How Could You? Hall of Shame-Buddy Cook case-Child Death 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 Cleburne, Texas, adoptee Buddy Cook, 4, died on March 22, 2013. Buddy’s biological mother is adoptive dad David ‘s half-sister. The preliminary cause of death is dehydration and malnutrition.
“A 4-year-old Cleburne boy appeared to be “skin and bones” when he was found dead at home last week, and his adoptive parents had failed to seek medical attention, according to court documents released Thursday.
Buddy Cook appears to have died from dehydration and malnutrition, although a final ruling is pending further tests, according to a petition and affidavits filed by Child Protective Services investigators seeking the removal of Buddy’s seven siblings from their home.
The children are in foster care as the investigation continues.
The documents paint a horrific picture of Buddy’s life prior to his adoption and outline emotional and behavorial issues that he had reportedly been experiencing since.
CPS investigators accused Buddy’s adoptive parents, Angel and David Cook, of endangering the physical or emotional well-being of their children, who are from 1 to 12 years old.
“Based on the children’s statements, their vulnerability and the parents’ inablity [sic] to provide an explanation for the condition that Buddy Cook was found in, it is the department’s recommendation that if these children were allowed to live in the home with their parents … they would be placed in eminent harm,” the document reads.
But a family friend who sometimes cares for the children told investigators that they always appeared healthy and appropriately clean.
The friend said that she had seen Angel Cook tape gloves onto Buddy’s hands to prevent him from hurting himself and that Buddy had to be placed in a high chair for up to three hours before he would eat.
Buddy’s siblings gave varying accounts about their home life, according to the documents. Two reported being bathed just once a week.
Some said they were never denied food as punishment, while another said he and Buddy were sent to bed without dinner and were spanked with a belt if they left their room without permission.
The affidavit notes that the Cooks’ home was clean and had ample food.
Buddy was pronounced dead at his home in the 500 block of Odell Street about 11:20 a.m. March 22. A CPS investigator wrote that his eyes and cheeks were sunken and that he was emaciated.”
She saw bruises on his wrists and marks on his face and legs, the affidavit says.
An autopsy, however, determined that Buddy had food and water in his stomach and that his bowel was full, “all indicating intake of food and water.”
The autopsy also found that he had no fractures, nor external injuries indicative of abuse, and that the injuries to his face were consistent with a fall.
Buddy weighed 31 pounds, about six pounds below the average weight for a child his age.
His adoptive parents told investigators that he was the product of an incestuous relationship and that he had been sexually abused by his biological mother and several men.
The Cooks said that they took in Buddy and his sister and that the adoption was finalized eight or nine months ago.
Buddy came to them with serious problems, they said.
He was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, reactive attachment disorder and a sexually transmitted disease. He banged his head on things, sat in the corner rocking back and forth, and picked at the walls, or his own skin.
Usually, the Cooks said, they had to feed him with a spoon to get him to eat.
CPS has no record of previous contact with the Cook family in Texas. The documents say there is a “significant history” regarding Buddy and his sister out of Oklahoma, where they lived with their biological parents.
Officials are seeking records from Oklahoma and New Mexico, where Buddy had also lived before moving in with the Cooks.
Medical records from Cook Children’s Medical Center indicate that Buddy received an extensive examination in April 2011, “which reveal a child that had severe behavioral issues relating to abuse and neglect by his biological parents,” the documents state.
David Cook told investigators that Buddy recently had begun refusing to eat or drink but ate his own feces. His parents were feeding him Ensure because he was losing weight.
The couple discussed taking Buddy to the doctor or the hospital for another evaluation, the documents say.
“Mr. Cook expressed he was concerned about Buddy’s weight, yet could not provide any answer as to why Buddy was not taken to the doctor or hospital regarding his weigh loss,” the affidavit states.
Angel Cook told CPS that on the night before he death, Buddy threw up before and after dinner but had no fever. She said she put him to bed early after he said he was tired.
The next day, she heard him moan twice in his room and found him with his eyes open but not focused, prompting her to call 911.
An 11-year-old sibling told investigators he “heard a lot of noises coming from Buddy’s bedroom like groans and banging and that the groaning only lasted 45 seconds,” the affidavit states.
“He stated Buddy was probably banging because he couldn’t breathe.”
The brother said that when he and his mother went to check on Buddy, they found him not breathing.
Angel Cook told the investigator that she had intended to take Buddy to the doctor on the day he died.
She said she had not taken him earlier because she was waiting for him to get over his stomach bug.
When Buddy Cook had last seen a doctor is unclear.
Angel Cook said she had last taken the boy in June, when he received shots and it was noted that he was underweight.
CPS is still accessing Buddy’s complete medical records. The affidavit notes the boy was seen by his doctor in September 2011 for a follow-up visit regarding his behavior and speech.
At that time, he weighed 32 pounds.
“We’re still investigating,” said Marissa Gonzales, a CPS spokeswoman. “We’re taking everything we’re told and we’re double-checking to see if it’s accurate. Hopefully, that’s going to give us a picture of what was going on with this family.””
Affidavit: Cleburne boy, 4, appeared malnourished at time of death
[Star-Telegram 3/28/13 by Deanna Boyd]
“According to an Affidavit of Any Fact filed Monday with the 413th District Court by Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Special Investigator Kelly Neil, Forensic Pathologist Dr. Lloyd White delivered the preliminary cause of death.”
“The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office subsequently recorded his weight at 31 pounds, placing him in the “3rd percentile on a CDC growth chart, approximately 6 [pounds] below an average weight for [his] age,” according to the affidavit.
Buddy’s body appeared emaciated — only skin and bones — according to the Affidavit in Support of Removal, also filed in the court.
The preliminary apparent cause of death by dehydration and malnutrition remains pending until toxicology, histology and genetic studies complete, according to the affidavit.
According to the affidavit, White said he is “not comfortable ruling the death intentional at this time.”
No charges have been filed against Buddy’s adoptive parents, David and Angel Cook. Police and CPS officials said their investigations continue and they await results of the toxicology and histology tests.
Initial autopsy reports also reveal no apparent signs of physical abuse.
“[White] said he finds no external injury indicative of abuse and that the healed injury to the chin and the recent injury to the right lateral supraorbital area of the right eye are both consistent with a fall,” according to the affidavit.
The Cooks adopted Buddy from David Cook’s half-sister. Both said, in the affidavit, that his biological mother was abusive to Buddy and that Buddy suffered from a number of psychological and medical problems. Angel Cook said Buddy’s adoption finalized about eight or nine months ago.
Buddy ate at times and not at others and, at times, threw up after eating, according to the affidavits. David Cook told investigators he was concerned about Buddy’s medical condition because he was not gaining weight or eating normally and hadn’t been for the past four weeks. They were giving the child Ensure.
Angel Cook said she and her husband “had noticed some decline in [Buddy’s] weight in the last 3-4 weeks and had been videotaping his behavior so they can get some help.”
Preliminary autopsy reports note that Buddy’s bladder was full, his stomach contained food and water and the bowel was full indicating intake of food and water.
Angel Cook told investigators she had planned to take Buddy to the doctor the day he died.
“Mrs. Cook was asked why Buddy had not been [taken] to doctor due to the concerns of his weight loss. Mrs. Cook stated she was going to take Buddy to the doctor as soon as he got over the stomach bug. She had no other reason for not seeking out medical treatment or advice for Buddy,” according to the affidavit.
The affidavit shows that Angel Cook took Buddy to the emergency room at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Cleburne on July 31, 2010, because of suspected child abuse reported by Oklahoma Social Services. Buddy was examined for non-sexual child abuse, according to the affidavit, which does not list the results of the examination.
Buddy was also taken to Texas Health Cleburne on Jan. 28, 2011, after he fell and lacerated his chin and was released with instructions on how to care for a laceration.
Records from Cook Children’s Medical Center visits on Aug. 1, 2010, and April 2011 are “pending,” according to the affidavit.
The affidavit notes a visit to Dr. Ranbir K. Sharma on Sept. 15, 2011, to “follow up on his behavior and his speech.”
The affidavit also notes that Buddy was scheduled for an appointment with [Cleburne psychologist Bobbie H.] Lilly on Sept. 28, 2011, but that no one showed up.
David and Angel Cook have no criminal history, according to the affidavit, which records show a criminal trespass warning issued against Angel Cook “regarding Cleburne schools” and that she was involved in an arson investigation.
“An additional concern is in regard to an inactive CPD case in which Angel Cook was the suspect in a fire that was set in a trash can in an empty classroom in May of 2009 at Irving Elementary School,” according to the Affidavit of Any Fact. “During the investigation Angel Cook made claims regarding the medical condition of her child, [name deleted], which could not be verified and appeared to forge a document in support of her claim. Extensive efforts by Cleburne detectives failed to be able to verify the existence of the doctor who alledgedly [sic] evaluated her daughter.””
