Four-year-old girl murdered by custodial dad let down by courts, social workers (United Kingdom)

As so often happens, not one word as to how the murdered girl's mother was erased from her life before Daddy assumed custody.


Once again, the courts, social workers just fawn all over Daddy and do nothing until it's too late.


The killer dad is identified as CARL WHEATLEY.


http://www.itv.com/news/2016-05-11/toddler-murdered-by-father-let-down-by-courts-and-social-workers/


11 May 2016 at 1:20pm


Little girl murdered by father let down by courts and social workers


Carl Wheatley was found guilty of murdering his daughter Alexa-Marie Quinn.


By Catherine Ellis


A four-year-old girl who was killed by her father was let down by social workers and local authorities, according to a report into her death.


Alexa-Marie Quinn was murdered by her father Carl Wheatley in March 2014, less than three months after Bedford Borough Council granted him custody.


Local agencies have been criticised in the report for "shortcomings" in their response to the suspicion that Alexa-Marie may have been at risk of harm.


What we know about Alexa-Marie


Alexa-Marie Quinn was found dead at her home in March 2014.


She had been beaten to death by her father.


She had suffered more than 60 injuries, including a bruise from her stomach to her ankles, and two lost teeth when she died in March 2014.


The four-year-old had been in Wheatley's care for the three months leading up to her death, after previously being cared for by foster parents.


Concerns had been raised about Wheatley's contact with Alexa-Marie by her foster carers in Bedford in May 2013.


Further worries about her contact with Wheatley had come up at a review the following month.


The trial of Alexa-Marie's father


Serious Case Review: Findings A Serious Case Review is launched when a child dies or is seriously injured where abuse or neglect is thought to be involved, to find out what lessons can be learned by local professionals and organisations to safeguard and promote the welfare of children.


The Serious Case Review published by Hertfordshire's Safeguarding Children's Board revealed a number of findings. These include:


Finding: There were weaknesses in management within and between different local authorities and social work teams in the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire boroughs. These led to a lack of full understanding of potential risks that Alexa-Marie was exposed to.


Finding: There were shortcomings in the response to the suspicion that child protection risks may have left Alexa-Marie at harm.


Finding: All parties in the courts did not appropriately consider the implications of a psychiatric report on Carl Wheatley from September 2013.


Recommendations


The Serious Case Review made a number of recommendations for local agencies involved in the case to safeguard children in the future.


These included: reviews of training given to social workers and lawyers, reviewing case management arrangements for student social workers and looking into current guidance on children's contact arrangements following a move to a new permanent placement.


Phil Picton, chairman of the Safeguarding Children Board, said that Alexa-Marie was "a very vulnerable little girl" who was placed into the care of a man who went on to kill her. 


During Alexa-Marie’s last days, Carl Wheatley deliberately misled professionals and resisted the efforts of those who were concerned for his daughter’s safety and tried to contact her.


All parties involved have cooperated fully with the Serious Case Review process and the Safeguarding Children Board has robust systems in place to monitor the implementation of the report’s recommendations.


– Phil Picton, Hertfordshire Safeguarding Children Board


Last updated Wed 11 May 2016

Dad living in transitional home for male addicts that helps him get custody of medically fragile 2-year-old daughter; girl dies within two months, but dad deemed not responsible (San Jose, California)

This has fathers rights crap all over it. For years, the federal government has funded FR groups meant to "reunite" dangerous criminals, addicts, and mentally ill fathers with their children and force those kids into the father's custody. There is funding to do this. No equivalent funding for mothers.

So we yank a medically fragile 2-year-old girl out of foster care for what? To give her to a formerly jailed, addicted father living in an all-male transitional housing situation devoted to getting these creeps access to little kids. No one with any background (or interest) in taking care of disabled children. Just getting ownership. Dead in two months. Who didn't see that coming.

Mother is (allegedly) "mentally impaired" but there are no details--the reporter doesn't bother to follow-up on the hearsay testimony. Maybe she wasn't mother of the year material, but you got to wonder whether she would have managed to kill off a todder within two months WITH NO CONSEQUENCES. He even keeps his name out of the media. Slick move!

http://www.contracostatimes.com/breaking-news/ci_29643334/santa-clara-county-foster-child-dies-after-being

South Bay foster child dies after being sent to live with dad in home for recovering addicts

By Karen de Sá
Posted: 03/16/2016 07:00:22 AM PDT | Updated: about 7 hours ago

SAN JOSE -- Santa Clara County officials are reviewing why a medically fragile 2-year-old girl was sent home to live with her father in a transitional home for recovering drug addicts, about two months before she was found dead.

It still isn't clear what caused the Feb. 28 death of Kelly Nguyen -- who required specialized care for a chromosomal birth defect known as DiGeorge syndrome. But the unusual placement -- and the rare death of a Santa Clara County foster child -- is raising troubling questions.

Kelly's death is not being investigated as a homicide. Her father is described by the girl's previous foster parents as loving and well-intentioned, but they had been told he was recently released from jail and struggling with drug problems when social workers placed Kelly in his care. Her mother had already been ruled out as a caregiver.

The couple had two older, healthy boys also in foster care, but authorities chose to give the father a second chance at parenting with Kelly, who could not speak and suffered from a genetic syndrome causing lifelong disability and developmental delays.

"It raises red flags," said Lisa Traxler, president of the Kinship, Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Santa Clara County, a foster parents assistance program. "It's a home with men coming out of jail or in recovery and they're not better yet -- they're there for a reason, so having a nonverbal, medically fragile child in his care at age 2 -- if something happened, she can't tell anybody."

For now, all eyes are on the Santa Clara County coroner's office, which has completed an autopsy but is conducting further tests in the coming weeks to determine how the girl died.

"We grieve for her passing at much too young of an age," said Stanley Lee, social services program manager for the Department of Family and Children's Services. "But we don't know why she passed away."

Meanwhile, the county is exploring what might have gone wrong in Kelly's case: County Executive Jeff Smith said Tuesday that in light of the girl's death, the Department of Family and Children's Services "is reviewing the decisions related to her placement." Foster care placements must be approved by a judicial officer in the juvenile dependency court, after attorneys representing each parent, the child and the social worker have argued their positions. Traxler and other foster parents familiar with the case said they support reunification with birth families whenever possible. But this case was different.

"Had she been my foster child, I would have asked for a meeting," said Traxler, who has cared for 68 foster children over 21 years. "I would have spoken with the child's attorney, I would have stepped in to be a voice for this little child because she doesn't have a voice -- I would have said: 'What's the hurry? Let's let dad get a little further in his recovery.' "

Most parents working through dependency courts to regain custody of children they've been accused of abusing or neglecting suffer from addiction, homelessness or mental illness. Often, they are placed in transitional housing units while they work their way through court-ordered recovery and parenting programs.

At times, children are placed with mothers in transitional housing. But it is more unusual for fathers to reunite in those settings, Lee and other system insiders confirmed.

"The department does the best they can and they don't intentionally set out for anyone to be harmed, but I think sometimes mistakes are made as in any life situation," Traxler said. "From what it looks like from where I'm sitting, maybe it was a mistake."

Kelly's father -- who is not being named because he is not suspected of wrongdoing in her death and could not be reached Tuesday -- was referred to a six-bed, two-story home in South San Jose that serves fathers going through the local Dependency Wellness Court. The specialty foster care court serves parents in recovery who are actively engaged in regaining custody of their children.

"It doesn't matter whether it's a mother or a father, as long as a parent can safely protect and care for a child," Lee said. And if that parent is deemed worthy while "transitioning to more long-term housing," he added, "the law would require us to consider that as a possibility."

But the placement continues to trouble those mourning Kelly's death, including foster parents who attended services March 10 at the Oak Hill Memorial Park for the affectionate little girl with short-cut bangs and boundless enthusiasm. Her tiny body lay in a small casket in a lacy white dress.

"She was literally a ray of sunshine; she was infectious," said one of her several former foster mothers, Shellie Nichol. "Everywhere she went, she would walk around and hug everyone. Within hours, you'd fall in love with her because she was just the sweetest thing on the planet."

