How Could You? Hall of Shame-Christopher Spann

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 Homewood. Pennsylvania, a 2013 case comes to light. Adoptive Father “Christopher Spann, 52, of Homewood with aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person and endangering the welfare of a child. He was arraigned on Thursday and held in the Allegheny County Jail on $250,000 bail.”

“A family therapist accused of abusing his adopted son was set to receive a foster child on the night of his arrest, Pittsburgh police said on Thursday.

“Employees at The Salvation Army in East Hills called police about 5 p.m. Wednesday when Spann’s adopted son, 11, arrived for an after-school program with hand and finger marks on his face and neck, a black eye, lumps on his head, bruises on both legs, a broken blood vessel in his eye and a split upper lip, police said.

“He had a bright red mark the size of a grain of rice (in his eye),” police Lt. Jason Lando said. “He had bruises and scratches on the left side of his face.”

The boy told police that he did not want to do his homework on Tuesday night and hid it in his garbage can, and that Spann confronted him and beat him for about three hours.

“After speaking with the young boy, it was apparent to me that he is a genuine and respectful kid, and it is upsetting to see him in such a situation,” Lando said.

When police went to Spann’s Bennett Street home to arrest him, a caseworker was there with a teenage boy whom she said Spann planned to foster, Lando said. He said that child was removed. It is unclear which agency the woman was with, Lando said.

The 11-year-old adopted boy told police that Spann kept him from school Wednesday because of the marks on his face and took him to the non-profit Small Seeds Development in East Liberty, where Spann has worked as a subcontractor for two years.

Small Seeds CEO Andrew Cheeseboro said Spann’s work involves trying to keep young black males out of the county Children, Youth and Families child welfare system as part of the Inua Ubuntu program.

Police said Spann adopted the 11-year-old out of the CYF system two years ago, but it wasn’t clear if he was a foster parent to the boy first.

Police notified CYF in this week’s case, and he is in foster care.

“There’s no way any of my staff would see bruises and not report it,” Cheeseboro said. “We are mandated reporters. This is what we do.”

He could not comment on Spann’s employment status.

Elaine Plunkett, spokeswoman for the county Department of Human Services, said it had a contract with Small Seeds Development not to exceed $1.2 million.

CYF Deputy Director Dr. Walter Smith said he couldn’t comment on individual cases, but the agency hires private subcontractors who provide the bulk of foster parent services, including training and monitoring of foster parents. A department within CYF oversees the agencies’ quality of care and spending.

“We’re pretty vigilant about making sure kids are safe,” Smith said. “One of the ways we do that is by making sure agencies we have under contract meet our standards and regulations.”

Spann works a few times a week as an individual and family therapist at the Nuin Center, a wellness and conference facility in Highland Park, assistant office manager Debbie Catania said.

Spann often would bring his adopted son along to do homework, Catania said. She described the boy as quiet, but said he eventually opened up a little.

The child told police that Tuesday’s incident was not the first time Spann beat him; a few weeks ago, he was pushed against a railing, causing a bruise on his leg that was still visible, Lando said.”

 

Homewood family therapist accused of abusing adopted son[Tribune Live 10/31/13 by Margaret Harding]

“A Homewood therapist accused of beating his adopted son over the course of three hours last month waived his preliminary hearing Friday afternoon.

Christopher Spann, 52, was arrested Oct. 30 after workers at a Salvation Army branch on Frankstown Avenue called police to say his son appeared to have been beaten.

When officers from the city’s Zone 5 station in Highland Park arrived at the Salvation Army, workers led them to Mr. Spann’s 11-year-old son.

The boy had bruises on his face and neck that appeared to be in the shape of handprints, according to a criminal complaint. Police also reported that the boy’s left eye was black, blood vessels in his right eye were broken and he had lumps on his head and bruises on his legs.

Medics took him to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC while officers went to Mr. Spann’s home and took him into custody.

The boy told police he decided the night before that he did not want to do his homework and hid it in a garbage can in his bedroom. His father, the boy told police, asked him to bring over the trash can, pulled out his homework and said “What’s this?”

Mr. Spann then hit the boy “over and over again,” striking his face, head and legs numerous times over three hours, according to the complaint.

The boy also told police “that this is not the first time that his Dad has beaten him and that he wished his Dad would not get so mad at him,” police wrote. “[The boy] told me that he sometimes gets beaten several times a month but this time was the worst his Dad has ever beaten him.”

Mr. Spann stood silently during much of his brief appearance before District Judge James Hanley Jr.

His defense attorney, Anita Burroughs, declined to comment on the charges Mr. Spann faces. She asked Judge Hanley to reduce Mr. Spann’s bond — which had already been reduced once before — from $100,000 to non-monetary.

She said that if released Mr. Spann would agree not to have contact with his adopted son and that he would agree not to meet with any juveniles during the course of his work as a therapist until his case has been resolved.

Assistant district attorney Kevin Chernosky objected, saying testimony would have supported the accusation that the beating occurred over several hours.

Judge Hanley compromised, reducing Mr. Spann’s bond to $25,000.

Mr. Spann faces charges of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child. He is scheduled to appear in court for formal arraignment Jan. 16.”

Homewood man to face trial in beating of adopted son, 11 [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 11/23/13 by Liz Navratil]

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