2nd affidavit releases new data in boy’s death
[Cleburne Times Review 3/28/13 by Matt Smith]
[Daily Mail 3/29/13 by Rachel Quigley]
REFORM Puzzle Piece
Why was this child not placed in a therapeutic foster home environment? He needed extensive help from Day One.
Update:
“The siblings of a 4-year-old found dead in his Cleburne home last month will likely remain in the care of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, at least for the time being.
An adversary hearing on the matter of the remaining children is scheduled for 9 a.m. Monday in the 413th District Court.
According to a Rule 11 agreement filed Friday involving the children’s parents, Angel and David Cook, and the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office, the parties have agreed that Child Protective Services “shall continue to be named as temporary managing conservator of [the children],” and do not object to the entering of such order during the adversary hearing.
The agreement also states that CPS agrees to “maintain the current stated goal of family reunification,” but that that goal is subject to change at any point “upon the written notification of the permanency goal.”
CPS also agrees to create a “specialized family plan” for both parents and the children to attempt to provide services beneficial to the family.
The Cooks, under the agreement, do not waive their rights to request the return of their children and may request and proceed with a full hearing on the matter by filing any necessary motions at a later date.
Cleburne police and firefighters responded to a report of a child not breathing on March 22 at the Cook’s home to find Buddy Cook, 4, already deceased.
413th District Judge Bill Bosworth later ordered the remaining children in the home, who range in age from 1 to 12, into foster care pending the outcome of Monday’s hearing.
CPS officials, in the Affidavit in Support of Removal, allege that Buddy Cook died of malnourishment. Buddy’s body appeared emaciated — only skin and bones — according to the affidavit.
Rescue workers and investigators on scene also noted cuts and bruises on Cook’s body.
The same affidavits note, however, that Buddy Cook had food and water in his stomach and a full bladder and that his injuries were consistent with a fall.
The preliminary cause of Buddy Cook’s death, by dehydration and malnutrition, remains pending until the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office completes toxicology, histology and genetic studies, according to the affidavit.
Forensic Pathologist Lloyd White delivered the preliminary cause of death in March, but also said he was, “not comfortable ruling the death intentional at this time.”
Cleburne police and investigators await the results of Cook’s autopsy and continue their investigation with no charges or arrests having been made in the case.
The Cooks adopted Buddy from David Cook’s half-sister who, according to allegations in the affidavit, badly abused the boy. ”
Cook children to remain in foster care for now
[Cleburne Times Review 4/5/13 by Matt Smith]
Update 2: “A North Texas husband and wife have been charged with felony injury to a child after their 4-year-old adopted son was found dead at their home.
Cleburne police arrested David and Angel Cook after an autopsy report released Monday indicated Buddy Cook’s death was a homicide. The body was discovered March 22.
Earlier Child Protective Services affidavits said Buddy apparently died of dehydration and malnutrition and the parents didn’t seek medical attention.
Bond has been set at $75,000 for each parent. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday did not immediately provide information on whether the couple remained in custody. An attorney for the Cooks didn’t immediately respond to messages.
Seven other children removed from the house after the boy’s death remain in foster care.”
Texas parents charged after adopted son, 4, dies
[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution 5/21/13 by The Associated Press]
“Bond has been set at $75,000 for each parent. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday did not immediately provide information on whether the couple remained in custody.
An attorney for the Cooks didn’t immediately respond to messages.”
“The other children at the home had varying accounts of what life was like in their foster home.
Some said they were never denied food as punishment, while another said he and Buddy were sent to bed without dinner and were spanked with a belt if they left their room without permission.
David Cook told investigators that Buddy had started refusing to eat or drink but would eat his own feces. His parents were feeding him Ensure because he was losing weight.”
“Angel Cook said that the night before Buddy died he threw up after his dinner but had no fever. She said she intended to take him to the doctor on the day he died.”
[Daily Mail 5/21/13]
Update 3/Hat tip to reader for letting us know about new arrest
“Cleburne residents David and Angel Cook, parents of 4-year-old Buddy Cook who died in March, have been arrested again.
Records show that Angel Cook is in custody at Johnson County Law Enforcement Center and David Cook has been transferred to another location not specified.
The Cooks were originally arrested May 20 and charged with injury to a child, a first degree felony. They bonded out the same day.”
Parents of deceased 4-year-old arrested again
Update 4: “About 20 friends, family members and well wishers joined Angel and David Cook on Tuesday morning as they welcomed their seven children back to Cleburne.Angel Cook said she and her husband saw their children a total of 42 hours in the last nine months.
A judge on Monday ordered the children to be removed from their foster homes and the supervision of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services and returned to Cleburne to be placed with Bonnie Taylor, a family friend.
Under Judge Keith Dean’s order, Angel and David Cook now have full visitation with their children, unsupervised by CPS officials, provided Taylor is present at all times.
The CPS case to determine the best interests and permanent placement of the children continues with the next court hearing scheduled for Jan. 10 in the 413th District Court.
CPS’s position remains to seek unrelated adoption for the children, Johnson County Assistant District Attorney David Barkley said on Monday. That may change between now and Jan. 10, Barkley said. County attorneys and CPS officials must now reassess the case given recent developments, he said.
The children, who range in age from 1 to 13, were removed from the Cooks’ Cleburne home after the March 22 death of Buddy Cook, their 4-year-old adopted sibling.
Cleburne police responded that day to the Cook home on a report of a child not breathing to find Buddy Cook dead. Cook was underweight and emaciated, according to reports at the time, although autopsy reports indicate the presence of food and water in his system at the time of death.
David and Angel Cook were charged with injury to a child by omission.
413th District Court Judge Bill Bosworth granted Johnson County District Attorney Dale Hanna’s Dec. 10 motion to dismiss those criminal charges against both parents. Hanna, in his motion, cited conflicts in existing medical evidence and information gleaned from new fact witnesses.”
“Barring unforeseen snags, the case involving Cleburne residents David and Angel Cook appears headed toward conclusion. The couple and representatives from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services agreed to a mediated settlement Monday morning in the 413th District Court, which eliminates the need for a jury trial to determine custody of the couples’ seven children.Under the agreement, CPS officials will remain involved and monitor the Cooks’ home through October during which, among other conditions, David and Angel Cook will continue to attend individual and family therapy sessions and CPS workers will have access to speak with the children, who range in age from 1 to 13, individually.
District Judge Keith Dean recessed court minutes after calling the hearing to order to allow the Cook’s attorney, Patrick Barkman, to clarify several questions in the agreement with CPS officials and attorneys.
The agreement calls for the Cooks’ two youngest children to attend day care, the cost of which CPS will pay through October.
A challenge arose after the day care center both parties agreed upon closed suddenly last week. Other Cleburne day care centers either don’t accept state money or don’t remain open during summer months, officials said, leaving the Cooks to possibly have to seek day care services outside of Cleburne. Angel Cook told Dean her family does not have the financial backing to drive to Joshua, Rio Vista or further for day care everyday and that she also has to get the older children to school each day.
Barkman said he did not want to see the agreement threatened because of the day care situation, which occurred through no fault of the Cooks or CPS. Barkman said that day care is unnecessary given that Angel Cook is a stay-at-home mother.
Dean said the day care condition remains given that both parties agreed to it, but urged both parties to work together to find suitable day care accommodations in Cleburne or the immediate area.
“I don’t want to let good stand in the way of perfect,” Dean said. “We had a perfect situation, but that didn’t work so now let’s go with the good.”
Dean set a hearing for Aug. 5 to update compliance and progress of the agreement by both parties.
The Cook children were returned to their parents’ home on April 4 after both parties agreed on the terms of the settlement. Monday’s hearing allowed Dean to look over and approve the agreement and for all affected parties to sign it.
Holding hands, Angel and David Cook left the Guinn Justice Center immediately after the hearing and made no comment on the matter.
The situation originated with the March 2013 death of Buddy Cook, the couple’s adopted son.
Rescue workers responded to the Cooks’ home March 22, 2013, on reports of a child not breathing to find Buddy Cook, 4, deceased.
Officials placed Angel and David Cooks’ remaining children into foster care and later charged the couple with injury to a child by omission. While some condemned the couple, others remained by their side and proclaimed their innocence.
Johnson County District Attorney Dale Hanna, citing information from new fact witnesses and conflicts in the existing medical evidence, dropped the criminal charges against the couple in December.
After that dismissal, Dean removed the children from foster care and placed them with Bonnie Taylor, a family friend, giving Angel and David Cook full visitation, including overnight stays without the requirement that CPS representatives be present.
Dean in January altered the order to prohibit Angel and David Cook from remaining at Taylor’s house from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m.
Dean said he did so to help the children transition gradually from foster care to returning home.
Barkman, since December has argued that, with the criminal charges having been dismissed, CPS should also close their investigation and return the children to their parents.”
Cook Cases Concludes [Clebourne Times Review 4/23/14]
“Angel Linthicum Cook testified during a hearing this past week that something must be done to hold Child Protective Services (CPS) caseworkers and foster parents accountable for lying, deception, and cover-ups. Texas legislators who listened to her and her children’s’ testimony were appalled by what they heard calling the actions of CPS caseworkers and others “criminal.”
