Federal Lawsuit Alleges 'Dangerous Conditions' For Children Held At Woodside

A new federal lawsuit alleges children at Vermont's juvenile detention center are being held in conditions that are "physically and emotionally harmful."

Court documents say children at Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center are held in dangerous restraints and long-term isolation and don't receive adequate mental health treatment.

More >> Federal Lawsuit Alleges 'Dangerous Conditions' For Children Held At Woodside

Long-time Vermont foster parent arrested on child-sex charges

Chittenden County sex-crime investigators say they have arrested a "well-known" foster parent on charges of sexual assault and lewd and lascivious conduct with a child.

Keith R. LaFlam, 59, of Milton was arrested Monday, about two weeks after the Vermont Department of Children and Families reported the sexual assault of a juvenile to the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations.

More >> Long-time Vermont foster parent arrested on child-sex charges

• Longtime Milton Foster Parent Charged With Sexual Assault Of A Child

Vt. Supreme Court hears Herring appeal

Whether Jody Herring will get the chance at parole one day is now in the hands of the Vermont Supreme Court.

The court heard oral arguments Tuesday in Herring’s appeal of her murder convictions.

More >> Vt. Supreme Court hears Herring appeal

What Becky lost: A system’s broken promises

Editor’s note: From the time she was a little girl growing up in the Upper Valley in the 1980s, Becky Dunbar has struggled with the impact of what she believes was the state’s failure to protect her from abuse as a young girl. This three-part series by Matt Hongoltz-Hetling, published in the Sunday Valley News through Jan. 6, tells the story of Dunbar’s life as she lost her childhood, her sense of safety and, ultimately, custody of her own children.

More >> What Becky lost: A system’s broken promises

Woman pleads not guilty to charges of threatening DCF worker

At an arraignment attended by nearly two dozen Department of Children and Families employees, a Bennington woman on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to a felony count of obstructing justice and misdemeanor criminal threatening after police say she threatened "a mass murder" of the DCF workers responsible for her case after she found out she would not be able to visit her daughter at Christmastime, said State's Attorney Erica Marthage.

More >> Woman pleads not guilty to charges of threatening DCF worker

Judge dismisses lawsuit against child welfare department

A judge has dismissed a negligence lawsuit against the Vermont Department of Children and Families.

The Rutland Superior Court judge reaffirmed that DCF does not have a duty to warn the public of the dangers a ward may pose to the general public. The Brattleboro Reformer reports the lawsuit claimed a ward of the state attacked another child at a Rutland McDonald's, arguing DCF was negligent in a duty to warn respite workers about the ward's behavior.

More >> Judge dismisses lawsuit against child welfare department

Parent advocates call for wholesale reform of child protective system

A new report from a nonprofit that advocates for parents argues that Vermont’s child protective system is fundamentally broken and too often removes children from families capable of parenting.

In “Bending the Curve to Improve Our Child Protection System,” a report out from the Vermont Parent Representation Center, the nonprofit uses an analysis of more than 70 cases it has worked on over the course of eight years and state data to make the case that the state reflexively removes children instead of supporting parents in need. The nonprofit does not serve parents in cases where child sexual abuse is alleged.

More >> Parent advocates call for wholesale reform of child protective system

Lawsuit against DCF worker in Sheldon case dismissed

The Vermont Supreme Court ruled Friday that a mandated reporter does not have to report something that has already been reported.

The court threw out a lawsuit against Nicholas Ruggiero, an administrative reviewer for the Vermont Department of Children and Families, by Willis Sheldon, father of the late Dezirae Sheldon.

More >> Lawsuit against DCF worker in Sheldon case dismissed

Potential Plea Deal Made in Foster Mother Killing Case

A Vermont man accused of shooting and killing his foster mother may avoid trial and take a plea deal.

The Caledonian-Record reports a pending plea agreement has been made between 34-year-old Scott Favreau's lawyer and Caledonia County prosecutors. Favreau was charged with murder a second time after a judge threw out his second-degree murder conviction because a trial judge never asked Favreau if he admitted to the facts of his guilty plea.

More >> Potential Plea Deal Made in Foster Mother Killing Case

SCOV Law Blog: DCF too quick to intervene

et’s pretend for a moment you’re a parent. You’ve got a child, and the child breaks an arm. You take the child to the hospital and get treatment. This is exactly what you’d expect a parent to do. Let’s make the facts a little more serious. Let’s suppose the child has cancer and has to be admitted to the hospital. Parents take the child to the hospital and admit her. Sometimes the parents have to go home, so the child stays at the hospital because that’s where the treatment happens. This is exactly what you’d expect a parent to do.

More >> SCOV Law Blog: DCF too quick to intervene

Vermont authorities investigating orphanage abuse, bishop pledges full cooperation

The Diocese of Burlington will cooperate fully with a joint state-local investigation into possible criminality stemming from the stories of abuse told by former residents of St. Joseph's Orphanage, Bishop Christopher Coyne said Sunday morning.

Coyne told parishioners during mass at St. Joseph's Cathedral and then reporters at a rare press conference, that the church erred in the past with its legalistic approach to allegations of abuse by clergy, and that both survivors and the faithful deserve a more compassionate response.

More >> Vermont authorities investigating orphanage abuse, bishop pledges full cooperation

Orphanage abuse: Vermont authorities to investigate survivors' stories

Local and state authorities plan to investigate the criminality of abuse against children at St. Joseph's Orphanage in Burlington that occurred decades ago.


A joint state-local task force is to be announced 10 a.m. Monday at the Burlington Police Department, Vermont State Attorney General T.J. Donovan said Friday.

More >> Orphanage abuse: Vermont authorities to investigate survivors' stories

Nuns At A Catholic Orphanage In Vermont Abused Children For Decades, An Explosive Report Says

There's yet another bombshell report detailing supposed misconduct at the hands of the Catholic Church. This time the report is about allegations of child abuse by nuns at a Vermont Catholic orphanage. In an investigation called "The Ghosts of the Orphanage," BuzzFeed News' Christine Kenneally tracked supposed incidents of child abuse through decades across the country, but the bulk of her reporting focused on one facility in Vermont.


St. Joseph’s Catholic Orphanage opened in the mid-1800s and closed in 1974. Kenneally estimated that "thousands of people" stayed at the orphanage in the time it was open. When asked for comment, Burlington Diocese Monsignor John McDermott told BuzzFeed News that they take reports of child abuse seriously. "Please know that the Diocese of Burlington treats allegations of child abuse seriously and procedures are in place for reporting to the proper authorities. While it cannot alter the past, the Diocese is doing everything it can to ensure children are protected," McDermott told BuzzFeed News.

More >> Nuns At A Catholic Orphanage In Vermont Abused Children For Decades, An Explosive Report Says

Jail is wrong for Herring

The editorial, “Life in Prison” regarding the Herring case, got it all wrong. First off, it makes too simplified of a conclusion, that Herring deserved life in prison and second, the piece fails to mention exactly how her lawyers blew it.

Failing to mention that a psychological evaluation showed that Herring suffered from delusions and anxiety, which was brought up in court at the sentencing hearing, is important. Clearly, Herring is emotionally disturbed and mentally unstable. Having delusions is an indicator of that. In cases of PTSD, delusions and anxiety are present, too. The lawyers needed to show the court just how disturbed she was at the time of the murders. Instead, they agreed to a plea deal for criminal charges and jail. Herring really needs to be in a mental hospital receiving psychiatric care. She won’t get that in jail.

More >> Jail is wrong for Herring

DCF Shooter Jody Herring Sentenced to Life Without Parole

A woman who murdered three relatives and a Department for Children and Families social worker was sentenced to life without parole Wednesday during an emotional hearing in Washington Superior Court.

Judge John Pacht said Jody Herring's August 2015 killing spree, triggered by the DCF's decision to take custody of her 9-year-old daughter, was the "hardest case" he'd seen in his 35-year legal career.

More >> DCF Shooter Jody Herring Sentenced to Life Without Parole

Judge sentences mother who shot the bitch who stole her kid

BARRE, Vt. — A judge has handed down his sentence for quadruple murderer Jody Herring.

Herring, 43, admitted to fatally shooting three of her family members and a social worker two years ago.

More >> Judge sentences quadruple murderer Jody Herring

Note: That's bullshit.  20 years for each of her family members and life without parole for killing a babystealer.  It should be the other way around.

Jody Herring's daughter back in police custody

Montpelier, Vt. - Jody Herring's daughter, Desiree is in police custody after she was located by law enforcement at the Cumberland Farms in Montpelier on November 14.

More >> Jody Herring's daughter back in police custody

Herring’s mother Jody is accused of killing Department for Children and Families social worker Lara Sobel, 48, of East Montpelier, on August 7, 2015. Herring is also accused of killing three relatives, Regina Herring, 43, Rhonda Herring, 48, and Julie Ann Falzarano, 73, who were found dead in a nearby Berlin home the day after Sobel was killed. Jody Herring is currently at her sentencing hearing at Vermont Superior Court in Barre.

LK Report for 8/4/17 - Beware of Phony Caseworkers... Beware of the real ones too!

Here are the headlines for today.  Check back soon!

This post could be updated at any time throughout the day.

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For the third time in less than a year, a teenage girl in the Florida foster care system has committed suicide.

More >> Florida foster care teen kills herself, is third teen in state foster system to commit suicide in less than a year

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Gov. Greg Abbott called on a federal judge to drop a case considering court supervision of Texas' beleaguered child protection system; he argued the four pieces of foster care reform legislation he signed into law in May would fix chronic problems.

More >> Foster care reform still 'not enough'

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WASHINGTON, Aug. 1, 2017 /Standard Newswire/ -- Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has introduced legislation in the U.S. Senate to propose a Parental Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Graham's Senate joint resolution had four original cosponsors at its introduction on Tuesday, August 1: Roy Blunt (R-MO), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), and Jim Risch (R-ID). The resolution will receive a bill number later this week.

More >> Senator Graham Introduces Parental Rights Amendment

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CAPE CORAL, Fla. (AP) — A foster father in Florida has been arrested in the death of a 13-month-old child.

Cape Coral police Capt. Tony Sizemore announced that U.S. marshals arrested 38-year-old Gregory Dustin Todd on Tuesday. He’s charged with homicide and cruelty toward a child. He’s accused in the death of Mackenzie Fewox, who died Jan. 29.

More >> Foster father arrested in death of 13-month-old Florida girl

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A Los Gatos, Calif. couple accused of adopting a 9-year-old Russian orphan before turning him into a sex slave for the remainder of his childhood was convicted Tuesday in a last-minute plea deal that spared the South Bay executives — and their victim — a jury trial.

More >> California couple pleads to sexual abuse of their adopted Russian orphan

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A High Court judge has ruled against a council’s attempts to use an injunction to force a mother and father to take down an online petition relating to their children’s care proceedings.

More >> Judge dismisses council’s bid to block parents’ adoption petition
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Boston - A state lawmaker, along with a dozen or so foster families and others involved the state's child welfare system are outraged after seeing the treatment given to a loving foster family.

More >> Lawmaker reacts to 5 Investigates' report on DCF strip search
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A former foster mother from Pawtucket was convicted Tuesday of second-degree child abuse following a four-day jury trial, according to a news release from Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin.

More >> Former foster mother from Pawtucket convicted of abusing 2-year-old boy
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The Cape Coral toddler who died in January had bruises on her body and died from asphyxiation.