Kelly arrived at Nichol's San Jose foster home last June, completely nonverbal and with a clear need for ongoing medical attention and physical therapy, Nichol said. During the six months she cared for Kelly, who she affectionately called "Kiki," Nichol said she kept a video monitor trained on her all night. That's because the small girl would often choke on her mucus, and frequently vomited after crying and overeating, she said.

Nichol was told when she first received Kelly that her mother was mentally impaired and her father was in jail. But by July, he was out and visiting his daughter diligently, she said. Nichol and others familiar with the case said they believed the parents loved the girl but were unable to care for her.

Yet, based on a social worker's recommendation, Kelly was moved from Nichol's home to another in a succession of foster homes, and then reunified with her father.

Within two months, San Jose police received a 1:15 a.m. call from her father's temporary home stating that the toddler was unresponsive. She was pronounced dead at the hospital.

Although homicide detectives were initially called to the home -- following protocol for an unexpected child death -- there has been no arrest in the case. "We are not investigating it as a homicide at this point," San Jose police spokesman Officer Albert Morales said.

Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors President Dave Cortese, who leads a committee overseeing foster care, said Tuesday he was not familiar with the details of Kelly's death. But he noted the loss.

"The worst possible tragedy is the loss of a child -- in any circumstances -- and a foster child is our child," Cortese said. "Fundamentally it's our responsibility to ensure the safety of every child that's in our system. This is a member of our extended family and we need to feel the emotional pain and look at what we could have done differently."

Dad on trial for child abuse death of infant son (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)

Dad is identified as DAVID A. ALLEN SR.

http://www.startribune.com/jury-deliberating-wisconsin-case-alleging-shaken-baby-death/331889411/

Jury deliberating in trial of Milwaukee man accused in 2013 death of infant son
Associated Press October 10, 2015 — 5:30pm

MILWAUKEE — Jury deliberations are expected to resume Monday in the trial of a Milwaukee man accused of physical abuse that allegedly led to the 2013 death of his infant son.

Jurors began deliberating the case of David A. Allen Sr. shortly before 3 p.m. Friday but did not reach a verdict, the Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/1jhMHsX ) reported.

Allen, 34, and the boy's mother, took their son to a West Allis hospital on Oct. 6, 2012, after a day when he wasn't eating normally and seemed lethargic. After giving a series of changing explanations of what might have injured the boy, Allen admitted he squeezed the baby too hard once, and another time shook the boy when he wouldn't stop clawing at his face.

Junior was put in foster care, where his condition deteriorated until he died in April 2013. Prosecutors then charged Allen, already facing child abuse counts, with reckless homicide.

The two-week trial has highlighted uncertainty about whether "shaken baby syndrome" is always the only explanation for certain brain injuries in children.

Defense experts who questioned both the medical basis for concluding the infant died of child abuse and the validity of Allen's confession to shaking the child earned more than $40,000 for their efforts to create "a courtroom controversy," a prosecutor told a jury Friday.

Assistant District Attorney Matthew Torbenson called the experts "frequent fliers" who came from four states and England to "collect a paycheck" while trying to raise doubt that Allen's actions led to the death of his son.

Torbenson said there was no doubt that child abuse led to the boy's death. He cited diagnoses from local pediatric experts who treated David Allen Jr. at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. He said those were corroborated by Allen's admissions about squeezing, shaking and dropping his son in the fall of 2012, just months after the boy, who was born two months prematurely, was released from intensive care.

In addition to the brain injuries, the boy had 12 broken ribs.

In the defense closing argument, attorney Anthony Cotton reminded jurors of his experts' credentials, and said they testified because there is a contentious debate in the medical community about attributing certain injuries to child abuse without more evidence than particular brain conditions.

"Your job isn't to reconcile that debate," Cotton told the jury.

Cotton summarized defense experts' findings that conditions resulting from the boy's premature birth could have caused silent seizures, resulting in bleeding near his brain, and that his ribs were so weak they could have been broken by normal handling.

The defense attorney reminded jurors there were no bruises, skull fractures or evidence that the child screamed or reacted as would be expected around the time his father later said he had squeezed the boy too hard.

Custodial dad, step on trial for severe abuse of 11-year-old son (Gold Hill, Oregon)

Another one of those cases where the mother's existence is neatly written out of the story.

How did abuser dad LAWRENCE MILLARD get custody? And what happened to the mother? Is she deceased? If so, do we know for a fact that it's from natural causes? Has she "disappeared"? If so, do we know the circumstances? Is she alive, but beaten out by this sadistic torture freak in family court? What?

http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20150825/NEWS/150829734

Gold Hill couple on trial for child abuse
Prosecution: Boy burned, tied up
A Gold Hill couple are on trial facing accusations they severely abused their 11-year-old son.

By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 25, 2015 at 5:54 PM

Nurse practitioner Diane Kutzke remembers her first impressions of an 11-year-old boy who came to her for treatment of his burned hands.

"He was a very polite, sweet little boy. He was thin — emaciated almost — with horrific burns," Kutzke said in a videotaped deposition, adding that unlike most children, he waited patiently while at the clinic, reading a Harry Potter book.

Kutzke said his swollen, reddish-purple hands had so much tissue damage she couldn't tell whether the burns were recent.

The Jackson County District Attorney's Office alleges the boy's stepmother, Angela Marie Millard of Gold Hill, said she would show the boy what hell felt like, then held his hands under scalding hot running water sometime around Thanksgiving 2014.

He didn't receive medical care for his burned, infected hands until early February, when his grandmother took him to a clinic in Washington state, prosecutors allege.

Angela Millard, 35, and her husband, Lawrence Millard, 38, the boy's biological father, are on trial this week in Jackson County Circuit Court facing a host of assault and criminal mistreatment charges. The trial is scheduled to continue through Thursday.

During the February health clinic visit, Kutzke said she also observed the boy had a broken tooth, a swollen foot, bruised legs and an injury to his face.

Fearing that his parents were traveling from Oregon and would pick him up at the Washington clinic, Kutzke called 911.

"I called 911 because it was clear to me he had been abused," she said in the deposition, which was played Monday during the trial. "I thought he was in imminent danger."

The Millards were arrested in February and lodged in the Jackson County Jail, where they remain on $100,000 bail each.

After interviewing the boy and conducting a search of the family's one-bedroom apartment, investigators said they found a blue rope the Millards allegedly had used to tie up the boy when Lawrence Millard went to work and Angela Millard — who was pregnant at the time — ran errands and went to her own doctor appointments.

The boy was allegedly left tied up so long he urinated and defecated on himself. Angry that his clothing then had to be taken to a laundromat for washing, the Millards allegedly responded by diapering the boy and then leaving him tied up, prosecutors said.

Testing revealed the boy's DNA on the rope, plus the DNA of both parents, according to court testimony.

Diaper packaging and a diaper — sized to fit a child between 38 and 65 pounds — were also found in the home, investigators said.

Jackson County sheriff's Detective Steve Bohn, who was part of the team that executed a search warrant on the Millards' home, said investigators found a broken tooth in the bathroom. A dentist later was able to affix the broken-off tooth to a tooth root in the boy's mouth, he said.

Prosecutors allege Angela Millard hit the boy so hard with a hairbrush she broke out the tooth. Lawrence Millard is accused of injuring the boy's legs by beating him with a table leg.

The boy is now being cared for by a foster family, along with his toddler sister and a baby sister who was born a few months ago, said Jackson County Deputy District Attorney Virginia Greer.

In a videotaped interview between the boy and Bohn that was played in court, the boy said he is glad he and his toddler sister were taken away from the Millards.

"She would probably die if my dad beat her like he did me. She's only 2," the boy said.

Prosecutors allege the Millards did not get medical attention for the boy, who is now 12, because they feared the alleged abuse would be discovered. They allegedly did not allow the boy to go to school after he was burned. School records show he stopped attending school.

The boy said his stepmother bandaged his hands, but did not take him to a doctor.

