What is FCA?

Child Advocacy Blog

Search

Archive for the ‘Abuse’ Category

‘It’s Just Sick’ South Florida Children’s Rights Attorney Says of Alleged Neglect

July 15th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Court Cases

Spanked with a spatula, locked in their rooms and not allowed to use the bathroom, not allowed to bathe for days – maybe weeks, this was the horror allegedly endured by the children of a Palm Beach Gardens mom and her boyfriend.

A 5-year-old girl allegedly was molested by the 34-year-old man. The children all have been removed by the Florida Department of Children & Families. A 1-year-old baby has been placed in a foster home. The three other children have been put in the care of a relative.

“This is a very sad situation that we see occur repeatedly in the county,” Florida children’s rights attorney Howard Talenfeld told the Sun-Sentinel. Such incidents are not rare or isolated, he added. “It’s very sick.”

Read the entire story here.

Lessons From Jerry Sandusky Child Sex Abuse

June 27th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Advocacy

From South Florida to across the nation, child advocates and foster child attorneys are taking some time to consider and address fall-out from the Jerry Sandusky guilty verdict. As the former assistant coach at Penn State University awaits sentencing on his conviction for 45 counts of child sexual abuse, the rest of us have our own lessons to learn. The simple lessons are to listen, act and change the way we view others.

Listen. When a child discusses or even hints at sexual abuse – or that something’s not right with someone in their lives, listen. Try to gently get details. Encourage open conversation.

Act. We must act on what we learn. Discuss the matter with the authorities or law enforcement.

And finally, place no one – or any organization – beyond reproach or suspicion. As with learned, Sandusky – a respected coach and founder of an organization for foster kids – abused his position and power to prey on innocent boys. Don’t be rash or quick to judge. Just be prepared to dig deeper.

As the Sun-Sentinel wrote, “Sexual abuse will still occur in our society, often being perpetrated by supposedly respected people like Jerry Sandusky. And there will often be powerful institutions — like Penn State — that will be more interested in protecting themselves than the victims of abuse.

“But since the Sandusky case became public last fall, and more and more tales of abuse became known, people have hopefully learned that having the courage to come forward — whether as a witness to possible abuse or as a victim — is crucial.”

Child Advocate Attorney: Jerry Sandusky and Silence in the Face of Monsters

June 25th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Advocacy, News & Events

By Gloria Fletcher, a Gainesville, Florida, child advocate attorney and criminal defense lawyer

The verdict is in: Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky is guilty of 45 of 48 counts of felonies and misdemeanors stemming from his years of child sexual assault. Now in his 60s, and facing a sentence of some 400 or more years, it’s likely Sandusky will die in prison.

But what about the rest of us? What verdict should be found and sentence be imposed upon a society that habitually looks the other way when children – our most vulnerable citizens – are assaulted, abused, corrupted, endangered or otherwise neglected?

The victims – 10 in the indictment, but apparently more in reality – are left to spend the rest of their lives dealing with the sordid aftermath of the hell Sandusky wrought upon them. To be sure, some may find a sense of salvation, vindication – if not closure – with the verdict. But this remains their own life sentence.

It should be ours, too.

(more…)

Florida DCF Pays in Case of Foster Parent’s Years-Long Abuse of Children in Her Care

June 15th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Damage Claims, Department of Children & Families (DCF)

For 10 years, agents with Florida’s Department of Children and Families placed children with foster mother Nellie Johnson, despite multiple reports that she abused kids in her care, writes DCF Save Our Children blog.

It was a costly practice. The abuse grew unabated, and in 2003, Johnson was convicted of child abuse and neglect. She was sentenced to 60 years in prison.

And the state paid. Late last year, DCF agreed to pay more than $14 million to the 20 children placed in Johnson’s home. Florida child advocacy attorney Howard Talenfeld represented the children.

The payouts will resolve a federal lawsuit filed against nine DCF case workers and investigators. It also disposes of a state case filed against DCF in Alachua Circuit Court.

Read more here.

Florida Earns “F” for Protecting Legal Rights of Neglected, Abused Kids

May 24th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Advocacy

If this were a child earning the grade, authorities and parents would be enraged. Instead, the national study from national child advocacy organizations First Star and the Children’s Advocacy Institute at the University of San Diego School of Law gave Florida a failing grade for the legal rights Florida provides for affords abused and neglected children.

According to the News Service of Florida, national study – A Child’s Right to Counsel: A National Report Card on Legal Representation for Abused and Neglected Children – graded each state and the District of Columbia on how well they protect the legal rights of abused and neglected children in dependency court.

Read the article here.

Florida Department of Children and Families: Too Much Child Sexual Abuse Goes Unreported

March 6th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Advocacy

Child sex abuse, physical abuse, personal injury and other harm comes to Florida children, according to child advocates, child advocacy attorneys and personal injury lawyers who help foster children and other kids in vulnerable situations. But we all can help by reporting what we see to the Florida Department of Children and Families at 1-800-96-ABUSE.

In the case of a 6-year-old girl, the DCF says she and her sibling are safe now. But her mother had traded the girl for sex to get drugs.

“You know in my seven and a half years with DCF, we’ve never seen a case like this,” DCF spokesman John Harrell told WOKV.

Now, as with all cases of possible sex abuse and child abuse, the DCF owes it to the little girl to do a thorough investigation. Authorities also are giving the girl counseling.

“But we want to make sure that the child does not have to recount what happened to many times,” he says.

