How Could You? Hall of Shame-Lucas Call case-Child Death UPDATED and Lawsuit

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 Neola, Utah, a “trained nurse and foster parent/[adoptive parent] in Duchesne County was charged with aggravated murder in connection with the death of a 2-year-old boy in August.

The boy died from injuries “consistent with child physical abuse,” that were “caused by inflicted blunt force trauma,” court documents state. A doctor told investigators injuries found on the boy were “directly connected to his death.”

They say Vanderlinden is responsible for the death of the child, identified in court documents as “L.C.”

L.C. and his one-year-old sister were being fostered by Vanderlinden and her husband at the time of the boy’s death.

Vanderlinden was a foster mother to multiple children and the natural mother to others who lived with her and her husband. She and her husband had also adopted some foster children, Vanderlinden’s indictment states.

She is also a Licensed Practical Nurse who provided services at the Children’s Justice Center, which helps conduct child abuse investigations.

L.C. died on August 5, when deputies from the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office were called to Vanderlinden’s home to investigate. The child was found deceased, with multiple bruises on his face, court documents state. Medical examiners who looked at L.C.’s body found bruises and abrasions on his scalp, arms, face, head, abdomen, back and legs, as well as “significant internal injuries that resulted in his death.”

The night before the child was found dead, Vanderlinden told investigators she’d had problems with his behavior during dinner, and grew “mad and frustrated” with the boy. The child also reportedly vomited multiple times that evening, so Vanderlinden had to bathe and change him multiple times.

While Vanderlinden was in the bathroom with L.C., a family member told investigators they heard a “loud bang,” after which the child wasn’t acting normal and would not walk.

After serving a warrant, investigators found Vanderlinden had made web searches related to the type of child injuries L.C. was found with the night before his death was reported.

“Despite her training as a foster parent and nurse, the defendant was completely indifferent to L.C.’s well-being and did not seek medical attention for the boy,” Vanderlinden’s indictment reads.

All children were removed from Vanderlinden’s home by the Division of Children and Family Services after L.C. died. Investigators also noted multiple “unsupported/unsubstantiated” allegations of abuse or neglect made to DCFS against Vanderlinden, “specifically for hitting or punching a minor child.”

Vanderlinden was booked into the Duchesne County Jail on Wednesday.”

Foster parent charged with aggravated murder of 2-year-old boy in Duchesne County

[KUTV 11/7/18 by Alyssa Roberts]

“According to a probable cause statement, Vanderlinden and her husband — who had previously fostered and adopted children — took in the boy, identified as L.C., and his younger sister in April 2017. Vanderlinden found L.C. to be “difficult and challenging, and while she wanted to keep and adopt the sister, she did not want to adopt him.””

“Lisa Jo Vanderlinden, 41, a licensed practical nurse who lives in Neola, was charged in 8th District Court with aggravated murder, a first-degree felony.”

Utah nurse charged with beating a 2-year-old foster child to death

[The Salt Lake Tribune 11/8/18 by Scott D. Pierce]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update:“Judge Samuel Chiara sat on the bench, his eyes cast downward. He was silent for a few moments after he announced his sentence for a foster mother.

“I hope that justice has been served,” he said finally. “It’s the best I can do, as a human being, in this case.”

Chiara had just sentenced Lisa Jo Vanderlinden to one year in jail and 14 years probation after two-year-old Lucas Call died while in her care in August 2018.

Vanderlinden had originally been charged with aggravated murder, but struck a plea deal with prosecutors and instead pleaded guilty to first-degree felony child abuse homicide.

She admitted in court papers that she was “reckless” when she did not take Lucas to a doctor, despite knowing something was wrong with him. Internet searches from her phone showed that she had searched for signs and treatment for “internal bleeding” on the night Lucas was throwing up and not acting normal, according to attorneys.

Prosecutors with the attorney general’s office alleged that Vanerlinden beat the young boy, pointing to an autopsy report that showed Lucas died from “blunt force injuries” and had abrasions all over his body.

But given what Vanderlinden admitted to, Chiara said Wednesday that his hands were tied — he couldn’t send her to prison. He called the plea deal “perplexing,” and said the initial evidence presented at a preliminary hearing was “fairly damning.”

