The state reviewed the cases of 13 children who died in 2007 after their families had contact with county social services departments. In two cases, the contact was found to be irrelevant to the death.
ZOE GARCIA, 7
Found dead: Dec. 6, 2007. Cause: Injuries from fighting. Circumstance: Zoe died after “wrestling and playing Mortal Kombat” with her 16-year-old sister, Heather Trujillo, and Trujillo’s live-in boyfriend, Lamar Roberts, 17. The two were charged as adults in the death.
Earlier contact: Zoe’s 30-year-old mother, Dana Trujillo, moved to Weld County in early 2007 and had lived in five other counties in less than a year. She had been involved with social-services departments in all of them because of alleged substance abuse and neglect of her children.
In Weld County, Social Services had reports Aug. 24-28, 2007, of bruising fights between Zoe and Heather Trujillo and Roberts. “My sister beats me up a lot,” Zoe told a caseworker. One of Zoe’s younger siblings had suffered a skull fracture the summer of 2006.
On Oct. 29, 2007, a caller reported seeing Roberts “poke the kids in the head, throw them in the air and not catch them and try to get them to smoke marijuana.”
A caseworker visited the home Nov. 5, 2007, and found the children unsupervised while Dana Trujillo slept. She could not be roused.
State findings: The county should have reviewed family history. There was no investigation into the alleged skull fracture suffered by Zoe’s sibling. The county did not gather information on Roberts, even though he was a member of the household. The county did not complete safety assessments in a timely manner. Weld County said it could not respond to the findings at this time because of “inaccurate factual allegations.”
CHANDLER GRAFNER, 7
Found dead: May 6, 2007. Cause: Cardiac arrest and starvation.
Circumstance: Chandler weighed 34 pounds at the time of his death. Jon Phillips, 26, Chandler’s stepfather, and Phillips’ girlfriend, Sarah Berry, 21, await trial on first-degree murder charges. Chandler’s younger brother said his brother was kept in a dark closet without food.
Earlier contact: The social services departments of three counties — Denver, Arapahoe and Jefferson — were involved in this case. Between Oct. 7, 2004, and May 6, 2007, the counties received 11 reports of neglect or abuse. Two of the reports came after Phillips took Chandler in. A Denver elementary school reported suspected child abuse Jan. 17, 2007. A Denver caseworker deemed the allegations unfounded. Denver received a report that Chandler was taken out of school April 17, 2007.
State findings: Arapahoe County did not follow up on the whereabouts of Chandler’s mother, Christina Grafner, and the children after she moved and gave them an invalid new address. It did not initiate a criminal background check on Grafner.
Jefferson County should have done a more comprehensive assessment. Denver County should have concluded, after investigating the credible report by the school, that it was either founded or inconclusive.
NEVEAH GALLEGOS, 3
Found dead: Sept. 24, 2007. Cause: Blunt trauma to abdomen, possible suffocation or strangulation.
Circumstance: Neveah’s mother, Miriam Gallegos, 20, and her boyfriend, Angel Ray Montoya, 22, reported Sept. 21 that Neveah had been kidnapped. Police deemed that untrue and requested public assistance in finding the body. The investigation continues.
Earlier contact: Human Services received a report July 15, 2006, that Neveah’s mother took her to the hospital for treatment of vaginal bleeding. The medical report could not conclude what had caused the penetration injury but Neveah was placed with her grandmother. Montoya, a registered sex offender, refused to be interviewed in the case .
By the end of July, a human services team returned custody of Neveah to her mother, provided she report any contact with Montoya and receive help with her parenting skills.
On Nov. 13, 2006, a therapist said she had no safety concerns and the case was closed Nov. 21, 2006.
State findings: The Denver Department of Human Services did not adequately document safety concerns in its July 17, 2006, assessment.
The department disagreed that the facts support a rule violation.
LUZ VALDEZ, 3 MONTHS
Found dead: Dec. 30, 2007. Cause: Internal head bleeding from being shaken.
Circumstance: Luz died two days after her parents took her to an emergency room. Her father, Isidoro Valdez-Ruelas, 24, admitted shaking the child and was charged.
Earlier contact: Two reports in the first seven months of 2007, before Luz’s birth, expressed concerns of neglect or abuse in the home, by Luz’s mother, Mary Elizabeth Maes- Campos, 21. Also on Nov. 26, 2007, Maes-Campos asked a doctor to look at Luz because she had been dropped three times by her father.
A caseworker assessed the family risk as high but believed a former foster mother remained a “huge support” for the family and lowered the risk.
State findings: Denver did not conduct a thorough record search on the family. It did not adequately investigate, properly document the case or respond in a timely manner. Denver disagrees with the first two findings; it accepts that documentation was incomplete and that it failed to adhere to proper response times.
LOREYNA BAREA, 7
Found dead: March 9, 2007. Cause: Blunt-force injuries, acute dehydration with chronic malnutrition.
Circumstance: LoReyna was in the care of her maternal aunt, Genevieve Barea, 45.
Earlier contact: Social Services received a report Feb. 2 that the Barea children were fearful of their aunt and did not behave normally. When the Barea children were brought to the hospital Jan. 11 to see their biological mother, who later died, they were not allowed to speak to any of the mother’s other 10 siblings.
The report was not assigned for investigation because, the department concluded, it did not contain specific allegations of abuse and neglect. LoReyna died a month later. Surviving siblings were placed in foster care.
Genevieve Barea is facing charges of child abuse resulting in death.
State findings: Weld County did not contact reporting parties to seek additional information about suspected abuse.
EZRA SPROWES, 5 MONTHS
Found dead: Dec. 28, 2007. Cause: “Probable positional asphyxia.”
