How Could You? Hall of Shame-Alexander Laws’ case UPDATED and Lawsuit/Bittersweet Justice

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 Las Vegas, Nevada, 2-year-old foster child Alexander Laws was severely injured in foster care after only 10 days in care. The incident occurred in November 2012.

“At barely 2-and-a-half-years-old, Alexander is confined to a hospital bed with traumatic and possibly permanent brain injuries.

“He may never walk again, he may never eat again, he has a feeding tube in his stomach,” Alexander’s mother, Natalie Nelson, said. “He can’t swallow his own spit.”

Nelson lost custody of him temporarily for the second time in early November when she and the boy’s father were arrested on outstanding warrants.

Nelson is accused of jumping out of a cab without paying.

Absent anyone to care for Alexander, Clark County placed him in foster care, where police officers said they believe he was severely abused.

“He was injured by the foster mom’s friend or whoever it is,” Nelson said. “It shouldn’t matter why he was taken, it matters where he is then and he wasn’t taken care of.”

According to police reports, Alexander’s foster mother, Kassondra Martinson, left Alexander and another foster child in the care of family friend Osbaldo Sanchez while she went to work.

Police allege Sanchez told officers the boy fell in the bathroom and that he knew the little boy was hurt “bad.”

But police reports suggest both the medical evidence, and the other foster child, contradict his story and that Martinson lied about her whereabouts when Alexander was injured.

“You’d think there’d be some level of protection for this 2-year-old,” said Marc Saggese, an attorney who is planning to file a federal lawsuit against Clark County.

Any monies recovered would be put into a trust for Alexander’s long-term medical care, he said.

“We’re talking about an infant who is in a position (of) being put with strangers and if the state doesn’t ensure that these strangers are competent responsible individuals, then you’re putting this child in a lion’s den that ultimately leads to a lifetime of permanent damage,” Saggese said.

In a written statement, the county’s Department of Family Services insisted it conducts background checks on all prospective foster parents and that in this case, Martinson knowingly violated its babysitting policies.

According to the department, it is now working to re-educate foster parents.

Alexander’s grandfather, Rick, and his mother seemed weary from the ache that comes when your child is hurting.

“I just don’t want this to happen to any more children, that’s all” said Rick Nelson, Alexander’s grandfather.

With her son’s hospital bracelet taped to her wrist, she said she worries that her once rambunctious little boy doesn’t understand why he now can’t get up.

“He smiles at me,” she said. “I love his little smile.

“Alex needs help. He needs to be taken care of for the rest of his life because of the fault of the foster care system.”

Alexander’s family said they were initially told by the county that Alexander had fallen in a bathtub. They said they didn’t learn until days later that a police investigation had begun and an arrest had been made.

Repeated calls to the Family Services Department went unanswered, the family said.

According to the department, it kept the family informed about Alexander’s injuries.”

I-Team: Family Struggles With Toddler’s Injuries In Foster Care

[8 News Now 12/6/12 by Colleen McCarty]

Osbaldo Sanchez is 21 years old and was arrested on November 14, 2012. He currently has 2 charges against him: 1 each of Child Abuse, With Substantial Bodily Or Mental Harm and Child Neglect/endanger, W/sbh Or Mental. He has a bond of $40,000.

Osbaldo Sanchez

[Who is arrested.com]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update: “A grand jury indicted a former foster mother on one count of child neglect or endangerment with substantial bodily harm Wednesday.

Kasondra Martinsen is accused of leaving her foster children in the care of a family friend who Metro Police say then beat one of the children, 2-year-old Alexander Laws, in November 2012.

The toddler was so severely injured that a portion of his skull had to be removed and he suffered strokes and seizures because of his injuries.

According to Metro Police, Martinsen left the boy in the care of Osbaldo Sanchez, who was not an approved caregiver. He told police that the boy had fallen in the bathroom, but that story contradicted information from the other child in the home and the medical evidence, investigators said.

Police say that Martinsen lied to police about what happened to Alexander and about where she was when the incident happened.

Martinsen is already facing the same charges in Clark County Justice Court and is out on bail. During Wednesday’s hearing, the judge set bail at $40,000 and issued a summons for Martinsen. She must appear in court Dec. 5.

As for Osbaldo Sanchez, his trial date is set for March 2014.”

Former Foster Mother Indicted for Child Neglect [8NEWs Now 11/20/13 By Natalie Cullen]

Update 2:“The mother and maternal grandparents of a boy who suffered severe brain injury in 2012 while in foster care are suing Nevada and Clark County.

The federal civil rights lawsuit alleges Clark County’s child welfare system isn’t compliant with state and federal laws and claims the state fails to provide oversight.

The lawsuit names Clark County Manager Don Burnette, Clark County Department of Family Services Director Lisa Ruiz-Lee, former director of the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services Mike Willden and Amber Howell, administrator for the state’s Division of Child and Family Services.

The lawsuit centers on Alexander Laws, a 2-year-old who in 2012 was shaken so severely that his brain swelled, according to police at the time. The toddler had to have emergency surgery to remove a portion of his skull to allow his brain to expand.

The boy now lives with his mother and grandparents, according to the lawsuit. His long-term prognosis is unclear.

“In civil lawsuits, you hope that changes are made to policies and that the goal of protecting kids is the overriding goal,” R. Todd Terry, one of the attorneys for Natalie Nelson, Alexander’s biological mother, said Wednesday.

Problems in Clark County’s child welfare and court system are the focus of a state blue ribbon committee, which will hold its third meeting today. The committee is expected to announce five points of reform.

