"Couple Accused of Starving Four Sons"

[Nancy]

Couple Accused of Starving Four Sons

Assocaited Press

CAMDEN, N.J. (Oct. 26) - A couple whose adopted teenage sons weighed less than 50 pounds have been arrested on charges of starving four boys they adopted through the state Division of Youth and Family Services, New Jersey's troubled child welfare agency.

Vanessa Jackson, 48, and Raymond Jackson, 50, were arrested Friday and charged with four counts each of aggravated assault and 14 counts of child endangerment, Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi said.

Each was jailed Saturday on $100,000 bail.

An investigation into the family began Oct. 10 after neighbors in the Philadelphia suburb of Collingswood called police to report someone rummaging through their trash. Officers then found the oldest adopted child, now 19.

The young man, who was adopted in 1995, measured 4 feet and weighed 45 pounds when he was discovered. He is now in the hospital receiving specialized care for apparent heart irregularities.

The three other boys, ages 14, 10, and 9, also were removed from the home and hospitalized. They were treated and released into other foster placements, authorities said.

The 14-year-old weighed 40 pounds and stood 4 feet tall. The other boys also were dramatically underweight, according to the prosecutor's office.

Two adopted girls, ages 5 and 12, also were living in the Jacksons' home. They were placed in foster care, along with a 10-year-old girl who was in the Jacksons' home pending adoption.

The girls' physical condition "appeared to be within normal range," the prosecutor said.

The state Department of Human Services suspended five employees, including caseworkers, a manager, and supervisors, pending the outcome of the investigation, said Micah Rasmussen, a spokesman for Gov. James E. McGreevey.

Rasmussen said McGreevey was "angered and shocked" by another discovery of neglected children under DYFS oversight. The governor called on Kevin Ryan, his newly appointed state child advocate, to assess the case.

"There appears to be no explanation other than negligence, indifference, incompetence, or a combination of all three," Colleen Maguire, deputy commissioner for the Human Services Department and the person charged with spearheading reform at DYFS, said in a statement Saturday.

Maguire said a caseworker assigned to the girl living with the Jacksons while awaiting adoption by the couple apparently failed to note the boys' condition, despite conducting a safety assessment of the home.

The Jacksons adopted the boys through DYFS and were receiving a stipend from the state, which peaked at about $28,000 a year before the oldest child turned 18 last year, according to Camden County Prosecutor's Office.

Sarubbi said locks apparently were used to keep the boys from the kitchen and that the children were fed uncooked pancake batter, cereals and peanut butter and jelly.

The parents apparently explained the boys' condition by saying they had an eating disorder, said Bill Shralow, a spokesman for the prosecutor.

The discovery of the children follows several high-profile abuse cases that revealed lapses in state oversight, including a 7-year-old who died after his case was closed by the child welfare agency.

10/26/03 09:45 EST

[Allie]

Very sad story.

It just amazes me that so much still goes on to this day.... so depressing.

Maguire said a caseworker assigned to the girl living with the Jacksons while awaiting adoption by the couple apparently failed to note the boys' condition, despite conducting a safety assessment of the home.

What the Hell?????? The caseworker should be fired and her license taken away permanately......and......... I can think of other things as well.......

Anyways, Thanks for sharing this tragic story Nancy......

[Nancy]

I can think of other things as well.......

Anyways, Thanks for sharing this tragic story Nancy......

Allie.......

I agree 1000%. I hesitated to post this, since it IS so depressing.

Yet? When reading articles akin to these, I realize how dang lucky I am and what a fantastic childhood I had.

Some people should NEVER have children, whether by procreation OR adoption!

Thanks Allie, for reading.

[Starlyte]

Yet? When reading articles akin to these, I realize how dang lucky I am and what a fantastic childhood I had.

Me, too. How can people be so cruel?

[Nancy]

How can people be so cruel?

I wish I knew!

'Tis impossible to comprehend this type of thing.

I realize Case Loads are out of control, so naturally each and every case cannot be handled the way it SHOULD be. That, however? IS no damn excuse!

starlyte? Thank you for reading. Thought we could all use a 'wake-up' call. This happens wayyyyyyyy too often.

