This child’s case was ruled out for physical abuse at his natural home, but the same cannot be said for his foster home. Nevertheless he had been removed and placed in foster care where he was…actually… abused…
The day before this visit, the mother arrived on Tuesday, her normally scheduled visitation day. The mother was left waiting in the lobby for over an hour before the CPS worker came out to inform her that the visit would not be taking place because the foster family “forgot to bring the child.”
The caseworker apologized and stated it would be another two weeks before a visit would take place due to the holidays (it was 3 days before Christmas). This was unacceptable to the mother. The mother refused to leave the facility without answers, knowing that her child would not have let the foster parents forget to take him to see her. Finally, the CPS worker reluctantly agreed to a special visit the next morning., at which time the mother brought a tape recorder.
The child arrived covered in blood with a black eye, heavily medicated and carrying a realistic looking capgun in his pocket. The gun was realistic enough that if a parent carried it into the facility, that parent would be arrested. If it had been carried into an airport, flights would be shut down. Still this child had it in his pocket, given to him by the foster family.
Upon questioning throughout this visit, the mother learns that the child had been told by the foster family that he didn’t go to the visit the day before because the mother did not show up. That simply was not true. The foster family “forgetting to bring him” wasn’t true either.
Were they trying to cover up his injuries…..?
The child was, after this visit, removed from that home, and placed in kinship care, however, the mother only saw her child one more time after this visit….
Ruled out for physical abuse at home, taken and placed in state’s care to be abused… and then his injuries attempted to be covered up…. child protective services …? protecting who?
Its been nearly 5 years since this incident occured.
The case has been closed for some time now, but nobody was ever held accountable for the abuse against this child, nor to the family for the suffering it caused. The mother has not seen the child in over 4 years, and remember – no abuse had occurred at home. The mother was ruled out for abuse – the mother ‘s administrative review sustained a finding that the mother had a history of a drug use and was uncooperative with a non-conforming attitude towards the system; but no injuries to the child.
In fact, the caseworker herself states that the mother interacts appropriately with the child, that the case is not so much a case of child abuse, but rather an ongoing custody battle, and in the child’s interview with the social worker the child specifically states that he is not abused, unhappy, harmed, afraid, or otherwise feels in danger with his mom.
4 years since she’s seen him.
Now its time for the truth.
Click here to listen to the audio recording as you read the transcripts below.
TRANSCRIPTS
mother: hey you…hi baby
child: i bought it
mother: you bought it?
mother: <gasp> what happened to your eye??
child: something really horrible
mother: what happened baby?
child: i was throwing rocks into the creek and my foster brothers hit me in the eye with the rocks
mother: when did this happen?
child: a few days ago
mother: did you go to the doctor?
child: my foster father was in the army and he knew what to gave me a butterfly bandaid on it and put stuff on it
mother: can you see ok?
child: yeah, except this eye’s still a little blurry
mother: look up ..no look up with your eye not with your whole head
mother: was it an accident?
child: nuh uh (indicating a negative response:ie.no) they were throwing rocks straight at me
mother: who?
child: my foster brothers
mother: it looks like you had a bloody nose
child: i didn’t
mother: no you have blood in your nose
child: i do?
mother (to cps worker): he has blood in his nose
child: i do?
cps worker: I didnt see
mother: come here
child: probably because of the…its so cold outside
cps worker: mine are a little dry too
child: i have in my pocket there’s this really cool capgun i got
child: i have it in my pocket …you know whats really cool about it, it sounds like a real gun its really loud
mother: there’s blood on your shirt
child: this is water
mother: no this is blood
child: it is?
mother: water is not that color
child: i didn’t know my nose was bleeding
mother (to cps worker): are they gonna do something about removing him from these kids if they’re throwing rocks at him?
cps worker: i have no idea
child: Pam said that i need to get along with them
mother: no, not if he’s got a black eye from rocks
cps worker: I have… i’m not… i don’t know anything ..my only time is transporting so..i don’t know…
child: its a fake gun
mother: but you know i don’t let you play with guns
child: its fake
mother: i don’t care…here…eat your food
mother: Merry christmas baby, i know you’re…I love you …I love you