Now, adults around these vulnerable children have to speak up. “There’s a lot of child sexual abuse that goes unreported. That’s unacceptable.”

Reporting child abuse and sexual abuse is required by law. If you suspect something is going on, call DCF at 1-800-96-ABUSE.

Attorney Asks: Were Mistakes Made By Florida Department Children & Families As Father Kills, Injures Family?

February 23rd, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Department of Children & Families (DCF)

FORT LAUDERDALE (CBS4) – He’s a monster; that’s what one of William DeJesus sons called him, says CBS Miami. DeJesus is accused of stabbing his wife and his two young sons inside a Deerfield Beach RV, leaving his autistic 9-year-old dead. Neighbors said he also killed the man who lives here, then took his own life. It’s a violent end, to what DCF records show, was a horrific life for his children – including allegations of sexual abuse.

All of this infuriating to child advocates. “Unfortuatenly,” said attorney Howard Talenfeld, head of Florida’s Children First, “notwithstanding any of these red flags and concerns, the decision was made to return these children into harm’s way back to their parents.”

Watch the video below.

Florida Department of Children & Families & The Legacy of Nubia Barahona: When Warning Signs Must Be Taken Seriously

February 17th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Advocacy, Department of Children & Families (DCF)

By Gloria W. Fletcher, Esq.

The South Florida murder case of Nubia Barahona had warning signs all over it. School teachers reported a thin, hungry child with a sickly appearance and who hoarded food. Social workers noted how the family rarely let them see Nubia and her twin brother, Victor.

In the end, Nubia was killed, her brother allegedly tortured – and both became the subjects of reports by commissions and blue ribbon committees. Their adoptive parents, Jorge and Carmen Barahona, stand accused of the horrific crimes.

The lessons made clear from the reports and committees and commissions: Warning signs were overlooked and opportunities were lost to save these two children.

(more…)

Valentines Day One Year Later: Questions, Concerns Remain In Death of Nubia Barahona

February 14th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Court Cases

Exactly one year from the date that Nubia Barahona was found dead – and her twin brother, Victor, was found in serious condition doused in toxic liquids – their adoptive parents Jorge and Carmen Barahona may find out if they will be in the same courtroom when they face murder charges. And child abuse, foster care and guardian advocates and attorneys are still wondering whether the Florida Department of Children and Families and the community-based care providers paid hundreds of millions of dollars to ensure kids are safe are doing enough to ensure just that.

In the video below, child advocate attorney Howard Talenfeld tells NBC 6 in Miami that the system remains woefully unprepared to handle the vital tasks at hand.

View more videos at: https://nbcmiami.com.

Florida Child Advocates, Guardians, Attorneys Demand ‘No More Nubias’

February 13th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Damage Claims

In an editorial this weekend, the Miami Herald proclaimed, “No More Nubias.” The editorial board – like foster child advocates, guardians and attorneys who strive to protect children from child abuse, damages, personal injury and other heinous crimes – called for tougher child-protection laws being made the priority. It’s too late for Nubia Barahona, the 10-year-old child allegedly killed by her adoptive parents. But maybe her death was a wake-up call for the system.

The Herald wrote, “If state lawmakers really want to prevent any other child in the state from meeting Nubia Barahona’s tragic fate, then they will do everything possible to toughen child-welfare laws before attaching her name to them in her honor. So far, it’s been a mixed bag, legislatively speaking. Some proposals bring a dose of accountability and common sense to make the system better. Others, however, show that some lawmakers need to get real.”

Read the entire editorial here.

Child Rights Attorney: Barahona Audio Statement Reveals Horrors of Child Abuse, Torture

February 6th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Court Cases

Tied together in the family bathtub, Victor Barahona and his sister, Nubia, were denied food, doused with water or bleach, neglected and subjected to horrible child abuse, personal injury and damages that eventually – for Nubia – allegedly led to death, according to police and prosecutors.

Now, the horrors are being revealed in graphic detail. On Monday, Miami-Dade prosecutors released caretaker Katia Garcia’s audio-recorded statement, in which she shared with investigators Victor’s heartfelt and shocking account of the twins’ treatment at the hands of their adopted father, the Miami Herald reported.

“Garcia recalled Victor’s attention to detail in sharing memories of his own abuse. But when it came to his slain sister, the boy was beset with agony,” the paper reported.

“He stutters when he talks. He can’t finish his sentences,” Garcia said in the recorded statement. “He has nervous twitches with his eyes. He had one with his mouth. He doesn’t want to talk about what his sister went through.”

Read the entire story here.

Justice Delayed: After 15 Years, Mom Charged With Child Abuse

February 4th, 2012   No Comments   Abuse, Court Cases

Fifteen years after allegedly inflicting a horrible beating on her 3-year-old daughter, a South Florida woman is facing justice for the personal injury, harm and damages she caused the child. As advocates and child abuse lawyers closely watch the case, she faces aggravated child abuse, according to Broward court records as reported in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

The woman, Raquel Knowles, 38, fled the hospital emergency room where she’d taken her daughter with serious injuries in 1997. She reportedly then flew to Jamaica, where she remained until 2009.

The child – now an adult – had bruises to her chest, back, buttocks, upper legs, arms and earlobes, the Sun-Sentinel reported. “The child had great bodily harm,” Judge John Hurley said. “[She had] permanent disfigurement due to surgical scarring when they had to sew up your daughter from the internal injuries after they did surgery.”

Read the entire story here.

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »