foster-care Boy died of thirst: a pattern of abuse emerges: Thenight before Tyler DeLeon turned 7, he was so thirsty he ripped a hole inthe screen of his bedroom window to eat snow.

Boy died of thirst: a pattern of abuse emerges

By Maureen O'Hagan

Seattle Times staff reporter

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm..._abuse28m.html


The night before Tyler DeLeon turned 7, he was so thirsty he ripped a
hole in the screen of his bedroom window to eat snow.

By the next evening, Tyler was dead. He weighed just 28 pounds, the size
of an average 2-year-old.

Dehydration is the official cause of death, but authorities think Tyler
suffered a variety of abuses at the hands of his adoptive mother, Carole
DeLeon, a woman who led a seemingly ordinary life as a paralegal with
the U.S. Attorney's Office in Spokane.

Records released this week by the state Department of Social and Health
Services (DSHS) say that between 1988 and 2005, DeLeon had deprived at
least four other adoptive or foster children of food and that she was
accused of punishing her biological children by withholding food, as
well. Yet DSHS didn't recognize the pattern until after Tyler died in
January 2005.

The records, which document DeLeon's history with DSHS and the
investigations into Tyler's death, say that while in DeLeon's care, one
12-year-old girl's hands were tied behind her back so she couldn't get
food; a 9-year-old girl dropped from 176 pounds to 104 in less than a
year; a pre-school-age girl gained just 3 pounds in two years; and a boy
of 7 went from above-average weight to 34 pounds, below the fifth
percentile, in four years with DeLeon. Some of them said they were
beaten, as well.

Other children she took in, however, have not claimed abuse, leading
investigators to suspect some were singled out.

On July 16, DeLeon, 52, faces trial on a homicide-by-abuse charge in
Stevens County in Tyler's death and criminal mistreatment in the alleged
abuse of the other 7-year-old boy. She has pleaded not guilty. Her
31-year-old daughter, Christina Burns, has pleaded not guilty to
assaulting the other boy.

After Tyler's death, DSHS took a close look and confirmed the two boys
had suffered abuse. But the agency didn't recognize it at the time it
happened, a review of Tyler's death by an outside panel stated, because
some incidents hadn't been reported, DSHS hadn't thoroughly investigated
DeLeon's history and because DeLeon was very convincing.

"The social workers, doctors, therapists, counselors and school
personnel had been collectively convinced by Carole DeLeon that Tyler's
injuries and behaviors were due to factors other than abuse or neglect,"
DSHS said in a statement Wednesday. "All of the professionals believed
Ms. DeLeon was honest and credible when explaining Tyler's injuries and
health concerns."

The agency has made changes since the boy's death, including requiring
faster response to reports of abuse.


But a Seattle law firm plans to sue the state for at least $55 million
on behalf of Tyler and five other children. The lawyers see the problem
as much broader than a mother's alleged lies.

Part of the legal claim is based on the idea that DSHS should have known
that DeLeon had previously abused her own children and a foster child,
and never should have licensed her to care for more children.

"The amount of damage to these children is phenomenal," attorney Cynthia
Novotny said.

A different picture

On paper, DeLeon seemed like the perfect foster mom.

"Breakfast for the kids is usually pancakes, eggs, oatmeal, etc.,"
DeLeon, then living in Wyoming, wrote in a 1987 application to be a
foster parent. She liked to bake apple pie, do crafts and watch movies,
and loved kids of all ages.

Her foster-care license was granted, and a 12-year-old girl was placed
in the home. Not long after that, they moved to Stevens County, Wash.,
where neighbors became concerned. The girl wasn't allowed to talk to
others, according to a DSHS summary of the case; DeLeon allegedly even
made her apologize to a dog for saying hello to it. A sheriff's
investigation revealed she spent most of her time hiding in the basement
or doing chores, such as milking goats and feeding chickens.

The girl was thin and later was diagnosed as suffering from dehydration,
the records show.

One day, a babysitter noticed a bruise, and the stories began to spill
out. The girl said DeLeon had struck her in the face and deprived her of
food. Once, after the girl took an unauthorized snack, DeLeon tied her
hands behind her back with needlepoint yarn and left her to sleep on the
cold basement floor all night, the girl told investigators.

