How Could You? Hall of Shame-Russian Adoptive Parents Lt. Commander Matthew Sweeney and Amy Sweeney UPDATED
This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.
From Bristow, Virginia, Russia adoptive parents Matthew Sweeney, 39, and Amy Sweeney, 41, were arrested Wednesday, July 18 for “ongoing abuse” of their 8-year-old adopted son from Russia. The child was adopted as a toddler. At 12:48 AM on Wednesday, July 18, the boy rang a neighbor’s doorbell and “appeared to be lost.” He had “severe bruising all over his body.” The neighbor took him to the police station. At 5:30 AM, Amy Sweeney “called to report the child missing from the family’s home .” ”
A police investigation determined that the boy’s mother and father, a lieutenant commander in the Navy, abused the boy earlier in the day, “prompting the child to leave the residence,” Perok said.
Police determined that the parents regularly abused the boy, Perok said.”
The charges filed are for “felony child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.”
“Both were arraigned in Prince William Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Thursday and released on unsecured $20,000 bonds. Information about their next court dates was not available Thursday.
The boy was removed from the house and is in the custody of Child Protective Services, Perok said.
Prince William County Commonwealth’s Attorney Paul Ebert said the Sweeneys have several other children, none of them adopted. The younger children were also in the care of social services after their parents’ arrests.
Ebert said police it’s not uncommon in child abuse cases to see one child the focus of abuse and the others left alone.
“Typically if they have more than one child, one bears the brunt,” he said. “It’s something these people can’t explain, something about the child pushes them over the edge.”
In 2005, another local child abuse case involving an adopted Russian child sparked international interest.
Peggy Sue Hilt pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for beating to death her 2-year-old daughter, adopted from Russia. Nina Victoria Hilt was covered in bruises and died after arriving for a visit at her grandparents’ home in the Manassas area.
The case sparked outrage from Russian adoption agencies and authorities who called for a moratorium on adoptions of Russian children by American parents at the time.”
Bristow parents charged with abusing adopted Russian son
[Inside NOVA 7/19/12 by Amanda Stewart]
The child was adopted 5 years ago. “Neighbors say that the Sweeneys came to the Bristow neighborhood from Connecticut.”
“Debbie Morgal says when she saw the little boy with the sweet face and the battered arms and body, she knew she had to help him. She says he had bruises, some on his back.
Morgal went across the street when the 8-year-old boy showed up at her neighbors Barbara and Ron Kramer’s home before one Tuesday. They had never seen the well-groomed child before and brought him inside.
“I immediately called 911 and explained to him that we have this little boy who said he was lost,” Ron Kramer says.
“When authorities arrived, they found the boy in overall good health, but they say the bruises were consistent with repeated physical abuse. Authorities then took him into protective custody.”
““It appeared based on the injuries the child sustained that it had been on a constant basis,” says officer Jonathan Perok with the Prince William County Police.
Police say that the 8-year-old was the only adopted child in the family and the only one who they suspect was abused. Officials say the case against the Sweeneys includes statements from those who say they witnessed long-term violence against the boy.” [Sigh. People witnessed LONG-TERM VIOLENCE and did NOT report it?Does anyone care about these kids?]
Matthew and Amy Sweeney arrested, accused of repeated abuse of son
[WJLA 7/19/12 by Justin Karp, Gail Pennybacker]
“The child was transported to the Western District Station until parents could be located,” police said in a news release. ”
“”The investigation further revealed that the abuse has been occurring on a constant basis. Detectives from the Physical Abuse Unit obtained warrants against both accused individuals who were arrested without incident.”
Amy and Matthew Sweeney Arrested For Felony Child Abuse In Bristow, Va.
[WUSA9 7/19/12 by Manny Fantis]
REFORM Puzzle Pieces
Update: Russia weighs in on the case and reveals the victim’s Russian name, region and year of adoption: Daniil Krichun from Tula, adopted in 2006.
“The Russian Foreign Ministry criticised the United States on Thursday over what it claimed was the U.S.’ unwillingness to comply with recent legislation on international adoption.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich accused the U.S. of allegedly ignoring reports of a Virginia family’s bullying of eight-year-old Daniil Krichun, whose case is now being reviewed by Russia’s Investigative Committee.
