Social worker: Children in torture case 'appeared happy, healthy'
Social worker: Children in torture case 'appeared happy, healthy'
SIGNONSANDIEGO NEWS SERVICES http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/r...redefense.html 2:16 p.m. May 29, 2008 MURRIETA – A social worker testified Thursday that the children of a man accused of starving, beating and keeping most of them imprisoned at his Aguanga home appeared happy, healthy and well cared for, if somewhat thin. Todd Bellanca testified for the defense Thursday in the trial of Mansa Musa Muhummed, 55, who faces eight counts of torture – each of which carries a potential life sentence – 11 counts of willful injury to a child, five counts of inflicting corporal injury on a spouse and two counts of false imprisonment. When he was arrested on April 7, 1999, Muhummed, whose original name was Michael Boddie, lived in the main portion of a house with his then-legal wife, Marva Boddie, while two other “wives” – Adrienne Easter and Laura Cowan – lived with their children in garages on the Aguanga property, locked in with the doors nailed and padlocked shut. Muhummed had 13 children with his first wife, two and a stepchild with Cowan and three with Easter, for a total of 19 children. Boddie, who now goes by her new married name of Barfield, pleaded guilty to willful injury to a child and is to be sentenced to one year in jail and probation as part of her plea agreement. Witnesses for the prosecution, which included detectives, the children and the three mothers – Barfield and Easter still wear religious veils over their faces – have testified that Muhummed starved seven of his children, stunting their growth. Most were severely underweight, including an 18-year-old who weighed 56 pounds and was barely 4 feet tall, according to testimony. Thursday, Bellanca testified he spoke to the children in February and April of 1999. He said that when he went to interview one of the children at a respite center, the child did not appear to have been physically abused. A respite center is a place where children who are removed from a home because of suspected abuse are held for a few weeks so that a child protective services worker can investigate. Ahmed was taken to the center by Cowan, his mother. Bellanca also testified that when he went to Muhummed's home, he saw one child's room and it seemed neat and clean. Under cross-examination by the prosecutor, however, Bellanca conceded that Ahmed seemed “very attached” to the person who was caring for him at the respite center. He also admitted that all the children with whom he spoke were very thin and wore long robes that concealed most of their bodies. Some of the children had what Bellanca called a “flat affect,” that is, no emotion on their faces and no facial response to anything he said. Bellanca also said that when he went to the Aguanga home on April 8, 1999, after Muhummed had been released on bail, he sat on a sofa in the living room and did not see the rest of the house. “There was a strong sense that (Muhummed) did not want me there,” Bellanca said. He said it was not his policy to interview children behind closed doors. “Looking back, I may have done it differently,” said Bellanca. He said Muhummed told him he kept the doors locked to keep a mentally unstable son from running away. Law enforcement officers have testified that when they entered the home after Cowan got out a message pleading for help, they found starving and bruised children, cowed women and garage apartments locked and boarded up. They also found biological waste in bags. Barfield testified that Muhummed would not let the women sit on the toilet, which he called a “throne.” An Inconvenient Truth about Child Protective Services, Foster care, and the Child Protection "INDUSTRY" Child Protective Services Does not protect children... It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even killed at the hands of CPS. every parent should read the free handbook from connecticut dcf watch... http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US These numbers come from The National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN) Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS Perpetrators of Maltreatment Physical Abuse CPS/Foster care 160, biological Parents 59 Sexual Abuse CPS/Foster care 112, biological Parents 13 Neglect CPS/Foster care 410, biological Parents 241 Medical Neglect CPS/Foster care 14 biological Parents 12 Fatalities CPS/Foster care 6.4, biological Parents 1.5 Imagine that, 6.4 children die at the hands of the very agencies that are supposed to protect them and only 1.5 at the hands of parents per 100,000 children. CPS perpetrates more abuse, neglect, and sexual abuse and kills more children then parents in the United States. If the citizens of this country hold CPS to the same standards that they hold parents too. No judge should ever put another child in the hands of ANY government agency because CPS nationwide is guilty of more harm and death than any human being combined. CPS nationwide is guilty of more human rights violations and deaths of children then the homes from which they were removed. When are the judges going to wake up and see that they are sending children to their death and a life of abuse when children are removed from safe homes based on the mere opinion of a bunch of social workers. THIS IS AMERICA'S HIDDEN HOLOCAUST Currently Child Protective Services violates more constitutionally guaranteed liberties & civil rights on a daily basis then all other agencies combined, Including the National Security agency/Central intelligence agency wiretaping programs… THE CORRUPT BUSINESS OF CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES BY: Nancy Schaefer Senator, 50th District of Georgia http://www.senatornancyschaefer.com/...s.php?filter=6 This is Child Protection? By Gregory A. Hession, J.D. http://www.jbs.org/node/4632 Mercenary Motherhood: "Memoirs of a Babystealer." http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/...nion-rightrail FOSTER CARE IS A 80 PERCENT FAILU. A Brief Analysis of the Casey Family Programs. Northwest Foster Care Alumni Study. By Richard Wexler http://www.nccpr.org/reports/cfpanalysis.doc HOW THE WAR AGAINST CHILD ABUSE BECAME A WAR AGAINST CHILDREN http://www.nccpr.org/issues/1.html Adoption Bonuses: The Money Behind the Madness DSS and affiliates rewarded for breaking up families By Nev Moore Massachusetts News http://www.massnews.com/past_issues/...May/mayds4.htm A recent study has found that 12-18 months after leaving foster ca 30% of the nation’s homeless are former foster children. 27% of the males and 10% of the females had been incarcerated 33% were receiving public assistance 37% had not finished high school 2% receive a college degree 50% were unemployed Children in foster care are three to six times more likely than children not in care to have emotional, behavioral and developmental problems, including conduct disorders, depression, difficulties in school and impaired social relationships. Some experts estimate that about 30% of the children in care have marked or severe emotional problems. Various studies have indicated that children and young people in foster care tend to have limited education and job skills, perform poorly in school compared to children who are not in foster care, lag behind in their education by at least one year, and have lower educational attainment than the general population. *Casey Family Programs National Center for Resource Family Support 80 percent of prison inmates have been through the foster care system. The highest ranking federal official in charge of foster care, Wade Horn of the Department of Health and Human Services, is a former child psychologist who says the foster care system is a giant mess and should just be blown up. http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=2017991 Four rigorous studies have found that at least 30 percent of America’s foster children could be home right now if their parents had decent housing. This study found thousands of children already in foster care who would have done better had child protection agencies not taken them away in the first place. Front-page story in USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...m?csp=34#Close Read the studies online. Casey "alumni" study: "Improving Family Foster Ca Findings from the Northwest Foster Care Alumni Study," http://www.casey.org/Resources/Publi...lumniStudy.htm MIT study: "Child Protection and Child Outcomes: Measuring the Effects of Foster Care," http://www.mit.edu/~jjdoyle/doyle_fo...arch07_aer.pdf Texas comptroller's "Forgotten Children" reports: www.window.state.tx.us/forgottenchildren The bottom line? - Child Protective Services and the Foster Care system for the most part turns out young adults that are nothing more than walking wreckage... CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CONSTITUTIONALLY GUARANTEED LIBERTIES & CIVIL RIGHTS ON A DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAMS.... CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING THOUSANDS OF INNOCENT FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON... BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION... |
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