
Ronkeya Holmes' family showed up to the scene and talked about hoping for closure.
"Some nights, can't sleep," said her stepfather, Archie Forte. "You wonder why it happened."
Family friend Diamond Burnham was also hoping for closure.
"The family will not be happy but the mom will be able to sleep knowing that her child has been found," she said.
Leon Forte is the brother of Holmes's stepfather, Archie. Forte believes Ross has to know something.
"I want them to get to the bottom of it, find out something, what happened, because she was a good girl," he said.
Dad charged with aggravated child abuse; 2-month-old son hospitalized with abusive head trauma (Murfreesboro, Tennessee)
This is so standard that I almost forget to point it out anymore. But have you ever noticed how often the headline reports that a "man" did such and such to a child, when it was really the FATHER of the child? This is yet another one of those cases.
It appears that JUSTIN CONNERS is just another one of those dads who "lost his temper" because the baby was crying. So he shook him so violently that the baby started having seizures. Research has consistently shown that these kinds of injuries are most often inflicted by FATHERS, followed by step dads, boyfriends, and babysitters.
http://www.tennessean.com/article/D4/20101222/NEWS01/101222017/Man+charged+with+aggravated+child+abuse
Man charged with aggravated child abuse
By MEALAND RAGLAND-HUDGINS • MRAGLAND@DNJ.COM • December 22, 2010
A Murfreesboro man was arrested on aggravated child abuse charges Tuesday after detectives investigated injuries to his infant son.
An arrest report filed by Murfreesboro Detective Wayne Lawson said that on Dec. 15, he and Detective Tommy Roberts began the investigation after Justin Conners’ two-month-old son was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center after having seizures.
“The child had extensive injuries that included two subdural bleeds that were caused by abusive head trauma. The two injuries were shown to have occurred on two different occasions,” Lawson reported, adding that the infant had at least one rib fracture that was shown to be in the healing stages at the time he was admitted to the hospital.
Two days later, the detectives interviewed the child’s parents, who denied any knowledge of the injuries. Earlier this week, the detectives interviewed the father alone. Justin Connors, 19, admitted to shaking the infant on Dec. 14 “because the child was crying. He stated that he ‘lost his temper’ and was unaware he had injured the child until the child started having seizures later that evening,” Lawson reported.
The report also stated that the father had no explanation for the previous injuries, other than that the child fell off the couch at about four or five weeks of age. The infant is still hospitalized at Vanderbilt.
Connors is being held at the Rutherford County Jail on $12,500 bond and is scheduled to appear in Rutherford County General Sessions Court Jan. 13.
It appears that JUSTIN CONNERS is just another one of those dads who "lost his temper" because the baby was crying. So he shook him so violently that the baby started having seizures. Research has consistently shown that these kinds of injuries are most often inflicted by FATHERS, followed by step dads, boyfriends, and babysitters.
http://www.tennessean.com/article/D4/20101222/NEWS01/101222017/Man+charged+with+aggravated+child+abuse
Man charged with aggravated child abuse
By MEALAND RAGLAND-HUDGINS • MRAGLAND@DNJ.COM • December 22, 2010
A Murfreesboro man was arrested on aggravated child abuse charges Tuesday after detectives investigated injuries to his infant son.
An arrest report filed by Murfreesboro Detective Wayne Lawson said that on Dec. 15, he and Detective Tommy Roberts began the investigation after Justin Conners’ two-month-old son was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center after having seizures.
“The child had extensive injuries that included two subdural bleeds that were caused by abusive head trauma. The two injuries were shown to have occurred on two different occasions,” Lawson reported, adding that the infant had at least one rib fracture that was shown to be in the healing stages at the time he was admitted to the hospital.
Two days later, the detectives interviewed the child’s parents, who denied any knowledge of the injuries. Earlier this week, the detectives interviewed the father alone. Justin Connors, 19, admitted to shaking the infant on Dec. 14 “because the child was crying. He stated that he ‘lost his temper’ and was unaware he had injured the child until the child started having seizures later that evening,” Lawson reported.
The report also stated that the father had no explanation for the previous injuries, other than that the child fell off the couch at about four or five weeks of age. The infant is still hospitalized at Vanderbilt.
Connors is being held at the Rutherford County Jail on $12,500 bond and is scheduled to appear in Rutherford County General Sessions Court Jan. 13.
Dad charged with murdering two sons no-show for court; previously had custody and/or child support? (Edmonton, Canada)
We've posted several times on this case in recent days. This is the (still) UNNAMED DAD, who had apparently murdered his two sons during court-ordered visitation. At least it SEEMED that way, as the children had reportedly been living with their mother at the time of the murders. Now I'm wondering if Daddy didn't in fact have custody, and that they were living with Mom because he couldn't deal with them (e.g. he was unemployed/underemployed). Notice that in earlier articles posted here, charity workers were bring Christmas presents to Daddy and the kids. And also notice in this particular article that it was MOM who was supposed to be paying this guy $1000 a month in child support. That's a lot of money to be shelling out each month. But not a lot on the receiving end if you can't or won't get a job.
Well, so much for the standard fathers rights bull about poor daddies being bankrupted by child support, so that's why they get so angry and act out violently, those poor, poor dears. This one was on the receiving end, and it didn't keep this numbnuts from doing in his kids in a big display of Daddy Drama.
So what judge awarded this deadbeat child support--and presumably child custody? There is an awful lot of backstory to this case that is not being explained.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Crime/2010/12/22/16651971.html
Dad charged with slaying sons hospitalized
By PAMELA ROTH and TONY BLAIS, QMI Agency
Alberta father charged with killing his sons
EDMONTON - The man charged with murdering his two young sons was a no-show for a scheduled court appearance Wednesday due to medical reasons.
Police charged the 31-year-old man with two counts of first-degree murder after they found the bodies of the boys, aged three and six, in a townhouse Sunday night.
Police made the discovery after getting a call to check on the family's welfare.
The boys' father was arrested at the scene and charged Tuesday.
Edmonton police spokeswoman Clair Seyler said the man is currently at the Royal Alexandra Hospital recovering from non life-threatening injuries he received Sunday night.
Seyler couldn't elaborate on the extent of the man's injuries or what caused them, but said he'll go straight to remand once he has recovered.
He's now scheduled to appear in court Jan. 5.
Police are sickened and traumatized by the slaying, said Staff Sgt. Tony Simioni, head of the Edmonton Police Association.
Instead of wheeling the boys' bodies out on gurneys, investigators tenderly carried bags containing them out of the townhouse in their arms -- a gesture Simioni said isn't unusual when children are involved in a crime scene.
Simioni said incidents involving children are the most traumatizing for police to deal with.
Many officers are "quite emotional" from the initial incident, but Simioni isn't aware of anyone taking additional time off to cope with their emotions.
Instead, officers involved with the case are undergoing critical incident stress debriefing to vent and share their feelings, and provided further services if required.
Simioni said the debriefing is standard practice in such cases.
"All of us have children and even if we don't, they have a special place in terms of our hearts. These are completely innocent people," said Simioni, who spent several years as a child abuse investigator.
"It certainly took its toll on me personally as well. It's harder to deal with these kinds of victims than any other kind because they are so defenceless and innocent."
Autopsies have been conducted on the boys but police said further tests are needed to determine the exact cause of death.
According to court documents from 2008, the mom was to pay nearly $1,000 a month to the dad in child support.
The slain kids were living with their mom at the time of the killing, according to the province.
Well, so much for the standard fathers rights bull about poor daddies being bankrupted by child support, so that's why they get so angry and act out violently, those poor, poor dears. This one was on the receiving end, and it didn't keep this numbnuts from doing in his kids in a big display of Daddy Drama.
So what judge awarded this deadbeat child support--and presumably child custody? There is an awful lot of backstory to this case that is not being explained.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Crime/2010/12/22/16651971.html
Dad charged with slaying sons hospitalized
By PAMELA ROTH and TONY BLAIS, QMI Agency
Alberta father charged with killing his sons
EDMONTON - The man charged with murdering his two young sons was a no-show for a scheduled court appearance Wednesday due to medical reasons.
Police charged the 31-year-old man with two counts of first-degree murder after they found the bodies of the boys, aged three and six, in a townhouse Sunday night.
Police made the discovery after getting a call to check on the family's welfare.
The boys' father was arrested at the scene and charged Tuesday.
Edmonton police spokeswoman Clair Seyler said the man is currently at the Royal Alexandra Hospital recovering from non life-threatening injuries he received Sunday night.
Seyler couldn't elaborate on the extent of the man's injuries or what caused them, but said he'll go straight to remand once he has recovered.
He's now scheduled to appear in court Jan. 5.
Police are sickened and traumatized by the slaying, said Staff Sgt. Tony Simioni, head of the Edmonton Police Association.
Instead of wheeling the boys' bodies out on gurneys, investigators tenderly carried bags containing them out of the townhouse in their arms -- a gesture Simioni said isn't unusual when children are involved in a crime scene.
Simioni said incidents involving children are the most traumatizing for police to deal with.
Many officers are "quite emotional" from the initial incident, but Simioni isn't aware of anyone taking additional time off to cope with their emotions.
Instead, officers involved with the case are undergoing critical incident stress debriefing to vent and share their feelings, and provided further services if required.
Simioni said the debriefing is standard practice in such cases.
"All of us have children and even if we don't, they have a special place in terms of our hearts. These are completely innocent people," said Simioni, who spent several years as a child abuse investigator.
"It certainly took its toll on me personally as well. It's harder to deal with these kinds of victims than any other kind because they are so defenceless and innocent."
Autopsies have been conducted on the boys but police said further tests are needed to determine the exact cause of death.
According to court documents from 2008, the mom was to pay nearly $1,000 a month to the dad in child support.
The slain kids were living with their mom at the time of the killing, according to the province.
Dad allegedly hit cocaine in Christmas stockings (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
Now that's one headline I never dreamed I'd be writing. Dad JOAQUIN MARTINEZ is the father with this unusual twist on Holiday cheer.
I see mention of Drug Dealer Daddy and Grandma in this article. Where is Mom?
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.foxtoledo.com/dpps/news/offbeat/shared-cocaine-found-in-christmas-stockings_3683493
Cocaine found in Christmas stockings
Suspected dealer has two kids in the house
Updated: Thursday, 23 Dec 2010, 9:36 AM EST
Published : Thursday, 23 Dec 2010, 9:35 AM EST
ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Santa sure didn't fill these Christmas stockings. Police arrested an Albuquerque father for child abuse and dealing drugs after a raid of his home turned up cocaine hidden inside the stockings hanging by the Christmas tree.
Officers suspected Joaquin Martinez was dealing drugs. On Wednesday, they searched his home near Unser and Irving boulevards in Northwest Albuquerque while the family was gone. They found 13 grams of coke in the Christmas stockings.
