Custodial dad charged with involuntary manslaughter in death of 14-year-old son (Hampton, Virginia)

The only reason we know that dad ANTHONY BROOKS was custodial is because he admitted he was. (He brags about it actually). Claims the kids have all come "a long way" since he "got them." Really? Well, none of them were dead before, were they? Somehow I suspect that whatever Mom was accused of (rightly or wrongly) didn't come up to this level of abuse/neglect.

Now for the other great unanswered question: Who gave this father custody and why? What happened to the mother of these kids?

http://www.dailypress.com/news/crime/dp-nws-brooks-manslaughter-20140327,0,2032889.story

Hampton father charged with involuntary manslaughter in son's death

By Ashley K. Speed and Andrea Castillo

March 27, 2014

HAMPTON — An involuntary manslaughter charge has been filed against a Hampton man in connection to his son's death.

Anthony Brooks, 47, is charged in the death of his 14-year-old son, Antonio J. Brooks. Officers were called about 8:40 a.m. on Oct. 28 to the 800 block of Teach Street after receiving reports of a dead person in the area, according to police. When they arrived, police found the boy dead inside the home.

Brooks was initially charged with felony child neglect. The additional involuntary manslaughter charge was brought by prosecutors last week after the medical examiner's report was complete, according to police.

An autopsy of the boy revealed his death was caused by a medical condition, according to a criminal complaint filed in Hampton Juvenile & Domestic Relations Court.

In interviews with Child Protective Services officials, the boy's siblings said his father was aware of the condition but didn't seek medical help. The document did not specify the condition from which the 14-year-old had suffered. In a 2013 jailhouse interview with the Daily Press, Brooks said that he and his son were close.

"I'm being looked at wrong," Brooks said from Hampton Roads Regional Jail in Portsmouth. "The only people that believe me are my close friends and family…"(I) know how I raised my kids, and my kids definitely came a long way from when I got them."

Documents filed in Hampton Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court state Brooks' children told him during the weekend that their brother was sick, but Brooks did not seek medical attention. Brooks said his son was well the Saturday prior to his death and spent the day playing with his siblings.

A preliminary hearing was to be held Tuesday for Brooks but was continued due to the new charge. A bond hearing is set for Friday in Hampton Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court.