Murder by Cajun seasoning? A mother of five is serving a life sentencein the death of a 4-year-old child she and her husband were adopting becausea Texas jury believed she forced him to drink Cajun Seasoning

Murder by Cajun seasoning?
That's what Texas jury found in mother's life sentence
Posted: September 23, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=57764

© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com


A mother of five is serving a life sentence in the death of a 4-year-old
child she and her husband were adopting because a Texas jury believed
she forced him to drink Zatarain's Cajun Seasoning and delayed getting
the boy emergency medical attention.

Hannah Overton was convicted this month in Corpus Christi. Jury
selection in the trial of her husband, Larry, is set to begin Oct. 1.

But those who know the Overtons best aren't buying the prosecution's
story and, in fact, believe evidence was distorted and doctored by
district attorney's office, police department, child protective services
and the news media to railroad the homeschooling, Christian couple.

"For all the Christians out there, understand this, Hannah's simple
faith was used against her as the prosecution incessantly sought to make
her out to be a religious sociopath," charges the couple's Calvary
Chapel pastor, Rod Carver.


Larry Overton is standing by his wife, too, and contributing to a
website designed to support her appeal. So is her congregation and,
according to Carver, other churches as well.

They say prosecutors ignored any other possibilities in the death of
Andrew Burd, 4, than negligent homicide by the foster parents.

For instance, the prosecutors used videotape images of Andrew asleep in
his bed, taken from a camera placed in the room, the parents say, for
the safety of their children. The recordings show Andrew sleeping on a
bed stripped of a mattress. The video was shown in the courtroom by the
prosecution in an effort to establish a pattern of abuse by the parents.

But, as Carver explains, the Overtons' story about the events leading up
to Andrew's death has been consistent and unwavering from the beginning.

(Story continues below)

"Andrew was upset the day before the incident and was sent to his bed
for a time out," explains Carver, who describes himself as the Overtons'
pastor and close friend. "He defecated and wiped his feces on the bed
and walls because he was angry. His mattress was washed and laid atop
the swing set to dry Hannah tried to get Andrew to sleep with his
brother in his bed; Andrew was upset and refused. He was put on top of a
sleeping bag for padding on top of the smooth wood of his bed. He was
covered with a blanket after that. He threw his bag and blanket off and
within 15 minutes was brought to sleep with the sleeping bag and blanket
beside Hannah's bed for the night. How 15 minutes with a sleeping bag
for padding on a smooth surface becomes weeks on a bare rough board is
really the big news."

Carver paints a picture of an emotionally troubled Andrew who may have
also brought physical illness to the Overton family from his previous
foster home.

"Andrew was born to a mother who admitted to abusing methamphetamine,
coke, marijuana, crank, acid and alcohol while pregnant with Andrew," he
says. "Andrew had some speech and coordination issues. He also had five
markers for diabetes which were undiagnosed. There were missing records
from Andrew's file from CPS; he never had a well child evaluation. We
have no record of blood work prior to his placement with the Overtons.
Hannah's heart was to work through all these things and see Andrew have
the best life he possibly could. It seems a sick child was given to
Hannah and when he died, CPS hid their negligence by accusing the mother
of murder. Anybody want to adopt a foster child through CPS?"

But what about the Zatarain's seasoning?

Doctors believe Andrew's death was caused by salt intoxication, which
can trigger a very rapid demise. Prosecutors built a case around the
idea that Mrs. Overton created a toxic brew of spices, put it in
Andrew's sippy cup and force him to drink it.

Mrs. Overton's story is quite different.

Andrew had an eating disorder of some kind that left him hungry all the
time – even immediately after a meal. If he didn't get more food, he
would become quite agitated. She was told by someone familiar with such
symptoms to add something distasteful to the child's food once he had
clearly had enough. First she tried lemon juice, but Andrew liked it.
Next she tried Zatarain's Cajun Seasoning. But he liked that, too. She
believes she may have administered in food and drink one-quarter of a
teaspoon to Andrew prior to his attack.

The prosecution also focused on delays in getting Andrew emergency
medical attention once symptoms began.

She says she treated the symptoms. When Andrew was cold, she wrapped him
in blankets and put him in bed. Later, when he was still cold, she gave
him a warm bath. He wheezed, she gave him breathing treatment. When he
did not respond, she rushed him to the hospital within one hour and 49
minutes of becoming symptomatic.

Prosecutors claim it took her three hours and grilled her about not
calling 911. But once Andrew got to the hospital, doctors did not
immediately diagnose the problem. In fact, according to Carver, they
shot sodium into his veins because they did not recognize the salt
intoxication.

Because the prosecution did not seek the death penalty, the only other
sentence Overton could receive in the conviction was life in prison.

"I loved Andrew, and I didn't mean to hurt him in any way," she said at
her sentencing. "I just pray that, that somebody will give me justice."



CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
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.


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...