How Could You? Hall of Shame- Cleveland and Lisa Cox 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 Cincinnati, Ohio, Adoptive Parents Cleveland Cox, age 49, and his wife Lisa, age 52,”who abandoned their 9-year-old adopted son are going to face criminal charges, exclaimed a state prosecutor. He said on Friday[November 15, 2013] that he will pursue charges of abandonment. Police have stated the couple gave their son to child welfare officials after raising him since he was an infant.
Ohio state prosecutor Michael Goser explained that cases in the past which were similar to this one had been handled within the domestic courts. When that is appropriate, that is fine, but in this case, criminal charges will also be considered.
There has never yet been such focus put on the criminality of abandoning a child, Goser added, and there has to be some sort of legal consequence.
The Ohio couple, who lived in suburban Cincinnati, was charged this week of nonsupport of dependents. They turned themselves in on Friday evening. Cleveland Cox, age 49, and his wife Lisa, age 52, were then released on $10,000 bond for each and were ordered back in court on Nov. 27.
Butler County investigators said the parents left the child with a children’s service agency on Oct. 24. It was explained that they said he was exhibiting hostile behavior. A report filed by the county sheriff back in August stated that the adoptive mother said the boy was threatening the entire household with a knife. There are two other children in the family.
Lawyer Adolfo Olivas was appointed by the domestic court in order to defend the child’s welfare. He has stated that the child is confused and hurt and is now getting the treatment the parents should have gotten for him in the first place.
There are no wide-range national statistics on failed adoptions, but they are extremely rare in cases like this where the child has been raised in the family from infancy. Even though they are very uncommon, they are more likely to transpire if the child has been adopted, the attorney said.
Most of the 400,000 children that are in foster care across America had biological parents that were unable or not willing to take care of them and sometimes this happens with adoptive parents as well.
Adoption advocates are worried that the chance of criminal charges and negative publicity might hurt efforts to find people who want to adopt.
Sometimes adoption just does not work out, said attorney Susan Garner Eisenman who is located in Columbus, Ohio. She places her practice’s attention on adoption and child welfare matters.
There is a growing need for more post adoption services and support, especially for those parents that agree to take on a special needs child.
An Ohio Department of Family Services spokesperson stated that out of some 12,000 Ohio foster children, almost 400 are involved in county care after having been adopted. But because of various reasons besides abandonment, they are not with their adoptive family any longer. Some reasons include sexual attack or the parents’ have died.
It is recommended that all parents, if they are adoptive or biological, try and receive help if they run into problems with their child or children.
The state of Ohio urges parents that are struggling to raise their children to find some sort of public or private counseling as they see fit. This will hopefully help them not end up abandoning their child like what happened with this couple and boy.”
Ohio Couple Who Abandoned Adopted Son Face Criminal Charges [Liberty Voice 11/16/13 by Kimberly Ruble]
“The attorney for a couple accused of abandoning the adopted nine-year-old son they raised since infancy said on Wednesday that the boy has gotten some much-needed help.
Anthony VanNoy, attorney for Cleveland and Lisa Cox, said after a brief pretrial hearing that the couple are visiting with the boy and hope to be reunited with him.
The Coxes have pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges of nonsupport of dependents, and VanNoy said they won’t accept a plea deal.
The trial is scheduled for Feb. 10. The charges allege the couple recklessly abandoned or failed to provide adequate support for the boy.
Authorities say the pair, from Butler County’s Liberty Township, left the boy with children’s services after saying he was displaying aggressive behavior and earlier threatened the family with a knife.
The whole goal of the context of children services has always been to get help for the child,’ VanNoy said Wednesday.
He says the Coxes have received many letters of support.
‘The blessing is that there has been an awareness of people that there are families that are struggling and they need help,’ VanNoy said.
Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser wouldn’t comment on specifics of the case on Wednesday but said he was encouraged by VanNoy’s remarks.
‘One always hopes in a long process such as this that there is a silver lining,’ Gmoser said.
Documents filed by the prosecutor say the parents didn’t tell the boy when they left him with children’s services that he wouldn’t be returning home.
The Coxes could each face up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted of the single count against each of them.
Adolfo Olivas, an attorney appointed by the court to protect the boy’s interests, has said the emotionally hurt and confused child is now receiving help that the parents should have gotten for him.
A defence attorney and prosecutor declined to comment after the hearing. The couple was scheduled to be in juvenile court later overnight for a pretrial hearing regarding custody of the child.
People within the adoption community say they worry about emotional trauma to the child. They say giving up a child after so much time is rare and undermines the stability and commitment that adopted children need.
The median annual income in the region where the parents live is more than $100,000, and the median home value is more than $280,000, according to census data.”
Adoptive parents who abandoned their son, 9, hope to get him back as their lawyer reveals child has received some ‘much needed help’[Daily Mail 1/22/14 By Associated Press]
REFORM Puzzle Piece
Update:“A couple who authorities say first adopted, then abandoned, the 9-year-old son they raised from infancy agreed to declare the boy dependent.
Cleveland and Lisa Cox and their attorney, Anthony VanNoy, appeared at a hearing Wednesday in Butler County Juvenile Court, where the action was taken.
“The definition of dependency is that the state needs to intervene in a case through no fault of the parents,” Butler County Assistant Prosecutor Jim Monk said. A state intervention usually refers to removing a child from custody, but Monk declined to elaborate on the details of the agreement.
The couple abruptly returned the boy to Butler County Children Services in October, saying he was displaying aggressive behavior and earlier threatened the family with a knife.
The couple was charged with nonsupport of dependents, a misdemeanor, but avoided trial after Lisa Cox pleaded guilty last month to attempted abandonment and received a 90-day suspended sentence.
Prosecutors dismissed a charge of nonsupport of a dependent against Cleveland Cox, saying it would have jeopardized his security clearance at his job.
A grand jury charged the Coxes in October after they dropped the child off at children services with a bag of his clothes.
A conviction carried a sentence of up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
The charges came two months after Lisa Cox called police to the home saying the child was threatening to kill everyone in the house with a steak knife.
She told dispatchers the boy was on medication and had been hospitalized before for psychiatric problems. Lisa Cox also said she had tried to get the boy help for a mental illness but felt the child had not been diagnosed properly.
VanNoy told the Associated Press last month his clients are visiting with the boy and hope to be reunited.”
Couple who abandoned adopted son agrees to intervention[USA Today 2/20/14 By Rachel Richardson and Sheila McLaughlin,The Cincinnati Enquirer]
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