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Kidjacked | Jacked Up
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Kids taken into foster care often end up in the State Penitentiary. They get separated from their parents at an early age, then bounce around in foster care for years. -- Former Children's Services Volunteer New York CPS News Archive
New York News Coverage
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Home Alone: Is Your Child Ready?
by Mary L. Pulido, Ph.D.
You hear stories in the news, a child home alone died in a fire -- or -- two children, ages, 6 and 8 were placed in protective custody after a neighbor reported them home alone. It can be tempting, particularly if a family has financial stressors.
Parents please use caution. If something goes awry, you will have to live with the consequences that could be dire. I sit on the Child Fatality Review Team for NYC and I can tell you, no parent thought that their child could perish by being home alone for a few hours. But, unfortunately it happens. And, the parent will be criminally charged.
huffingtonpost.com
July 14, 2011
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Pittsburgh man and his infant he's accused of kidnapping are found in DeWitt
by John Mariani
A license plate reader in a patrol car alerts authorities that the man they were checking was wanted in Pennsylvania. Pope and the child were taken into custody without incident, he said.
Bury said he was told Pope did not have custodial rights to the child. The last time the child was seen in Pittsburgh was on July 7, when he was turned over to Pope's mother for a visit. Pope is suspected of having taken the child then, Bury said.
syracuse.com
July 14, 2011
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Wiretap usage up 34% in 2010
by Ed Morrissey
According to the latest annual report from the federal judiciary, the number of wiretaps and intercepts approved in 2010 at state and federal levels increased 34% over 2009.
California accounted for a third of all state requests (33%), with New York accounting for almost a quarter (24%) and New Jersey getting the bronze at 11%. These three states account for 68% of all state wiretap requests. New York and New Jersey have well-known problems with organized crime, but why is California - with a population just slightly larger than New York - surpassing both by such a large amount?
Hot Air
July 9, 2011
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Syracuse woman admits stealing more than $100,000 in welfare benefits
by Jim O'Hara
Nelly Figueroa and husband received extra public assistance and food stamp benefits by failing to report correct household income for more than 10 years.
Nelly Figueroa, 42, of Willis Avenue, pleaded guilty before County Judge Joseph Fahey to a single felony count of second-degree welfare fraud. She admitted stealing $108,110 in welfare benefits from January 1999 through August 2010.
syracuse.com
June 25, 2011
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Broome County town clerk quits, cites gay marriage opposition
BARKER, N.Y. -- A town clerk in upstate New York says she's resigning over her religious opposition to gay marriage.
Laura Fotusky submitted a letter of resignation to the town board in Barker on Monday, saying her religious beliefs prevent her from signing a marriage certificate for a gay couple, as she'd be required to do as a municipal clerk. The letter was published on the website of the Christian lobbying group New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms.
syracuse.com
June 25, 2011
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Investigation of Warren County Social Services Department employee's conduct broadens
by Don Lehman
Warren County officials have found more cases in which they believe a Department of Social Services administrator illegally gave away public assistance benefits, and the accused worker had a criminal record when she was hired by the county.
The Post-Star has learned the suspect, Deborah S. Bombard, was hired by the county in 1991 despite the fact she was charged with a felony less than two years earlier. Bombard, a senior social welfare examiner for the county, was arrested last week for allegedly approving public assistance benefits for people - including her brother - who weren't entitled to them. The incidents occurred on three occasions since last fall, according to the charges.
poststar.com
June 21, 2011
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New York State Rated 'Least Free' of All 50 States
by Talk of the Sound
The Mercatus Center at George Mason University ranked New York State as the least free state in the United States. New York ranked 50th (worst) in Economic Freedom, 48th in Personal Freedom and 50th in Overall Freedom.
The rankings are based on an index which measures economic and personal freedom in each American state by analyzing "state and local government intervention across a wide range of public policies, from income taxation to gun control, from homeschooling regulation to drug policy", according to the Mercatus web site.
newrochelletalk.com
June 11, 2011
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Theft of electrical service, child neglect charged
A tenant warned previously about stealing electricity was caught again Saturday tapping into a basement electrical outlet in his building, but that wasn't the end of his problems, police said.
They found no food, clothing or diapers for Tabb-Scott's two young children in his single-bedroom apartment, in addition to the lack of electricity. The children, ages 3 and 2, were turned over to a grandmother while Child Protective Services was notified.
buffalonews.com
June 6, 2011
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Mom Leaves Newborn In Hospital Bathroom
by Liz Goff
Police last week arrested a 23-year-old Woodside woman after she put her newborn baby girl inside a trash can in an emergency room bathroom at Elmhurst Hospital Center.