Sheriff's Detective Sgt. Colin Fagan, an expert in vulnerable victim and high-tech crime investigations, said a search of Lawrence Millard's laptop showed deleted content of the boy clad only in underwear with bandaged hands. The image was preserved on the Cloud, an Internet-based data storage system. #The photo was taken on Dec. 10, 2014, long before the boy's February visit to the Washington state clinic with his grandmother, Fagan testified.

Fagan said laptop and cellphone searches show someone in the household entered search terms for "What happens when CPS (Child Protective Services) is called on you," "When they come after you" and "CPS advice for parents."

Prosecutors said the parents made the boy write extensively as a punishment.

Bohn said investigators found numerous writings made by the boy as he referenced biblical scriptures and said he was trying to obey his parents so he would be allowed to go back to school. The writings were entered as evidence over the objections of the Millards' court-appointed defense attorneys, who said the submissions would be too prejudicial.

The defense attorneys said they would acknowledge some facts in the case are true, but that the prosecution's case is deficient because some facts are still in dispute.

As one punishment, Bohn said the boy had written, "I will listen to and love my family."

Bohn testified the boy wrote the sentence over and over again — 1,136 times.

Dad charged with 2nd-degree murder for beating death of 7-day-old son (Tacoma, Washington)

Dad is identified as JOSHUA SULLIVAN JR.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2015/06/08/3830256_prosecutors-charge-dad-in-death.html?rh=1

Prosecutors charge father in death of Tacoma toddler

By Stacia Glenn Staff writer June 8, 2015

A father imprisoned for beating his son was charged with second-degree murder Friday because the boy died more than a year after he was injured.

Joshua Sullivan Jr. was seven days old in 2013 when he was brought to the hospital with severe head trauma and internal bleeding.

Employees at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital called Tacoma police May 23, 2013, to report possible child abuse.

Doctors were concerned about bruising on the newborn’s mouth, cheekbone, back and left inner ear. He also was bleeding from his lip and umbilical cord, records show.

His parents denied knowing what happened to the boy. Officers noted the father, Joshua Sullivan, showed no emotion. Sullivan “eventually admitted that he did get frustrated with the baby,” according to court documents.

Child Protective Services took Joshua and the mother’s two other children and placed them with foster families.

In February 2014, Sullivan pleaded guilty to first-degree child assault and was sentenced to 16 years and six months in prison.

Seven months later, Joshua died. A medical examiner ruled the toddler’s death a homicide caused by blunt force trauma to the head months earlier.

“The injuries were determined to be the result of apparent shaking,” according to charging papers.

Pneumonia also contributed to his death.

Pierce County prosecutors have charged Sullivan, now 20, with second-degree murder in the case and requested he be transferred from a corrections center to face the new charge.

An arraignment date has not been set.

Dad with "anger problem" confesses to abusing 3-month-old son; baby has broken arms, legs, and shoulder (Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania)

Dad is identified as JUSTIN CRAIG.

http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/local/only-11-father-confesses-abuse-infant-son/nmZqF/

Updated: 5:41 p.m. Wednesday, June 10, 2015 | Posted: 5:41 p.m. Wednesday, June 10, 2015

ONLY ON 11: Father confesses to abuse of infant son

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — A Butler County man accused of abusing his infant son confessed to the crimes on Wednesday.

“Yes I did,” Justin Craig said when Channel 11’s Amy Marcinkiewicz asked him if he hurt his son. “It was a stupid thing, I admit, but it changed me.”

Along with the confession, Craig told Marcinkiewicz that he has a problem with his anger and he took it out on his 3-month-old son.

According to court documents, the infant suffered broken arms, legs and a shoulder at the hands of his father.

Doctors said the injuries were in various stages of healing, which makes police believe the abuse started right after the child was born and continues until his mother and father brought him to the hospital last week.

According to the criminal complaint, the child’s mother and Craig’s girlfriend told police she saw the abuse, but was afraid of Craig. She told troopers she observed Craig choking the baby.

According to the child’s mother, she tried to not allow Craig to be alone with the baby. #“It made me realize that I’m a weak and pathetic person,” Craig said.

While in court, Craig continually said under his breath, “I deserve a second chance, I’m sorry.”

The baby is out of the hospital and with a foster family doing well.

Big surprise...Judge rules in favor of DHS in wrongful-death lawsuit; they gave abusive, drug-dealing dad custody--one month later, he beat to death 5-year-old daughter (Chandler, Oklahoma)

Once again, the notoriously father friendly CPS gives an abusive father custody--and then the predictable happens. He beats the child to death less than a month later. And then, what do you know. A judge won't hold these bozos responsible for their actions. Who didn't see that coming....

The killer custodial dad is SEAN DEVON BROOKS. He's on the Killer Dads and Custody list for Oklahoma.

http://examiner-enterprise.com/news/state/judge-rules-favor-oklahoma-department-human-services-serenity-deal-wrongful-death-lawsuit

Posted June 1, 2015 - 12:07pm

Judge rules in favor of Oklahoma Department of Human Services in Serenity Deal wrongful-death lawsuit

By Nolan Clay The Oklahoman (TNS)

A judge has found in favor of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services in a wrongful-death lawsuit, ruling the agency is not liable for the murder of Serenity Deal in 2011.

Serenity’s maternal grandparents, Charles and Annette Deal, of Chandler, appealed the decision Wednesday to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

Serenity is the 5-year-old girl whose murder by her father in June 2011 led to widespread public outrage toward DHS. The longtime DHS director, Howard Hendrick, stepped down in 2012 after public confidence in his leadership fell because of child deaths.

Her father, Sean Devon Brooks, beat her to death in June 2011, less than a month after she began living with him full time at his Oklahoma City apartment at the recommendation of DHS workers.

She had been in a foster home.

Two workers were charged

DHS fired two Pottawatomie County child welfare workers over her death. The two had pushed for the girl to be placed with her father even though she had been injured twice during overnight visits with him in January 2011.

The two workers, Jennifer Shawn and Randy J. Lack, later were charged with suppressing evidence from Serenity’s judge. Both pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor offense and were put on probation. Serenity’s grandparents and her imprisoned mother, Samantha Deal, sued DHS and the two fired workers in 2013 in Pottawatomie County District Court. A district judge from Payne County took over the case after Pottawatomie County judges removed themselves from presiding over the lawsuit.

At a hearing May 7 in Stillwater, Judge Phillip Corley threw out all the claims against DHS “as a matter of law.” The judge at the same hearing did find against Shawn and Lack. How much in damages they will be ordered to pay will be determined later.

DHS attorneys raised a series of legal arguments against the claims. Most notably, they argued DHS cannot be held “vicariously liable” for the actions of employees that were “in direct violation of agency policy and were ultimately found to include criminal conduct.”

The grandparents’ attorneys are asking the Supreme Court to reverse the judgment in favor of DHS “because it is contrary to law.” They have raised seven issues where the judge may have erred.

Serenity’s father, Brooks, 35, is serving a life sentence in prison for first-degree murder. The former motel clerk admitted in his guilty plea in 2011 that he beat his daughter on the head.

DHS became involved in Serenity’s care after her mother was accused in 2009 of molesting a boy. The mother eventually went to prison in 2011. She is still in prison.

Brooks had not known he was Serenity’s father until she was 3.

In termination papers, DHS said its two workers failed to fully check the father’s background, which included times when he had been violent.

Records showed DHS never contacted the mother of Brooks’ three other children until after Serenity died. That woman, Brooks’ ex-girlfriend, has said she would have warned DHS workers that she considered Brooks too violent to be around their children. She also has claimed he “sold drugs the entire six years she was with him,” records show.

Case against workers

In the criminal cases, the two workers were accused of suppressing evidence from the judge that included a hospital photo of Serenity taken after one of the visits with her father in January 2011. The photo showed her with a swollen and bruised face and two black eyes.

Both Serenity and her father said he dropped her accidentally. DHS workers accepted that explanation.

Pottawatomie County District Attorney Richard Smothermon said in 2012 that the judge never would have placed Serenity with her father if the judge had seen that evidence.

“There is no way that this child fell out of a car seat. And anybody, without any bit of education, can tell that his story was just not true. This child was beaten. They never provided that to the court,” Smothermon said in 2012.

