Custodial dad sentenced to life in prison for torture murder of 5-year-old daughter (Gresham, Oregon)

I concede that this girl's mother was probably not in any shape to care for her--at least not without help and support in dealing with her drug problem. But why did the authorities immediately assume that dad CHRISTOPHER ANDREW ROSILLO was some saintly figure fit for custody? Whatever Mom's problems, she was NOT guilty of the systematic torture and murder. Unfortunately, due to amazing public relations, there is a tendency within the system to exalt fathers beyond all reason and ignore their past histories. Why were Daddy's drug issues ignored, when Mom's were treated like a federal offense? That clearly happened here, and a little girl died a horrible painful death because of it. And notice how Oregon DHS utterly messed up--AGAIN.

http://www.oregonlive.com/gresham/index.ssf/2011/04/new_details_released_gresham_d.html

New details released: Gresham dad who was sentenced to life in prison for torturing to death his daughter was arrested wearing bloody beltPublished: Tuesday, April 26, 2011, 7:09 PM
Updated: Tuesday, April 26, 2011, 7:26 PM
By Aimee Green, The Oregonian The Oregonian

A 24-year-old Gresham dad who tortured to death his 5-year-old daughter looked solemn as he apologized in court Tuesday for one of the worst cases of child-abuse Multnomah County investigators have encountered.

Christopher Andrew Rosillo said was “sorry to all the people I hurt in this tragic event, especially sorry for my daughter who has passed on. She never deserved any of this.”

Multnomah County Circuit Judge Michael McShane then sentenced Rosillo to life in prison with the possibility of release after 25 years, as part of a plea deal agreed to by both sides. Rosillo pleaded guilty to murder by abuse last month.

Guadalupe Quintero — Rosillo’s long-time girlfriend and mother to his two younger children — pleaded guilty to manslaughter and criminal mistreatment last month for helping torture Oleander and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Tuesday, Rosillo also apologized to his two younger children — half-siblings of his daughter, Oleander Labier, whom died after three years of horrific child abuse. Paramedics responded to a 9-1-1 call from the apartment at 418 S.E. 169th Avenue on April 13, 2010 to find Oleander not breathing. She was later pronounced dead.

The medical examiner’s office determined she died from battered child syndrome due to severe malnutrition and beatings. She weighed just 28 pounds. Bruises, scrapes and gouges — from a rod-shaped object — covered her from head to toe. Her ribs were broken and her femur was broken in multiple places. A medical examiner found “a coffee-ground-type purge” in her mouth, indicating that the girl had digested blood, then regurgitated it.

Rosillo confessed to Gresham police detectives Tony Cobb and David Schmidt that he made Oleander eat her own vomit and perform painful acts, such as kneel on a brick or uncooked kernels of rice for extended amounts of time. The 140-pound father admitted to kicking and hitting his daughter. When police arrested him, they discovered Oleander’s blood on the belt he wore — from the regular beatings he inflicted.

Police visited Oleander’s room to discover that she slept on a tiny clearing on a mattress covered with debris. Her two younger siblings didn’t appear to have been abused.

Deputy district attorney Nathan Vasquez said Oleander’s death was preventable. His office has investigated whether he could prosecute family members who knew of the abuse, but no charges have been filed.

“This child was failed by many people,” Vasquez said to the packed courtroom. “Failed by family members. ...Failed in the sense that her abuse was apparent, was understood by the people around her. And no one chose to speak out on her behalf.”

As Vasquez spoke, relatives of the dead girl wept. Oleander was born prematurely to a drug-addicted mother. The girl was diagnosed as failing to thrive, and medical personnel installed a feeding tube to help her put on weight in her early years. Her mother lost custody of her, and Rosillo gained custody.

After Rosillo’s sentencing, Rosillo’s stepdad said he and Rosillo’s mom are heartbroken over their granddaughter’s death.

Stepdad Frank Turner, who raised Rosillo with Marrian Turner, said when Oleander was about two, they learned of a wound on her shoulder from a belt lashing. They took in Oleander for three months, but Frank Turner said he thought he had no choice but to return Oleander when his son demanded it.

He said he didn’t realize how extensive the abuse was, and that his son was capable of such cruelty. Nonetheless, he called a national child-abuse hotline twice. He said he didn’t get any calls back.

Turner broke down in sobs on a bench in the courthouse halls. Although prosecutors are not pursuing charges against him or his wife, Turner is critical of himself. He says he should have called police. He wants the public to report suspected child abuse no matter minor it seems.

There were signs, Turner said. He knew his son was using drugs. Rosillo and Quintero made excuses for why he couldn’t see his granddaughter. And when he did see her, they didn’t want her to be alone with him — even for a minute. He thinks they worried she would tell him about the abuse.

“There’s all kinds of stuff I look back on now — and I want people to know: Silence is approval,” Turner said.

Authorities say they have found one call on record about possible abuse or neglect to Oleander before her death — a tip to the Oregon Department of Human Services a little more than a year before the girl died. A DHS investigator found no evidence of physical abuse after seeking information from the child’s doctor, preschool and family.

Now that the criminal case into Oleander’s death is closed, Gene Evans, a spokesman for the Department of Human Services, said the agency can release records about that investigation. That could be in the next two weeks.