Martinez has two kids, ages seven and nine.
Cops said Martinez and his grandmother drove by the house during the raid, and then just kept going. Martinez turned himself in later in the day.
I see mention of Drug Dealer Daddy and Grandma in this article. Where is Mom?
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.foxtoledo.com/dpps/news/offbeat/shared-cocaine-found-in-christmas-stockings_3683493
Cocaine found in Christmas stockings
Suspected dealer has two kids in the house
Updated: Thursday, 23 Dec 2010, 9:36 AM EST
Published : Thursday, 23 Dec 2010, 9:35 AM EST
ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Santa sure didn't fill these Christmas stockings. Police arrested an Albuquerque father for child abuse and dealing drugs after a raid of his home turned up cocaine hidden inside the stockings hanging by the Christmas tree.
Officers suspected Joaquin Martinez was dealing drugs. On Wednesday, they searched his home near Unser and Irving boulevards in Northwest Albuquerque while the family was gone. They found 13 grams of coke in the Christmas stockings.
Martinez has two kids, ages seven and nine.
Cops said Martinez and his grandmother drove by the house during the raid, and then just kept going. Martinez turned himself in later in the day.
Mother asks court to certify questions to state supreme court (Florida)
This is another one of those horrible cases from the state of Florida. A mom makes good faith allegations of child abuse--only to have the evidence suppressed and ignored. And then, in order to further intimidate the mother, the attorneys make "alienation" accusations when the children back up the mother's claims. End result: the mother loses custody and is placed on indefinite supervised visitation. Unfortunately, what happened to Linda Marie Sacks is not unusual. This scenario is being played out all over the U.S. these days, especially in the English speaking countries. But increasingly elsewhere as well.
Press Release 12/22/10
A Florida Mother asks Court to Certify Questions to Florida Supreme Court/ National Crisis in the Family Courts
Mothers of America…..if she can lose custody….any one can…….
A “squeaky clean” mother, Linda Marie Sacks, in her effort to be re-united with her children, asks the Fifth District Court of Appeals to certify 3 questions of national importance to the Florida Supreme Court. Mothers all over the U.S. are losing custody of their children, and all their contact is terminated or they are placed indefinitely on Supervised Visitation, by the trial court with no case plan and reunification plan.
After 3 years/9 months of only supervised visitation,(74 hours total) with her children, a Daytona Beach Mom is asking the Fifth District Court of Appeals to certify 3 questions of great national importance.
1. If a parent makes a good faith allegation of abuse, with documented evidence, in an effort to protect her children, should that parent be deprived of physical custody of her children, or have their contact supervised, indefinitely without a case plan, or reunification plan provided by the trial court?
2. Does a state court violate the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments when it deprives a parent of physical custody, and limits that parents contact to Supervised Visitation with her children, for taking the reasonable action based upon a belief, supported by facts that her children need protection from abuse?
3. Does a state court’s custody decision that deprives a parent of access to her children indefinitely, unless supervised, without a finding of unfitness by clear and convincing evidence, which effectively terminates a party’s parental rights, violate the Fifth and Fourteen Amendments?
Her daughters in April 2007 told her..”Mommy fight for us and do something every day to get us back and don’t ever stop”, so every day she has kept that promise and now will go to the Florida Supreme Court, and then on to the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington D.C. After spending $140,000 to do undo the unjust custody ruling by the trial court of Judge Shawn L. Briese, she is now more determined than ever, and has taken up the legal challenge on her own as a pro se litigant.
The Fifth District Court of Appeals on Dec. 7, 2010, denied Mothers 2nd appeal so she is now asking that the Florida Supreme Court address this crisis in the family courts. Family courts are in crisis and Mothers are sadly losing custody of their children, and all they did was ask the “official avenues”….judges, police, DCF for help to protect their children from documented abuse, and they are losing custody. Family court judges are dismissing, ignoring, and suppressing documented evidence abuse and the abusers are getting custody.
The ABA.. American Bar Association states that Batterers ask the family courts for SOLE custody, and are successful 70% of the time. Imagine…a parent with documented evidence of Domestic Violence, and Child Physical and/ or Sexual Abuse to the children…. And the fathers are able to get SOLE physical custody, and Mothers, known as “protective parents” are sadly placed on supervised visitation or all contact with their children is terminated.
The Florida NOW (National Organization for Women) Ad Hoc Family Law Committee has a brochure on this national crisis.
www.nowfoundation.org/issues/family/
If you think…oh that could never happen to me….that’s what this Mother thought…and as “squeaky clean”, class Mom, soccer Mom, car pool Mom, community volunteer, with no drugs, no abuse, no alcohol, just a loving, caring, primary care giver to her children………..she lost custody in a hearing that the Fifth District court of Appeals Case 5D07-1682 said that her constitutional rights were violated…and the hearing to determine custody on March 9, 2007, should never have taken place in the trial court of Judge Shawn L. Briese. The Fifth District Court of Appeals REVERSED and REMANDED the issue of custody back to Judge Briese for a “Retrial of the custody of the minor children”. Judge Briese refused to be disqualified from the hearing on child custody and refused to remove the unjust “supervised visitation” order.
This national crisis is affecting 39 states………..
A national conference will take place in Albany NY…Jan 7, 8 , 9, 2011 ..addressing this crisis in the family courts. For more information on this conference:
www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org
Advocates are asking for a federal investigation into the corruption in the family courts and congressional hearings to address this national crisis…children are being forced to live with an abusive parent….and safe, protective parents are losing custody.
For more information:
www.centerforjudicialexcellence.com
www.justiceforchildren.org
www.protectiveparent.com
www.taliacarner.com
www.leadershipcouncil.org
www.dvleap.org
www.stopfamilyviolence.org
www.juliafletcher.wordpress.com
www.americanmotherspoliticalparty.org
www.lizlibary.org
www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org
www.randijames.com
www.protectiveparents.ning.com
Will you be part of the solution to this national crisis?
Mothers Certified Questions Below D IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA
FIFTH DISTRICT
LINDA MARIE ANNE SACKS
Appellant,
CASE NO. 5DO9-3752
v. L.T. 2004-30312 FMCI
L.T. 2006-32560 FMCI DAVID MICHAEL SACKS AND
FOOD SUPPLY, INC.
Appellee
___________________________/
MOTION FOR CERTIFICATION
COMES NOW, the Appellant, LINDA MARIE ANNE SACKS, Mother to R.S.
and S.S. , minor children, and files this Pro se Motion pursuant to Florida Rules of
Appellate Procedure Rule 9.330 and asks that these questions be certified as
questions of great national importance.
1. If a parent makes a good faith allegation of abuse, with documented evidence,
in an effort to protect her children, should that parent be deprived of physical
custody of her children, or have their contact supervised, indefinitely without a
case plan, or reunification plan provided by the trial court?
2. Does a state court violate the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments when it
deprives a parent of physical custody, and limits that parents contact to Supervised
Visitation with her children, for taking the reasonable action based upon a belief,
supported by facts that her children need protection from abuse?
3. Does a state court’s custody decision that deprives a parent of access to her
children indefinitely, unless supervised, without a finding of unfitness by clear and
convincing evidence, which effectively terminates a party’s parental rights,
violate the Fifth and Fourteen Amendments?
WHEREFORE, Appellant respectfully prays that this Court grant this Motion for
Certification and allow these questions to be certified for the Florida Supreme
Court as these questions are of great public importance,
Respectfully submitted on this 21st day of December, 2010.
______________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
CERTIFICATE OF TYPEFACE COMPLIANCE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the typeface used for this Motion is Times New Roman, 14 pt.
_____________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the original of the foregoing has been hand delivered to
the Clerk of the Court, Fifth District Court of Appeals, 300 South Beach Street,
Daytona Beach, Florida and that a true and correct copy has been furnished by
U.S. Mail to:
James L. Rose, Esquire,
Appellees Co-Counsel
222 Seabreeze Blvd.
Daytona Beach, Fl 32118
Leonard R. Ross, Esquire,
Appellees Co- Counsel
642 N. Halifax Avenue
Daytona Beach, FL 32118
on this 21st day of December, 2010.
____________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
Appellant / Pro Se
386-453-3017
For more information please contact:
Linda Marie Sacks
386-453-3017
Press Release 12/22/10
A Florida Mother asks Court to Certify Questions to Florida Supreme Court/ National Crisis in the Family Courts
Mothers of America…..if she can lose custody….any one can…….
A “squeaky clean” mother, Linda Marie Sacks, in her effort to be re-united with her children, asks the Fifth District Court of Appeals to certify 3 questions of national importance to the Florida Supreme Court. Mothers all over the U.S. are losing custody of their children, and all their contact is terminated or they are placed indefinitely on Supervised Visitation, by the trial court with no case plan and reunification plan.
After 3 years/9 months of only supervised visitation,(74 hours total) with her children, a Daytona Beach Mom is asking the Fifth District Court of Appeals to certify 3 questions of great national importance.
1. If a parent makes a good faith allegation of abuse, with documented evidence, in an effort to protect her children, should that parent be deprived of physical custody of her children, or have their contact supervised, indefinitely without a case plan, or reunification plan provided by the trial court?
2. Does a state court violate the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments when it deprives a parent of physical custody, and limits that parents contact to Supervised Visitation with her children, for taking the reasonable action based upon a belief, supported by facts that her children need protection from abuse?
3. Does a state court’s custody decision that deprives a parent of access to her children indefinitely, unless supervised, without a finding of unfitness by clear and convincing evidence, which effectively terminates a party’s parental rights, violate the Fifth and Fourteen Amendments?
Her daughters in April 2007 told her..”Mommy fight for us and do something every day to get us back and don’t ever stop”, so every day she has kept that promise and now will go to the Florida Supreme Court, and then on to the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington D.C. After spending $140,000 to do undo the unjust custody ruling by the trial court of Judge Shawn L. Briese, she is now more determined than ever, and has taken up the legal challenge on her own as a pro se litigant.
The Fifth District Court of Appeals on Dec. 7, 2010, denied Mothers 2nd appeal so she is now asking that the Florida Supreme Court address this crisis in the family courts. Family courts are in crisis and Mothers are sadly losing custody of their children, and all they did was ask the “official avenues”….judges, police, DCF for help to protect their children from documented abuse, and they are losing custody. Family court judges are dismissing, ignoring, and suppressing documented evidence abuse and the abusers are getting custody.
The ABA.. American Bar Association states that Batterers ask the family courts for SOLE custody, and are successful 70% of the time. Imagine…a parent with documented evidence of Domestic Violence, and Child Physical and/ or Sexual Abuse to the children…. And the fathers are able to get SOLE physical custody, and Mothers, known as “protective parents” are sadly placed on supervised visitation or all contact with their children is terminated.