Another DHS child welfare worker — who had had concerns about the father and who had urged caution — committed suicide a month after her death.

Custodial dad convicted of murder in brutal beating death of 4-year-old daughter; had gained custody but 3 months before (United Kingdom)

The killer custodial dad is identified as CARL WHEATLEY.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/carl-wheatley-father-who-beat-5692651

Carl Wheatley: Father who beat daughter, 4, to death gave her 66 injuries in horrific campaign of abuse
17:58, 13 May 2015
By Tessa Watkins, Sam Webb

Carl Wheatley, aged 31, hit the little girl repeatedly in the weeks running up to her death, causing 66 injuries and knocking out two teeth

A father beat his four-year-old daughter to death in a fit of rage was today found guilty of murder. Carl Wheatley, 31, caused 66 injuries to Alex Marie and knocked out two of her teeth over a series of savage attacks in the weeks running up to her death.

When he finally called emergency services, they discovered the lifeless body of Alexa-Marie Quinn and he admitted he had lost his temper.

The killer had been granted custody of his daughter just three months before her death on March 12 last year, after convincing social workers he could look after her. She had previously been living with foster parents.

During the trial, the court heard young Alexa-Marie had probably been dead for several hours before paramedics arrived at their home in Hatfield, Hertfordshire.

Her father had searched online for how to treat bruising and repair teeth.

A post-mortem examination revealed she had died from extreme blunt force trauma and the jury heard Wheatley told emergency services: "I got a bit frustrated and I harmed the poor child."

The jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict today at St Albans Crown Court. Wheatley will be sentenced at the same court on Friday.

Detective Chief Inspector Jerome Kent from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit led the investigation and said: "Alexa-Marie suffered horrific injuries at the hands of her father, a man who should have been protecting her.

"Not only did he cause her such significant injury prior to her death, he failed to seek any help for her, leaving her to suffer.

"Alexa-Marie, who has been described as a happy child prior to living with her father, died because he lost his temper and took his frustrations out on her.

"At the age of four she was not able to protect herself from this violent man, who then went out of his way to ensure no one else could protect or help her either.

"This is an extremely tragic case. No child should ever suffer in this way and our thoughts are with Alexa-Marie's family and those who cared for her.

"I would like to thank them for their support during this extremely difficult time. I would also like to thank the officers and other professionals who have worked on this case; they have shown great professionalism in the face of such appalling events.

Adrian Foster, Chief Crown Prosecutor for Thames and Chiltern Crown Prosecution Service said: "This was a terrible crime, which led to the untimely death of four-year-old Alexa-Marie Quinn at her home in Hatfield, Hertfordshire."

Wheatley admitted causing Alexa-Marie's death by pleading guilty to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, but not murder.

However, the prosecution case was that her death was not caused by a sudden moment of frustration and a single severe blow, but a sustained period of hard hitting which intended to cause her really serious harm.

"This was an extremely difficult and complex case to prosecute. Without any eye witnesses, we needed lengthy and highly technical evidence from top medical experts to help provide an explanation as to why this little girl died.

"This evidence, along with expert evidence on Wheatley's mental state, enabled the prosecution to piece together what had happened and exclude any possible innocent explanation for her death.

"We have worked closely with the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit since this investigation was launched and as a result of the hard work and diligence of the prosecution team, a just outcome has been achieved for Alexa-Marie.

"We hope that the conviction will in some way help her extended family come to terms with this tragic event.

"The mandatory sentence is life imprisonment and the judge will set a minimum term. No matter how long he remains in prison we acknowledge that nothing can make up for the loss of Alexa.

"Our thoughts are very much with her extended family at this time."

Dad gains custody of 4-year-old daughter so he could claim more benefits, kills her two months later (United Kingdom)

The reason custodial dad CARL WHEATLEY was able to murder his 4-year-old daughter: Fathers rights politics. In reality, he was nothing but an anonymous sperm donor who apparently didn't even know the mother was pregnant much less provide for her or the child in any way. He seemingly had no relationship with this girl. But because sperm trumps the needs of a child for safety and security, Daddy got his way along with all the financial benefits he craved. Didn't matter one whit that this girl had already be been wrested from her mum (for reason that are not explained, but very likely minor--at least compared to Daddy's crimes). She was then wrested from the next family she knew, the foster parents. None of her needs or wishes mattered. Only Daddy's ego, laziness, entitlement, and need for control mattered. Notice that he also wanted possession of a little boy he had apparently never had anything to with either. That's the FR movement, folks. Enabling lazy dole-seeking child abusers and killers.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/dad-killed-four-year-old-daughter-after-5598046?ICID=FB_mirror_main

Dad 'killed four-year-old daughter after winning custody of her to claim more benefits'
17:23, 28 April 2015

By Catherine Varney

Carl Wheatley caused several of his daughter's teeth to fall out and made internet searches for 'how to reduce swelling' and 'what glue can I use to put teeth back in', the court heard

A dad who won custody of his four year-old daughter so he could claim more benefits beat her to death just two months later, a court heard.

Carl Wheatley admits killing young Alexa-Marie Quinn in March last year - just two months after the local authority granted him custody from foster parents - but denies it was murder.

The "frustrated" supermarket worker lost his temper and delivered a "sustained period of hard beating" to the youngester, his trial heard.

Wheatley, 30, claims to have called 999 two minutes after Alexa-Marie stopped breathing, but the prosecution say she could have been dead for hours.

He made several internet searches for 'how to reduce swelling' and 'what glue can I use to put teeth back in'.

Prosecutor Christopher Donnellan QC said Wheatley fought for custody of Alexa-Marie and his three year-old son so he could claim more benefits.

He said: "He was of the view that having one or both children with him would enhance his benefits and could result in better accommodation."

The court heard Wheatley called emergency services just after 9am on March 12, 2014 after a "period of sustained beating."

He claimed Alexa-Marie had stopped breathing two minutes beforehand but the CPS claimed he waited "some time" before calling emergency services.

When he eventually made the call he said she was drowning because he believed she had fluid on her lungs.

Wheatley, who has ADHD, cried in the dock as the first 999 call he made to emergency services was played in court.

He told the operator: "She's drowned. She's drowned in fluid, she might have internal fluid on her lungs. She needs an ambulance right away.

"I've had her for a few months, I got a bit frustrated with her and I harmed the poor child.

"I'm being honest with you I need to think about my child."

The prosecution said despite Wheatley knowing he had killed his daughter, he phoned emergency services and carried out a "charade" and performed CPR on the child.

Mr Donnellan said: "He lost his temper with her, she was just four-and-a-half years old.

"This wasn't just a single blow, this was a sustained period of hard beating of her."

A pathologist said Alexa-Marie's injuries were caused by "blunt force trauma to the skin".

The court heard in the early hours of the morning that Alexa-Marie died Wheatley made internet searches for 'what effects can internal bleeding cause' and 'can lots of bruising get infected'.

Mr Donnellan added: "In the weeks before she died when he hit her he hit her hard and he hit her more and more.

"He went to considerable lengths to avoid Alexa-Marie being seen by anyone.

"He knew at the time what he was doing and that he was causing her harm. Harm that was visible to the paramedics who witnessed the level of bruising to her lower body.

"That is why we say the charge in this case is murder."

When Alexa-Marie was due to go back to nursery school after half-term in February, Wheatley lied and told staff he was in Leeds and his car had broken down.

Alexa-Marie had been living with Wheatley in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, since January 2014 when he won a long battle with Bedford Borough Council.

She had been in the care of foster parents after being taken from her mother Victoria Quinn several years earlier.

At the time it was unclear who her father was but in 2012 a paternity test proved Wheatley to be the father and he was granted supervised access to the little girl. After a number of visits and meetings social services granted him full custody and the case was then passed to Hertfordshire County Council.

Mr Donnellan told the jury: "You will hear from a number of agencies over why Mr Wheatley was given custody of Alexa in the first place and why there wasn't more supervision.

"It will be suggested that this could have prevented Alexa's death. But the defendant made his own choices. He chose to not contact anyone for help."

Wheatley was also fighting for custody for another three year-old son, who cannot be named for legal reasons, who he had with another woman.