Legislators serving on the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission promised to take action. Rep. Harold V. Dutton, Jr., said it was the worst thing he has heard or seen in state government during his 30 years as a State Representative. He said that he had “never heard a story so bad, so egregious, that it just almost incites a rage in me. This is government at its worse.”
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (TDFPS) is presently going through review by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission. The Commission is taking testimony from members of the public. Testimony about the horrors that have occurred because of CPS actions have been elicited.
Mrs. Cook and her children testified about how CPS caseworkers lied about the facts in the case, and were “too lazy” to research the prior history of the children while they were in their biological mother’s care. The Cooks had voluntarily decided to care for them and later adopted them.
Once their children were removed by CPS, the caseworker also allegedly intentionally kept the identification and existence of family members away from the judge even though Mrs. Cook has nine siblings and even more extended family members willing to care for their children. It is the law that if children are taken into CPS care the judge must first consider if there are family members who can take the children.
The Cooks became the kinship parents of two children who were the children of her husband’s half-sister. One of the children was an infant; the other one was a 2-year-old who, unbeknown to them, was HIV positive. The child had handprints, scars, bruises and cuts on his body when the biological mother left them with the Cooks. He also had anal warts.
The biological mother, Amanda Lunsford, was trying to evade CPS authorities in two states and dropped the children off at the Cook’s home in 2010. Lunsford was later arrested but the men that sexually abused the children have not been found. Cook told Breitbart Texas that the biological mother left her 6-week-old and her 2-year-old brother in a tent where the 2-year-old was sexually abused.
The Cooks notified CPS that Lunsford abandoned the children at their home and CPS went to court to have these children placed in the Cook’s care. CPS did not help the Cooks in any way. They were not given any financial assistance, health insurance, mental health, or any other assistance. The sexually abused HIV positive 2-year-old was suffering from Attachment Disorder, Reactive Disorder, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The young child would shake when men entered the room.
The HIV positive child died as a result of his disease in 2013. This is when the trouble with CPS began. CPS did not tell the coroner about the prior CPS history on the biological mother, and the caseworker did not tell the coroner that the child had HIV.
Mrs. Cook told Breitbart Texas that the CPS caseworker called Mrs. Cook a “baby killer,” hid the child’s HIV status from the court, and hid records of Lunsford’s former run-ins with CPS from the judge. Mrs. Cook went from weighing 170 pounds to just 112 pounds in one month. She could not keep any food down.
CPS kept the Cook’s seven children from them for 377 days. The children were all placed in separate foster homes, and three of them became victims of sexual abuse and physical violence while in foster care. The Cooks who are in a lower income bracket, had to sell property to defend themselves and get their children back. Mrs. Cook is a stay-at-home mom. So far, they have spent $126,000.
The testimony of Mrs. Cook and her two sons at the Commission hearing details just some of the terror that the family suffered:
Mrs. Cook said she testified, and her children testified, because she wanted to “hold [CPS] accountable like they do us.” She also wanted others to feel freer to speak out about violations of parental rights, and abuses suffered by children in foster care. The Cooks had a limited time to speak at the hearing so there was no time to detail all of the violations that the family say occurred.
The Cooks’ 11 and 13-year-old sons testified that they and all of their siblings were taken from their loving home, and from the only church, school, and community, they had ever known. The 11-year-old testified he was told that if he reported his sexual abuse, he would never see his family again. The caseworker also told the boy that his parents did not love him.
The 11-year-old testified that he and his seven and 12-year-old brothers had to sign forms that said they would not talk about what happened while in foster care. They were placed in a home with a total of 14 children. The 13-year-old was placed in a behavioral risk foster home even though he did not suffer from behavior problems. He was placed with children that were 16 to 18 years of age and he was separated from his siblings. He was sexually and physically abused by foster children who were staying there.
There were also alarms on the door to the bedrooms which would go off if the boys tried to leave their bedrooms at night. The younger brother was forced to wet his pants. The 11-year-old testified that he told the foster parents that his 12-year-old brother, who had a heart condition, was being sexually fondled. The foster parents did nothing about it. A month later, the abuser began sexually abusing him. He testified that he was sexually violated almost 50 times while in the foster home.
The interview with Mrs. Cook by this Breitbart Texas journalist and an examination of herFacebook page has revealed even more horrors. Cook said that police reports were filed reporting rocks being thrown thru their windows, gasoline poured around their home, and of being chased down and run off the road while driving in July 2013.
The Cooks have suffered public shame, and harassment, as a result of CPS taking their children. Someone painted “child killer” in red paint around their front door. They have received death threat notes at their home. A source told this reporter that the caseworker is a suspect.
The Cooks finally had their children returned to them after an agreement was negotiated with CPS. They have been forced to put their two youngest children into daycare even though their religious views provide that they should take care of their own children. Mrs. Cook has always been a homemaker. The ordeal is not over because the agency still has temporary managing conservatorship of their children. Under Texas law, the agency must either have a final trial to get custody or dismiss the case by October.
After hearing the testimony, the Chairwoman of the Committee, Senator Jane Nelson, thanked the Cooks for testifying. She also told them, “It is our job to listen to you and hear what you are saying and to do our best to fix what you are telling us is broken …. We are most grateful and the lesson that you are telling us is about telling the truth is very important and ultimately it will pay off. I am so sorry that you went through what you went through.”
Texas State Senator Brian Birdwell said, “This is the kind of thing that gets to leadership yesterday.” The Senator compared the abuses suffered the Cooks to a death penalty case. He asked whether the state had a way of compensating victims who had to spend money defending themselves and were later exonerated. Birdwell also asked whether Health and Human Services and TDFPS had a mechanism for reviewing charges like this against an agency employee.
Other members of the Commission include Rep. Four Price, Vice Chair, State Rep. Cindy Burkett, Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, Senator Dan Patrick, Rep. Larry Gonzales, Senator Charles Schwertner, Dawn Buckingham, M.D., and Tom Luce. Ken Levine serves as Director.
TDFPS told Cook at the hearing that they would speak to her afterwards. Angel Cook told Breitbart Texas that “regarding what they told me after the hearing – nothing – they said someone will call me. A lady did call but nothing came of it, my kids’ abuse still remains unreported.” Mrs. Cook also said she has video surveillance of harassment by CPS that occurred after the hearing. The supervisor was fired after the Cooks testified. The CPS caseworker still works for the Department.
The Commission has issued a Staff Report which is intended to serve as a compilation of all recommendations and action taken by the Sunset Advisory Commission. Public commentsare also posted on the Commission’s website. At this time, the response posted by Kyle Janek, the Commissioner of Health and Human Services, and the Commissioner of TDFPS, John Specia, do not address the concerns raised by the legislators during this hearing.
The Commission website contains a link for receiving comments from the public.
The Cooks will be back in Austin to testify before the Commission on July 25th. Breitbart Texas will continue to follow the case.”
TEXAS LEGISLATORS PROMISE ACTION AGAINST CPS CASEWORKER
[Breitbart 7/6/14 by Lana Shadwick]
“Mrs. Cook testified during the last hearing at the Texas Sunset Commission that her son was beaten, held down, and sexually abused while in foster care. Photos of her son’s injuries appear on her Facebook page. She also testified that her seven-year-old son cries when someone knocks on the door, and he and her four-year-old cry if she is out of their sight. They beg her not to take them to daycare. The Judge ordered the Cooks to put their two youngest children in daycare saying they had too many children to take care of.
TEXAS JUDGE ORDERS REMOVAL OF YOUTUBE VIDEO EXPOSING ABUSE IN FOSTER CARE SYSTEM[Breitbart 8/11/14 by Lana Shadwick]
Update 5: “By the time two-year-old Buddy came to live with David and Angel Cook, he had endured awful, unspeakable abuse.
He rocked in corners.
He put butter knives under his pillow.
Over time, Buddy got a lot better. He stopped needing the butter knife. He didn’t rock in corners anymore.
But he remained thin — painfully thin, no matter what the Cooks tried.
Last March, Buddy died in Angel Cook’s arms. Little did the family know that their nightmare was only just beginning.
“Everything was taken from us,” Angel Cook said. “We lost our son. We had to bury him. I lost my volunteer work. I lost my kids, my church home, a lot of friends.”
The Cooks were charged with injury to a child, a first degree felony punishable by up to life in prison.
Their other children — including 14-month-old Wesley — were placed in foster care.
It looked like they would permanently lose their other kids and spend the rest of their lives behind bars.
More than a year and half later, their kids are back home and the charges have been dropped amid questions about how Buddy’s death was even ruled a homicide.
As for the Cooks, they contend they’ve been victimized by CPS caseworkers, who they accuse of withholding crucial medical information that led to the homicide ruling, of misrepresenting what they and their children said during the investigation, and finally, of failing to protect their children while in foster care.
“CPS has their view of the case, and their view of the case from the start was that the Cooks had deliberately injured this little boy and deliberately starved him to death,” said Patrick Barkman, the Cooks’ attorney.
The Cooks live in a modest brick home in a tree-lined subdivision in Cleburne. A “God Lives Here” sign sits prominently out front. The interior of the home has a distinct Texana feel. Family photos line the walls.
They were regular church-goers, a tight-knit family who did everything together.
The Cooks had a lot on their plate.
Austin, almost 13, has heart problems and wears a pacemaker. He had heart surgery the month prior to Buddy’s death.
Paige, 9, suffers from a lung condition and asthma.
The Cooks had taken in Buddy and his younger sister, who are the children of a relative.
Mary Jane came to them as an infant. Buddy was a toddler when his mother dropped him off at the Cooks’ home in 2010. He was covered in burns, cuts and bruises. The Cooks reported Buddy’s injuries to Child Protective Services. Doctors examined him and found he had a sexually-transmitted disease.
“We were left to try to figure out how to help a two-year-old that was beaten and sexually assaulted and had a lot of anger issues,” Angel Cook said, adding that CPS case workers offered no help since the abuse occurred out of state.
Buddy had significant emotional problems. He would hit, punch and kick others. They took him to a behavioral clinic where he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and reactive attachment disorder, medical records show.
He was too young for medications.
“They told us to bring him home, love him, protect him and he would be better,” Angel Cook said. “We would have him go to each child and they would give him a hug and told him they loved him. You know, it changed him.”
The Cooks formally adopted Buddy and his sister in May 2012.
Buddy came a long way in the Cook household, but it was a struggle after all that he had suffered.
He never did put on much weight. The Cooks gave him Ensure to help get extra calories into him.
“He was eating and drinking every day,” Angel Cook said. “There’s not a day that he ever went without food or nutrients. Buddy did not look like death was coming; we had people in our home three days before he died.”
The night before he died, Buddy got sick. He threw up.
On the morning he died, Angel heard noises coming from his room and went to check on him. He wasn’t breathing. CPR didn’t work.
“Seeing your son die in your arms is very hard,” Angel Cook said.
Suspicion immediately focused on the couple. The children were placed in foster care on the day of Buddy’s funeral.
Angel Cook said CPS caseworkers misrepresented much of what they and their children told the investigators.
In one of the affidavits, here’s how a CPS worker described Buddy
He appeared to be only skin and bones. Buddy’s stomach was caved in and his ribs could be seen popping out from under his skin.”
The worker described what appeared to be bruising around his wrists that could be restraint marks.
“We kept telling them Buddy had a CPS history in your office,” Angel Cook said. “Those are not bruises; they’re scars.”
CPS initially said they had no record of any prior interaction with Buddy, but later acknowledged that those records had been purged from their system.
In fact, the autopsy showed that Buddy’s bladder was full and that his stomach contained food and water. He was significantly underweight, but wasn’t “skin and bones,” said Dr. Lloyd White, the pathologist who performed Buddy’s autopsy for the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s office.
“The police were not particularly suspicious of his death,” White said. “CPS seemed to think there was a lot of suspicious activity involved, and somehow somebody had killed Buddy.”
White said he was told by a CPS worker that they were skeptical of the family’s claims of prior sexual abuse and about the legality of the adoption. He believed that Buddy died from natural causes related to his body failing to properly metabolize food.
“He was eating with the family, and — in fact — the Cooks were taking special effort to try to convince him that he needed to eat more,” White said. “It was my conclusion — based upon everything that I evaluated — that there was no evidence of death due to injury or abuse or neglect.”
But the medical examiner’s office still ruled Buddy’s death a homicide, finding that he had died of starvation.
“The chief medical examiner said he had seem similar cases in Bosnia, and that he felt that somebody had starved the child to death,” said White, who says he was let go from the office last year because they didn’t approve of his testimony in an unrelated case.
One irregularity about the autopsy is that one doctor signed his signature and that of another doctor for reasons that have not been explained.
The medical examiner’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
The homicide finding resulted in what happened next: The arrest of David and Angel Cook on charges of injury to a child.
They became instant pariahs.
They woke up to the words “Child Killers” splattered in red across their garage. Gasoline was twice poured around their house.
The Cooks paid hundreds of dollars to obtain Buddy’s medical records.
Five months after Buddy’s death, they got the records and learned that he had previously tested positive for HIV antibodies. Recommended follow-up testing had never been conducted. The Cooks were never told — apparently because at that time of the testing they were not yet Buddy’s legal guardians.
“Until I found this in the medical records, they had no clue that Buddy had tested positive,” said Barkman, the Cooks’ attorney.
White said when CPS workers gave him Buddy’s medical records, there was nothing in them about the HIV test. He didn’t find out until months later when the Cooks’ attorneys showed him the documents.
Once he learned about the earlier HIV test, he said it explained something unusual that he had discovered in the autopsy.
“He had an atrophied thymus, and there was no explanation medically for an atrophied thymus, but an HIV-related problem certainly would explain that,” White said.
The medical examiner ordered an HIV test more than seven months after Buddy died. The result was negative.
How reliable that testing would have been depends greatly on whether the blood was properly stored, a medical expert said. The most reliable time to test a blood sample is shortly after death, said Dr. Nan Yan, an assistant Professor of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
“Seven months sounds like a long time,” he said. “You want to do it very soon.”
By last fall, White was no longer an employee of the medical examiner’s office. He came forward to say that he didn’t believe Buddy had been killed.
The Johnson County District Attorney dropped the charges last December, citing medical evidence and new fact witnesses.
After the charges were dropped, the Cooks’ children were released into the care of family friend. It would be another four months after the charges were dropped before the children were allowed to come home.
But the battle is not over.
Three of their sons say that they were abused by other children while in foster care. Their oldest son had bruises covering his body when he was released from the foster care system.
Paige had a staph infection covering her face. She was placed with smokers, even though she suffers from lung disease. The Cooks say they noticed that she was coming to their weekly visits sick and wheezing.
Records show that when state workers questioned the foster parents, they said they did smoke, but only outside and out of the presence of the children.
The Cooks’ youngest child was throwing up blood when he first went to stay with the family friend. Doctors determined that he had swallowed screws.
CPS workers again questioned Angel Cook. But in interviews with the children, Paige told social workers that Wesley had accidentally swallowed the screws while in foster care.
Angel Cook soon began demanding that Child Protective Services investigate the allegations of abuse and neglect in foster care. She would soon find that CPS doesn’t investigate foster homes; that falls to a sister agency.
She and two of the boys testified before legislative committees about the abuse they say they suffered.
“I reported to my foster parents and my social worker,” Bryan Cook testified. “The social worker told me it was not a big deal, not to worry about it. … When I told my foster parents again, the foster dad took me and my brother into a room and showed his guns and said we needed to keep quiet about it.”
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has sent Angel Cook two letters indicating that they have not found any issues with what happened during the children’s time in foster care.
Her attorney questions the adequacy of the investigation.
“It basically said, ‘We asked the foster parents, and they said that didn’t happen,’ so there’s that. ‘We asked the social worker, and they said it didn’t happen,’ so there’s that,” Barkman said. “That’s not an investigation; that means we did the absolute minimum required to make it appear that we looked into it. If the shoe was on the other foot and somebody was accusing Angel, they would have never ended the investigation with, ‘Well, Angel said it didn’t happen.'”
But what bothers him the most are the circumstances surrounding Buddy’s autopsy.
“We could have saved a lot of heartache and a lot of money — and some of the Cooks’ children from being mistreated in foster care — if that autopsy had been done right, and Dr. White had had all the records,” Barkman said.
The Cooks still struggle financially. They’ve exhausted their life savings and sold all of their valuables. David Cook works seven days a week to support the family.
The family is under CPS supervision until October. Their two youngest children are court-ordered into day care.
It is still not easy for them. They haven’t gotten over Buddy’s loss.
“It’s hard,” Angel Cook said. “We lost a big part of our lives. All we have left is pictures and his toys and his graveside.””
Adoptive parents cleared in son’s death[WFAA 9/3/14 by Tanya Eiserer]
Update 6:“In less than five minutes, David and Angel Cook’s 18-month nightmare with Child Protective Services was over.
On Monday, the agency formally relinquished guardianship over their seven children. CPS had removed their children for more than a year after accusing them of starving to death their four-year-old adopted son, Buddy.
“I don’t understand how this is justice. But for us, for now it is because our kids are home,” Angel Cook said.
The Cooks contend they were victimized by CPS caseworkers, who they accuse of withholding crucial medical information that led to a homicide ruling in Buddy’s death, of misrepresenting what they and their children said during the investigation, and finally, of failing to protect their children while in foster care.
The Cooks’ long nightmare began in March 2013 when Buddy died at their Cleburne home. The Cooks were charged with first injury to a child, a first degree felony punishable by up to life in prison. Their seven children – including then 14-month-old Wesley – were placed in foster care.
The Johnson County District Attorney’s Office dropped the charges after the medical examiner who performed the autopsy came forward saying he believed that Buddy died of natural causes, not from something the Cooks did or did not do. The pathologist told News 8 that he believes Buddy had a metabolic issue that caused his body not to properly process nutrients.
The children returned home last April under a mediated agreement, but they remained under CPS supervision.”
Cleburne family freed of CPS supervision after 18 months [WFAA 10/2/14 by Tanya Eiserer]
Update 7: “Cleburne resident Angel Cook said she and her family look forward to trying to get back to normal and to mourn the death of her son, Buddy Cook. Cook said she also intends to pursue charges against the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services for, among other allegations, omissions and failing to protect several of the Cooks’ children from abuse while in foster care.
Angel and her husband, David Cook, last week received custody of their seven children free of CPS supervision. Cook said it’s telling that several CPS officials and attorneys who followed the case through 18 months chose not to attend the Oct. 2 hearing in the 413th District Court putting an end to the events of March 22, 2013.
Cleburne police responded to the Cooks’ home that day on reports of a child not breathing to find Buddy Cook, 4, deceased.
Angel and David Cook were charged with injury to a child by omission and their seven remaining children were placed in foster homes.
The allegations indicated that the Cooks starved Buddy and/or failed to seek medical treatment for him.
Johnson County District Attorney Dale Hanna filed a motion in December to dismiss criminal charges against the Cooks, citing conflicting existing medical evidence and “new fact witnesses.”
With the criminal charges dismissed, Patrick Barkman, the Cooks’ attorney, called for CPS’ case to end as well. Visiting District Judge Keith Dean instead ordered the children removed from foster homes and placed with a friend of the family. Dean, in April, approved a mediated settlement between CPS and the Cooks, returning the children to the Cooks’ home while allowing CPS officials to monitor the Cooks’ home for six months. The settlement, Barkman said at the time, eliminated the need for a jury trial to decide permanent placement of the remaining Cook children.
CPS, Angel Cook said, withheld evidence regarding Buddy Cook’s cause of death and failed to protect her remaining children. CPS officials, Cook charges, failed to disclose information about Buddy Cook’s HIV status to investigators and medical examiners.
Cook called the last 18 months a living hell for her family rife with abuse against her children, near bankruptcy, vandalism of the Cooks’ home and community ostracization.”
Mother of deceased child speaks out[Cleborne Times Review 10/08/14 by Matt Smith]
Update 8:“It’s been more than 20 months since little Buddy Cook was found dead in his home, a 4-year-old boy whose short life was filled with torment and pain.
Angel and David Cook, Buddy’s adoptive parents, were initially charged in his death, accused of neglecting and starving the boy.
Child Protective Services took their other children — including Buddy’s biological sister and six of their own. The Cooks said they became pariahs in a community where they had lived for much of their lives.
A rock was thrown through a window of their small rustic home. The words “Child Killers” were scrawled in red paint across their front door.
“I can’t tell you what it feels like to be accused of murdering a child that you tried to save,” Angel Cook said.Last December, as new evidence and witnesses emerged, the Johnson County district attorney’s office dismissed the charges. The children were returned to the Cooks in April.
“We wanted to look at as many things as possible because we wanted to be absolutely sure about what we were doing,” said Matt Smid, a Johnson County prosecutor. “Our job as prosecutors is to seek justice and not convictions. There was too much doubt to take it to a jury.”
But the fallout from the case lingers.
The Cooks allege that some of their children were abused and neglected while in foster care and that CPS did little to address the problems after being alerted.
“I told them the whole time that they were wrong, but they just kept on pushing it and pushing it because they did not want to be wrong,” Angel Cook said. “A social worker told me that I killed my son and that she was taking our seven other children. They did not want to believe anything I had to say.”
The Cooks took their complaints to state lawmakers, asking that the foster-care providers be reprimanded for allowing the abuse, that the couple’s reputation be restored and that they be reimbursed for legal expenses incurred because of criminal charges that should have never been filed.
“We want to make sure that the CPS workers are held accountable when they knowingly leave children in abusive foster homes,” said Angel Cook, who, along with two of her children, testified before the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission this summer. “And to see that this never, ever happens to another Texas family.”
A CPS official said that all allegations reported while the children were in foster care were investigated and that no wrongdoing was found.
“There are no open investigations and CPS is not currently involved with the family in any way,” spokeswoman Marissa Gonzales said in an email to the Star-Telegram.
Buddy’s difficult life
The Cooks adopted Buddy and his little sister, Mary Jane, in May 2012 from their biological mother, Amanda Kay Lunsford, David Cook’s sister. The two children had lived with the Cooks since 2010.
Angel Cook said Lunsford had been on the run from authorities, her mind cloaked in a methamphetamine-induced haze as she traveled from state to state to state.
“CPS investigated us, gave us a safety plan and said if we ever let their mother anywhere near Buddy or his sister, they would take all our children away,” Angel Cook said.
On Buddy’s first night at their home, Angel Cook said, she took off his clothes to give him a bath and saw that his body was covered in scars, scabs, cuts and bruises. The Cooks took Buddy to a local hospital and then to Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth because his injuries were so severe, Angel Cook said.
“That night we took him to the hospital was the best decision I ever made,” David Cook said. “But it was the hardest thing I ever experienced.”
An examination indicated that Buddy suffered from anal warts, Angel Cook said. The Cooks said that they called Lunsford to find out how he contracted anal warts and that she told them he might have been sexually abused by several men while they lived in Albuquerque.
A child-abuse case against Lunsford in Albuquerque, which was closed because Buddy had shown no signs of physical abuse, was reopened in September 2010 after Buddy was examined at Cook Children’s.
The examination also revealed that Buddy had diaper rash, an infected area around his left big toe, bruising, scarring, bug bites, scratches and handprints, all consistent with abuse and neglect, the affidavit said.
Angel Cook produced notarized statements signed by Lunsford, including one in which Lunsford acknowledged that she used drugs and alcohol and suffered from a mental disorder that kept her from providing a safe home. She said her children would be better off with Angel Cook.
“Buddy has a problem with crying all the time and so it would make me drink and I would hit him,” Lunsford told Angel Cook, according to the affidavit. Lunsford would hit Buddy every day, according to the affidavit. Lunsford would smoke marijuana with her boyfriends while Buddy was in the room or lock him in his room while she was drinking, the affidavit said.
“Amanda said the only way to keep Buddy from crying was to give him Motrin or Nyquil,” the affidavit said. “She said she used three bottles in a two-month period.”
When Angel Cook asked Lunsford who sexually molested Buddy, she replied that “it could have been multiple boyfriends,” the affidavit said. “Amanda stated she left Buddy numerous times alone with different guys when she went out to gamble and drink.”
Lunsford was eventually charged with eight counts of abandonment or abuse of a child in New Mexico, according to court records. Those charges were dismissed on May 23, 2011, after Lunsford was found incompetent to stand trial or enter a plea, court records show.
Buddy’s sister, now 4, does not remember the neglect she suffered early in her life, Angel Cook said.
“She seems to have escaped all the abuse that Buddy endured,” Angel Cook said. “The doctors are monitoring her for autism, but other than that, she seems like a normal, healthy little girl.”
‘Slowly he changed’
Buddy, however, was proving to be a case study in child abuse.
He would hide in the closet. He kept a butter knife under his pillow. He picked at scars until they bled, causing the Cooks to tape gloves or socks around his hands so that he would not hurt himself. He struggled to laugh. He sometimes ate his own feces, Angel Cook said.
According to an affidavit that a CPS worker wrote in support of removing the Cooks’ children, Bonnie Taylor, who had been friends with the Cooks for seven years, said Buddy hit himself, hit his head against the wall and picked at himself “just out of the blue.”
Taylor said Buddy would be confined to a high chair for three or four hours at a time in an effort to get him to eat, according to the affidavit.
“Buddy wanted you to hit him because he thought that was love. That was what he wanted,” Taylor said to the CPS worker, who signed the affidavit.
A counselor said that if the family continued to love him, Buddy would get better. And before he died, Buddy did get better, Angel Cook said.
“We’d line up our children every night, and they would hug him and tell him that they loved him,” Angel Cook said. “Slowly he changed. He started laughing and began behaving more like a normal child.”
The Cooks said they took Buddy to the doctor as soon as he started living with them and returned for monthly visits because he was not gaining weight. For 14 months, Buddy weighed 27 pounds, but the doctors insisted he would gain weight.
The family supplemented his diet with nutritional drinks until Buddy reached 32 pounds, Angel Cook said.
In March 2013, Angel Cook said, she and two of her children got a stomach bug.
When Buddy became ill the day before he died, she believed that he had contracted the same bug, Angel Cook said. The plan was to take him to the doctor the next day, Angel Cook said. Buddy ate, took a bath and went to bed.
When he awoke the next morning, March 22, 2013, Buddy said his stomach still hurt.
