How Could You? Hall of Shame-AJ Iverson case-Child Death

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 Leavenworth, Kansas, AJ Ivesron,17, died “by drug overdose” in 2017. “The day before he died, Lesher begged Saint Francis Ministries, one of the state’s foster care contractors, to take Iverson to a psychiatric residential treatment facility. Saint Francis sent a therapist to his home, but when Iverson, a teenager who struggled with substance abuse, impulsive decision making and who had an autism diagnosis, promised he wouldn’t do drugs again, the contractor refused to intervene. Iverson died in his sleep that night.

Lesher and Iverson’s sister, Ashley Crego, have spent years calling for reform. Last year, Lesher held her son’s ashes up to lawmakers asking for change. 

On Thursday, as part of two days of hearings aimed at evaluating the state’s progress on child welfare, Lesher continued the fight. 

“I don’t want to keep doing this,” Lesher said. “I want to grieve my son, without having Saint Francis attached to it, but I’m still waiting for the state to do the right thing by us in every way possible. These kids — we are losing them.”

“When Iverson was 4, Lesher applied for the intellectual and developmental disability waiver but never received help. The current waitlist to access these services is about nine years, meaning children often age out before they can access them. Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly proposed $23 million to assist the families waiting on disability waivers, which Republicans opposed. Republicans invested $17.8 million in the waivers, and have successfully reduced the waitlists. 

Iverson was placed in family preservation services, meaning he stayed with his family but was given a foster care caseworker. Lesher said she spent Iverson’s entire life fighting for him to get support he never received. 

Iverson’s sister, Ashley Crego, stood by Lesher at the 2023 committee meeting. This year, note the disillusionment she feels, she provided a written statement instead of appearing in-person.

“This is going to keep happening to other families in a multitude of ways,” Crego wrote. “This is what we were trying to prevent. Agencies will change their names and pass any accountability onto the next and leave a trail of dead kids, or kids that ‘fell through the cracks’ in their path and if it turns a profit, no one will bat an eye.

“You will all go home to your families and mine will go home to A.J.’s urn. These meetings in the last two years have made me lose every bit of faith in any regulatory system or oversight committee and that has been the most discouraging thing of all.””

Mother returns to Kansas Statehouse with photo of boy who died, pleading for systemic change

[Kansas Reflector 11/18/24 by Grace Hills]

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