Wheatley denies murder but admits manslaughter by reasons of diminished responsibility.

The trial continues.

Custodial dad, step arrested for beating 15-year-old son, shackling him to bed for five months (Pooler, Georgia)

The custodial dad is identified as DANIEL KENDZIERSKI. No explanation as to what happened to this boy's mother. If Dad was capable of treating the son this way, he was more than capable of treating the mother in a similar fashion. This should raise red flags as to what happened to her. Is she deceased? If so, from natural causes? Is she "missing"? If so, why? Or did this father some how manage to strip her of custody? Lots of unanswered questions. Kids are now in foster care.

http://www.foxcarolina.com/story/27872337/parents-arrested-after-teen-found-shackled-to-bed

Parents arrested after teen reports being shackled to bed

Posted: Jan 16, 2015 6:04 PM EST Updated: Jan 17, 2015 4:58 AM EST

By Conny Cooper

POOLER, GA (WTOC) - Police say a Pooler teen was shackled to a metal bed for five months, with his little brother forced to act as jailer.

Now, his father and step-mother are behind bars. Daniel Kendzierski, 37, is the teen's father. He is charged with false imprisonment and child cruelty. His stepmother, 30-year-old Christine Kendzierski, is charged with child cruelty.

Police were called Thursday night to the family's home on South Rogers Street after the 15-year-old boy confided to a classmate that he had been beaten the night before, for escaping his shackles. According to a police report, officers found the mobile home in disarray – with trash, boxes and clothes scattered everywhere – and six children living inside.

Police say the 15-year-old showed him his metal frame bunk bed, with no mattress on the top and a bare, dingy, heavily stained one on bottom. A set of metal shackles was attached to the bed. Police found bruises on the boy's wrists, his ankles, his ribs, his shoulders and stomach. He told officers he usually gets one meal a day, sometimes two – that he has to eat in the bathroom or the bedroom, sometimes, but rarely, with the rest of the family.

The 15-year-old, his father, his stepmother, and his brother said the boy was unshackled to go to the bathroom, to shower and to go to school.

According to this police report, Christine and Daniel Kendziersk did not think they were doing anything wrong and said they were just disciplining the boy. Christine Kendzierski told officers she was only doing what had been done to her as a child, according to the report, then asked officers, “So what if I leave him, leave his kids and take man and leave. Will that help me out?”

According to the police report, Daniel Kendzierski gave his son what he called, "iron chair beatings," saying the boy would fall to the floor and cover himself as he was being beaten. His little brother was forced to lock and unlock the shackles. The teen asked police not to get his brother in trouble, and said he was only doing what he had been told to do by his parents.

Charles Reid lives just steps away from the home where this all happened, and said there was never any indication that anything was wrong."I haven't noticed any issues. They walk around out here. They have gone to school. They walk the dog. They play back here; have a swing set right out the back door. So, I have not noticed anything," Reid said.

The six children who lived at the home have been placed in foster care.

There is no word yet on whether the Kendzierskis have posted bond, but no one answered when a WTOC crew knocked on the door Friday evening.

Dad pleads guilty to aggravated battery of 3-month-old son; sentenced to 3 1/2 years of prison (Sedgwick County, Kansas)

So Mom lost custody of both kids--even though she is not facing any criminal charges. Basically, her only "crime" is that she had to work for a living and couldn't do full-time caretaking herself.

I wonder if UNNAMED DAD even had a job.

http://www.kansas.com/news/special-reports/in-need-of-care/article5741667.html

Father sentenced in aggravated battery of baby boy

By Deb Gruver - The Wichita Eagle 01/09/2015 6:31 PM | Updated: 01/09/2015 6:31 PM

A Sedgwick County District Court judge sentenced a father who pleaded guilty to aggravated battery of his infant son to 3 1/2 years of prison or probation Friday.

Judge Doug Roth sentenced the 30-year-old man. Where he will spend the 42-month sentence has not yet been determined. The father was accused of causing traumatic head injuries to the baby, who was then 3 months old.

The father waived his rights to a hearing in a separate case that will determine if the baby and an older child should remain in the home.

The Eagle has been covering the case as part of its “In Need of Care” series. It is not naming the children or the parents because doing so could identify the children.

A petition filed on behalf of children said doctors admitted the baby, now almost 5 months old, to Wesley Medical Center on Oct. 2 with “abusive head trauma.” The baby suffered subdural and subarachnoid hemorrhages, the petition said. The latter is bleeding between the brain and the thin tissues that cover the brain.

A Wichita Police Department detective from the Exploited and Missing Child Unit and a social work specialist from the Kansas Department for Children and Families interviewed the father Oct. 3. Three days later, they put the baby and a 3-year-old boy in protective custody.

The father said that when the baby was born, there was fluid on his brain and his head was bigger than normal, according to the petition.

The father said that he fed the baby about 3 or 4 a.m. Oct. 1 and the baby vomited. The baby’s mother tried to feed him again between 7 and 8 a.m., and the boy again threw up. The father said they called a doctor who advised taking the baby to Wesley for a CT scan.

Wesley’s “CARE” – Child at Risk Evaluation – team met to discuss the baby’s care. They said there was evidence of old and new traumatic head injuries.

The mother reported that she went to work the day before the baby became sick and left him with her mother. She said the baby’s father picked him up and cared for him until she came home about 10 p.m.

The mother also said that the baby had been on the couch with a blanket under him when the 3-year-old pulled the blanket, causing the baby to fall onto the carpeted floor. That happened in late September, she said, according to the petition.

The mother will next be in court Jan. 30 in the child-in-need-of-care case. She does not face any criminal charges.

Dad who repeatedly raped daughter for 2 years to serve 13 years in jail (Brisbane, Australia)

Why wasn't UNNAMED DAD locked up after his last offense? These guys never change. This little girl was put at deliberate risk.

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/man-who-repeatedly-raped-young-daughter-to-serve-13-years-in-jail/story-fnn8dlfs-1227151605404

Man who repeatedly raped young daughter to serve 13 years in jail 

Brooke Baskin
  The Courier-Mail
  December 10, 2014 4:12PM

A BRISBANE father who had sex with his young daughter “every second day” for almost three years will spend 13 years behind bars.

The 39-year-old from Deception Bay, north of Brisbane, pleaded guilty in the Brisbane District Court to maintaining an unlawful sexual relationship with his biological daughter from shortly after her fourth birthday in October, 2011 until she turned six in January.

He also pleaded guilty to raping her twice in his bedroom on January 23 this year.

Judge Michael Burnett jailed the man for 13 years, adding the girl would suffer the emotional trauma of her father’s abuse for her whole life.

“The conduct is grossly criminal. It is offensive. It is, frankly, in regard to the relationship between yourself and your daughter, simply against the order of decent human behaviour,” he said.

Judge Burnett said the little girl, now aged seven, lived with a foster family but continued to wake through the night in a sweat, cry out or whimper and experienced nightmares.

The father, who sat alone in the prisoner’s dock wearing an oversized blue polo shirt and with his head bowed down at the floor, sobbed throughout the sentence, dabbed at his eyes and blew his nose.

At one point he stood and cried out: “I just want to say sorry to my daughter.”

The court was told the father initially denied having sex with his daughter until after his arrest when he wrote a letter from jail to the Department of Child Safety apologising for his treatment of the girl and admitting to his crime.

The man was jailed for two years, suspended after nine-months, after being convicted of indecently dealing with his 15-year-old step-daughter in the Maryborough District Court in 1998.

Crown prosecutor Dejana Kovac said the child told her mother that she had been sexually abused in January this year.

The father, who separated from the woman months earlier following a violent relationship, had three children with her.

Ms Kovac said the girl’s parents fought about the child’s claim of sexual abuse and it became so heated the woman locked herself in the bathroom and called police.

She said the father bundled all three children into his car and drove them to his mother’s house on the Darling Downs.

Ms Kovac said the man agreed to the daughter taking part in a welfare check with police and he returned with the children to Brisbane on January 23.

Police arrived at the home in Deception Bay on January 25 to interview the little girl in regards to the sexual abuse claim she made against her father.