He said this was the most difficult case he’s ever had to hand down a sentence on, and had hoped it would have gone to trial, so the facts could have been brought to light.

“We do not know the truth,” he said. “I don’t know the truth of this situation.”

Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes said in a statement Wednesday evening that Chiara’s sentence is “beyond disappointing,” saying a young child is the most vulnerable victim imaginable.

“It’s a travesty,” he said, “and undermines the confidence of the public in our justice system’s ability to protect kids from abuse and homicide. As prosecutors, we achieved in the plea deal just what we would have at trial, a first degree felony minus the cost of trial and without having to traumatize other children as witnesses. The plea deal in no way limited the court’s power to sentence in a way that would serve justice.”

Reyes added that probation for a first-degree felony is “almost unheard of,” and said prosecutors are “at a loss as to why the court ruled the way it did.”

Vanderlinden and her family were adamant at her sentencing hearing that she did nothing to harm the boy. The Duchesne County woman, who was a nurse and had helped care for about 40 foster children over several years, cried as she pleaded for leniency from the judge.

“I didn’t hurt Lucas,” she said. “I loved him very, very much and if I would have known there was something more going on with his vomiting that night, I would have taken him to the doctor.”

Vanderlinden’s husband, Cody, told the judge they had taken Lucas to doctors numerous times since he and his younger sister came into their home in April 2017. Her family said Lucas struggled to bond with Vanderlinden, but they were moving forward with plans to adopt the siblings.

“I loved him as if he were my own,” the woman said. “He was going to be mine. I lost my son that day, too.”

But prosecutors alleged in charging documents that the woman found Lucas to be “difficult and challenging, and while she wanted to keep and adopt the sister, she did not want to adopt him.”

They alleged that on Aug. 4, 2018, the boy “exhibited behavioral problems during dinner” and Vanderlinden — who told police she was “mad and frustrated” — removed him from the table. The boy vomited several times, and Vanderlinden cleaned him up in the bathroom.

Other children in the household told investigators Vanderlinden was “ornery” and “mad” and family members reported hearing a “loud bang” from the bathroom where Vanderlinden was cleaning the boy.

He wasn’t acting normal and wouldn’t walk afterward, prosecutors say. He died the following day.

“This little boy was beaten to death,” prosecutor Craig Peterson argued Wednesday. “She was the one who did it. And she didn’t seek the medical care that should have been sought.”

Lucas’ biological family had hoped that the judge would have sent Vanderlinden to prison. Shelby Call, the boy’s mother, said she felt Vanderlinden deserved to spend the rest of her life in prison. She recounted how she will miss Lucas’ birthdays, holidays with him and the way he smiled.

“I miss my son, Lucas, very much,” she said. “And I love my son, Lucas, very much.”

The day before Call stood in the Duchesne courtroom and asked for Vanderlinden to go to prison, the mother had taken another legal action: She and her husband sued the Utah Division of Child and Family Services and the Vanderlindens.

Call alleges in her lawsuit that child welfare officials had known of three prior occasions where parents accused Vanderlinden of abusing the children placed in her care. But DCFS officials continued to place children in her care, the lawsuit alleges. Prosecutors noted in charging records that were “multiple unsupported/unsubstantiated allegations of abuse.”

The lawsuit states that Call had regular visits with her son, and often noticed injuries on her son’s body, which she reported to DCFS.

“Specifically, Shelby observed major bruising to Lucas’s head, abdomen, and pelvis, scrapes and cuts on his head, and a broken arm in a location uncommon to normal broken arms in children,” the lawsuit alleges. “She also noticed that Lucas would not go near Lisa Vanderlinden, acted afraid of her, and had an overall appearance of deteriorating health.”

Call reported her concerns to DCFS employees, including child welfare officials in Vernal and in the main Salt Lake City office, according to the lawsuit. None of her reports were acted upon, and Call says that DCFS officials threatened to cut off her visits with her son if she continued to complain.

The lawsuit alleges that child welfare officials “turned a blind eye” to multiple complaints of abuse, and were negligent in his death. The Calls are seeking an unspecified amount in economic and non-economic damages.

Jacquelynn Carmichael, an attorney who represents the Calls in their civil suit, said Wednesday that the family were “devastated and deeply disappointed” in Vanderlinden’s punishment.