A warrant released Wednesday details the bruises and injuries found during an autopsy.

More >> Cape Coral 13-month-old asphyxiated; DCF had previous contact with family

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ST. JOHNSBURY, Vt. (AP) — A prosecutor has re-filed a murder charge against a Vermont man accused of killing his foster mother in 2000.

More >> Murder Charge Filed Again Against Man in Foster Mother Death
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It is 10 years since Peter Connelly – known as Baby P – died, aged 17 months, following weeks of neglect and abuse. His mother, Tracey Connelly, along with her boyfriend, Stephen Barker, and Jason Owen, Barker’s brother, were each convicted of “causing or allowing” Peter’s death – it remains unclear who actually killed him.

More >> Ten years on from Baby P's death, social workers are still scapegoats

Note: Ten years on from Baby P's death, social workers are still stealing children too and at a much higher rate.

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There’s still a ways to go in revamping the state’s troubled foster care system. That’s according to Children At Risk.

More >> Advocacy Group Offers Recommendations For Fixing ‘Broken’ Foster Care System
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Since the start of the Trump administration, undocumented people across the state have been filling out Power of Attorney forms (POA), according to Milwaukee Mexican Consulate director Ingrid Fernández Tamez. The POA allows a family to designate a person to take responsibility for their children’s care, including getting them to and from school and taking them to doctors’ appointments.

More >> Uptick in deportations leads undocumented parents to make plans for children
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Two Eagle Mountain parents were arrested Thursday morning on reports of locking a child in a basement room every night for months without food, water, light or a bathroom.

More >> Eagle Mountain couple reportedly abused foster child, locked him alone in basement nightly

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Some caseworkers sharply criticized by a judge who reviewed the death of foster child Kawliga Potts still work for the Alberta government, Children's Services Minister Danielle Larivee acknowledged Tuesday.

More >> Some caseworkers criticized by fatality inquiry judge still work for government

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MILTON — Borough police are looking for a woman who entered a home on Wednesday evening and, posing as a children and youth caseworker, tried take a child, according to a police news release.

Police said that between 6 ad 6:15 p.m., an unidentified female went to the home of a woman who lives on the 300 block of Mahoning Street. Posing as a county children and youth caseworker, the suspect refused to identify herself and refused to provide agency identification when asked by the resident. She told the resident she was there to take custody of the resident’s young child. When the resident challenged the demand, the woman attempted to push past the resident. The resident blocked the doorway and pushed the woman back out onto the front porch, refusing to allow her into the home. The resident threatened to call police and attempted to take a photo of the suspect with her cell phone. The suspect knocked the cell phone out of the resident’s hand and then fled east on Mahoning Street.

More >> Police: Woman posing as caseworker tried to take child

• Mother claims phony caseworker tried to kidnap her child

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Boy (2) in state's care dies after drowning in poo

A toddler in the care of the state has died after he was found unconscious in a swimming pool.

More >> Boy (2) in state's care dies after drowning in pool

• CHILD IN STATE CUSTODY DIES AFTER BEING FOUND IN POOL
• Child in DCF Care Dies in Apparent East Montpelier Drowning
• DCF: Too soon to know if anyone is at fault in child's death
• Toddler in state's custody found unconscious in pool, dies

Jody Herring agrees to accept plea deal for 4 killings

A woman accused of fatally shooting a social worker and her three family members has agreed to accept a plea deal.

More >> Jody Herring agrees to accept plea deal for 4 killings

• Barre Mom Pleads Guilty In Deal To Murdering Social Worker, 3 Relatives
• UPDATED: HERRING PLEADS TO KILLING THREE RELATIVES, SOCIAL WORKER
• Suspect In 2015 Killing Of DCF Caseworker Takes Plea Deal
• Vermont woman pleads guilty to killing a social worker and three relatives in 2015
• Vermont woman pleads guilty in slayings of 4 people, including social worker