Ms Kovac said the child told police her father raped her twice in his bedroom on the day they returned home, two days earlier.

She told police her father showered with her afterwards.

The girl told police her father had sex with her regularly following her fourth birthday, probably “thousands” of times in total and took her into his bedroom “whenever he felt like it”.

She told police her father didn’t want her to get him in trouble because “he’ll get angry at me”.

The man was arrested by police but denied any sexual relationship with his daughter.

It wasn’t until he sent a letter to his daughter through the Department of Child Safety that he indicated his guilt.

Barrister Kim Bryson, for the father, said her client had a difficult and largely itinerant childhood where he experienced violence and abuse.

She said the offending against the man’s daughter took place following the death of his father and in the context of alcohol and drug abuse.

Ms Bryson said the man was previously prescribed anti-depressants and anti-psychotic medication but was not compliant with his medication at the time of the offending.

She said he wrote an apology to his children in which he demonstrated remorse, insight and empathy for his victim.

Judge Burnett took into account 316 days served in pre-sentence custody.

Custodial dad, step force teen son to sleep outside for a month for "smelling cake frosting" (Chandler, Arizona)

Dad is identified as BRIAN WAYNE ROMINE. The mother is reportedly deceased. How she died, and whether it was from natural causes, is not specified.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/chandler/article_476c4594-7f08-11e4-840b-3fa7dd9854c7.html

Chandler dad admits to forcing his son to sleep in backyard

Posted: Monday, December 8, 2014 11:39 am

By Jon Erickson, ABC15.com

A Chandler father admitted to forcing his teenage son to sleep in the backyard as a form of discipline, according to court records.

The 16-year-old male victim told police he had slept in the backyard for at least a month, and that he had to use the hose for drinking water and use the yard as his restroom at night.

Brian Wayne Romine and Shelly Anderson-Romine “treated their dog better than they treated [their son],” said the teen’s uncle, Tray Romine.

The teen left his North Meadows Street home after at least 30 days of the sleeping situation, and went to Tray’s home.

Tray, who said he was unable to get his brother to talk through the situation, called police.

Authorities charged the Romines (Shelly is the teen’s stepmother) with child abuse.

The teen triggered the backyard discipline by doing things like taking loose pocket change from his parents, and smelling cake frosting, according to the uncle and court records.

The suspects did not answer the door when ABC15 stopped by Saturday night.

The outdoor sleeping was done during June and July, records said; the teen was forced to sleep outside during monsoon rains and thunderstorms, according to Tray.

“It’s going to take my nephew a while… for him to pull out of this,” Tray said.

The teen’s mother died years ago, Tray added.

The teen is now staying with a foster parent, Tray said.

Video game-playing dad pleads guilty to aggravated assault against 6-month-old daughter (Augusta, Maine)

So this "frustrated" a-hole of a father gets just 7 years in prison for destroying this child's life. Sickening but all to typical.

Dad is identified as KEVIN PEASLEE.

http://www.wcvb.com/news/maine-father-who-shook-baby-gets-7-years-in-prison/29731670

Maine father who shook baby gets 7 years in prison

Girl expected to die prematurely
Published 9:07 PM EST Nov 14, 2014

AUGUSTA, Maine —A Maine man insisted he is not a violent person, as he was sentenced Friday to seven years in prison for shaking his 6-month-old daughter so forcefully it left her brain damaged, a quadriplegic and unable to see or hear.

The baby, now in foster care, must be fed through a tube and is expected to die prematurely.

Kevin Peaslee, 22, told the judge his daughter had been extra fussy that December day because she had received shots the previous day. He was home alone with her and playing a video game, according to court documents.

The Kennebec Journal reported that Peaslee told the judge he "was frustrated that day."

"It was a horrible mistake that I can't change no matter how much I wish I could," Peaslee said. "I'm not a violent person."

The case drew national attention because of a legal battle over the state's attempt to impose a do-not-resuscitate order over the mother's objection. Maine's supreme court dismissed the mother's appeal after the state agreed to abide by her wishes.

Peaslee pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault last month. Under an agreement, two other assault charges were dropped.

Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney said Peaslee must report Monday to begin serving his sentence. He will also have to serve three years' probation, she said.

She said she hopes the case will help other parents learn the damage they can do to their children when they act out of anger.

"I hope that it causes other parents, when they feel frustration ... to call for help or place your child in a safe place and leave the room until you cool off," she said.

Dad in court for beating of 2-month-old baby; threw infant to ground breaking several bones (Canandaigua, New York)

Notice that there is no mention of a mother in this home and that the baby is now in foster care. What happened to Mom? Given Dad's young age, I'm betting this was a custody/visitation situation. But why has Mom lost her rights if she's not charged with anything?

Dad is identified as MARK PERRIN.

http://www.13wham.com/news/features/top-stories/stories/father-court-alleged-child-abuse-16956.shtml

Father in court for alleged child abuse
Updated: Wednesday, October 22 2014, 06:20 PM EDT

Canandaigua - A Canandaigua father accused of beating his two-month old appeared city court today. 19-year old Mark Perrin is facing charges for tightly squeezing and throwing the baby on the ground. His actions resulted in the infant breaking several bones - including its leg, arm and several ribs.

Prosecutors want to raise Perrin's bail from $5,000 to $25,000.

"We'll need to review criminal records, talk with the physicians involved in the child's care because there are multiple injuries to the child. And we have to understand how they were caused and over what period of time," says Michael Tantillo, Ontario County District Attorney. "Once we have a clear understanding of that then we will look to see what the additional charges are. Right now he's charged with assault in the second degree. It's possible that's where it will stay. It's possible those charges could be raised. It all depends on the information that we derived from the investigation."

The baby is currently in foster care. Perrin is expected back in court on Friday for a bail hearing.

Dad with sole custody loses 11-year-old son to foster care after beating; why are authorities pushing for him to get custody back and not mom? (Tucson, Arizona)

Yet another one of those cases where you have to read between the lines and notice what is NOT said and what is NOT explained.

UNNAMED DAD had SOLE CUSTODY and was allowed to move out of state, away from the mother. Mothers are increasingly banned from moveaways, but the same restrictions apparently don't apply to dads.

The father is obviously abusive. He beat the boy hard enough to make him fall to the floor and then continued to beat him. The beating left the boy with welts and broken blood vessels.   

During the initial 911 call, the boy (obviously traumatized and stuttering) reported he wanted to live with Mom. It appears that he was pressured to later recant and say he wants to live with the abuser again.

So the authorities put the boy in foster care, where he is reputedly depressed and not doing well.

Why is the boy in foster care and not with mom? Notice that the explanation is short and vague to the extreme, that she was "not deemed a possible placement after the father’s arrest." Why not? Is she more abusive than Daddy? There are no claims that she is. I suspect nothing but politics here, given that no specifics are given that could document their deceit (or likely corruption).

Meanwhile, the abusive father is full of denial, trying to convince the child protection officials that photos of his son's back just show that it's merely "red." The officials aren't buying it.

But that has stopped Daddy from GETTING CUSTODY BACK. His elderly mother is supposed to be moving in to "help," but the boy's mother protested because the elderly mother couldn't possibly "effectively protect" the child. Of course she couldn't. It's total nonsense.

Frankly it is UTTER BULLS*** that this mother doesn't get custody back, but of course abusers are outstanding at smearing the protective parent, instigating trauma bonding with the victim, and forcing the victim to recant for fear of additional abuse. The boy was obviously threatened and punished for calling his mother after the beating and saying what he said.

And of course the authorities are all ready to play enablers to the abusive daddy.

Who says daddies are discriminated against?

And how much you want to bet he beat the mother too?

These questions are not only NOT RAISED but are buried under a ridiculous "philosophical" treatise about what child abuse is or isn't.

http://tucson.com/news/local/tucson-dad-calls-it-spanking-officials-say-abuse/article_40cdd03a-afb4-542b-907e-b56a3c1e906b.html

Tucson dad calls it spanking; authorities say abuse

22 hours ago • By Patty Machelor

A Tucson man used a folded belt to discipline his son — and now he is facing criminal charges and his child is in foster care.

