After DCFS Caseworker Killed on the Job, Her Husband Works for Change at the Troubled Agency

Recent child deaths in Illinois have shined a light on the Department of Children and Family Services, the agency charged with protecting vulnerable children in a home, often their own. One man is speaking out to honor his wife and is on a quest to change things at DCFS for her.

More >> After DCFS Caseworker Killed on the Job, Her Husband Works for Change at the Troubled Agency

Man accused of killing Illinois social worker pleads guilty

A Rock Falls man accused of beating a social worker to death signed a plea deal admitting he beat social worker Pam Knight to death.

Court documents show Andrew Sucher was sentenced to 21 years in prison without parole.

More >> Man accused of killing Illinois social worker pleads guilty

Brother of man who fatally stabbed adoptive mother speaks out about alleged abuse

 Kaanoi Kipapa, the young man who killed his adoptive mother in 2014 when he was 16 years old, claimed he was abused for years.

Now, his adopted brother is backing him up.

More >> Brother of man who fatally stabbed adoptive mother speaks out about alleged abuse

Man who pleaded guilty in stabbing death of foster mom gets 8 years behind bars

The man who admitted to fatally stabbing his adoptive mother in a fit of rage when he was 16 will be out of prison in three years ― before his 25th birthday.

A judge handed the sentence down Tuesday, giving Kaanoi Kipapa eight years behind bars with credit for three years of time served.

More >> Man who pleaded guilty in stabbing death of foster mom gets 8 years behind bars

‘All She Wanted Was to Be a Mom’: Adoptive Parents Allegedly Murdered by 11-Year-Old

As police investigate a pair of murders in a tiny New Hampshire town, residents are coming to terms with the shocking nature of the crime: a child is accused of fatally shooting a couple one cloudy Friday morning inside their rural home.

The 911 call came around 7:30 a.m. on March 15. Cops arrived to the Eckert family’s farm and discovered Lizette, a 50-year-old mother of three, dead of a gunshot wound. Her husband James, 48, was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. He died later that evening.

More >> ‘All She Wanted Was to Be a Mom’: Adoptive Parents Allegedly Murdered by 11-Year-Old

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

Niagara Falls man dies in hospital after being attacked by his foster child

A 52-year-old Niagara Falls man is that city’s third homicide of the year.

Tony Paonessa, described by family as “the good guy”, died Friday in hospital as a result of injuries he sustained after being attacked at his home.

More >> Niagara Falls man dies in hospital after being attacked by his foster child

• Teen charged with murder of foster father

Social worker brutally gunned down in driveway

The fatal shooting of a 45-year-old female social worker has left her family, friends and the townspeople shocked and baffled.

In an incident that occurred at Makhado Park in Louis Trichardt, a social worker at the Louis Trichardt Memorial Hospital, Ms Thinavhuyo Muzila, was shot multiple times and killed upon arriving home last Friday at about 21:30. Muzila was parking her vehicle, intending to enter the house, when unknown suspects emerged and shot her, killing her instantly.

More >> Social worker brutally gunned down in driveway

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

Family of foster mother fatally strangled by teen settles lawsuit with DHR

The family of a former Montgomery teacher who was fatally strangled by her 14-year-old foster son last year has settled a lawsuit with the Alabama Department of Human Resources.

More >> Family of foster mother fatally strangled by teen settles lawsuit with DHR

Lawmakers consider state-worker safety after death of DCFS caseworker

Illinois lawmakers are considering legislation to better protect state workers in vulnerable jobs after the death of a child-welfare worker was beaten last fall.

Pamela Knight was a Department of Children and Family Services caseworker. She was attacked in September while trying to take protective custody of a child in Dixon. She died from her injuries in February.

More >> Lawmakers consider state-worker safety after death of DCFS caseworker

Murder charges filed in Illinois DCFS worker's death

A man implicated in the death earlier this year of an Illinois child welfare worker has been indicted on first-degree murder charges.

More >> Murder charges filed in Illinois DCFS worker's death

Ex-foster child in court for murder

A Soweto woman accused of killing her foster mother appeared disoriented in court yesterday.

Nomvula Ramonotsi, 36, was unresponsive during the short proceedings at the Protea Glen Magistrate's Court yesterday. Ramonotsi will know next week whether she will be granted bail.

More >> Ex-foster child in court for murder

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

House sitter murder suspect had been foster child in same home, prosecutor says

The suspect in the killing of a house sitter in Woodbury, New Jersey was once a foster child in the same home, authorities say, and had gotten out of prison the day before the murder.

More >> House sitter murder suspect had been foster child in same home, prosecutor says

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.

Teen murders his foster family, including 10-year-old sister: Police

An Oregon teen is accused of shooting and killing his foster mother and his two sisters in Portland.

KRON 4 reports that the 16-year-old boy, Kevin Adams, is in police custody after surrendering at the scene of the killing on Tuesday night.

More >> Teen murders his foster family, including 10-year-old sister: Police

Adoption advocate reacts to teen charged with murdering foster mother, sister

EUGENE, Ore. - The news of a triple homicide shocked Oregon.

Then we learned more about the case: A 16-year-old boy arrested and charged with the murders of his foster mother and sister - and his own sister.

More >> Adoption advocate reacts to teen charged with murdering foster mother, sister