“The many years of neglect by U.S. government authorities over what was happening to Daniel Krichun once again raises the question of the United States’ readiness to fully implement the provisions of a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the field of international adoption…and to ensure proper control over the fate of children adopted from Russia,” he said.
The Krichun case is the latest in a string of adoption scandals to have broken out between Russia and the United States. The instances of American families allegedly abusing their adopted Russian children have strained relations between the two countries, with officials calling for tougher regulation of international adoption.
The State Duma ratified legislation earlier this month regulating the adoption of Russian children by American citizens. The legislation was first proposed in early 2010, after an American foster mother, Torry Hansen, sent seven-year-old adopted son Artyom Savelyev back to Russia alone, with a letter saying he had behavioral problems.
Russian officials claim at least 19 Russian children have died following abuse by American foster parents since adoption of Russian children by Americans began in the early 1990’s..
Kirchun, from Tula, was adopted by Matthew and Amy Sweeney, of Bartstow, Virgina, in 2006. He is now in the care of U.S. Social Services.”
U.S. Failing Over Adoption Laws Says Russia
[RIA Novosti 7/26/12]
The Tula Region is where David Polreis, Jr. , who was killed by his adoptive mother on February 9, 1996, was adopted from. Rainbow House International was the placing agency for him.
At this time, we do not know the placing agency (it could have been an independent adoption) but we can deduce that if a placing agency was involved, it is likely one of the following agencies (Source: 2010 listing of US agencies that have ever placed from Tula from Karen’s Adoption Links):
ABC/Carolina adoption; Adoptions Together; AWAA (affiliated with Adopt a Child); Bethany; Catholic Social Services of Charlotte, NC; CWA; EAC; Hand in Hand; HAPS; International Adoption Services Centre, (IASC) Gardiner Maine; IFS; Spence-Chapin; An Open Door; Child of the Heart;Children at Heart Adoption Services, Inc;Lutheran Social Services of the South; Rainbow House Intl; Tree of Life.
Other agencies now out of business: Family Resources, Anoka; Frost International Adoptions, Sterling, VA; Gift of Love Adoption (IA); Los Ninos; Mandala.
Update 2: A public search of the Prince William County circuit court cases reveals the following:
Amy is charged with one count of Felony child abuse, class 6. Grand jury will convene on 1/7/13.
Matthew is charged with one count of Felony child neglect, class 6. Grand jury will convene on 1/7/13
Update 3: Russia reports that the case did begin on 1/7/13 as is recorded on the publicly available court record.
“A US couple goes on trial today in Virginia on charges of repeatedly abusing their adopted Russian son Daniil Kruchin.
Matthew and Amy Sweeney brought Daniil, now nine year old, from Russia six years ago. In July he ran away from home at midnight and knocked on a neighbor’s door. The neighbor called police. A medical examination found traces of severe beatings on the boy’s body. A criminal investigation was launched.
If found guilty the Sweeney couple will face a big fine or a jail term.”
US couple to stand trial for abusing Russian adoptee
[The Voice of Russia 1/7/13]
Update 4: Please note that both updates 3 and 4 are only published in foreign news. The self-censorship of US media on behalf of the adoption industry is pathetic!
A search of public court records of Prince William County circuit court on January 8, 2013 reveals that a trial date has been set for July 23, 2013.
“An American couple will face trial over their alleged physical abuse of a nine-year-old Russian child they adopted.
A court in Manassas, Virginia, ruled Monday there was enough evidence for Matthew and Amy Kathleen Sweeney to stand trial over abusing their Russian foster child, Daniil Kruchin, whom they adopted in 2006. He was given the name Daniel Alexander after his adoption.
Kruchin ran away from home last summer to seek aid from a neighbour, who later called police. Authorities found signs of physical assault on Kruchin, and the boy was transferred into protective custody.
Both parents were arrested in July, but were released on $20,000 bail each until the court’s verdict.
The news arrives amid a new law that took force in Russia Jan 1 which prohibits the adoption of Russian children by American families.