Under New York state law, new mothers may safely leave a baby, within five days of its birth, at any city hospital, firehouse or police station no questions asked and without fear of prosecution. Lama failed to take advantage of the law and now faces abandonment charges.
qgazette.com
May 18, 2011
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The Tragic Path to a 4-Year-Old's Death
by Mirela Iverac
Beaten with a belt and DVD case. Deprived of food and water. Strapped to a bed. Force-fed Benadryl. For nearly two months, four-year-old Marchella Brett-Pierce survived under these conditions, and her struggle mainly went unnoticed.
But when Marchella died last September - weighing just 18 pounds, with blunt impact injuries and suffering from acute drug poisoning and dehydration - the invisibility that characterized her life until that point gave way to a highly visible death. It brought to the fore the question of whether systemic failures in the Administration for Children's Services - to whose attention the Brett-Pierce family had come 10 months earlier - still existed.
wnyc.org
April 29, 2011
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Child Advocacy Center awarded $27K grant
by The Niagara Gazette
The National Children's Alliance has awarded a $27,620 grant to the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara to enhance the quality of investigations into alleged child abuse and child neglect.
The grant will allow four individuals who are part of the child abuse response in Niagara County to attend specialized training on conducting forensic interviews for children with special needs. Additionally, it will allow the center to install soundproofing materials and language translation services, including American Sign Language, to ensure confidentiality and promote accessibility of its services to all children who are in need.
niagara-gazette.com
March 9, 2011
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Brooklyn judge gives custody of 17-year-old boy to homeless father
by William J. Gorta
A Brooklyn judge ordered a teen to live with his homeless dad -- in a shelter -- after the boy's mom, a $90,000-a-year court worker, was critical of the legal process, court papers reveal.
The judge's decision also shows that Traylor had been arrested several times, but notes that she has never been convicted of anything. Traylor said all the arrests were at her husband's request. Before rendering his final decision, the judge took a swipe at Traylor for being "quick to offer barbed criticism of the court and the legal process."
nypost.com
March 8, 2011
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Atlantic City fire captain is arrested on charges of sexually assaulting 2 underage girls
Authorities in southern New Jersey say an Atlantic City Fire Department captain sexually assaulted two underage girls in incidents that happened 15 years apart.
Roderick Knox was arrested Friday night at work. The 44-year-old Egg Harbor Township resident faces sexual assault and child endangerment charges and was being held on $350,000 bail at the county jail. He could face up to 40 years in prison if convicted of all charges.
nj.com
February 20, 2011
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More Details Emerge On How Authorities Solved 1987 Kidnapping Case
On Friday, new revelations emerged about the case of a woman who was taken from Harlem Hospital as an infant in 1987 and who was recently reunited with her birth parents.
Connecticut child welfare officials first came into contact with Carlina White, the kidnapped girl, in 1997, about seven years before the department began investigating the girl's paternity.
manhattan.ny1.com
February 20, 2011
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A sector unheard
by Josh Curry-Bascome
Dunkirk -- Amid a mosaic of businesses and gridded streets within the city of Jamestown resides the headquarters of an organization called Child Advocacy Program of Chautauqua County (CAPCC) on the west end of Third Street.
Headed by Project Director Jana McDermott, CAPCC is an organization whose mission is to provide advocacy and support for individuals and families who may be the victims of sexual or otherwise physical abuse providing a place in which interviews can be conducted and where direct support to victims and their relatives may occur.
observertoday.com
February 20, 2011
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4-Year-Old Can Be Sued, Judge Rules in Bike Case
by Alan Feuer
The judge ruled that the young girl, accused of running down an elderly woman, can be sued for negligence.
The ruling by the judge, Justice Paul Wooten of State Supreme Court in Manhattan, did not find that the girl was liable, but merely permitted a lawsuit brought against her, another boy and their parents to move forward. The suit that Justice Wooten allowed to proceed claims that in April 2009, Juliet Breitman, 4, and Jacob Kohn, 5, were racing their bicycles, under the supervision of their mothers, Dana Breitman and Rachel Kohn, on the sidewalk of a building on East 52nd Street.
nytimes.com
October 29, 2010
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Father's fight nearly over, with court returning daughter
by Issac Bailey
After more than two years of fighting, of draining his savings and retirement accounts, of 17-hour drives to New York, Johnny Smith will be bringing his daughter home. -- Now it's just a question of when.