She was removed from the home immediately by authorities. But soon,
DeLeon's two biological sons, teens who had been living with their
father, came to live with her. Police received several disturbance calls
and removed the boys soon after one of them emerged from the house
bruised and bloody.

DSHS investigated the girl's and the boys' abuse claims and found them
to be valid, according to the records.

In 1996, DeLeon applied for a foster-care license in Washington, not
mentioning that she had lost custody of the three children. Although
there was a case number indicating there had been a previous abuse
investigation in DeLeon's record that should have been a red flag to
DSHS licensors, no one recognized it as such at the time, and the
license was granted. Over the years, she took in 14 foster children and
adopted five of them, according to DSHS.

DeLeon took in Tyler in 1998, when he was 4 months old, an average-sized
baby. But the longer he stayed, the less he grew, according to the
investigation after his death. And he was often injured.

Novotny, the attorney, said the evidence was clear Tyler and other
children in the home were being abused.

Once Tyler had a broken femur, the recently released DSHS files show.
Another time, they show, his two front teeth were knocked out. On yet
another occasion, he had blood inside his ears. Tyler's 7-year-old
foster brother also was unwell and was admitted twice to the hospital,
after suffering perplexing seizures. DSHS knew about some of the
incidents but didn't learn about others until after Tyler died.

But time after time, professionals who were supposed to look after their
well-being failed to call Child Protective Services, according to the
outside investigation into Tyler's death. Not the emergency-room
doctors. Not his psychiatrist. Not even his pediatrician.

DeLeon fooled them all, the outside investigation later determined. She
gave them explanations for all the injuries, often saying Tyler had
behavior problems and would hurt himself. She even had an explanation
for why Tyler's lunch was so small.

Tyler, DeLeon claimed, had a disorder that caused him to gorge himself
until he was sick, according to the records. He'd even drink from the
toilet if he had the chance, she explained. That's why Tyler was allowed
only a half-sandwich and a few gulps of milk at lunch, and why teachers
had to make sure he didn't drink any more on his own. It could be
"life-threatening," she told them.

She claimed the other boy -- the 7-year-old who was hospitalized -- had
the same disorder.

There was no evidence that either boy suffered from such a disorder, the
records state.

"Professionals commented on her credibility, articulation and knowledge
without considering her ability to deceive or misrepresent," the outside
review said. It's called "confirmatory bias," and it's a well-known
issue in child-abuse investigations. Put simply, parents who come across
well are more likely to be believed.

Even if the other professionals didn't recognize problems, Tyler's
teachers saw something was amiss. On numerous occasions, Tyler and his
foster brother told teachers they were abused by DeLeon and her adult
daughter, and the school called CPS several times.

Both women denied abusing the boys. The boys told investigators their
stories but were deemed not credible.

"Confidence in Ms. DeLeon had a significant impact on the assessment of
all the events that occurred in her home," the outside review states.

Since Tyler's death in 2005, DSHS has made numerous changes. Among other
things, its computerized records have improved, so histories like
DeLeon's will be more easily identified. And Gov. Christine Gregoire
required the agency to complete high-risk child-abuse investigations
within 24 hours of a report; DSHS says it meets that goal 96 percent of
the time.

Yet child advocates such as Novotny aren't satisfied the agency is doing
enough. "It's unbelievable how often this is happening," she said,
noting that her firm represents many clients who were allegedly abused
while under DSHS care.

DSHS, in fact, has been the state's most-sued agency for a decade, but
most cases are settled before trial.

In 2004, the agency agreed to make dozens of changes to the foster-care
system in response to a class-action lawsuit. But it has had trouble
meeting some of the agreed-upon goals, some because of financial
constraints, others for reasons that are unclear.

Seattle Times staff reporter Jonathan Martin contributed to this story.

Maureen O'Hagan: 206-464-2562 or

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company



CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NATIONAL
SECURITY AGENCY/CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....

CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.

every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf

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 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, 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.

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...