Authorities say the 42-year-old father crossed the line from legal spanking into child abuse last February when he hit his 11-year-old son hard enough to leave welts.

The father says he merely gave his child a spanking that left red marks, and that no one who saw the boy afterwards deemed the injuries serious enough to need medical treatment. He hadn’t spanked his son for a year, he says, and is something he does rarely.

“This wasn’t abuse. But even if you considered it abuse, how would it rise to the level of a removal?” he asks. “Why would it go that far?”

His son was put into foster care in February and, after months of hearings and legal debate, remains there today. The man’s criminal case is no less complicated: He was indicted on felony child abuse charges once, but then the case was sent back and a second grand jury declined to indict. He now faces a misdemeanor charge of child abuse.

Officials with the Arizona Department of Child Safety declined to discuss the case or whether the agency has any specific protocols when it comes to spanking and corporal punishment.

The case highlights the ongoing debate over how far a parent should go when disciplining a child. Arizona law permits parents to hit their children but only in a “reasonable and appropriate” manner.

The controversy has grown even more intense since last month’s indictment of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. Peterson is facing felony child abuse charges after he used a switch from a tree to discipline his 4-year-old son.

Since 1986, the number of people who support spanking nationally is still high, but falling — from 84 percent to about 70 percent in 2012, reports the University of Chicago’s General Social Survey. Worldwide, 32 countries prohibit spanking.

School performance

A scrapbook shows some of the boy’s many accomplishments: honor student, budding pianist, natural athlete. But his father, whom the Star is not identifying to protect the child’s identity, says nine months in foster homes and group care have left his son depressed, disoriented and rapidly gaining weight.

Court records from the father’s criminal case show that while the boy was initially angry and wanted to live with his mother after his father hit him with the belt, he now wants to be with his father again.

The pair moved to Tucson from the East Coast in 2013 a few years after the father won sole custody. The boy sees his mother periodically, during vacations and summer breaks, but she was not deemed a possible placement after the father’s arrest. Attempts to reach the boy’s mother were unsuccessful.

In general, the father says he employs other means of discipline — such as loss of privileges and grounding. But he says last February’s punishment was harsher because of his son’s repeated lying about how he was doing in school. The father says that when he found his son had again lied and missed eight assignments, he decided to give him “eight straps.”

Afterwards, the father left to run some errands and received a call from Tucson police about an emergency call made by his son.

“He called his mom and complained and she coerced him to call 911,” the father says. “They arrested me on the spot.”

A Pima County grand jury indicted the father in March on felony child abuse charges. But the case went back to a second grand jury after a judge found the original panel didn’t receive enough information about how, under Arizona law, a parent, guardian or teacher can use physical force against a child as long as it’s “reasonably necessary and appropriate to maintain discipline.”

During the proceedings, a Tucson police detective testified that the boy said his father hit him so hard on the buttocks that he fell, and then continued to hit him with the belt when he was on the floor. The boy told police and investigators that he was frightened and that his father was angry, transcripts show.

Police records describe welts and the speckling of broken blood vessels on the boy’s skin. Dr. Dale Woolridge, who examined photographs of the boy’s injuries, told police that a large amount of force had caused the marks — force the doctor said “exceeds discipline.”

The father testified that he used a belt because he subscribes to a philosophy that parents should not use their hands to punish their children. He also testified that the boy tried to move away from him during the spanking, and that was the reason he was hit on his legs and back as well as his buttocks.

“I have never touched him with my hands in any type of, you know, aggressive way,” he told the second grand jury, records show. “So, as his father, someone who loves him more than anyone, I believed this was the best course of action, you know, given the seriousness of the lesson that he needed to learn.”

Afterward, when the boy called 911, he told the person on the line that he wanted to go live with his mother, who resides out-of-state.

“I, I, I, I, I just call, I just called because I thought I like, I could go live with my mom because, I, she said I’m old enough to decide or something,” he said, a transcript of the call shows.

He later said in the 911 call that it wasn’t typical of his father to hit him.

“I mean, he doesn’t like usually do this. He’s, I mean, he’s usually good, but this time he kinda went too far,” the boy told the police.

The second grand jury declined to indict by a vote of 7-6.

No ideal punishment

Rebecca Mueller, the misdemeanor-unit supervisor with the County Attorney’s Office, says the child-abuse cases her office prosecutes go beyond what people typically think of as a spanking.

“While the person charged might qualify it as a spanking, we are looking at exactly what that conduct was,” Mueller says.

A spanking, developmental psychologist Marjorie Gunnoe says, should include no more than two swats on a child’s arm, leg or buttocks with an open hand, and should be administered to children ages 2 to 7 — and then phased out.

Gunnoe, of Calvin College in Michigan, believes spanking can sometimes be necessary for a parent to bring about a “healthy level of compliance.”

Her position is not a popular one in the academic world, she says, but most of the public agrees with her. She says there is no ideal when it comes to punishment and that how a parent proceeds depends on the child.

Some children need an occasional spanking, while others do not, she said, but outlawing spanking would put parents in a situation “where their hands are so tied that they cannot parent effectively.”

But Deborah Sendek, program director for the National Center for Effective Discipline, says other means of disciplining children work better. Spanking risks traumatizing the child physically and emotionally, she says.

Women who were spanked as children often have trouble establishing boundaries in relationships and are more vulnerable to domestic violence, she says. Men who were hit, in turn, often have trouble recognizing other people’s boundaries and are more at risk to become abusers.

Banning spanking would take the guess work out of figuring out when hitting is OK, she says.

“In all 50 states in the U.S., parents are allowed to use what’s called reasonable force. But what’s reasonable isn’t always defined the same between you or me or someone else,” she says. “The laws are still very ambiguous and the word reasonable interprets differently to different people.”

Laws, not protocol

The Tucson father spends his free time researching his case. He carries around stacks of legal documents and printouts of research papers, along with a small album that holds photos of his son.

A couple of weeks ago, the father drove to Phoenix to meet with officials from the state’s Department of Child Safety. He shared with them a photograph of the strap mark on his son’s back, urging them to agree that it was merely red and not welt-riddled with broken blood vessels, but they disagreed.

He asked for a copy of their protocol on spanking and says he was told they don’t have any protocol because they follow the law.

Late last week, the man said, his son was supposed to return home to live with both his father and his paternal grandmother, who moved here from Florida to help. The father, under this plan, would have received in-home services from child-welfare workers.

But the case stalled again when the child’s mother protested. Her attorney filed the concern, saying the grandmother could not effectively protect her grandson from her son.

The child, who sees his father twice a week during supervised visits, remains at a group home.

Dad says he's "not guilty" in capital murder of 9-month-old son (San Juan, Texas)

Notice that Mom is blamed for not reporting even though the father has assaulted her before. Once again, we see how mom are held responsible for the crimes of fathers. Dad is identified as RUBEN GONZALEZ.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/valley/article_b1a88dec-52ed-11e4-8254-0017a43b2370.html

Valley father says he’s ‘not guilty’ in capital murder of infant son

Posted: Monday, October 13, 2014 10:30 am

BY LORENZO ZAZUETA-CASTRO , STAFF WRITER

SAN JUAN — By the time emergency medical personnel arrived Oct. 3, the baby was not breathing, he was unresponsive and had turned blue.

Nearly a week later, the 9-month-old baby boy died. Doctors took the child life support and pronounced him dead. On Friday, arrested his father, accusing him of capital murder.

Ruben Gonzalez, 32, of San Juan, was arraigned Friday evening wearing only a yellow hospital gown in connection with the death of his son, whose name police refused to release.

The 32-year-old looked straight ahead as the judge asked him if he had understood the charge against him. “Yes, sir,” he replied.

Paola Banda Galvan, the baby’s mother and Gonzalez’s common-law wife, faces a charge of injury to a child for failing to report the baby’s injuries, San Juan police spokesman Sgt. Rolando Garcia said.

Officers said they were in contact with her and expected her to surrender at the department.