Angel Cook said Buddy and three of her other children stayed home sick that day. After she returned from taking her other kids to school, Angel Cook said, she heard a noise in Buddy’s room. When she entered, he was staring into space.
“When I went in his room, it was not like he was looking at us. He was looking past us,” Angel Cook said.
She said she could not hear Buddy breathing. When she could not find a pulse, she called 911.
“My son’s not waking up,” Angel Cook told the dispatcher, her voice shaking.
The 911 dispatcher talked Angel Cook through doing CPR, which she struggled with, until paramedics arrived.
“I took him out to the ambulance,” Angel Cook said. “I kept asking how he was, and they would not let me go out there. Then a police officer walked up and told me Buddy was dead.”
‘I had nothing to hide’
Angel Cook said a CPS worker and Cleburne police Detective Kelly Summey immediately began investigating.
The Cooks offered to show them Buddy’s medical records and explain the scars, but Summey wanted permission to search the house, Angel Cook said.
“I signed it,” Angel Cook said. “I had nothing to hide.”
According to Summey, police gathered information at the residence indicating that the child had an ongoing medical condition.Four hours after Buddy was pronounced dead, CPS officials began interviewing the Cook children, asking about their doctor visits, their eating habits and the methods of punishment used by the Cooks, according to an affidavit in support of removal. Three more days passed before Buddy was buried.
Five minutes after Buddy’s funeral ended, four CPS workers took the Cooks’ children away to be placed in foster care, the parents said.
“I could tell the children were upset,” said Bettie Cradduck, a longtime family friend who attended the funeral. “They [the CPS workers] just said, ‘It’s time to go’ and started loading them in the cars.”
The Tarrant County medical examiner’s office ruled that Buddy’s death was a homicide, with starvation listed as the cause, a ruling that still stands even though the pathologist who did the autopsy later changed his mind.
By May 2013, the parents were arrested and faced injury-to-a-child charges, a first-degree felony that carries a maximum of life in prison. According to affidavits filed by CPS, the child appeared to have died from dehydration and malnutrition, and the parents did not seek medical attention.
Cleburne police said Buddy appeared to be “skin and bones.” He weighed 31 pounds, about 6 pounds below average for a child his age.
Charles Payne, their pastor at Calvary Baptist Church of Cleburne, said the child-abuse accusations split the community, with some people believing the Cooks and others believing the authorities.
On March 29, 2013, a week after Buddy died, David Cook reported that a rock had been thrown through their front window.
In July, the Cooks told police that their lives had been threatened on Facebook and that someone had spray-painted “Child Killers” in red on both sides of the front door and had thrown eggs at the door.
Police took pictures of the vandalism and the smashed eggshells on the front steps of the residence. Angel Cook also said someone had forced her off the road, according to a police report.
Police could find no suspects in any of the incidents, and the cases were listed as inactive, according to reports. Police said there were no witnesses or leads in any of the cases.
‘Too much doubt’
The Cooks struggled to make sense of what was happening. Angel Cook said she was no longer allowed to volunteer at the school her children had attended. David Cook worked two jobs to pay the mounting legal bills, which the Cooks said grew to $200,000.
With their children in foster care, stories of abuse and neglect began to filter back to the parents during weekly visits with the children, Angel Cook said.
Bryan “told me he would run away, and I told him to stay put so I would know where to find him,” David Cook said. “I told him to stay put and we would handle it.”
Prosecutors, meanwhile, had interviewed witnesses who suggested that the Cooks were not guilty. Buddy had always been unhealthy, according to witnesses.
Some witnesses interviewed by the district attorney’s office said that the Cooks would try to give Buddy food and that he would throw it against the wall, said Smid, the assistant district attorney in Johnson County.
Other witnesses said nothing looked out of the ordinary at the Cooks’ small red brick house less than a week before Buddy died, Smid said.
Smid said Lloyd White, a former pathologist with the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office who did the initial autopsy, changed his mind about Buddy’s death, saying he no longer believed it was a homicide.
Smid said White pointed out that Buddy had food in his stomach and was hydrated.
While the medical examiner’s office stood by the homicide ruling, White told Smid that the manner of death was undetermined.
“All of that would have raised doubt for a jury,” Smid said.
In December 2013, the injury-to-a-child charges were dropped, according to the prosecutor.
In April, the seven children were returned to the Cooks. But the damage to some of them had already been done, Angel Cook said.
Testifying in Austin
This summer, Angel Cook and her two oldest sons read statements into the record during their testimony before the Sunset Advisory Commission, which reviews the work of state agencies.
One son swallowed screws while in foster care, Angel Cook said. A daughter with breathing problems was placed with members of a foster family who smoked, which made her sick, Angel Cook said.
Her son Bryan told lawmakers that he and his two brothers were sent to a foster home where 14 other children lived. The brothers were locked in a room with alarms that went off when they tried to leave to go to the bathroom, Bryan said.
“My little brother had to pee in his pants at night,” Bryan said.
The children were told that if they talked to anyone outside the house about what was going on, they would be punished, Bryan said. He told lawmakers that he and his older brother were subjected to unwanted touching by an older boy.
“The social worker told me that my parents did not love me and did not want me back,” Bryan said. “I told her to let me go home and that she was lying about my parents. We were placed in a room where an 18-year-old boy began touching my brother’s private parts. What gives a social worker the right to lie?”
The oldest son, Justin, who was 12 at the time and is now 14, said that even if lawmakers act in their behalf, nothing will erase the memories of the physical and sexual abuse he experienced. Angel Cook said her sons reported at least 50 incidents of abuse, all of which were characterized as horseplay by CPS investigators.
“My CASA [Court Appointed Special Advocate], my social worker, the judge did nothing to protect me,” Justin told lawmakers. “My many outcries for help to my social worker went overlooked. No one has been held accountable.”
During the hearing, Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, the Sunset Advisory Commission chairwoman, said it’s the commission’s job to address the problems raised by the Cooks.
“It was heart-wrenching testimony, and we asked the agency to directly address the concerns that were raised,” Nelson said in an emailed statement to the Star-Telegram.
In a letter written to Randy Odom, executive vice president of the Texas Baptist Home for Children, the organization that operates the foster homes where the Cook children were placed, the Department of Family and Protective Services said the allegations of inappropriate behavior had been evaluated and addressed.
The department found no deficiencies but recommended that the foster parents who cared for two of Cook’s sons increase supervision and not allow the children to have any unsupervised contact with one another. The letter, which CPS provided to the Star-Telegram, also said the foster parents may need additional training in supervision.
Eddie Marsh, president of the Texas Baptist Home for Children, said that if state investigators found any of its employees guilty of treating children inappropriately, that employee would be dismissed immediately.
Patrick Barkman, an attorney who represented the Cooks as they tried to regain their children, said the state’s investigation was a sham.
“The investigation consisted of talking to the CPS worker and the foster-care family,” Barkman said. “They both said nothing happened so nothing happened. That was the sum total of their investigation. I don’t know of any CPS investigation against a family that would be handled that way.”
Barkman also said that although the parents have been cleared of criminal wrongdoing, the damage is done.
“There are still black marks against them,” Barkman said. “They’ve received death threats. People are still shooting off their mouths online. And there is no place for these parents to go to get their good name back.
“And we may never know what really killed Buddy.””[Wasn’t it his HIV infection????That’s what Update 4 had to say.]
Cleburne family struggles with death of child, its messy aftermath[Star Telegram 12/13/14 by Mitch Mitchell]
Update 8:Check out The Justin Cook case.
“By the time two-year-old Buddy came to live with David and Angel Cook, he had endured awful, unspeakable abuse.
He rocked in corners.
He put butter knives under his pillow.
Over time, Buddy got a lot better. He stopped needing the butter knife. He didn’t rock in corners anymore.
But he remained thin — painfully thin, no matter what the Cooks tried.
Last March, Buddy died in Angel Cook’s arms. Little did the family know that their nightmare was only just beginning.
Everything was taken from us,” Angel Cook said. “We lost our son. We had to bury him. I lost my volunteer work. I lost my kids, my church home, a lot of friends.”
The Cooks were charged with injury to a child, a first degree felony punishable by up to life in prison.
Their other children — including 14-month-old Wesley — were placed in foster care.
It looked like they would permanently lose their other kids and spend the rest of their lives behind bars.
More than a year and half later, their kids are back home and the charges have been dropped amid questions about how Buddy’s death was even ruled a homicide.
As for the Cooks, they contend they’ve been victimized by CPS caseworkers, who they accuse of withholding crucial medical information that led to the homicide ruling, of misrepresenting what they and their children said during the investigation, and finally, of failing to protect their children while in foster care.
“CPS has their view of the case, and their view of the case from the start was that the Cooks had deliberately injured this little boy and deliberately starved him to death,” said Patrick Barkman, the Cooks’ attorney.
The Cooks live in a modest brick home in a tree-lined subdivision in Cleburne. A “God Lives Here” sign sits prominently out front. The interior of the home has a distinct Texana feel. Family photos line the walls.