The Florida NOW (National Organization for Women) Ad Hoc Family Law Committee has a brochure on this national crisis.
www.nowfoundation.org/issues/family/
If you think…oh that could never happen to me….that’s what this Mother thought…and as “squeaky clean”, class Mom, soccer Mom, car pool Mom, community volunteer, with no drugs, no abuse, no alcohol, just a loving, caring, primary care giver to her children………..she lost custody in a hearing that the Fifth District court of Appeals Case 5D07-1682 said that her constitutional rights were violated…and the hearing to determine custody on March 9, 2007, should never have taken place in the trial court of Judge Shawn L. Briese. The Fifth District Court of Appeals REVERSED and REMANDED the issue of custody back to Judge Briese for a “Retrial of the custody of the minor children”. Judge Briese refused to be disqualified from the hearing on child custody and refused to remove the unjust “supervised visitation” order.
This national crisis is affecting 39 states………..
A national conference will take place in Albany NY…Jan 7, 8 , 9, 2011 ..addressing this crisis in the family courts. For more information on this conference:
www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org
Advocates are asking for a federal investigation into the corruption in the family courts and congressional hearings to address this national crisis…children are being forced to live with an abusive parent….and safe, protective parents are losing custody.
For more information:
www.centerforjudicialexcellence.com
www.justiceforchildren.org
www.protectiveparent.com
www.taliacarner.com
www.leadershipcouncil.org
www.dvleap.org
www.stopfamilyviolence.org
www.juliafletcher.wordpress.com
www.americanmotherspoliticalparty.org
www.lizlibary.org
www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org
www.randijames.com
www.protectiveparents.ning.com
Will you be part of the solution to this national crisis?
Mothers Certified Questions Below D IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA
FIFTH DISTRICT
LINDA MARIE ANNE SACKS
Appellant,
CASE NO. 5DO9-3752
v. L.T. 2004-30312 FMCI
L.T. 2006-32560 FMCI DAVID MICHAEL SACKS AND
FOOD SUPPLY, INC.
Appellee
___________________________/
MOTION FOR CERTIFICATION
COMES NOW, the Appellant, LINDA MARIE ANNE SACKS, Mother to R.S.
and S.S. , minor children, and files this Pro se Motion pursuant to Florida Rules of
Appellate Procedure Rule 9.330 and asks that these questions be certified as
questions of great national importance.
1. If a parent makes a good faith allegation of abuse, with documented evidence,
in an effort to protect her children, should that parent be deprived of physical
custody of her children, or have their contact supervised, indefinitely without a
case plan, or reunification plan provided by the trial court?
2. Does a state court violate the First, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments when it
deprives a parent of physical custody, and limits that parents contact to Supervised
Visitation with her children, for taking the reasonable action based upon a belief,
supported by facts that her children need protection from abuse?
3. Does a state court’s custody decision that deprives a parent of access to her
children indefinitely, unless supervised, without a finding of unfitness by clear and
convincing evidence, which effectively terminates a party’s parental rights,
violate the Fifth and Fourteen Amendments?
WHEREFORE, Appellant respectfully prays that this Court grant this Motion for
Certification and allow these questions to be certified for the Florida Supreme
Court as these questions are of great public importance,
Respectfully submitted on this 21st day of December, 2010.
______________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
CERTIFICATE OF TYPEFACE COMPLIANCE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the typeface used for this Motion is Times New Roman, 14 pt.
_____________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that the original of the foregoing has been hand delivered to
the Clerk of the Court, Fifth District Court of Appeals, 300 South Beach Street,
Daytona Beach, Florida and that a true and correct copy has been furnished by
U.S. Mail to:
James L. Rose, Esquire,
Appellees Co-Counsel
222 Seabreeze Blvd.
Daytona Beach, Fl 32118
Leonard R. Ross, Esquire,
Appellees Co- Counsel
642 N. Halifax Avenue
Daytona Beach, FL 32118
on this 21st day of December, 2010.
____________________
Linda Marie Anne Sacks
Appellant / Pro Se
386-453-3017
For more information please contact:
Linda Marie Sacks
386-453-3017
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Dad gives four children sleeping pills (Oneida, Wisconsin)
Police say UNNAMED DAD attempted to "harm himself" with sleeping pills--and also handed pills to his four children. Is this a custody/visitation thing? Somehow, it has the trappings of one--especially now that the children are in the mother's custody. Chances are the mother would have been in a situation to intervene or call the police had she been in the home. And she probably would have lost "temporary" custody to CPS had she been in the home and not intervened in some way.
http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/green_bay/father-gives-four-children-sleeping-pills
Father gives four children sleeping pills
Updated: Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 1:17 PM CST
Published : Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 1:01 PM CST
Reporter: Ben Krumholz
TOWN OF ONEIDA - Oneida police say a 36-year-old man trying to harm himself with sleeping pills also gave some to his four children.
The children, ages 5 to 11, each took a couple pills according to Police Chief Rich Van Boxtel.
Police say the man ingested more than 40 pills.
The name of the man and the victims are not being released at this time.
Authorities were notified of the incident after the man called 911 around 7:20 Tuesday evening. While on the phone with the dispatcher, the man alerted authorities about the situation but did not tell them his location. That forced Oneida police to respond to several different locations looking for the man and his children.
"It was more of a process of elimination before we were able to find where he was," said Van Boxtel.
The children were all released from the hospital Tuesday night and are now staying with their mother.
Meanwhile, the 36-year-old is scheduled to undergo a mental evaluation today.
"It was important for us to make sure his mental stability was taken care of first," said Van Boxtel. "We'll take care of the charges and stuff later."
Oneida police are working with the Outagamie Co. District Attorney’s office on possible charges.
http://www.fox11online.com/dpp/news/local/green_bay/father-gives-four-children-sleeping-pills
Father gives four children sleeping pills
Updated: Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 1:17 PM CST
Published : Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 1:01 PM CST
Reporter: Ben Krumholz
TOWN OF ONEIDA - Oneida police say a 36-year-old man trying to harm himself with sleeping pills also gave some to his four children.
The children, ages 5 to 11, each took a couple pills according to Police Chief Rich Van Boxtel.
Police say the man ingested more than 40 pills.
The name of the man and the victims are not being released at this time.
Authorities were notified of the incident after the man called 911 around 7:20 Tuesday evening. While on the phone with the dispatcher, the man alerted authorities about the situation but did not tell them his location. That forced Oneida police to respond to several different locations looking for the man and his children.
"It was more of a process of elimination before we were able to find where he was," said Van Boxtel.
The children were all released from the hospital Tuesday night and are now staying with their mother.
Meanwhile, the 36-year-old is scheduled to undergo a mental evaluation today.
"It was important for us to make sure his mental stability was taken care of first," said Van Boxtel. "We'll take care of the charges and stuff later."
Oneida police are working with the Outagamie Co. District Attorney’s office on possible charges.
Dad gets 60-year sentence for beating 14-week-old son (Anderson, Indiana)
Dad JUSTIN SHEETS has been sentenced to 60 years for beating his 14-week-old son. As is typical in a lot of these cases, Mom is being charged with neglect because she somehow failed to stop this thug while in his drug-induced haze. Note that it's not even clear in a lot of these cases whether anybody could have stopped a guy like this--especially without a weapon. And note that fathers are virtually never charged when they abandon children to abusive mothers, or otherwise fail to intervene on their children's behalf. Even though the average man is much stronger than the average woman. Total double standard.
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/26247547/detail.html
Father Gets 60-Year Sentence In Infant's Beating
Man Apologizes For Drug-Induced Behavior
POSTED: 1:26 pm EST December 22, 2010
UPDATED: 1:31 pm EST December 22, 2010
ANDERSON, Ind. -- A father who admitted abusing his infant son is headed to prison.
Justin Sheets, 23, was sentenced Tuesday to 60 years in jail after he pleaded guilty in November to six felony charges.
Sheets told the judge that he regretted his drug-induced behavior, in which he fractured his then-14-week-old son's skull, broke his arms and legs and ripped his lips.
The child's mother, Brittney Bland, is still facing neglect charges. Her trial is set for August.
http://www.theindychannel.com/news/26247547/detail.html
Father Gets 60-Year Sentence In Infant's Beating
Man Apologizes For Drug-Induced Behavior
POSTED: 1:26 pm EST December 22, 2010
UPDATED: 1:31 pm EST December 22, 2010
ANDERSON, Ind. -- A father who admitted abusing his infant son is headed to prison.
Justin Sheets, 23, was sentenced Tuesday to 60 years in jail after he pleaded guilty in November to six felony charges.
Sheets told the judge that he regretted his drug-induced behavior, in which he fractured his then-14-week-old son's skull, broke his arms and legs and ripped his lips.
The child's mother, Brittney Bland, is still facing neglect charges. Her trial is set for August.
Bones found in orange grove; may be those of missing mother and daughter (Winter Haven, Florida)
Thanks to a tip, investigators believe they have found the remains of a missing mother and her 3-year-old daughter. Note that the woman went "missing" last year after trying (apparently with some difficulty) to get her child back from the girl's dad, LESTER ROSS. We know it's not a murder-suicide on the mother's part, as the bodies were found in a shallow grave. So who is the next suspect on the list, knowing what we know about controlling (abusive) fathers who don't like to "share" children with their mothers?
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/dec/22/bones-found-in-winter-haven-orange-grove/news-breaking/
Bones found in Winter Haven orange grove
Published: December 22, 2010
Investigators have found bones in an orange grove in Winter Haven after receiving a tip on a year-old case of a missing mother and daughter.
Authorities say the case involving the disappearance of 29-year-old Ronkeya Holmes and 3-year-old Masaraha Ross heated up about two weeks ago and a recent tip lead investigators to the grove at the intersection of Dundee and Sage roads.
Detectives and crime scene technicians have been searching the area all morning, said Winter Haven police chief Gary Hester. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Polk County Sheriff's Office are also involved in the search.
Winter Haven police chief Gary Hester said the remains have not been identified and they don't yet know whether they belong to one more individuals.
He did say investigators "highly suspect" they belong to the missing mother and daughter.
The skeletal remains were found in a shallow grave, Hester said.
Holmes and Ross, who are from Georgia, were last seen in late 2009. Officials say that before their disappearance, Holmes had been trying to get the child back from the girl's father, Lester Ross, after allowing the toddler to stay with him.
Ross reportedly told police he last heard from the two when he turned Marsaraha over to Holmes at a Haines City Wal-Mart.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/dec/22/bones-found-in-winter-haven-orange-grove/news-breaking/
Bones found in Winter Haven orange grove
Published: December 22, 2010
Investigators have found bones in an orange grove in Winter Haven after receiving a tip on a year-old case of a missing mother and daughter.