Circumstance: Ezra had no visible signs of trauma at his death. The coroner determined it was suspicious and possibly caused by several stuffed animals and blankets in the child’s crib. Ezra’s mother, Kaziah Sprowes, 23, said the child took a nap at 1 p.m., awoke and spit up. She turned him onto his stomach. She checked him at 4:30 p.m. and he was not breathing. She reported performing CPR on Ezra for two to three hours before her own mother came home and called 911. Adams County Social Services ruled the case unfounded for physical abuse and inconclusive for medical neglect.
Earlier contact: Social Services received a report July 6, 2007, that Kaziah Sprowes, who appeared to have developmental challenges, had given birth. A caseworker visited the home and did not find evidence of threats to the baby’s safety. A Tri-County Health assessment determined a moderate risk and provided services.
State findings: None.
ROSALIA GARCIA- QUINTANA, 4
Found dead: Oct. 30, 2007. Cause: Blood poisoning from infections, acute pneumonia.
Circumstance: Rosalia was in her home with her father, Salvador Quintana, 23, and his girlfriend, Carmen Guerra, 28. The autopsy found infected skin ulcers on Rosalia’s body. She was cut, bruised and malnourished. The coroner ruled her death a homicide, and her father and Guerra were charged with abuse causing death.
Earlier contact: Otero County received two reports of alleged child abuse of Rosalie. An investigation concluded those were unfounded. Rosalia, who was living with her father, did not want to go to the home of her mother, Angelica Garcia, 26. Her mother agreed.
About two weeks before Rosalia’s death, Otero County received an anonymous report that Rosalia’s father was abusing her. The caseworker at first could not make contact with the family. Salvador Quintana later said he and Rosalia had been visiting his father in Texas at the time of the report, and abuse could not have been witnessed in Colorado.
State findings: Face-to-face interviews with the victim and siblings did not take place. A home visit was not made. There was no verification of the father’s claims. Reports were not tracked. The county did not examine surviving siblings for abuse. Otero County agreed to visit a child’s place of residence after reports of abuse. It will provide caseworkers with additional training.
JESSE WEAVER, 11
Found dead: July 8, 2007. Cause: Overdose of Seroquel, used to treat mental disorders.
Earlier contact: Elbert County Department of Social Services (asked to investigate the fatality by Lincoln County) concluded that the parents, Traci Weaver, 34, and Wade Weaver, 37, were responsible for emotional abuse, medical neglect and failure to protect Jesse.
The department found that the parents’ domestic violence harmed Jesse’s mental health. The medical neglect stemmed from his parents’ withholding medication. Jesse was medicated for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder and disruptive behavior disorder.
Lincoln County had received 15 or more reports since 1999 alleging neglect, domestic violence, substance and physical abuse at the home. The county found all allegations were unsubstantiated or inconclusive, yet kept the case open and provided family-support services.
Between May and July 2007, the family and others reported problems with Jesse, from angry rages and violent threats to seizures. The mother allegedly took him off his medications at times. A therapy appointment was missed.
State findings: Lincoln County should have contacted mental health agencies to participate in the case and did not respond to new reports while services were already being provided. The county did not properly document information.
Lincoln County concurred with the findings and said it would develop training and protocols to correct inadequacies.
ALIZE J. VICK, 2Found dead: Oct. 10, 2007. Cause: Head injury.
Circumstance: Alize was in the foster care of Jules Cuneo, 34. Cuneo called 911 on Oct. 9 to report a “minor fall.” Alize was diagnosed with a head injury and died the next day.
Cuneo told police that she had become angry with Alize because she would not talk to her. She allegedly told police that she had thrown the child down, and she struck a table hard enough to land on the floor on the other side of the table. Cuneo was charged with first-degree murder and child abuse.
Earlier contact: Alize was placed in Cuneo’s care March 6, 2007, after which there were reports of marks following a bathtub fall on April 23, and a May 8 report that Cuneo was “unrelenting and abusive.” A caseworker found no evidence of abuse or neglect.
State findings: There was lack of action to protect the child, inadequate documentation and lack of timely investigation. The county refuted the findings as either inaccurate, misinterpreted or irrelevant to the fatality.
KAYLA DUTCHER, 5
Found dead: Oct. 7, 2007. Cause: Overdose of prescription painkiller Tramadol.
Circumstance: Kayla was in the care of her parents, Amy and James Dutcher, ages 26 and 35. Kayla was legally blind.The parents allegedly gave inconsistent statements about how the narcotic got into her system.
The sheriff said there were indications the parents were not cautious in storage of medications in the family home, an RV. No criminal charges were filed. El Paso Department of Human Services found fatal neglect.
Earlier contact: The department received a report Sept. 19, 2007, that the Dutcher home had no gas for cooking or heating water. The children were not in school. The department offered the family help. James Dutcher declined services Oct. 2. There was no follow-up.
State findings: El Paso County did not properly document the case.
ADRIAN RUYBAL, 5 WEEKS
Found dead: Dec. 14, 2007. Cause: Bleeding on the brain.
Circumstance: Pathologists said Adrian’s death resulted from intentional head injuries while in the care of his mother, Leticia Ruybal, 24. Investigation of the death continues. No criminal charges have been filed.
Phillips County Department of Social Services made a finding of neglect but could not conclude physical abuse.
Earlier contact: Phillips County had received five reports between 2001 and 2003 of Leticia Ruybal’s parental neglect and abuse. The county found neglect and provided assistance. It closed the case in 2004.
State findings: None.
Profiles compiled by Electa Draper, The Denver Post