The law, named after Dima Yakovlev, a Russian boy who died after his adoption by a US family, has been slammed by critics as a politicised response to a US law which levels travel bans and asset freezes on Russian officials suspected of human rights abuse. ”
US couple accused of abusing Russian adopted child
[Zee News 1/8/13]
Update 5/From Russia again:
“American couple Matthew and Amy Sweeney are to be tried on charges of abusing their adopted child from Russia. This decision was made by a court jury in Virginia. Daniil Kruchin was adopted in 2006.
Last summer he ran away from home and asked the neighbors for help. It turned out later that his adoptive parents had regularly abused the boy.
Court hearings of this case will take place in six months which means that it is a long time before the sentence will be passed.
The child is staying with social services, the sadistic parents have been remanded on bail and the case has been sent to court which is overloaded with work. As a result, the hearing of last year’s Virginia scandal over the abuse of adopted Russian child Daniil Kruchin or Daniel Alexander, as he was called in the US, has been adjourned till summer. Hearings are only due to begin on the 23rd of July but what matters is that the jury has decided that Matthew and Amy Sweeney have to stand trial because the prosecution has enough evidence against them.
Ironically, the 18th of July, five days before the hearings begin, marks a year since the child escaped from home at night and asked the neighbours for help. The boy was 8 years old then. Police officers and doctors found numerous bruises and scratch marks on his body. Examination showed that the child had been beaten regularly. Later Daniel confirmed it to the investigators. At first, adoptive parents Matthew and Amy Sweeney were arrested but later remanded on bail for $20,000 each. They will await the hearings at home.
Their neighbors say that they did not notice anything suspicious over the previous years. They rarely saw the Sweeneys or their children. Thirty-nine-year-old Matt is a Navy officer and 41-year-old Amy is a homemaker. She home-schooled their children. Daniil was adopted in the Russian city of Tula.
According to the Virginia Law, the Sweeneys are facing a large fine or a prison term. It is not known yet what punishment the prosecution will demand. In any case, the couple is unlikely to see Daniil again. The boy will be sent to a new home.”
6-month sentencing delay in child abuse case
[The Voice of Russia 1/9/13 by Roman Mamonov]
Update 6/Currently just Russian media
“Two Americans, accused of abusing their Russian foster child, have pleaded guilty in court, RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday. Matthew and Amy Kathleen Sweeney adopted nine-year-old Daniil Kruchin in 2006.
Kruchin ran away from home last summer to seek aid from a neighbor, who later called police. Authorities found signs of physical beating on Kruchin, who was given the name Daniel Alexander after his adoption, and the boy was transferred into protective custody.
Both parents were arrested last July, but were released on $20,000 bail each.
A District Court in Manassas, Virginia, ruled in January there was enough evidence for Matthew and Amy Sweeney to stand trial over abusing their Russian adoptee.
On Tuesday, adoptive mother pleaded guilty to cruelty to the child. This crime is qualified as grave offence. Sentence will be passed in December. Amy Kathleen Sweeney is facing a fine and a prison term.
Her husband admitted his participation in the crime and was given a suspended two-month jail term.
The Dima Yakovlev law prohibiting US nationals from adopting Russian children was signed by President Vladimir Putin in late 2012 and came into force in January 2013. 21-month-old Dima Yakovlev died in July 2008 after his adoptive father Michael Harrison left him in a locked car in a parking lot for nine hours. Harrison was acquitted of involuntary manslaughter.
Russian officials, however, have complained of abuse and negligence on the behalf of American families who have adopted Russian children, pointing to cases such as Yakovlev and Artyom Savelyev, whose adoptive mother sent him back to Russia on plane by himself in 2010.
Out of about 60,000 Russian children who have been adopted by American families in the past two decades, 19 have died at the hands of their parents.”
American couple pleads guilty to abusing Russian adoptee
[RAPSI News 7/24/13]
“Lieutenant Commander Matthew Sweeney, an officer in the U.S. Navy, Tuesday pleaded guilty to a charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and received a suspended sentence of 60 days behind bars.
His wife, Amy Sweeney, pleaded guilty to felony abuse and neglect, and will be sentenced in December.