Authorities say the case involving the disappearance of 29-year-old Ronkeya Holmes and 3-year-old Masaraha Ross heated up about two weeks ago and a recent tip lead investigators to the grove at the intersection of Dundee and Sage roads.
Detectives and crime scene technicians have been searching the area all morning, said Winter Haven police chief Gary Hester. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Polk County Sheriff's Office are also involved in the search.
Winter Haven police chief Gary Hester said the remains have not been identified and they don't yet know whether they belong to one more individuals.
He did say investigators "highly suspect" they belong to the missing mother and daughter.
The skeletal remains were found in a shallow grave, Hester said.
Holmes and Ross, who are from Georgia, were last seen in late 2009. Officials say that before their disappearance, Holmes had been trying to get the child back from the girl's father, Lester Ross, after allowing the toddler to stay with him.
Ross reportedly told police he last heard from the two when he turned Marsaraha over to Holmes at a Haines City Wal-Mart.
Russia has no legal mechanism for prosecuting domestic violence
If you are not familiar with domestic violence issues in Russia, this is an excellent introduction. Notice that it is also common for Russian abusive fathers to murder their children--in order to get "revenge" against the mothers. And that custody issues are a nightmare--just as they are nearly everywhere these days.
http://www.russiaprofile.org/page.php?pageid=Culture+%26+Living&articleid=a1293034376
December 22, 2010
Battery in Private
By Tom Balmforth
Russia Profile
Russia Has No Legal Mechanism for Prosecuting Domestic Abuse
The government considers violence against women in their homes as a strictly private matter, unless the victim sustains medium to severe injuries.
Yekaterina Vinogorova, a 39-year-old mother of three, finally fled her 15-year-long marriage after her husband broke her nose and ribs and covered her in bruises. “He would have these periodic outbursts of jealousy. The last time he beat me up so badly I simply walked out, but he carried on following me. Once he slashed the tires on my car. He was stalking me everywhere,” she said.
For three months Vinogorova and her children were given refuge at Moscow’s shelter for victims of domestic violence until she could move in with her parents, where she remains almost two years on. The paycheck she gets at a Moscow beauty salon is just about enough to support herself and her children, but the situation with her husband is far from resolved.
Vinogorova is prosecuting him in court for the assault. Still, Russia has no legal mechanism for imposing restraining orders even though persuasive research shows that women are most at risk when leaving their partners. She always gives police statements when she is harassed by him, but with little success. Since she left him, he has attacked her father to convince her to return, vandalized her car by tearing out the battery and wires under the hood and finally burnt down their country home. “The trouble is none of this can be proven and the police aren’t interested,” she said, adding that he refuses to hand over her and her children’s passports.
“People like this get some kind of gratification from all this. He’s actually living with another woman now, but apparently this doesn’t make him want to leave us alone. And it all continues unpunished. I just don’t know how this is going to end. When I go out, I make sure I keep checking around me. Who knows what’s on his mind and no one’s there to protect me. The police do nothing.”
Yekaterina’s case is not entirely typical—she was, at least, fortunate enough to make it to a shelter. “They helped me a lot. I lived there with my children for three months. They had lawyers and psychiatrists, and it was all free,” she said. Russia has just 23 of these local government-funded shelters, clearly too few for a largely ignored social issue which claims a staggering 14,000 women’s lives a year, according to government statistics cited by this year’s UN report titled “End the Silence.”
The capital, with its real population way in excess of ten million, has only one shelter, the “Hope Center,” which has 35 beds, said Elena Korsakova, its director. NGO workers consider the 14,000 deaths a year a conservative estimate even though it equates to the number of soldiers the Soviet Union lost in its decade-long abortive campaign in Afghanistan. Put otherwise, one woman is killed by her partner every 40 minutes, meaning that Russian women are three times more likely to be abused within the walls of their own home by their partners than they are even on the streets, a report by ANNA, Russia’s leading domestic violence NGO working trying to curb violence against women, found this year.
What’s more, in Russia domestic violence is as likely within the walls of the elite Rublyovka mansions as it is in the apartments of its bleak single-industry cities. “This problem transcends any social strata or social group,” said Marina Pisklakova-Parker, the director of ANNA. “It doesn’t depend on education, income or other forms of social status. It happens in every type of family. It’s everywhere. But still it is not discussed.”
Suffering in silence
Russian pop diva Valeria brought domestic violence into Russia’s headlines when in 2005 she documented ten years of quietly suffering beatings from her husband, the man who managed her superstar music career. But this was a rare public glimpse into domestic violence, and the anguish of its victims more often goes unheard in a matter that is socially perceived as a private affair. “In society, domestic violence is not considered bad behavior,” said Pisklakova-Parker. “When nobody says you cannot beat your wife, then everybody who does it assumes they have a right to do it. There is only silence. Society says ‘it’s okay, it’s not a crime’.” In his State of the Nation address this year, President Dmitry Medvedev delivered a wide-ranging plan to protect women and children to halt the population crisis because of the forecasted drop in women of child-bearing age, but he made no mention of the violence at home killing 14,000 women a year.
Out of Russia’s three mainstream pollsters, the Public Opinion Fund, VTsIOM, and Levada, only the latter could provide any statistics on domestic violence, and even that poll dated back to 2006. That year, 26 percent of Russians said that domestic violence is “very widespread” in Russia, 45 percent said “quite widespread” and 19 percent said “not widespread,” according to Levada. The rest were “not sure.”
Muddled numbers
Moreover, statistics are unreliable because of the backwardness of the government’s approach to domestic violence. No distinction is drawn between crimes against different genders, meaning that Interior Ministry statistics on domestic violence are inaccurate. There are also a raft of ambiguities in the Interior Ministry data issued to the public. Speaking at an event organized to prevent future domestic violence in 2008, the police said that there were over 200,000 domestic violence crimes committed by people when drunk, but also said that there are over 250,000 people suffering from alcoholism. “Are these alcoholics among the domestic violence offenders, or are these two different categories?” asked this year’s ANNA report that tried to make sense of the data to pinpoint problematic areas.
In post-Soviet Ukraine, NGO workers say that as many as 70 percent of women are victims of domestic violence. But accurate country-comparisons are tricky. What sets Russia apart is the shocking death toll, which stems from deficient government measures to nip cases in the bud before they escalate. “We have only criminal articles, meaning that intervention can be carried out only when the injuries are medium or severe or in the case of murder,” said Pisklakova-Parker. “Because of the nature of domestic violence, by the time women are suffering medium injuries it is too late. The level of danger is already very high.”
“It’s difficult to assess how Russia compares with other countries, but in Russia there are more frequent cases of domestic violence ending in death because there is no state-level system for helping women, said Larissa Ponarina, the deputy director of ANNA.
Alexei Parshin, a lawyer who does pro bono work for the victims, said that one of the main legal challenges is the lack of a legal mechanism to impose restraining orders. “If a lover, civil partner, or husband continues following a woman, there is no legal mechanism to limit his interaction with that woman,” he said. “We have a witness protection program, but this law is not used for crimes of this gravity.” Significantly, there is no specific article in the criminal code against domestic violence, meaning that acts of domestic violence are seen in the same light as simple assault.
Punishments usually amount to little more than fines and do not take into account the relationship between the assailant and the victim (sometimes as straightforward as one of economic dependence), and the psychological trauma thereby caused. “In some situations, criminals are due a jail sentence but we can’t get it because jail sentences aren’t stipulated for fighting. I think sentences need to be made tougher,” said Parshin. “If there was a law on domestic violence, then we could give more serious terms, or at least suitable terms which, in the case of a repeated offense, would be made appropriately serious.”
Pisklakova-Parker agreed. “We don’t have legislation that says ‘no,’ you cannot do it. Even when cases get to court, sentences are very light. The first time a person gets sentenced, it counts in their favor because they are seen as a responsible person.” Domestic violence falls awkwardly between cracks in legislation: it should qualify as “torment” under Article 117 of the Russian Criminal Code because of its repeated and systematic nature, and should therefore be punishable by three years in prison, argues this year’s shadow report by ANNA. But in Russian law, battery inflicted during an argument and arising from personal hostility cannot qualify as “torment.”
Not a crime
Against this backdrop of silence, backward legislation and the statistical vacuum, some contend the problem is evolving. In November The Moscow Times cited “women’s rights advocates” who claimed that more children are being beaten and killed by fathers taking revenge against their mothers. The ANNA report recounted a brutal murder in Tatarstan of a five-year-old boy by his father, who stabbed him to death to “settle a score” with his wife, whom he suspected of infidelity.
Ponarina was reluctant to confirm a possible pattern. “We haven’t had to deal with any of these kinds of cases. There probably are cases like this, but I can’t say for sure that this is a trend. Of course, children are manipulated in order to somehow manipulate women and victims of domestic violence. As for the trend of murder, I just can’t say.”
Vinogorova is currently in court with her husband over rights to see the children. “He’s demanding in court that we allow him to see the children. I explain that I cannot just sit back and allow a person like him to see them. I have to protect my children. They themselves are scared after all this,” she said.
An army of one
Even if women do manage to escape dependence on their partners, pressing charges is a complex process, which lawyers and NGO workers agree favors the defendant. Under Russian law domestic violence cases are not handled by the state, and victims must act as the prosecutors themselves because violence at home is seen as a private affair that the state should not encroach on. “Just imagine for a moment how few women have a legal education and know what to do or even how to write statements. If it’s a trial, it is the woman who has to prosecute. If you then bear in mind that this woman has been living with the defendant for several years or even many years, or that they have children together, it’s clear that it’s going to be really difficult. On top of that, she has to prosecute someone she is scared of,” said Parshin.
After negotiating with the Federation Council in spring of this year, NGO workers thought that they had won a breakthrough when the government appeared to have agreed to draft a better approach to deal with domestic violence. Pisklakova-Parker said the government was still working on it, but there are still major disagreements between the government and the NGO sector. “The Russian government’s position was that we do have legislation that covers domestic violence. They referred to the Criminal Code, where articles cover physical abuse regardless of where it takes place (either at home or in public). They don’t really understand what domestic violence is,” she said.
Perhaps stuttering political will on this subject will gain momentum after president Medvedev launched his campaign to protect women and children to halt the population drop in his State of the Nation address. Parshin said that over his five years of working personally in the field, there were noticeable steps being made in the right direction, and held out optimism. “Ten years ago, no one even admitted there was a problem,” he said. “Now, years later, there is more awareness thanks to the work of rights workers—people like Pisklakova-Parker. They’ve done a lot for this problem to be heard and recognized. Domestic violence is a problem everywhere in the world, but elsewhere they got onto it earlier so more has been done about it. We recognized it only recently and the approach to this question is already changing.”
http://www.russiaprofile.org/page.php?pageid=Culture+%26+Living&articleid=a1293034376
December 22, 2010
Battery in Private
By Tom Balmforth
Russia Profile
Russia Has No Legal Mechanism for Prosecuting Domestic Abuse
The government considers violence against women in their homes as a strictly private matter, unless the victim sustains medium to severe injuries.
