BOSTON, MASS— Girl Labeled PVS Able To Testify In Abuse Case

Girl Labeled PVS Able To Testify In Abuse Case

http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2.../poutre_abuse/

BOSTON, MASS—As prosecutors prepare for a fall trial in one of the
state’s most horrific child abuse cases, the child at the center of the
case who had been incorrectly labeled as being in a persistent
vegetative state, is providing crucial testimony about how she was
routinely subjected to physical punishment by her adoptive mother and
stepfather.

Haleigh Poutre, now 14, has been in a pediatric rehabilitation hospital
in Brighton, Mass., for the past two years after suffering a near fatal
head injury in September 2005 at age 11.

The case arose when Haleigh’s adoptive mother, Holli Strickland and
stepfather. Jason Strickland were charged with assault and battery after
she was hospitalized with serious brain injuries and placed on life
support in September 2005. The couple took Haleigh to the hospital with
bruises, broken teeth, swollen knees and a sheared brain stem.

They were living in western Massachusetts are the time of Haleigh’s
traumatic brain injury.

Two weeks later, the adoptive mother was found dead, killed by her
grandmother who then killed herself, and the Department of Social
Services as the girl’s guardian requested the court’s permission to
disconnect the girl’s ventilator and feeding tube. The stepfather, Jason
Strickland, asked to be considered the girl’s adoptive parent so he
could seek to keep her on life support. He also asked the court to open
to the public the proceedings and records in Haleigh’s life support
case. The court denied his requests, and Strickland appealed and lost.
In January, 2006, the social services agency won a court order to remove
Haleigh’s ventilator and feeding tube, saying she was PVS with no hope
of recovery. The following day, she began breathing on her own and
showing signs of responsiveness.

Not only had her parents failed the youngster, but so had the state.
Gov. Mitt Romney ordered an investigation into the entire Department of
Social Services file involving Haleigh to determine if the agency had
properly handled the case and if they had overlooked signs of abuse.
Although the agency had received previous reports of the girl’s abuse,
DSS claims the girl was abusing herself and the agency did nothing prior
to her alleged beating.

Sources say that in December, as Haleigh continues her miraculous
recovery in the rehab center, she was able to tell police through
gestures and simple language that the Stricklands had physically abused
her in imposing corporal punishment but she couldn’t give police any
details about what had caused her head injury. Reports say that she told
police that her adoptive mother had administered the harshest of the
punishment and while she was protective and expressed fondness for her
stepfather, she indicated that he had also subjected her to physical
discipline such as slapping.

Her 11-year-old sister, Samantha Poutre, has reportedly most recently
told police that Haleigh sustained her injuries when her stepfather
kicked her downstairs. She had initially told police that the girl may
have injured herself while doing a back flip.

Jason Strickland, 34, is scheduled to go to trial this fall on child
abuse charges. 5-1-08






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

The full study is available here.

http://www.mit.edu/~jjdoyle/doyle_fo...arch07_aer.pdf

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...