They were regular church-goers, a tight-knit family who did everything together.
The Cooks had a lot on their plate.
Austin, almost 13, has heart problems and wears a pacemaker. He had heart surgery the month prior to Buddy’s death.
Paige, 9, suffers from a lung condition and asthma.
The Cooks had taken in Buddy and his younger sister, who are the children of a relative.
Mary Jane came to them as an infant. Buddy was a toddler when his mother dropped him off at the Cooks’ home in 2010. He was covered in burns, cuts and bruises. The Cooks reported Buddy’s injuries to Child Protective Services. Doctors examined him and found he had a sexually-transmitted disease.
“We were left to try to figure out how to help a two-year-old that was beaten and sexually assaulted and had a lot of anger issues,” Angel Cook said, adding that CPS case workers offered no help since the abuse occurred out of state.
Buddy had significant emotional problems. He would hit, punch and kick others. They took him to a behavioral clinic where he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and reactive attachment disorder, medical records show.
He was too young for medications.
“They told us to bring him home, love him, protect him and he would be better,” Angel Cook said. “We would have him go to each child and they would give him a hug and told him they loved him. You know, it changed him.”
The Cooks formally adopted Buddy and his sister in May 2012.
Buddy came a long way in the Cook household, but it was a struggle after all that he had suffered.
He never did put on much weight. The Cooks gave him Ensure to help get extra calories into him.
“He was eating and drinking every day,” Angel Cook said. “There’s not a day that he ever went without food or nutrients. Buddy did not look like death was coming; we had people in our home three days before he died.”
The night before he died, Buddy got sick. He threw up.
On the morning he died, Angel heard noises coming from his room and went to check on him. He wasn’t breathing. CPR didn’t work.
“Seeing your son die in your arms is very hard,” Angel Cook said.
Suspicion immediately focused on the couple. The children were placed in foster care on the day of Buddy’s funeral.
Angel Cook said CPS caseworkers misrepresented much of what they and their children told the investigators.
In one of the affidavits, here’s how a CPS worker described Buddy:
He appeared to be only skin and bones. Buddy’s stomach was caved in and his ribs could be seen popping out from under his skin.”
The worker described what appeared to be bruising around his wrists that could be restraint marks.
“We kept telling them Buddy had a CPS history in your office,” Angel Cook said. “Those are not bruises; they’re scars.”
CPS initially said they had no record of any prior interaction with Buddy, but later acknowledged that those records had been purged from their system.
In fact, the autopsy showed that Buddy’s bladder was full and that his stomach contained food and water. He was significantly underweight, but wasn’t “skin and bones,” said Dr. Lloyd White, the pathologist who performed Buddy’s autopsy for the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s office.
“The police were not particularly suspicious of his death,” White said. “CPS seemed to think there was a lot of suspicious activity involved, and somehow somebody had killed Buddy.”
White said he was told by a CPS worker that they were skeptical of the family’s claims of prior sexual abuse and about the legality of the adoption. He believed that Buddy died from natural causes related to his body failing to properly metabolize food.
“He was eating with the family, and — in fact — the Cooks were taking special effort to try to convince him that he needed to eat more,” White said. “It was my conclusion — based upon everything that I evaluated — that there was no evidence of death due to injury or abuse or neglect.”
But the medical examiner’s office still ruled Buddy’s death a homicide, finding that he had died of starvation.
“The chief medical examiner said he had seem similar cases in Bosnia, and that he felt that somebody had starved the child to death,” said White, who says he was let go from the office last year because they didn’t approve of his testimony in an unrelated case.
One irregularity about the autopsy is that one doctor signed his signature and that of another doctor for reasons that have not been explained.
he medical examiner’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
The homicide finding resulted in what happened next: The arrest of David and Angel Cook on charges of injury to a child.
They became instant pariahs.
They woke up to the words “Child Killers” splattered in red across their garage. Gasoline was twice poured around their house.
The Cooks paid hundreds of dollars to obtain Buddy’s medical records.
Five months after Buddy’s death, they got the records and learned that he had previously tested positive for HIV antibodies. Recommended follow-up testing had never been conducted. The Cooks were never told — apparently because at that time of the testing they were not yet Buddy’s legal guardians.
“Until I found this in the medical records, they had no clue that Buddy had tested positive,” said Barkman, the Cooks’ attorney.
White said when CPS workers gave him Buddy’s medical records, there was nothing in them about the HIV test. He didn’t find out until months later when the Cooks’ attorneys showed him the documents.
Once he learned about the earlier HIV test, he said it explained something unusual that he had discovered in the autopsy.
“He had an atrophied thymus, and there was no explanation medically for an atrophied thymus, but an HIV-related problem certainly would explain that,” White said.
The medical examiner ordered an HIV test more than seven months after Buddy died. The result was negative.
How reliable that testing would have been depends greatly on whether the blood was properly stored, a medical expert said. The most reliable time to test a blood sample is shortly after death, said Dr. Nan Yan, an assistant Professor of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
“Seven months sounds like a long time,” he said. “You want to do it very soon.”
By last fall, White was no longer an employee of the medical examiner’s office. He came forward to say that he didn’t believe Buddy had been killed.
The Johnson County District Attorney dropped the charges last December, citing medical evidence and new fact witnesses.
After the charges were dropped, the Cooks’ children were released into the care of family friend. It would be another four months after the charges were dropped before the children were allowed to come home.
But the battle is not over.
Three of their sons say that they were abused by other children while in foster care. Their oldest son had bruises covering his body when he was released from the foster care system.
Paige had a staph infection covering her face. She was placed with smokers, even though she suffers from lung disease. The Cooks say they noticed that she was coming to their weekly visits sick and wheezing.
Records show that when state workers questioned the foster parents, they said they did smoke, but only outside and out of the presence of the children.
The Cooks’ youngest child was throwing up blood when he first went to stay with the family friend. Doctors determined that he had swallowed screws.
CPS workers again questioned Angel Cook. But in interviews with the children, Paige told social workers that Wesley had accidentally swallowed the screws while in foster care.
Angel Cook soon began demanding that Child Protective Services investigate the allegations of abuse and neglect in foster care. She would soon find that CPS doesn’t investigate foster homes; that falls to a sister agency.
She and two of the boys testified before legislative committees about the abuse they say they suffered.
“I reported to my foster parents and my social worker,” Bryan Cook testified. “The social worker told me it was not a big deal, not to worry about it. … When I told my foster parents again, the foster dad took me and my brother into a room and showed his guns and said we needed to keep quiet about it.”
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has sent Angel Cook two letters indicating that they have not found any issues with what happened during the children’s time in foster care.
Her attorney questions the adequacy of the investigation.
“It basically said, ‘We asked the foster parents, and they said that didn’t happen,’ so there’s that. ‘We asked the social worker, and they said it didn’t happen,’ so there’s that,” Barkman said. “That’s not an investigation; that means we did the absolute minimum required to make it appear that we looked into it. If the shoe was on the other foot and somebody was accusing Angel, they would have never ended the investigation with, ‘Well, Angel said it didn’t happen.'”
But what bothers him the most are the circumstances surrounding Buddy’s autopsy.
“We could have saved a lot of heartache and a lot of money — and some of the Cooks’ children from being mistreated in foster care — if that autopsy had been done right, and Dr. White had had all the records,” Barkman said.
The Cooks still struggle financially. They’ve exhausted their life savings and sold all of their valuables. David Cook works seven days a week to support the family.
The family is under CPS supervision until October. Their two youngest children are court-ordered into day care.
It is still not easy for them. They haven’t gotten over Buddy’s loss.
“It’s hard,” Angel Cook said. “We lost a big part of our lives. All we have left is pictures and his toys and his graveside.””
Adoptive parents struggle after being cleared in son’s death[WKYC 6/28/15 by Tanya Eiserer]
David and Angel Cook was arrested again on June 26,2013 (injury to a child by omission) indicted
Thanks for letting us know. We found an article and added that to the post.
Buddy Cooks biological mother Amanda Lunsford married her biological nephew Robert Lunsford which is the father to both Children the Cooks adopted as well as two other children who were removed from Amanda and Roberts care….rights have been terminated to all 4 children.Buddy’s Bio mom also has one other son who has stayed in and out of mental institutions in Oklahoma since he was very young.You can research some of the abuse he suffered at the hands of his biological family if you look up amanda lunsford child with STD in both new Mexico and Oklahoma.The Cooks did admit him to a behavioral health clinic only to be sent home with a diagnosis of ptsd, RAD, and a mood disorder and no meds prescribe to help this family.He was also tooken to a careteam and a reach team for help.They treated his STD anal warts but could not recommend any help phycologically intill he turned 5. The family took him to Child protective Services only to be turned away with the statement ” the abuse didn’t happen here so we can’t help” there are several police reports that were made on behalf of this child being dropped off beatened.The cooks were given the same response.New Mexico CPS and detectives asked Cleburne police to help the cooks file a report but again were told ” it didn’t happen here”. Buddy not only suffered from phycological issues he also suffered from physical, emotional and sexual abuse as well as being a child of incest and suffering from severe fetal alcohol syndrome.There are numerous doctor appointments varifying this child had issues with weight gain as well as reports made to his peditrition about eating his own feces yet he was not treated.This family has been through hell and back and every where they turned for help they were turned away.