Yekaterina Vinogorova, a 39-year-old mother of three, finally fled her 15-year-long marriage after her husband broke her nose and ribs and covered her in bruises. “He would have these periodic outbursts of jealousy. The last time he beat me up so badly I simply walked out, but he carried on following me. Once he slashed the tires on my car. He was stalking me everywhere,” she said.
For three months Vinogorova and her children were given refuge at Moscow’s shelter for victims of domestic violence until she could move in with her parents, where she remains almost two years on. The paycheck she gets at a Moscow beauty salon is just about enough to support herself and her children, but the situation with her husband is far from resolved.
Vinogorova is prosecuting him in court for the assault. Still, Russia has no legal mechanism for imposing restraining orders even though persuasive research shows that women are most at risk when leaving their partners. She always gives police statements when she is harassed by him, but with little success. Since she left him, he has attacked her father to convince her to return, vandalized her car by tearing out the battery and wires under the hood and finally burnt down their country home. “The trouble is none of this can be proven and the police aren’t interested,” she said, adding that he refuses to hand over her and her children’s passports.
“People like this get some kind of gratification from all this. He’s actually living with another woman now, but apparently this doesn’t make him want to leave us alone. And it all continues unpunished. I just don’t know how this is going to end. When I go out, I make sure I keep checking around me. Who knows what’s on his mind and no one’s there to protect me. The police do nothing.”
Yekaterina’s case is not entirely typical—she was, at least, fortunate enough to make it to a shelter. “They helped me a lot. I lived there with my children for three months. They had lawyers and psychiatrists, and it was all free,” she said. Russia has just 23 of these local government-funded shelters, clearly too few for a largely ignored social issue which claims a staggering 14,000 women’s lives a year, according to government statistics cited by this year’s UN report titled “End the Silence.”
The capital, with its real population way in excess of ten million, has only one shelter, the “Hope Center,” which has 35 beds, said Elena Korsakova, its director. NGO workers consider the 14,000 deaths a year a conservative estimate even though it equates to the number of soldiers the Soviet Union lost in its decade-long abortive campaign in Afghanistan. Put otherwise, one woman is killed by her partner every 40 minutes, meaning that Russian women are three times more likely to be abused within the walls of their own home by their partners than they are even on the streets, a report by ANNA, Russia’s leading domestic violence NGO working trying to curb violence against women, found this year.
What’s more, in Russia domestic violence is as likely within the walls of the elite Rublyovka mansions as it is in the apartments of its bleak single-industry cities. “This problem transcends any social strata or social group,” said Marina Pisklakova-Parker, the director of ANNA. “It doesn’t depend on education, income or other forms of social status. It happens in every type of family. It’s everywhere. But still it is not discussed.”
Suffering in silence
Russian pop diva Valeria brought domestic violence into Russia’s headlines when in 2005 she documented ten years of quietly suffering beatings from her husband, the man who managed her superstar music career. But this was a rare public glimpse into domestic violence, and the anguish of its victims more often goes unheard in a matter that is socially perceived as a private affair. “In society, domestic violence is not considered bad behavior,” said Pisklakova-Parker. “When nobody says you cannot beat your wife, then everybody who does it assumes they have a right to do it. There is only silence. Society says ‘it’s okay, it’s not a crime’.” In his State of the Nation address this year, President Dmitry Medvedev delivered a wide-ranging plan to protect women and children to halt the population crisis because of the forecasted drop in women of child-bearing age, but he made no mention of the violence at home killing 14,000 women a year.
Out of Russia’s three mainstream pollsters, the Public Opinion Fund, VTsIOM, and Levada, only the latter could provide any statistics on domestic violence, and even that poll dated back to 2006. That year, 26 percent of Russians said that domestic violence is “very widespread” in Russia, 45 percent said “quite widespread” and 19 percent said “not widespread,” according to Levada. The rest were “not sure.”
Muddled numbers
Moreover, statistics are unreliable because of the backwardness of the government’s approach to domestic violence. No distinction is drawn between crimes against different genders, meaning that Interior Ministry statistics on domestic violence are inaccurate. There are also a raft of ambiguities in the Interior Ministry data issued to the public. Speaking at an event organized to prevent future domestic violence in 2008, the police said that there were over 200,000 domestic violence crimes committed by people when drunk, but also said that there are over 250,000 people suffering from alcoholism. “Are these alcoholics among the domestic violence offenders, or are these two different categories?” asked this year’s ANNA report that tried to make sense of the data to pinpoint problematic areas.
In post-Soviet Ukraine, NGO workers say that as many as 70 percent of women are victims of domestic violence. But accurate country-comparisons are tricky. What sets Russia apart is the shocking death toll, which stems from deficient government measures to nip cases in the bud before they escalate. “We have only criminal articles, meaning that intervention can be carried out only when the injuries are medium or severe or in the case of murder,” said Pisklakova-Parker. “Because of the nature of domestic violence, by the time women are suffering medium injuries it is too late. The level of danger is already very high.”
“It’s difficult to assess how Russia compares with other countries, but in Russia there are more frequent cases of domestic violence ending in death because there is no state-level system for helping women, said Larissa Ponarina, the deputy director of ANNA.
Alexei Parshin, a lawyer who does pro bono work for the victims, said that one of the main legal challenges is the lack of a legal mechanism to impose restraining orders. “If a lover, civil partner, or husband continues following a woman, there is no legal mechanism to limit his interaction with that woman,” he said. “We have a witness protection program, but this law is not used for crimes of this gravity.” Significantly, there is no specific article in the criminal code against domestic violence, meaning that acts of domestic violence are seen in the same light as simple assault.
Punishments usually amount to little more than fines and do not take into account the relationship between the assailant and the victim (sometimes as straightforward as one of economic dependence), and the psychological trauma thereby caused. “In some situations, criminals are due a jail sentence but we can’t get it because jail sentences aren’t stipulated for fighting. I think sentences need to be made tougher,” said Parshin. “If there was a law on domestic violence, then we could give more serious terms, or at least suitable terms which, in the case of a repeated offense, would be made appropriately serious.”
Pisklakova-Parker agreed. “We don’t have legislation that says ‘no,’ you cannot do it. Even when cases get to court, sentences are very light. The first time a person gets sentenced, it counts in their favor because they are seen as a responsible person.” Domestic violence falls awkwardly between cracks in legislation: it should qualify as “torment” under Article 117 of the Russian Criminal Code because of its repeated and systematic nature, and should therefore be punishable by three years in prison, argues this year’s shadow report by ANNA. But in Russian law, battery inflicted during an argument and arising from personal hostility cannot qualify as “torment.”
Not a crime
Against this backdrop of silence, backward legislation and the statistical vacuum, some contend the problem is evolving. In November The Moscow Times cited “women’s rights advocates” who claimed that more children are being beaten and killed by fathers taking revenge against their mothers. The ANNA report recounted a brutal murder in Tatarstan of a five-year-old boy by his father, who stabbed him to death to “settle a score” with his wife, whom he suspected of infidelity.
Ponarina was reluctant to confirm a possible pattern. “We haven’t had to deal with any of these kinds of cases. There probably are cases like this, but I can’t say for sure that this is a trend. Of course, children are manipulated in order to somehow manipulate women and victims of domestic violence. As for the trend of murder, I just can’t say.”
Vinogorova is currently in court with her husband over rights to see the children. “He’s demanding in court that we allow him to see the children. I explain that I cannot just sit back and allow a person like him to see them. I have to protect my children. They themselves are scared after all this,” she said.
An army of one
Even if women do manage to escape dependence on their partners, pressing charges is a complex process, which lawyers and NGO workers agree favors the defendant. Under Russian law domestic violence cases are not handled by the state, and victims must act as the prosecutors themselves because violence at home is seen as a private affair that the state should not encroach on. “Just imagine for a moment how few women have a legal education and know what to do or even how to write statements. If it’s a trial, it is the woman who has to prosecute. If you then bear in mind that this woman has been living with the defendant for several years or even many years, or that they have children together, it’s clear that it’s going to be really difficult. On top of that, she has to prosecute someone she is scared of,” said Parshin.
After negotiating with the Federation Council in spring of this year, NGO workers thought that they had won a breakthrough when the government appeared to have agreed to draft a better approach to deal with domestic violence. Pisklakova-Parker said the government was still working on it, but there are still major disagreements between the government and the NGO sector. “The Russian government’s position was that we do have legislation that covers domestic violence. They referred to the Criminal Code, where articles cover physical abuse regardless of where it takes place (either at home or in public). They don’t really understand what domestic violence is,” she said.
Perhaps stuttering political will on this subject will gain momentum after president Medvedev launched his campaign to protect women and children to halt the population drop in his State of the Nation address. Parshin said that over his five years of working personally in the field, there were noticeable steps being made in the right direction, and held out optimism. “Ten years ago, no one even admitted there was a problem,” he said. “Now, years later, there is more awareness thanks to the work of rights workers—people like Pisklakova-Parker. They’ve done a lot for this problem to be heard and recognized. Domestic violence is a problem everywhere in the world, but elsewhere they got onto it earlier so more has been done about it. We recognized it only recently and the approach to this question is already changing.”
Dad charged with 1st-degree murder in death of 4-month-old daughter (Ankeny, Iowa)
Dad RYAN TROWBRIDGE has been charged with 1st-degree murder in the death of his 4-month-old daughter. Daddy says he just found her "blue and unresponsive" after putting her down for a nap. However, the autopsy shows that the baby had fatal head injuries.
So was Daddy doing "caretaking" while Mom was working or what? Who knows. As there is no mention of Mom here at all.
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-ia-ankenychilddies,0,7502328.story
Father charged in baby's death in Iowa
Associated Press
12:22 p.m. CST, December 22, 2010
ANKENY, Iowa — Ankeny police say a Des Moines man is charged with first-degree murder in the death of his infant daughter last summer.
WHO-TV in Des Moines says 20-year-old Ryan Trowbridge was charged Wednesday. He's accused of causing fatal injuries to his 4-month-old daughter, Rylee, on July 12.
Trowbridge and his daughter lived in Ankeny at the time. Police received a call about an infant who was not breathing. According to police, Trowbridge told officers his daughter had been laid down for a nap and he found her blue and unresponsive.
An autopsy showed the child suffered head injuries.