The couple adopted Daniil Kruchin from Russia in 2006 and renamed him Daniel Alexander.
He was eight years old when the abuse case first came to light in July of last year. The boy left his home in the middle of the night on July 17 and rang the doorbell of a nearby home in the early morning hours the next day.
“I immediately called 911 and explained to him that we have this little boy who said he was lost,” said Ron Kramer, who answered the door at his home when the boy rang the doorbell.
“He was very open about pulling his shirt up to show he had these bruises on his body,” Kramer told a reporter, later adding, “His whole chest was a mess, looked like he’d been pounded on.”
“It appeared, based on the injuries the child sustained, that it had been on a constant basis,” said Officer Jonathan Perok with the Prince William County Police Department, during an interview with a local television station at the time.
About four hours later, the boy’s mother reported him missing.
The boy was taken into protective custody. Matthew and Amy Sweeney were arrested that day and later released on $20,000 bail. They were indicted by a grand jury in January.
Amy Sweeney could face stiff monetary penalties and possible jail time when she is sentenced in December.”
U.S. Couple Pleads Guilty in Russian Adoptee Abuse Case
[The Moscow Times 7/24/13]
I have verified in the public records of Prince William County, Virginia that the original charge for Matthew -one Felony Child neglect -was amended to one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.He did receive 60 days in jail, suspended and $252 fine.
Amy Sweeney’s record shows conviction on one Felony count of neglect BUT NOT abuse as the Russian media says. She will be sentenced December 6, 2013.
Update 6:Amy Sweeney’s sentence is 364 days in jail with 364 days suspended. She got 1 year of probation.
How can you judge and convict people without even knowing the whole story or wait for the outcome of a trial? The truth will prevail. Thanks for jumping on the sensationalized media bandwagon.
Is that a trick question? We don’t convict and we are not judges. We DO blog about all cases that we can find that deal with people involved with child welfare, foster care and adoption. We are here to track the children’s cases as they unfold, not to be sensational. With this information, we will continue to propose changes to child welfare systems.
We also seek the truth. So far, they have been arrested. That is true. We will report all updates we can find.
Wait for the outcome of a trial? LOL. You CLEARLY haven’t a clue on how long these cases take and you wrongly assume that all trials and cases are published. We only report the cases that the media covers or those that can be found on public searches, not ALL the cases that we know about.
Thank you for reporting on this. This is a horrific crime and hopefully both the military judicial system and the civil judicial system will hold them accountable for their actions. I was horrified to see this.
We had a case near here in Longview Washington recently. 5 adopted children, 3 sisters fromHaiti and a brother & sister, I think this was a domestic adoption, all were starved but the worst was the only boy who at 14 weighed about 49 lbs, his body had actually grown fuzz to keep him warm, he also had broken bones left to heal on their own. Of course parents and bio children were all overweight while adopted children starved…and…they call themselves Christians.
Nancy, thanks for commenting. This is a horrible case. The domestic adoptions were from foster care and if I recall correctly there may be a biological adult brother who may be able to take in the boy. This family is also in our archives-The Trebilcocks. We have the whole story at this link https://reformtalk.net/2011/05/20/how-could-you-hall-of-shame-jeffrey-and-rebecca-trebilcock-updated/
Thanks for reporting on this…. Its such an awful, sad story and it blows my mind that folks who pass a homestudy, bkgd checks and hold a security clearance (as active duty military dad presumably does) end up abusing a child. Again.
What on earth will it take to change the way PAPs are screened????
Anonymous Name is absolutely is totally wrong and perpetrating a very dangerous lie. Please feel free to judge and condemn these viscous monsters and bullies. Been there, done that, and there is absolutely no excuse for what probably happened. Anyone who brings up the psychological condition of Russian orphans as an excuse for abusing children adopted from that country does not know what they are talking about, and putting children at grave risk. Lazy and unenlightened parents love to bring up wait and see idiocy because it places the blame squarely on the abused child and offers troglodytes a ready excuse for their glaring shortcomings as a parent, and their abuse of children. Remember how Hansen demonized the boy she sent back to Russia? All the child’s fault?