Police launched an investigation into Gonzalez and Banda immediately after medical personnel rushed the boy to a local hospital in critical condition the afternoon of Oct. 3, after Gonzalez called 911 to report he was not breathing.

The baby’s injuries included fractures all over his body, but Garcia would not describe specific injuries, only saying that the wounds were consistent with trauma to the body caused by someone else.

“I am not guilty of this — that’s all I have to say,” Gonzalez said as he was escorted from his court hearing.

Investigators did not consider Banda and Gonzalez flight risks and wanted to make sure they had enough evidence to charge Gonzalez with capital murder, which is why they waited a week before arresting him.

Garcia confirmed officers were keeping watch on Gonzalez hours before they arrested him Friday afternoon.

Gonzalez was arrested in December on assault charges — after hitting Banda — who was pregnant with the baby he is now accused of killing.

Police said the couple’s two other children, a 2 year old and a 1 year old were removed from their home by Child Protective Services and placed in foster care outside the Rio Grande Valley.

"Stressed" dad pleads guilty to crushing 8-month-old son to death (Anderson, South Carolina)

Poor mom was saddled with a deadbeat loser, and now she has lost custody of her remaining child thanks to Daddy's crimes. This is typical of the way that mothers are punished for the deeds of men. That the mother is not charged with anything that I can tell is irrelevant to the authorities.  

Dad is identified as CHRISTOPHER FOSTER.

http://www.independentmail.com/news/father-pleads-guilty-in-death-of-child_85443626

Father pleads guilty in death of child

By: Mike Ellis Posted: 3:37 PM, Oct 2, 2014 Updated: 2 mins ago

Christopher Foster admitted to crushing his 8-month-old son to death in a moment of stress and frustration.

He was sentenced to 15 years after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and child neglect charges Thursday.

Foster told investigators shortly after his son died, on June 8, 2012, that he had been feeding Leon Davis Foster and the child became wedged in a chair. Foster showed little emotion in a pair of interviews right after and two days after his son’s death, Assistant Solicitor Catherine Huey said.

Eight months after Leon died, however, Foster teared up in a follow-up interview.

“He confessed and said the child would not stop crying so he held the child to his chest until the child stopped breathing,” Huey said.

Foster held Leon in a way that the infant could not breathe, she said.

Foster’s wife had gone to get a bouncy chair from her in-law’s home and when she came back, she called 911. Leon was pronounced dead at AnMed Health Medical Center.

A forensic pathologist determined at the time that the death was an accident. The same pathologist, Dr. Brett Woodard, later ruled the death a homicide in light of Foster’s confession.

Huey said both an accident and an intentional act had the same medical signs.

Defense attorney Jennifer Johnson said Foster had several mental issues as well as extensive financial and family problems that contributed to his frustration.

“It was a terrible, horrible thing that he did,” Johnson said. “I know he wishes every day he could take it back.”

Foster enlisted in the Navy after graduating from T.L. Hanna High School and married his high school sweetheart, who soon became diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Johnson said. Foster also had his own mental health issues in the military after having a breakdown due to family and job pressures, she said.

“It was too much too soon,” Johnson said. “He made a choice in what I will call a moment of panic.” Foster and his family were living in a room of a home on Edgefield Drive, with 13 people in the small house belonging to his wife’s parents.

Foster also had bounced from job to job, losing work twice after wrecking cars and being underemployed at other jobs. He was not involved in drugs or alcohol, Johnson said.

Judge Brooks Goldsmith rejected Johnson’s request of a 5-year sentence with probation and he went with the prosecution’s recommendation of a 15-+year sentence.

Foster and his wife have an older child, who has been placed in foster care. Foster was originally charged with homicide by child abuse.

Foster made few signs of emotion during the court hearing and told Goldsmith that the stress and mental health issues got to him.

“It should not have happened,” Foster said. “I should never have ended my (mental health) treatment. I feel guilt and burden for an accident that I can never live down and I think about it every day.”

Single dad faces abuse charges after 3-year-old son found 10 blocks from home in the middle of the night; child now in foster care--what happened to Mom? (Longmont, Colorado)

This fine paternal specimen is obviously a single father, as there is no mention of a mother in the home or elsewhere. In addition, the boy is now in foster care, suggesting that the mother has somehow been eliminated from the picture. So how did this idiot get custody? Who gave it to him? And what happened to Mom? Once again, notice all the holes in the story.

Dad is identified as ANGELO FERNANDEZ.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2708608/Father-facing-abuse-charges-boy-three-wandered-TEN-blocks-letting-house-2am-12-year-old.html

Father facing abuse charges after boy, three, wandered TEN blocks on his own after letting himself out of his house at 2am only to be found by 12-year-old

Toddler wandered ten blocks from his house in early hours of the morning
Was found by a 12-year-old who heard his voice outside front door
Father Angelo Fernandez allegedly refused to then go pick up his son
Is now facing child abuse charges while the little boy is in foster care

By Jennifer Newton Published: 10:41 EST, 28 July 2014 | Updated: 12:35 EST, 28 July 2014

A father is facing charges of child abuse after his three-year-old son was found wandering the streets in the early hours of the morning.

The little boy was only found in Longmont, Colarado when he turned up on the doorstep of a house ten blocks away and was spotted by 12-year-old Rocklynn Moldonado.

The police were called and started to track down his parents, but it is alleged when officers knocked on the door of his father, Angelo Fernandez, he refused to answer and wouldn't go and collect the boy.

It is thought the toddler had wandered off from his home around 2.30 am on Friday morning and walked ten blocks by himself, wearing no shirt or shoes, just a pair of shorts.

It wasn't until Miss Moldonado heard a jiggling noise at the front door that she went to investigate and heard a voice at the other side.

She then found the boy, who was asking where his father was and crying.

It then took Longmont Police several hours to identify the boy and in turn track down his father Mr Fernandez.

After he allegedly refused to answer the door or collect his son, he eventually went to the police station.

But Mr Fernandez refutes the police's version of events saying he was the one that called them to report his son missing.

He told 7News Denver: 'I woke up and found my son had unlocked the door and left in the middle of the night while we were sleeping.

'I took off, running around looking for him.'

Mr Fernandez has now been arrested for child abuse and the little boy has been placed in foster care.

Dad charged with capital murder in death of 19-month-old daughter; what happened to the mother of this child? (Lancaster, Texas)

Is DANIEL ANDRE THOMAS a single or custodial father? Notice that after the death of the daughter, "his two other children" are now in foster care. What happened to the mother? In cases of violent death, it is important to follow up on why Mom is "missing." Did the abuser strip her of custody? Is she deceased? If so, do we know for a fact that it was from natural causes? What?

http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2014/07/lancaster-father-charged-with-daughters-death-worked-for-city-of-dallas.html/

Lancaster father charged with daughter’s death worked for city of Dallas

By Tristan Hallman 12:12 pm on July 25, 2014

A Lancaster man accused of killing his 19-month-old daughter was a city of Dallas employee and has been fired, the city’s spokesman said Friday.

Interim city spokesman Shawn Williams said Friday that Daniel Andre Thomas, 34, was terminated from his job in the city’s Park and Recreation Department. City records show that he had worked for the city since 2008.

Lancaster police arrested Thomas on Wednesday and charged him with capital murder of a child under the age of six. He is being held in Dallas County jail in lieu of $1 million bail.

In a 911 tape obtained by The Dallas Morning News, Thomas can be heard saying his daughter Aaliyah fell while playing.

Lancaster police spokesman Lt. Kelly Hooten said Thursday that Thomas’ story didn’t add up. Aaliyah died of blunt force trauma, according to the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s office. Her death was ruled a homicide.

Thomas had no apparent criminal history in Dallas County (he did have a pair of misdemeanor theft charges in Harris County years ago) and no Child Protective Services history of abuse. His two other children, ages 6 and 8, are now in foster care, a spokeswoman said Thursday.

Few other details are available. Thomas declined a jailhouse interview with The News on Friday, and Dallas County still apparently had not received the arrest warrant affidavit from Lancaster police as of Friday morning.

Aaliyah Thomas’ death is the 20th suspected domestic violence homicide in Collin, Dallas, Denton and Rockwall counties this year.