Trowbridge is in the Polk County jail on $500,000 bond. There was no listing for him on the state's online court system. It was not immediately known if he had an attorney.
------
Information from: WHO-TV, http://www.whotv.com
So was Daddy doing "caretaking" while Mom was working or what? Who knows. As there is no mention of Mom here at all.
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/chi-ap-ia-ankenychilddies,0,7502328.story
Father charged in baby's death in Iowa
Associated Press
12:22 p.m. CST, December 22, 2010
ANKENY, Iowa — Ankeny police say a Des Moines man is charged with first-degree murder in the death of his infant daughter last summer.
WHO-TV in Des Moines says 20-year-old Ryan Trowbridge was charged Wednesday. He's accused of causing fatal injuries to his 4-month-old daughter, Rylee, on July 12.
Trowbridge and his daughter lived in Ankeny at the time. Police received a call about an infant who was not breathing. According to police, Trowbridge told officers his daughter had been laid down for a nap and he found her blue and unresponsive.
An autopsy showed the child suffered head injuries.
Trowbridge is in the Polk County jail on $500,000 bond. There was no listing for him on the state's online court system. It was not immediately known if he had an attorney.
------
Information from: WHO-TV, http://www.whotv.com
Court rules that mother must return child to abusive father in Italy (Northern Ireland)
This is exactly the kind of case that the Hague Convention has made far worse. Studies in the U.S. have shown that most Hague petitions are in fact filed by abusive fathers trying to solidify their control over mothers and children attempting to flee across international borders in order to escape the father's violence:
http://dastardlydads.blogspot.com/2010/12/international-law-permits-abusive.html
In fact, this case is is very similar to a recent case in Canada, where Judge Helene Le Bel disbelieved the mother's allegations of domestic violence, and--citing the Hague Convention--ordered the children returned to their father in Texas. Later, the father "allegedly" murdered the son and severely wounded the daughter:
A Northern Ireland woman has been ordered to return her daughter to Italy following a legal battle with the child's father.
Her claims that bringing the four-year-old back would expose her to grave risk of intolerable harm was rejected by a High Court judge.
Proceedings were launched following the break-down of the parent's relationship.
The court heard the couple had lived together in Italy from 2000, where the woman worked as an English teacher.
The child who was given the pseudonym Maria to protect her identity, travelled to Northern Ireland for a holiday in July with her mother but did not return as expected.
Instead, the mother began wardship moves without her ex-partner's knowledge.
Mr Justice Stephens said it became clear to the father, an Italian national, that she had no intention of returning to Italy with Maria.
Wrongfully detained
The child's father, who agrees that her mother is the primary carer as long as he has good regular contact, then applied for a court order.
It was argued - and accepted by the woman's lawyer - that Maria was wrongfully detained in Northern Ireland.
Counsel for the child's mother claimed that taking her back would involve a grave risk of the girl being exposed to physical or psychological harm, or place her in an intolerable position.
The woman claimed to have suffered 10 years of domestic abuse by Maria's father, and also that he made a sexually inappropriate remark.
However, the judge held that the "sweeping allegation of domestic abuse... is in the main unparticularised".
Mr Justice Stephens also said there was no corroboration of the physical abuse claims.
In his ruling, delivered last month but only now published by the Court Service, he said: "There is evidence in this case of harm but I do not consider it to amount to clear and compelling evidence that a return would create a grave risk of intolerable harm to Maria."
The judge based his conclusion on a number of factors, including the lack of specific evidence, the father's denials, and a series of undertakings given by him.
He pointed out that the woman can apply to the courts in Italy for protective orders if required.
Mr Justice Stephens ordered that Maria was to have been returned to Italy on or before 6 December, on the proviso that her father formally signs his undertakings and provides a sworn affidavit.
He added: "I also direct that all the papers in this case be made available to the courts in Italy together with a transcript of this ruling."
http://dastardlydads.blogspot.com/2010/12/international-law-permits-abusive.html
In fact, this case is is very similar to a recent case in Canada, where Judge Helene Le Bel disbelieved the mother's allegations of domestic violence, and--citing the Hague Convention--ordered the children returned to their father in Texas. Later, the father "allegedly" murdered the son and severely wounded the daughter:
http://dastardlydads.blogspot.com/2010/12/welfare-of-children-should-come-first.html
And now we see an unnamed judge in Northern Ireland doing the same thing to this mother and daughter. Disgusting.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-12059402
Court rules NI mother must return child to ItalyA Northern Ireland woman has been ordered to return her daughter to Italy following a legal battle with the child's father.
Her claims that bringing the four-year-old back would expose her to grave risk of intolerable harm was rejected by a High Court judge.
Proceedings were launched following the break-down of the parent's relationship.
The court heard the couple had lived together in Italy from 2000, where the woman worked as an English teacher.
The child who was given the pseudonym Maria to protect her identity, travelled to Northern Ireland for a holiday in July with her mother but did not return as expected.
Instead, the mother began wardship moves without her ex-partner's knowledge.
Mr Justice Stephens said it became clear to the father, an Italian national, that she had no intention of returning to Italy with Maria.
Wrongfully detained
The child's father, who agrees that her mother is the primary carer as long as he has good regular contact, then applied for a court order.
It was argued - and accepted by the woman's lawyer - that Maria was wrongfully detained in Northern Ireland.
Counsel for the child's mother claimed that taking her back would involve a grave risk of the girl being exposed to physical or psychological harm, or place her in an intolerable position.
The woman claimed to have suffered 10 years of domestic abuse by Maria's father, and also that he made a sexually inappropriate remark.
However, the judge held that the "sweeping allegation of domestic abuse... is in the main unparticularised".
Mr Justice Stephens also said there was no corroboration of the physical abuse claims.
In his ruling, delivered last month but only now published by the Court Service, he said: "There is evidence in this case of harm but I do not consider it to amount to clear and compelling evidence that a return would create a grave risk of intolerable harm to Maria."
The judge based his conclusion on a number of factors, including the lack of specific evidence, the father's denials, and a series of undertakings given by him.
He pointed out that the woman can apply to the courts in Italy for protective orders if required.
Mr Justice Stephens ordered that Maria was to have been returned to Italy on or before 6 December, on the proviso that her father formally signs his undertakings and provides a sworn affidavit.
He added: "I also direct that all the papers in this case be made available to the courts in Italy together with a transcript of this ruling."
Dad accused of burning 5-year-old son with electrical cord (Miami, Florida)
Dads like CLEMENT FELIX are such nitwits. Do you really think you encourage academic achievement with your kids by tying them up and burning them with an electrical cord? Where was the mother when this was taking place anyway?
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21003066703691/
Father accused of abusing son
Posted: Today at 5:40 am EST Last Updated: Today at 9:28 am EST
MIAMI (WSVN) -- A South Florida father appeared before a judge after being accused of an alarming charge.
Miami-Dade Police arrested 35-year-old Clement Felix and charged him with aggravated child abuse.
According to police, Felix tied his 5-year-old son's hands with a belt and burned his back with a hot electrical cord several times, on Nov. 16.
Police believe Felix became angry after his son misbehaved in school.
Felix remains in jail on $50,000 bond.
INVISIBLE MOTHER ALERT.
http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21003066703691/
Father accused of abusing son
Posted: Today at 5:40 am EST Last Updated: Today at 9:28 am EST
MIAMI (WSVN) -- A South Florida father appeared before a judge after being accused of an alarming charge.
Miami-Dade Police arrested 35-year-old Clement Felix and charged him with aggravated child abuse.
According to police, Felix tied his 5-year-old son's hands with a belt and burned his back with a hot electrical cord several times, on Nov. 16.
Police believe Felix became angry after his son misbehaved in school.
Felix remains in jail on $50,000 bond.
Dad smears blood on child after losing online auction; has past record of child abuse (Surfside Beach, South Carolina)
Can you imagine what it's like to be a family member of dad HARRY STANLEY WHITE III? Always walking on pins and needles, wondering when Daddy is next going to blow up for whatever goes wrong in his life--like the fact that HE overslept and missed the deadline on his ebay auction. More than just a drug or alcohol problem, this is how abusers act. It's part of the wheel of control. Keep everybody jumpy.
http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13722717
Police: Man smears blood on child after losing online auction
Posted: Dec 21, 2010 3:03 PM CST
Updated: Dec 21, 2010 3:09 PM CST
SURFSIDE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – A 51-year-old man has been arrested for unlawful neglect of a child after the Surfside Police Department says he smeared blood on his child's face in anger because he missed an online auction Sunday night.
According to a police report released by the Surfside Police Department, officers responded to a home along Hollywood Drive to a report of child abuse. Upon arriving at the residence, officers could hear a man yelling.
When officers entered the residence, they found Harry Stanley White III, of Surfside Beach, visibly angry and could smell an odor of alcohol around him.
According to White, he was angry because he fell asleep and missed an Ebay auction, and he blamed his family for not waking him.
Officers spoke with the victim away from White, and noted the child was visibly shaken and scared. The victim told police he was fixing a laptop when he realized the auction was about to end, and went to wake White. White then became angry because he missed the auction.
The victim said White later called him into his bedroom, and told the victim it was the his fault White did not win the auction. White then allegedly belittled the victim for a short period before telling the child to get out of his sight.
A short time later, the victim said he was called downstairs and was met by his father, who cursed at him and told him to fix a computer. The victim said as he went to fix the computer, White then threw the computer battery on the ground, telling the victim to repair it as well.
The victim told police White handed him a piece of battery that had apparently cut him, and then tried to wipe the blood from his hand onto the victim's face. The victim asked his father to stop, but was overpowered by White and the arrestee smeared the blood on his child's face.
When White realized his wife was calling police, he tried cleaning the blood from the victim.
Officers said White told them he did not hit the child, he was just upset over losing the auction and it was a misunderstanding.
Upon further investigation, officers found a drop of blood on the floor, but were unable to take pictures due to White's wife cleaning up the blood.
White was then arrested and charged with unlawful neglect of a child.
This is not the first time White has been charged with a crime against a minor. In 2008, White was arrested for unlawful conduct toward a child.
http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=13722717
Police: Man smears blood on child after losing online auction
Posted: Dec 21, 2010 3:03 PM CST
Updated: Dec 21, 2010 3:09 PM CST
SURFSIDE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – A 51-year-old man has been arrested for unlawful neglect of a child after the Surfside Police Department says he smeared blood on his child's face in anger because he missed an online auction Sunday night.
According to a police report released by the Surfside Police Department, officers responded to a home along Hollywood Drive to a report of child abuse. Upon arriving at the residence, officers could hear a man yelling.
When officers entered the residence, they found Harry Stanley White III, of Surfside Beach, visibly angry and could smell an odor of alcohol around him.