Real RAD is extremely extremely RARE. It’s real name is Reactive Attachment Disorder, as described in the DSM-IV (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Extremely awful people now call it simply ‘attachment disorder’ or even ‘radical attachment disorder’ and also call their RAD. Look them up on the web, it is hideous.
It appears difficult to diagnose real RAD accurately. No generally accepted standardized tools for assessing it exist. So there is now a booming industry where a bunch of unlicensed cretins pray on ignorant adoptive parents as they desperately flail about in a wholly misguided effort understand their adopted children. Remember that poor girl who died in Colorado while a bunch of cows smothered her with blankets, sat on her, suffocated her, while filming it, in an effort to ‘re-birth’ her unto her adoptive mother? That was an attempt at curing ‘attachment Disorder’.
These charlatans misdiagnose inappropriately high numbers of adopted children as having RAD who, in fact, appear to have only mild to moderate symptoms (please see O’Connor, Rutter, Beckett, Keaveney, & Kreppner, 2000).
For example, disorders such as conduct disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and anxiety disorders, including post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) all share some features with the very rare RAD. Symptom overlap allows hucksters to over diagnose RAD when it is not present, and cash in. There is a completely unregulated and unlicensed industry taking advantage of unthinking adoptive parents feeling sorry for themselves while seeking somewhere to shift the blame for their inadequacies as parents. A convenient diagnosis of RAD makes it all the fault of the child. Poor Parents
I was told by some of the best (real) doctors in the country that it was severe extended complex post traumatic stress disorder which comes with side of ADHD and a healthy heap of depression. I was also told that my child is a Ninja, and one tough cookie. After what she’s lived through, we’re all lucky there are not multiple personalities or anything. Super resilient! A real survivor. There are dozens of approved peer reviewed therapies for PTSD, both in soldiers and children.
Parents of adopted kids have to take their children to real therapists (with real licenses and degrees from real universities) who have training in childhood PTSD. Stop looking for someone to blame and exotic excuses. Simply stick to the standard diagnostic aphorism that around here, when you hear hoof beats, think Horses, not zebras!
Thanks for your comment, Robert. I happen to agree with your assessment. “RAD” seems to be blamed for all kinds of crimes against adopted children. Another one that I believe is thrown around too much (and many adoption reformers probably disagree with me on this but I will say it anyway) is to blame “FAS”-for both international adoptees from Eastern Europe especially and US foster children. While some adoptees have FAS, it is not easy to diagnose and seems to be blamed for all kinds of processing disorders or behaviors and adoptive parent crimes.
I think all adoptive parents should assume that their child has some level of PTSD when they join a new family and they should focus on how they (the parents) can attune to the child (not the other way around). Hyperawareness and lack of trust is NORMAL for anyone thrown into a new home (and new country, culture, foods, language) especially since orphanages rarely if ever truly prepare a child for the changes that will occur when adopted.
Robert – you’re absolutely right!!
Rally – What is even scarier is that a subset of APs, the self-proclaimed “trauma mamas” who claim their kids have RAD, that licensed medical professionals are unqualified to help their children, so they merrily charge other APs for “group therapy” or “parent coaching”. Examples include:
Diana (adopted 2 ukranian kids who allegedly have RAD) who truly believes that ” most professionals in any field…education, medical, clergy, and even mental health related professionals don’t have adequate training in attachment and complex trauma. In fact, the vast majority of those we depend on to help us don’t have any training in any of these areas! Much as some of them would like to, they just simply don’t have the skills to help these kids”… so she set up her own $8 per session online therapy group (link to webinars on the right side of her blog):
http://www.fromsurvivaltoserenity.com/2012/07/its-not-all-unicorns-and-roses-people.html?m=0
This AP (adopted several Haitian children) offers $40/hr “parent coaching” sessions, and her blog includes numerous testimonials from other APs who claim she understands/helps their allegedly RAD kids more than any legit, licensed professional (which are at the bottom of this post):
http://www.welcometomybrain.net/p/parent-coaching.html?m=0
Why on earth do these APs turn to unlicensed, unqualified people to help their kids?!? Is it really that unreasonable to expect APs — heck all parents — to take a kid in need of therapy to a licensed, appropriately educated and regulated professional?? I’m quite certain that if my son, say, fell off his bike and hurt arm and I took him to say, SN unlicensed art therapist instead of the ER, that I could be charged with and guilty of medical neglect. Why is this not the case if a child has a mental (vs physical) illness???