[snuffypuffer]

How the hell did they get to adopt anyone at all?

[Nancy]

Snuffy? Try this simple idea.

They "slipped through the cracks" among many who do the same.... Then? Pocket the cash and hope no one finds out.

[reese2]

One of the biggest contributing problems with the inept social services is the fact that they hire people only with college degrees. Not just a simple degreee either.

I know most people will ask, "How is that a problem?".

I will tell you..

It is a problem because the people that get these jobs, don't aspire to sit behind the confines of a DCS office working hundreds of cases all day, every day, when they are going through college. They take the jobs, because that is about the only thing that is a 'sure thing', with the college degrees they have. The pay is horrid, but they do it because it is, after all, a steady pay check, with great benefits, no less. They get burnt out easily, and too quickly, as most don't go into it, for the right reasons.. To help children, and families.

The changes should be made on the administration level. Opening the positions up to the general High School graduate. I believe that aside from the mountains of paperwork, the only requisite for this job, should be a willingness to help the lives of those that cannot help themselves. Paper work is easy. Having the compassion needed to patrol the lives of children, does not come from a piece of paper, or years spent sitting in a classroom. It comes from ones heart.

That is the sort of person that should hold these positions.

(Sorry for rambling on, but I feel very strongly about childrens rights and their well being. And, I have little respect for the 'system', and the way they allow children to fall through the cracks)

Reese

[Nancy]

reese......... Amen!

I'll let out a little secret..... shhhhh, don't tell, ok?

I worked for many years with Dept. of Human Assistance, in CA.... Welfare Dept. - Homeless Adults and Children's Services. Although CA is not the same as where this hell happened, in this case - Humans are humans and being caught up in the "system" for the Needy and for those who are responsible to assist them, it pure hell. You are correct, the 'system' doesn't work..... plain and simple.

I've seen many a dedicated Worker do his/her best to HELP, only to be frustrated by the rules/regs that the end result mirrors what happened here, in this case.

Now? I'm on the Other Side of the Glass........ I am one of those who is "financially and medically needy"......... tis not a fun place to be.

Does any of this excuse what happened? No! But it certainly adds fuel to the fire of mishandling and system abuse.

[reese2]

Nancy-

I am sorry that you are now on the other end of the spectrum, having to deal with these people, and all the red tape that comes with it.

It is a sad state of affairs.. All of it.

My particular beef with the system is what I stated previously.

I do not think for a minute that someone with a college degree makes a worthy case worker. I have known many people that simply didn't meet the academic qualifications, and therefore weren't given a shot. When they would have been the best candidate for the job. I think that a good case worker would be someone that has experience on the side of the people they would serve.. Either a product of the fostering program, or otherwise.

It really chaps my butt to think of the caseloads of kids that are being forgotten, and swept under the rug because the state cannot hire freely. Yet they scream of shortages?? First off, they don't pay squat. Anyone with a BA in anything, is not going to go for a job like this. They want the gravy jobs, after all, that is why they spend years upon years going to school. Not to work with underprivleged children... When you go through the hiring processes, they never even stop to ask for experience. They want the degree, and that is all.

I have known foster children, and foster parents.. Some were good, then you have the ones after the check. It happens all the time.. Hell, I will go as far as saying that when they started, they most likely had good intentions, but not all of them retain that attitude. They start taking more and more kids, while the checks get nothing but bigger and bigger. (Not just monetary checks either, they get the food stamps as well, which figures out to about 103.00 per child, per month) All extra income..... (Well worth it, when used properly)

Grrrrrr, I could really talk about this all day..... So I will stop...

I really do commend you for working a job like that Nancy... I am sure you were one of the few, that did it, for the pure thrill of helping. I do a lot of volunteer work, and it is always worth it...............