According to White, he was angry because he fell asleep and missed an Ebay auction, and he blamed his family for not waking him.
Officers spoke with the victim away from White, and noted the child was visibly shaken and scared. The victim told police he was fixing a laptop when he realized the auction was about to end, and went to wake White. White then became angry because he missed the auction.
The victim said White later called him into his bedroom, and told the victim it was the his fault White did not win the auction. White then allegedly belittled the victim for a short period before telling the child to get out of his sight.
A short time later, the victim said he was called downstairs and was met by his father, who cursed at him and told him to fix a computer. The victim said as he went to fix the computer, White then threw the computer battery on the ground, telling the victim to repair it as well.
The victim told police White handed him a piece of battery that had apparently cut him, and then tried to wipe the blood from his hand onto the victim's face. The victim asked his father to stop, but was overpowered by White and the arrestee smeared the blood on his child's face.
When White realized his wife was calling police, he tried cleaning the blood from the victim.
Officers said White told them he did not hit the child, he was just upset over losing the auction and it was a misunderstanding.
Upon further investigation, officers found a drop of blood on the floor, but were unable to take pictures due to White's wife cleaning up the blood.
White was then arrested and charged with unlawful neglect of a child.
This is not the first time White has been charged with a crime against a minor. In 2008, White was arrested for unlawful conduct toward a child.
Dad makes death threats against famous daughter-actress (London, England, United Kingdom)
Dad ABUL AZAD--along his son--"allegedly" assaulted and threatened to kill Afshan Azad of Harry Potter fame for "meeting" a young Hindu man. The daughter is an adult, and obviously self-supporting. But that doesn't keep her violent father from wanting total control of her life, does it? All in the name of his sacred religion, of course. This woman is obviously terrified for her life--and for good reason.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/93076/harry-potter-star-beaten-up-by-brother-over-hindu-boyfriend/
Harry Potter star beaten up by brother over Hindu boyfriend
Afshan fled after father and brother assaulted and threatened to kill her.
LONDON: Afshan Azad, who stars in the Harry Potter movies, was beaten and threatened with death by her father and brother after she met a young Hindu man, the Manchester Crown Court was told on Monday.
Afshan, 22, plays Padma Patil, a witch and classmate of the boy wizard. The court heard that she had been so terrified by the violent confrontation that Afshan fled through her bedroom window after her father, Abul Azad (53) and brother Ashraf (28) called her a prostitute, assaulted and threatened to kill her.
The incident took place on May 21 after which Afshan, who is of Bangladeshi origin, reportedly fled to London after making a statement to the police. Later, however, she decided she did not want any action to be taken against her family and failed to turn up as a witness in court on Monday.
According to some reports this is because she feared that pursuing the case would put her in ‘genuine danger’. She reportedly also told police that her father wanted to force her into an arranged marriage. The judge heard that she refused to give evidence despite ‘expensive and time consuming efforts’ made by the prosecution service.
Both men had been charged with making threats to kill her and her brother was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm. In the absence of a witness, the prosecution accepted a guilty plea from Afshan’s brother for assault and her father accepted to be bound over to keep the peace for 12 months. The brother is on bail awaiting sentencing.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/93076/harry-potter-star-beaten-up-by-brother-over-hindu-boyfriend/
Harry Potter star beaten up by brother over Hindu boyfriend
Afshan fled after father and brother assaulted and threatened to kill her.
LONDON: Afshan Azad, who stars in the Harry Potter movies, was beaten and threatened with death by her father and brother after she met a young Hindu man, the Manchester Crown Court was told on Monday.
Afshan, 22, plays Padma Patil, a witch and classmate of the boy wizard. The court heard that she had been so terrified by the violent confrontation that Afshan fled through her bedroom window after her father, Abul Azad (53) and brother Ashraf (28) called her a prostitute, assaulted and threatened to kill her.
The incident took place on May 21 after which Afshan, who is of Bangladeshi origin, reportedly fled to London after making a statement to the police. Later, however, she decided she did not want any action to be taken against her family and failed to turn up as a witness in court on Monday.
According to some reports this is because she feared that pursuing the case would put her in ‘genuine danger’. She reportedly also told police that her father wanted to force her into an arranged marriage. The judge heard that she refused to give evidence despite ‘expensive and time consuming efforts’ made by the prosecution service.
Both men had been charged with making threats to kill her and her brother was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm. In the absence of a witness, the prosecution accepted a guilty plea from Afshan’s brother for assault and her father accepted to be bound over to keep the peace for 12 months. The brother is on bail awaiting sentencing.
Dad who "allegedly" killed 19-day-old baby denied bail (Brisbane, Queensland, Australia)
Yet another case of an UNNAMED DAD shaking and killing the baby--who was only 19 days old. A newborn, for God's sake. Sick. No mention of the baby's mother. Did Daddy birth this child himself or what?
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/accused-baby-killer-dad-denied-bail/story-e6freoof-1225975023059
Accused baby killer dad denied bail
by Mark Oberhardt From: The Courier-Mail December 22, 2010 1:26PM
A FATHER who allegedly killed his 19-day-old baby daughter by shaking her was refused Supreme Court bail in time for Christmas, today.
The man, 23, of Burleigh Waters on the Gold Coast, was charged with murder when arrested by police in October last year.
In the Supreme Court in Brisbane, the man, who can't be named under new Queensland laws, applied for conditional bail on several grounds.
The court heard the critical issue at trial would be whether the new born baby's injuries were caused during birth or as a result of her father's abuse.
Barrister Mark Johnson, for the man, said crown's case on a murder charge was "weak" and he was in negotiations with prosecutors to have the charge downgraded to manslaughter.
Prosecutor Kathryn Adams said it was intended to pursue a murder charge after the man allegedly made admissions to several different people about shaking the baby.
Bail was opposed because release conditions did not adequately address the man's flight risk.
Justice Glenn Martin refused bail.
The case is likely to go to trial late next year
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/accused-baby-killer-dad-denied-bail/story-e6freoof-1225975023059
Accused baby killer dad denied bail
by Mark Oberhardt From: The Courier-Mail December 22, 2010 1:26PM
A FATHER who allegedly killed his 19-day-old baby daughter by shaking her was refused Supreme Court bail in time for Christmas, today.
The man, 23, of Burleigh Waters on the Gold Coast, was charged with murder when arrested by police in October last year.
In the Supreme Court in Brisbane, the man, who can't be named under new Queensland laws, applied for conditional bail on several grounds.
The court heard the critical issue at trial would be whether the new born baby's injuries were caused during birth or as a result of her father's abuse.
Barrister Mark Johnson, for the man, said crown's case on a murder charge was "weak" and he was in negotiations with prosecutors to have the charge downgraded to manslaughter.
Prosecutor Kathryn Adams said it was intended to pursue a murder charge after the man allegedly made admissions to several different people about shaking the baby.
Bail was opposed because release conditions did not adequately address the man's flight risk.
Justice Glenn Martin refused bail.
The case is likely to go to trial late next year
Dad facing felony child neglect charges; 2-year-old found wandering, covered in own excrement (Glen St. Mary, Florida)
So what was up with dad ADAM SALT? Was he babysitting? Did he have visitation with these kids? Either way, it seems he couldn't manage to stay awake and monitor his own children. The 2-year-old was found wandering the neighborhood in nothing but a T-shirt and covered in her own excrement. And in 50 degree weather. This is the kind of crap that mothers are usually blamed for--mostly because they are the majority of caregivers. But the statistics show that fathers tend to be even worse once they are given supervisory responsibilities.
http://www.news4jax.com/news/26213953/detail.html
2-Year-Old Found Wandering Alone
Father Arrested On Felony Child Neglect Charges
POSTED: Tuesday, December 21, 2010
GLEN ST. MARY, Fla. -- A Baker County father is facing felony charges after his 2-year-old daughter was found wandering their neighborhood earlier this month.
Adam Salts, 26, was asleep and he said he had no idea his toddler got out of the house, deputies said.
The girl was discovered by a caregiver from the Baker County Council on Aging, who happened to be in the neighborhood visiting a client.
The woman told authorities the girl had nothing on but a long-sleeved T-shirt in 50-degree weather and was covered in her own excrement.
Baker County deputies said they received 911 calls about a child wandering in the street.
"What he did, you know it's not right because it is a small child, and she's a little tiny thing," said neighbor Paulinda Harvey. "He's not a father; that's a neglectful dad."
Salts was arrested and charged with felony child neglect. The girl and a 1-year-old child found asleep in the home when deputies arrived were turned over to their mother Tuesday evening.
http://www.news4jax.com/news/26213953/detail.html
2-Year-Old Found Wandering Alone
Father Arrested On Felony Child Neglect Charges
POSTED: Tuesday, December 21, 2010
GLEN ST. MARY, Fla. -- A Baker County father is facing felony charges after his 2-year-old daughter was found wandering their neighborhood earlier this month.
Adam Salts, 26, was asleep and he said he had no idea his toddler got out of the house, deputies said.
The girl was discovered by a caregiver from the Baker County Council on Aging, who happened to be in the neighborhood visiting a client.
The woman told authorities the girl had nothing on but a long-sleeved T-shirt in 50-degree weather and was covered in her own excrement.
Baker County deputies said they received 911 calls about a child wandering in the street.
"What he did, you know it's not right because it is a small child, and she's a little tiny thing," said neighbor Paulinda Harvey. "He's not a father; that's a neglectful dad."
Salts was arrested and charged with felony child neglect. The girl and a 1-year-old child found asleep in the home when deputies arrived were turned over to their mother Tuesday evening.
Dad who subjected two daughters to "catalogue of horrors" gets 14 years in jail (Sligo, Ireland)
I can't even begin to list all the items in the "catalogue of horrors" here. It's a shame that UNNAMED DAD is only getting 14 years in jail for all the things that he did to his two daughters--and their mother for that matter.
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/courts/man-gets-14-years-for-horrific-abuse-of-two-daughters-2469946.html
Man gets 14 years for horrific abuse of two daughters
By Aoife Nic Ardghail
Wednesday December 22 2010
A FATHER who subjected his two daughters to "a catalogue of horrors" was yesterday jailed for 14 years at the Central Criminal Court.
The 65-year-old raped and sexually abused the girls over a 16-year period in the 1980s and 1990s.
One daughter told gardai she first recalled her father abusing her when she was between five and 10 years old.
But she said it must have happened before because even though it was her earliest memory, she hadn't felt the situation was unusual at the time.
The woman's younger sister told gardai that when she tried to tell her mother about the abuse sometime before her teens, her father physically assaulted her as a warning.
In victim impact statements, the two women described to the court how they felt "dirty, damaged and scared" as a result of the years of abuse and said that their abuser did not deserve to be called a father.