DCFS officials said in a Wednesday statement that they couldn’t comment on pending litigation, or about specific cases due to client confidentiality laws.

“Child safety is the reason we exist,” the statement reads, “and any child death is a true heartbreak. We acknowledge the tragedy of this event and its effects on the child’s family, their community, and our workers.””

Utah foster mother gets one year in jail for toddler’s troubling death

[Salt Lake City Tribune 7/29/2020 by Jessica Miller]

Update 2:“Lisa Jo Vanderlinden and the Utah Division of Child and Family Services are named in a lawsuit filed by lawyers for the biological parents of a young boy who was killed by Vanderlinden.

A Duchesne County judge sentenced Vanderlinden to serve one year in jail last month, after she pleaded guilty to killing Shelby and David Call’s son. After her year in jail, Vanderlinden will be on probation for 14 years, according to Judge Samuel Chiara’s ruling.

The lawsuit identifies the child, who was 2 when he died, as Lucas Call.

Call and his younger sister were placed in the care of Vanderlinden and her husband Cody in April of 2017, according to the lawsuit. Sixteen months later, Call was dead.

Lawyers for Shelby Call allege Vanderlinden was accused of child abuse by other parents whose children she fostered at least three times prior to Lucas Call’s death.

“Notwithstanding these complaints … DCFS continued to place children in the care of Mrs. Vanderlinden,” lawyers state.

Shelby Call had regular visitation with Lucas while he lived with Vanderlinden, and “noticed that her son acted like he was afraid of Mrs. Vanderlinden,” according to the suit.

Call also noticed injuries, which she reported to DCFS “every time a new injury was observed,” Call’s lawyers state. Injuries Call reported included:

• “major bruising” to the boy’s head, abdomen, and pelvis
• scrapes and cuts on his head
• a broken arm “in a location uncommon to normal broken arms in children”

The initial assigned case worker was concerned about Lucas Call, the suit states, and expressed those concerns to her superiors, even suggesting Call’s children be removed from the Vanderlinden home, but “her superiors chose to do nothing.”

For reporting her concerns, Call’s lawyers state DCFS workers threatened to take away her visitation rights with both children.

DCFS did investigate the claims and found them to be unsubstantiated, according to the lawsuit.

The division was unable to comment on the claims made by Call and her lawyers, citing the pending litigation, but did release a statement:

Child safety is the reason we exist, and any child death is a true heartbreak. We acknowledge the tragedy of this event and its effects on the child’s family, their community, and our workers. Due to the pending litigation, as well as state law regarding client confidentiality, we unfortunately are unable to discuss any further details of this case. We trust in the legal process and will be transparent and open with the Attorney General’s office throughout this litigation.

Call’s lawyers demand a jury trial and that Call and her husband, who is currently incarcerated, be paid economic and non-economic damages.

Call’s lawyers referred to court documents in lieu of a statement from or interview with Call. ”

Dead boy’s parents sue foster mom convicted of killing him

[KJZZ 8/13/2020 by Alyssa Roberts]

Update 3:“A Duchesne County woman who previously pleaded guilty to killing her 2-year-old foster son — and received a one-year prison sentence that outraged prosecutors — has now been charged with physically abusing her adopted 8-year-old son, court records show.

Lisa Jo Vanderlinden, 46, has been charged in 8th District Court with child abuse with injury, a class A misdemeanor, for intentionally or knowingly inflicting “serious physical injury” to a child.

According to a probable cause statement, on Oct. 18, the Duchesne County Sheriff’s Office received a report that an 8-year-old boy in Vanderlinden’s care had been abused by his adoptive mother. When the boy was interviewed, the statement said, he said Vanderlinden had slapped him so hard that it “left a red mark on his face for two days.” He said he had been hit “more than once” between Jan. 1 and Oct. 18 this year.

Vanderlinden “denied this happened” when she was interviewed by police, according to the probable cause statement. She was released without bail after agreeing to appear at all court hearings, not commit any criminal offenses, report any change of address or phone number, contact pretrial services once a month and pay a fee of $20 a month, court records said.

The release order doesn’t include any restrictions about being around children. The court documents do not indicate whether the boy remains in her custody.”

Utah woman who pleaded guilty to killing foster son faces new child abuse charge
[The Salt Lake Tribune 10/23/23 by Scott D. Pierce]