Everyone should (hint, hint)

Reese

[Nancy]

UPDATE:

Updated: 06:40 PM EST

Starved Boys' Case Investigated

By JOHN P. MCALPIN, AP

TRENTON, N.J. (Oct. 27) - The finding of four adopted boys - one of them 19 - malnourished and weighing less than 50 pounds each has prompted another angry round of calls to reform the Division of Youth and Family Services. The boys' adoptive parents were charged last week with starving them.

Social workers had visited the boys' house in Collingswood as many as 38 times in two years, state officials said.

Some of those visits had been ordered of all children in state care after the body of a 7-year-old boy was found in a box in a Newark basement in January, prompting a shake-up at New Jersey's child welfare agency. The agency reviewed all open cases, hired 366 more employees and received $30 million in emergency aid.

Gov. James E. McGreevey said Monday the state is investigating whether criminal charges should be filed against the caseworker.

"It's inconceivable how a caseworker could go there and not detect these atrocious conditions,'' McGreevey said.

"Have they reviewed the cases? Are they seeing all the children in the home? Why did they fail to follow-up on signs that these children were ill? Why didn't they ask for the latest medical records on the children? These concerns speak to the core culture of the division,'' said Cecilia Zalkind, executive director of the Association for Children of New Jersey, a child advocacy group.

Agencies in other states have had similar tragedies and ordered reforms. But New Jersey's child-care system continues to confront such horrific abuses despite additional staff members and emergency funding.

DYFS came under intense pressure for reform when the body of 7-year-old Faheem Williams was found decomposed in a storage box in a Newark basement. His twin brother and their 4-year-old half brother were discovered alive but emaciated in an adjoining room.

In 1999, Children's Rights filed a class-action lawsuit against the state to force reforms.

The state settled that lawsuit and agreed to review all child welfare cases - more than 14,000. During those inspections, 31 children were removed from their own homes, foster care and other living arrangements.

DYFS supervises 58,582 children, including youngsters awaiting adoption.

Critics contend the latest reforms and the safety inspections are not enough.

State inspectors said they are reviewing all reports filed by the DYFS caseworkers and managers who visited the Collingswood house. Since the boys were found on Oct. 10, eight DYFS workers were suspended with pay and the lead caseworker resigned.

All caseworkers are required to offer extensive reports detailing the condition of each child and house they visit. DYFS managers in each field office must review those reports and consult each case worker on each child's status. Both practices were ordered after officials learned DYFS caseworkers did not visit the Williams children.

"People who made bad decisions will be held accountable,'' McGreevey said Monday.

The 19-year-old remained hospitalized Monday in a cardiac unit, while the other boys, ages 14, 10 and 9, were doing well in foster homes, Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi said on ABC's "Good Morning America.''

Authorities said the boys were locked out of the kitchen and fed a diet of uncooked pancake batter, peanut butter and jelly and cereal. The boys told investigators they also gnawed on wallboard and insulation. They were found after a neighbor discovered Jackson rummaging through trash for food.

"This case apparently just fell through the cracks,'' Sarubbi said.

Union leaders urged the state to investigate the latest case fully before ordering more reforms.

"We really need to hear a completed investigation and know how much of this is an individual failure and how much is a systemic failure,'' said Hetty Rosenstein, president of Communications Workers of America Local 1037 in Newark.

10/27/03 18:21 EST

reese? Don't read this........

Thanks for your kind words

Nancy

[reese2]

Oohhh, Nancy, you know me, I had to read it, especially after you tell me not too..

UGH............... The whole system stinks, and it makes me sick...............

I am not going to say anything else, because I could drone on for hours...

Not a problem Nancy, I mean it...

[fletch]

Some blame must fall at the feet of the authorities. How can they miss a case like this without realising what is going on. These people are supposed to be trained to look for signs such as these and they have failed in their jobs. I understand that some cases can 'fall through the net' but there can be no excuse for such incopetence where such thing are going on.

[Nancy]

fletch?

I agree, that's why I posted the UPDATE. At least an investigation has been started. After all, none of this should have happened to begin with....... Right?

[fletch]

I fully agree, these things should not happen in the first place. But as there are a small number of sick individuals the authorities should be sharp to whats going on.