The Sligo man, who can't be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty on his trial date to 16 sample counts of indecent assault, unlawful sexual intercourse, rape and buggery of his two daughters between 1980 and 1996 at a location in Sligo.
Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said the victims had undergone "a catalogue of horrors" over the years and noted the Director of Public Prosecutions believed the abuse to be at the upper end of the scale.
He also observed that the man had only entered a guilty plea when he saw his daughters in court ready to give evidence against him.
However, the judge said the courts "must be guided by the light of reason" and took into account the man's age and health difficulties.
He sentenced him to eight years for his assaults against one victim and six years for the attacks on the other girl. The judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively, meaning the man will serve a total of 14 years. He had earlier declared the man a sex offender.
Detective Garda Colleen O'Neill revealed that the man gave his older daughter a drink of what she now suspects was alcohol from a silver flask before he first raped her when she was between 10 and 11 years old.
Det Gda O'Neill said the abuse happened so frequently the woman can only pinpoint certain incidents.
The court heard the younger daughter was abused from when she was about five years old. When the girls had enough money saved they both moved out.
Violent
Det Gda O'Neill told the court the man had "ruled his home with an iron fist", that he was aggressive and violent towards all members of the family and wouldn't allow one daughter or her mother go to bed until he had come home from the pub drunk.
This daughter, reading from her victim impact statement, described growing up in a "house of hell" and being denied an education because of the abuse.
She said she still had flashbacks and had had a number of operations to correct physical problems she suffered from the years of abuse.
Det Gda O'Neill read the other daughter's victim impact statement in which she also described losing out on an education because she couldn't study.
The woman said she suffered panic attacks, could not hold down a job and had tried to take her own life during her teens.
She said her childhood was taken from her "in the worst possible way" by a man who "should not and does not deserve to be called a father".
She added that she would continue to need counselling for a long time.
Defending barrister Thomas O'Malley said his client had pleaded guilty to the serious charges which spared both women the trauma of a trial.
He said a doctor's report indicated his client had psychological and alcohol-related problems.
He told the court his client said he had no recollection of the assaults but accepts responsibility for them and is "extremely sorry and saddened".
- Aoife Nic Ardghail
http://www.independent.ie/national-news/courts/man-gets-14-years-for-horrific-abuse-of-two-daughters-2469946.html
Man gets 14 years for horrific abuse of two daughters
By Aoife Nic Ardghail
Wednesday December 22 2010
A FATHER who subjected his two daughters to "a catalogue of horrors" was yesterday jailed for 14 years at the Central Criminal Court.
The 65-year-old raped and sexually abused the girls over a 16-year period in the 1980s and 1990s.
One daughter told gardai she first recalled her father abusing her when she was between five and 10 years old.
But she said it must have happened before because even though it was her earliest memory, she hadn't felt the situation was unusual at the time.
The woman's younger sister told gardai that when she tried to tell her mother about the abuse sometime before her teens, her father physically assaulted her as a warning.
In victim impact statements, the two women described to the court how they felt "dirty, damaged and scared" as a result of the years of abuse and said that their abuser did not deserve to be called a father.
The Sligo man, who can't be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty on his trial date to 16 sample counts of indecent assault, unlawful sexual intercourse, rape and buggery of his two daughters between 1980 and 1996 at a location in Sligo.
Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy said the victims had undergone "a catalogue of horrors" over the years and noted the Director of Public Prosecutions believed the abuse to be at the upper end of the scale.
He also observed that the man had only entered a guilty plea when he saw his daughters in court ready to give evidence against him.
However, the judge said the courts "must be guided by the light of reason" and took into account the man's age and health difficulties.
He sentenced him to eight years for his assaults against one victim and six years for the attacks on the other girl. The judge ordered the sentences to run consecutively, meaning the man will serve a total of 14 years. He had earlier declared the man a sex offender.
Detective Garda Colleen O'Neill revealed that the man gave his older daughter a drink of what she now suspects was alcohol from a silver flask before he first raped her when she was between 10 and 11 years old.
Det Gda O'Neill said the abuse happened so frequently the woman can only pinpoint certain incidents.
The court heard the younger daughter was abused from when she was about five years old. When the girls had enough money saved they both moved out.
Violent
Det Gda O'Neill told the court the man had "ruled his home with an iron fist", that he was aggressive and violent towards all members of the family and wouldn't allow one daughter or her mother go to bed until he had come home from the pub drunk.
This daughter, reading from her victim impact statement, described growing up in a "house of hell" and being denied an education because of the abuse.
She said she still had flashbacks and had had a number of operations to correct physical problems she suffered from the years of abuse.
Det Gda O'Neill read the other daughter's victim impact statement in which she also described losing out on an education because she couldn't study.
The woman said she suffered panic attacks, could not hold down a job and had tried to take her own life during her teens.
She said her childhood was taken from her "in the worst possible way" by a man who "should not and does not deserve to be called a father".
She added that she would continue to need counselling for a long time.
Defending barrister Thomas O'Malley said his client had pleaded guilty to the serious charges which spared both women the trauma of a trial.
He said a doctor's report indicated his client had psychological and alcohol-related problems.
He told the court his client said he had no recollection of the assaults but accepts responsibility for them and is "extremely sorry and saddened".
- Aoife Nic Ardghail
Dad arrested for firing gun into bedroom where 18-month-old daughter sleeping (Reading, Pennsylvania)
What a lovely father. Dad LUIS V. SANABRIA was miffed that his former 16-year-old girlfriend had a new boyfriend, so to show what her what a mistake she had made in rejecting Daddy's charming self, he fired his gun at a second floor window. The bullet hit the ceiling above the baby's crib. Well, I'm sure that really showed Mom all the good times she's missing by not staying with Daddy's violent @$$.
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=273208
Originally Published: 12/22/2010
Bullet fired into toddler's room; father charged
An 18-year-old Reading man was arrested after he fired a gun into the bedroom where his 18-month-old daughter was sleeping, city police said Tuesday.
Luis V. Sanabria was arguing with the child's grandmother on the porch of her residence in the 500 block of Spring Street on Monday about 9:30 p.m., police said.
Sanabria of the 500 block of North Eighth Street stepped off the porch, pointed the handgun at a second-floor window and fired one shot, investigators said.
The bullet went through the window and hit the ceiling above the baby's crib, investigators said.
No one was injured.
Police gave this further account:
Sanabria initially argued over the telephone with the child's 16-year-old mother about her new boyfriend. She told him to leave her alone and hung up.
Sanabria went to her home, where the child's grandmother stopped him on the porch.
Police withheld the names of the grandmother and her daughter.
Sanabria was arrested in the 600 block of Spring Street shortly after the shooting.
He was charged with aggravated and simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, discharging a firearm into an occupied structure and firearms offenses.
Sanabria was committed to Berks County Prison in lieu of $75,000 bail after arraignment before Senior District Judge Gloria W. Stitzel in Reading Central Court.
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=273208
Originally Published: 12/22/2010
Bullet fired into toddler's room; father charged
An 18-year-old Reading man was arrested after he fired a gun into the bedroom where his 18-month-old daughter was sleeping, city police said Tuesday.
Luis V. Sanabria was arguing with the child's grandmother on the porch of her residence in the 500 block of Spring Street on Monday about 9:30 p.m., police said.
Sanabria of the 500 block of North Eighth Street stepped off the porch, pointed the handgun at a second-floor window and fired one shot, investigators said.
The bullet went through the window and hit the ceiling above the baby's crib, investigators said.
No one was injured.
Police gave this further account:
Sanabria initially argued over the telephone with the child's 16-year-old mother about her new boyfriend. She told him to leave her alone and hung up.
Sanabria went to her home, where the child's grandmother stopped him on the porch.
Police withheld the names of the grandmother and her daughter.
Sanabria was arrested in the 600 block of Spring Street shortly after the shooting.
He was charged with aggravated and simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, discharging a firearm into an occupied structure and firearms offenses.
Sanabria was committed to Berks County Prison in lieu of $75,000 bail after arraignment before Senior District Judge Gloria W. Stitzel in Reading Central Court.
Dad "allegedly" punches mom, "takes off" with "nearly naked" 2-month-old baby; infant found "non-responsive" (Portland, Oregon)
Another reminder that abducting fathers are very seldom interested in quality time with their children. This baby was only 2-months old when dad WILLIAM RAY punched the mother and took off with the baby, who was "nearly naked." No surprise that by the time the baby was recovered, the baby was alive, but "non-responsive." You think this had anything to do with wanting to be an "equal" parent and care for a tiny baby? Or was all this about further hurting and frightening the mother? Looks pretty obvious to me which way the wind was blowing here.
http://www.kptv.com/news/26213827/detail.html
DA: Charges Filed After Baby Taken Outside
Prosecutors Say William Ray Punched Woman, Ran Off With Infant
POSTED: 8:11 pm PST December 21, 2010
UPDATED: 9:30 pm PST December 21, 2010
PORTLAND, Ore. -- A 2-month-old baby wound up in the hospital after the father ran from a house with the child, prosecutors say.
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office says William Ray, 27, got into an argument with his girlfriend Sunday and punched her in the nose. He then took their infant and ran off, they say.
Officers were called in connection with the reported assault.
Ray was found dressed only in pants and a garbage bag, prosecutors say, and the baby was nearly naked.
Ray returned the baby, who was described as non-responsive but alive, to the house and police were called again.
The District Attorney’s Office says Ray told officers he was upset over something having to do with his girlfriend.
When interviewed by detectives, Ray appeared apologetic, according to prosecutors.
Ray was arrested on suspicion of first-degree criminal mistreatment and fourth-degree felony assault -- domestic violence.
The baby was taken to a hospital and is fine.
http://www.kptv.com/news/26213827/detail.html
DA: Charges Filed After Baby Taken Outside
Prosecutors Say William Ray Punched Woman, Ran Off With Infant
POSTED: 8:11 pm PST December 21, 2010
UPDATED: 9:30 pm PST December 21, 2010
PORTLAND, Ore. -- A 2-month-old baby wound up in the hospital after the father ran from a house with the child, prosecutors say.
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office says William Ray, 27, got into an argument with his girlfriend Sunday and punched her in the nose. He then took their infant and ran off, they say.
Officers were called in connection with the reported assault.
Ray was found dressed only in pants and a garbage bag, prosecutors say, and the baby was nearly naked.
Ray returned the baby, who was described as non-responsive but alive, to the house and police were called again.
The District Attorney’s Office says Ray told officers he was upset over something having to do with his girlfriend.
When interviewed by detectives, Ray appeared apologetic, according to prosecutors.
Ray was arrested on suspicion of first-degree criminal mistreatment and fourth-degree felony assault -- domestic violence.
The baby was taken to a hospital and is fine.
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