Carlee, I do share your horror for unlicensed APs who charge other APs for faux therapies. It is a good thing to have support groups and share experiences (free of charge) but paid seminars, “sessions” and other types of therapies cross the line.
That being said, there truly are a lack of resources and access post-adoption for traumatized children from orphanages. There are many areas in the country without any resources and other areas that have waiting lists that are a year or more. Other places only assist if the child only meets a certain extremely serious hurdle (like a child threatening to kill someone) Don’t get me started on lack of insurance coverage for behavioral modification. Drug coverage yes, but interventions not involving drugs, sadly the level of coverage is limited. Many therapists that understand the trauma do not take insurance. This is why I worry about the multitudes of people adopting multiple special needs children simultaneously and have to rely on fundraising(these children who also will have trauma, in many cases worse than “healthy” children) and they won’t be able to afford the out of pocket expense needed.
Another point that Reformatina reminded me of today is that even LICENSED therapists do sometimes engage in therapies that can be harmful to adoptees involving unrealistic expectations of the child or dangerous types of restraints, odd punishing diets etc.
Why would an AP go to these places? Desperation. It is rare to encounter a homestudy agency or placing agency that presents a list of resources. I know of only a few that have lists.
Getting state assistance often involves being subject to abandonment charges (see our Illinois stories.) or removal of other children in the home. It is a lose-lose situation sometimes.
Chiming in here even though we are getting away from the article posted. While we are very concerned about unlicensed practitioners treating children, the public should be aware and diligent about LICENSED professionals as well who claim to specialize in RAD or related disorders. We won’t name them here, but there are quite a few out there. They employ what I consider to be compliance based therapies as opposed to healing and alliance based treatment. Parents/caregivers MUST do their homework and be empowered to walk out of therapy if a therapist is compliance focused and wants to stick to labels (many children from difficult backgrounds have global challenges from mild to severe). We really should tackle a lengthy post about how this RAD community has emerged and why it continues–and does little to really benefit children or families. I don’t want any readers coming here to assume using a licensed therapist/provider is necessarily a safe or effective route either.
Thanks! You said it better than me 🙂
I agree and thank Reformatina for making a very valid point. Having a license by no means makes a therapist innocuous. There are therapists with licenses who are very strong proponents of Attachment Therapy, and may even go so far as to testify on behalf of abusive parents who’ve killed their adopted children. They show up and paint an awful picture of the deceased Russian child to uninformed juries all to ready to believe the worst.
Thanks to the poster as well for adroitly pointing out what actually has been proven to show positive results. I feel the reason we’ll probably succeed but RAD believers and AT proponents are sure to fail is because their approach and attitude to raising school-age adopted Russian kids stand in stark contradiction to what actually works. Thanks to their despicable, self-promoting blogs and repulsive self-righteousness, one can tell they’ve been feeding off the slop found to be found in the AT trough, throwing around useless phrases like ‘when love is not enough’ , ‘attachment problems’, ‘trust issues’, ‘strong discipline’ and ‘tough love’, as if they actually mean anything.
Our children are suffering from PTSD, in varying degrees. It is not the child’s problem. It is the whole family’s problem. And it will take a whole family intervention to address the issue. How could they send their kids off to harsh discipline boot camps and tough love, unlicensed therapy schools as if you were dealing with a ‘bad behavior’ problem? It is both barbaric and counter-productive! The child is handicapped, and the whole family has to shift gears, change. If you had a kid who was hard if hearing, the whole family would learn ASL, speak so their lips could be easily read. You have to ALL make changes to help the one afflicted with PTSD, like you’d all change behaviors to help a child who was diabetic or had asthma; keep an eye on foods, sugars, watch perfumes, deodorants, air filters. Know the kids limitations, stay calm, out of their face, don’t corner them. Maybe present ideas using parable, metaphor, let them draw their own conclusions, think it was their idea, empower them. We’ve had considerable success doing some of this