A judge in Warren County, N.Y., ruled Wednesday morning that the girl, who has been in New York foster care since July 2008 after she was found alone on a busy highway in a diaper and T-shirt, be returned to Smith. The way that law was enforced is at the heart of the case and its protracted resolution, and the compact is under review for possible change by S.C. officials and child advocates nationally.
The Sun News
October 28, 2010
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Brooklyn mom files federal lawsuit against ACS, blames city for son's disappearance
by Mitchel Maddux
A Staten Island mom whose 7-year-old son disappeared from a foster home earlier this year filed a federal lawsuit against the city today, saying she needs to "know where her son is."
The mom, Jennifer Rodriguez, said during a news conference that she had sued the city and the city's Administration for Children's Services in Brooklyn federal court because it is responsible for putting her son in an unfit home.
New York Post
October 21, 2010
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After Girl's Death, Child Welfare Boss Gets Support From Mayor
by Michael Howard Saul
Bloomberg remains fully supportive of the commissioner of the city's child welfare agency, following the death of a four-year-old girl believed to have suffered at the hands of an abusive mother.
Bloomberg's declaration of confidence comes just two days after John B. Mattingly, commissioner of the Administration for Children's Services, testified to the City Council about his concerns over the mayor's push for more budget cuts at the agency.
The Wall Street Journal
October 7, 2010
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Giants' Bulluck believes and achieves off the field too
by Barbara Barker
In Bulluck's early childhood, home was a fluid concept. He bounced around the apartments and houses of various relatives in Rockland County, N.Y., sleeping on sofas and even floors.
Welch eventually became Bulluck's foster parent, making him one of the 12 million Americans who have spent some time in the foster care system. It is a population that Bulluck has embraced since the Titans drafted him out of Syracuse in the first round in 2000. His Believe and Achieve Foundation has provided college scholarships and run a number of support programs for children in foster care in Tennessee and New York.
Victoria Advocate
September 25, 2010
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Public Advocate Opens Probe Into Death of 4-Year-Old Brooklyn Girl
by Cindy Rodriguez
Budget cuts that created pressure to close or shift oversight of child welfare cases may have led to last week's the death of a 4-year-old, malnourished Brooklyn girl.
That's the concern of New York's Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, who on Friday announced a probe of the death of Marchella Pierce. The cuts were eventually restored, but de Blasio says not before more than 2,000 cases were closed between April and July. He questions whether that was appropriate.
WNYC News
September 10, 2010
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School and social services, in one building
by Patrick Rocchio
A new charter school building recently opened with a ringing school bell. Some believe the school will be ringing in hope for disadvantaged children.
The school, sponsored by New York Foundling, shares its 55,000-square-foot, 8-story building with Bronx Community Services, which provides child welfare services. The first of its kind, the school integrates an academic currriculum with supportive social services to address the needs of students in child welfare services, including foster care.
Bronx Times
September 10, 2010
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Agency Sues City Over Foster Care Contract
by Stephen Ceasar
A longtime New York City foster care provider is suing the city and its child welfare agency in an effort to halt the severing of its contracts, which would transfer the cases of about 1,400 foster children to other agencies.
The provider, Little Flower Children and Family Services of New York, an 80-year-old Roman Catholic agency, had its contract to provide foster care ended by the Administration for Children's Services last month, which they say was a result of a flawed and unlawful process to procure contracts. Little Flower is responsible for about 8 percent of the foster care children in New York City, according to the agency.
The New York Times
June 14, 2010
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Opinion: Restoring families
by Cynthia Godsoe
Laws permitting reinstatement of parental rights are admirable, but in many cases the rights shouldn't have been terminated in the first place.
New York state will likely soon enact groundbreaking legislation to restore parental rights in limited cases to neglectful parents who have been rehabilitated. Only a few other states, including California and Washington, have enacted similar laws to help restore families. Although New York Bill A8524/S03868 is necessary to help some of the many children waiting in foster care "limbo" with no prospects of adoption to return to safe and loving families, it wouldn't need to exist in a world that cared more about keeping families safe and together.
The National Law Journal
May 28, 2010
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Investigation Reveals Erie County Repeatedly Failed Mentally Challenged Murdered North Collins Woman
by Scott Brown
Buffalo, N.Y. -- This is the story of the all too short life, and all too horrific death of 23-year-old Laura Cummings.
Imagine the worst, most horrific examples of child abuse, and members of the District Attorney's office and Sheriff's Department say that doesn't even come close to what went on for years inside the house at 2052 Sherman Avenue in North Collins.
WGRZ News
May 21, 2010
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