The lawsuit was first filed in January 2013 in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas. A failed attempt was made in early 2014 to settle the case. Attorneys hope to go to trial late this year or in 2016.

In a case like this one, there are a lot of witnesses to interview and it’s a time-consuming process, Terry said.

“We look forward to being able to have our day in court and have a jury of Clark County residents make decisions based on the evidence that we are obtaining,” he said.

Alexander is alleged to have been shaken by Osbaldo Sanchez, a male friend of the boy’s former foster mother, Kasondra Martinsen.

Martinsen disclosed that she had left Alexander and another foster child with Sanchez while she worked a 12-hour shift.

At the time of the incident, Clark County Family Services in a statement said the agency did not know that Sanchez was a caregiver for the boy, and emphasized that Martinsen never got approval from the department to have Sanchez baby-sit.

However, according to the lawsuit, about a day after Alexander was placed in Martinsen’s home, a caseworker noted a “male friend” at the foster home. Martinsen told the caseworker that the man, believed to be Sanchez, came to her house two to three times each week.

“Upon information and belief, the agency caseworker did not conduct a background check on the ‘male friend,’ despite collecting his information,” according to the lawsuit.

Attorneys representing the family haven’t seen any physical evidence that a background check of Sanchez was conducted, Terry said.

The lawsuit also alleges that Martinsen was approved as a licensed foster mother around Oct. 15, 2012. A few weeks later, around Nov. 1, 2012, Alexander was placed in her home. She also had a 6-year-old foster child in her care.

Alexander was removed from his home after his mother was taken into custody for an outstanding warrant for an unpaid taxi fare, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims Family Services did not ensure it was placing the boy with an appropriate foster parent who would be able to care for him.

“Martinsen knew that she was required to use the approved day care provider, but her shift was too long and the day care provider would not be able to extend the care for duration of her shift,” the lawsuit reads. “The agency (Family Services) and the foster mother Martinsen were both aware that supplemental child care was needed for Alexander and the other foster child present in the home.”

Sanchez was arrested soon after Alexander was injured in 2012. The boy later suffered a stroke and a series of seizures before having parts of his skull removed, according to police.

Gregory Coyer, a lawyer representing Sanchez, said his client’s criminal trial is scheduled for April 27. He has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges, including child abuse, neglect or endangerment with substantial bodily harm.

“He is still presumed innocent,” Coyer said of Sanchez, who is not in custody.

T. Augustus Claus, an attorney representing Martinsen, didn’t return calls seeking comment. But court records show that Martinsen also pleaded not guilty to a felony charge for child neglect or endangerment with substantial bodily harm. She also is awaiting trial.

Last year, Nevada child welfare officials told the Legislative Committee on Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice, that some of the most significant injuries to foster children are inflicted by people child welfare agencies lack the authority to screen.

Ruiz-Lee said in March 2014 that Family Services does conduct background checks of people who are not residents of a foster home, but are regularly or routinely found there. Clark County spokesman Erik Pappa did not respond to questions Wednesday about whether Alexander’s case prompted Family Services to implement those kinds of background checks.

“We are very interested to see what policies were really in effect at the time that this occurred and what county employees believed those policies were,” Terry said.”

Brain injury to boy in foster care prompts lawsuit against county, state[Las Vegas Review Journal 1/15/15 by Yesenia Amaro]

Update 3:“The federal court in Nevada has approved a $2.075 million settlement for seven former foster children who claimed they were injured while in Clark County’s child welfare system, the National Center for Youth Law announced Monday.

The advocacy group’s attention has now shifted to whether recommendations for county child welfare reform and related court systems will be implemented.

“The track record for the county is not good,” said Bill Grimm, a senior attorney at the Oakland, Calif.,-based National Center for Youth Law, which filed the lawsuit and lobbies for the protection and care of foster children.

The settlement was approved by the Clark County Commission in mid-November, but it still needed final approval from the court. About $1.6 million will directly benefit the seven former foster children, while $500,000 will cover attorney fees and costs for plaintiffs’ counsel.

Clark County spent $1.4 million on attorney fees, which covered outside counsel, and other costs in defending the case.

The settlement follows a long legal battle over the county’s foster care system waged by the National Center for Youth Law and Morrison & Foerster LLP on behalf of their clients, the announcement said.

The federal civil rights lawsuit was filed in 2010 and claimed the county’s child welfare agency failed to provide adequate care and safety for foster children.

A federal judge threw out the case, but a federal appeals court reinstated the suit in 2012.

The suit cited concerns with numerous aspects of the county’s child welfare system, including the use of psychotropic medications on children, reported physical and sexual abuse in foster homes, and the adequacy of Child Protective Services investigations.

The settlement was approved on March 21 by federal Judge Robert C. Jones. The money for each plaintiff ranges from $100,000 to $350,000, which has been deposited into annuities and trusts, Grimm said.

Four of the former foster children are still minors and may need to go to court for particular disbursements.

Now that the legal battle is over, the advocacy group’s attention has turned to the recently released report from a Nevada Blue Ribbon committee that recommends reforms to the county’s child welfare and court systems, Grimm said. The committee was appointed last fall by Nevada Supreme Court Justice Nancy Saitta to examine system shortcomings.

“A report gets issued … and when it comes to implementing the changes, very little ends up being done,” Grimm said.”

Court approves $2.075 million settlement for ex-foster children [Las Vegas Review Journal 4/6/15 by Yesenia Amaro]