Amy, why is CPS saying that there was no record of doctor appointments? Have you or they given this information to the prosecutor? Why was Buddy and his siblings not placed in a therapeutic foster home. I do agree with part of what you are saying about no real help coming from the government but your claims on doctor appointments is conflicting with the court records. Who was beating Buddy and where/when was he being dropped off to? Was that during visits with biological family?
After having many documented visits and this child weighting the same 27 pounds for over eight months and no concern from doctors, peditritions about buddy’s weight his adoptive family decided to place him on ensure etc…he finally maintained his weight and even put on four more pounds…at his death he weight 31 pounds which is 6 pounds underweight for a normal child..but buddy was not a normal child.his Bio mom is 5 ft tall as well as his aunt and neither one weight over 100 pounds.his Bio grandmother and grandfather both weight under 100 pounds.and you add in everything else he suffered from that will show you he is not a normal child
Cps was told all this information, yet still removed their remaining 7 kids.these two children were not placed in therapeutic Foster homes as cps refused to help stating it didn’t happen here.there is court documents that showed buddy’s adoptive sister was left in a tent for 3 days with no bottle etc.the cooks went to Oklahoma for a funeral and when they got to the home..they heard the baby crying.she was covered in bug bites.the Bio mom stated she wouldn’t stop crying and she didn’t want a daughter. The cooks took her in and she became a healthy baby girl.a few short months later the Bio mom came to TX and dropped off the beaten little boy because both oklahome cps and new Mexico cps were investigating the Bio mom.the cooks took him to an area hospital and they were transported to cooks children’s.it took over 13 hours to document everything.
The Bio mom admitted abusing him and admitted to allowing Multiple men to sexually assault him.another reason he was not placed in Foster care was they both are native American.you can’t simply place a Indian child in care due to the Indian child welfare act. This adoptive family has tooken care of some severe medical fragile biological children who have had failure to thrive due to premature births.And lets not forget this family has people who saw this child just days before looking completely fine. If no medical doctor had concern with a child not gaining even an ounce for 8 months how can a person be responsible for his death.the autopsy showed food and water in his stomach, bowel and colon.like I said there is so much more to this than cps has revealed.This child has been tiny since before coming to the cooks and lets not forget it was well documented that this child would eat his own feces but no concern from medical doctors about parasites etc. The big picture is cps removed seven children who have never been in danger from the cooks.they did not get to greive the loss of buddy together.Instead people jumped to conclusions due to twisting of words.the cooks children have all maintained excellent grades and attendance in school and were very faithful with serving God.
This is such a devastating accusation made against a good godly family who ultimately were the only people who tried to help him.
when the cooks first took buddy in he never would smile, didn’t like to be touched and would hide in corners rocking himself.it was even noted by investigators in new Mexico that at the age of two he would sleep with a knife under his pillow buddy didn’t even know his own name prior coming to the cooks. After being placed with the cooks buddy became a beautiful child who loved to laugh and give hugs
There is even videos that was released on facebook that shows this little boy singing on stage at church.you could see the miracous change in this child.He would laugh, smile, dance and so much more since being placed with the cooks.He struggled day to day due to the abuse he faced while he was in his Bio moms care.The cooks provided him a home that taught him love and compassion.Buddy had two rotten years with his Bio family and two loving years with his adoptive family.My heart goes out to this family as they can never get back the last five months without their children.nor can they ever forget this tragic event in their lives.
You asked about buddy never going to a doctor he did, multiple times but only for the cooks to be sent back home with no help or guidance for him. indeed he didn’t go to the doctor for a good time period
Robert wasn’t even living with her….
There is so much more to this story that is not being put in the media’s hand.Only one child stated food was withheld, but not a mention that the family had a rule that if you did not finish dinner you don’t get dessert.( dessert was withheld not food).This family already had five children and adopted both budddyand Mary and had their sixth biological child.They paid out of pocket to add on to their home so the newly adopted children had rooms, and paid out of pocket for their adoption.They are active members of their home church where Angel taught 17 kindergarteners as well as her roll coaching Upwards basketball.There children all maintained excellent grades and attendance in school as well as their role in their church.A child indeed died but at who’s hands? The Bio family??doctors who wouldn’t treat?? Cps who wouldn’t help??
This article needs to be updated. The Cooks have been vilified unjustly. See: http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Texas/2014/07/06/Texas-Legislators-Promise-Action-Against-CPS-Caseworker
Thank you. I will update the post
https://www.facebook.com/angellinthicumcook5/posts/10152380079673543
Yes if u want the true updates don’t go by word of mouth on here. Find out from angel herself! The way u have it worded still can be very confusing to people who don’t know that the kids are back home with her and David!
https://facebook.com/angellinthicumcook5
Is this another case of a privatized CPS system?
This family is still suffering. Their sons grave is constantly vandalized and destroyed. Absolutely horrible what they are continuing to go through with no help.
Hi, I’m Buddy Blues Aunt, from Albuquerque, NM. My name and state have been stepped on horribly. When Amanda n Buddy left that state Of NM. He was in Good Condition. My sister took off because Angel made promises to her. I’m not the type of person to let my sister run around , so she was staying with my sister n law. I work alot. Buddy blue was never in any harm. She had 3 girls. We loved him. We knew he was special. But we were trying to get medical help here. We don’t did take him once before she left for Tx. The Dr’s said he was under lots of stress because his Grandpa had just passed. Grandpa n Blue spent alot of time at the farm. Blue loved the country. He loved horses n chickens , pigs, anything to do with farming. Now he was out of his surroundings. But my sister left before we could take him to Dr on appt day. She left for Texas my sister was in deep Greif, for that was our father that had just passed. I wasn’t raised around my sisters n brothers . I was taken in by a family when I was young. But when I got older I did wanna try n help my biological family. My sister wasn’t here long. My sister is a Alcohol baby besides numerous other health problems. We as a family she would not be able to raise her kids by hetself. Angel promised Mandy things that Angel knew she wasn’t gonna do for my sister. She deceived her. Angel deceived us all. She always stayed one step ahead of one of us. She made us believe Buddy Blue was happy. I could tell by phone calls he wasnt. She told us she was staying on his medical appts. Which it was said , ‘ he had not been to a Dr in a yr n half. My family has so many lies she has told record . The State of Texas wouldn’t allow it in the court hearing. She did not even tell us about the death. I heard a rumor . I called her. She said he had died a month earlier n didn’t know how to get a hold of us. She knows how to get a hold of any of us. She was making herself cry. I knew she was lying. None of us could believe she didn’t tell us. Knowing how much we loved him. She cut communication off months prior to his death. Last pic I seen of him. He was skin n bones. I could not believe when they said he had not been to the Dr in months. My family n i are getting Evidence together to present to Johnson County DA. That Angel, misled my entire family and she is responsible for the Death of Buddy Blue. David my stepbrother has never said one word to any of us. Angel has done all the talking , texting n face booking. In all these years since this has been going on. She was always the one. I was waiting to be subpoena to the court hearing. They did not want to hear one thing we had to say. I know if Blue was allowed to go to Oklahoma when they agreed on it. He would be with us. He missed his family. My niece was gonna take him. She has his 3 other siblings. They are well taking care of. So when the complete story is out there. You will see who was telling the Truth. Angel was mean to Our Buddy n she lied to Us!
Funny as the evidence from NM proved you allowed abuse. Court records showed Mandy admitted to the court and cps about the abuse. And even showed that you took Mandy to sign custody over to the baby. You failed that little boy and you deserve to be behind bars. The cooks timeline fit matching that the abuse occurred while Mandy was under your roof. God will get vengeance on you.
It also says the mother was incompetent.
Sue Lunsford is absolutely correct!
To the last two people that commented. You sound like a bunch of idiots. There must be something wrong with you, other than the fact that your uneducated and ignorant. Buddy’s bio mom is a disgrace to women and if you think anything other than that your just as bad. Do society a favor and disappear.
Comment
Sue was the sister N law that allowed the abuse. She allowed Mandy to do drugs in her home while buddy was there. Now she is on a mission to try and build a fake cover story. But what she didn’t say was sue took Mandy to sign custody over of the infant. Mandy came to court and admitted guilt. Mandy also went to tx and told cps investigators that she allowed the abuse.
Angel Cook is a murderer and Tx is letting her get away with it. Watch the family, when she needs attention, she gets someone sick, even herself. So they can get compassion and $$$. What a crock!
another Cook crook….hahaha!!! she will get karma in the end.
yes she is…Sue is absolutely correct!!