How Could You? Hall of Shame-Heidi Shinn 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 Lehigh Acres, Florida, foster child Heidi Shinn, 18, and her foster mom were “fatally shot Thursday by 47-year old Jonathan Jensen before he killed himself.

Police documents obtained by NBC2 show he had a violent temper. There were several other red flags.

Neighbors who live near the Jensen family want to know how they qualified as foster parents given their encounters with police.

“To hear that people were murdered just half a block away–yeah it’s very disturbing,” said neighbor Ronny Wood.

Even more disturbing is Jonathan Jensen’s arrest record.

Last May a report from the Lee County Sheriff’s Office reveals Jensen was speeding through a parking lot and almost hit a man. When the man shouted for him to watch out, Jensen jumped out of his truck and attacked the man. The report said that Jensen punched him in the face. It further states Jensen was armed with a gun that he was licensed to carry.

Neighbors said that Jensen often carried the gun and even had a sign on his home that warned he would shoot on sight.

Then in March 2007, Jensen’s wife Tiffany told deputies her husband grabbed her by the neck. During the argument, he ripped the phone line out of the home.

“You wouldn’t want to have kids in that kind of environment,” Wood said.

One of the kids in that environment was Jensen’s Foster daughter Shinn.

Neighbors question how DCF didn’t see the red flags.

“They dropped the ball,” declared Wood. “They misread what was going on in that house.”

John Harty lives directly behind the Jensen family.  He said he heard gunshots and reported it to police.

“Since we have known Mr. Jensen we have witnessed or heard about a half a dozen shots in the night,” Harty said.

Harty and other neighbors reportedly notified authorities.

“It would be alarming to anyone,” the neighbor said. “It’s a residential area and everyone knows you shouldn’t be firing a weapon.”

It begs the question why did DCF allow Shinn and two of the family’s biological children to remain in the home.

DCF only confirmed there is an active investigation into the home. Because Shinn was 18 at the time of her death, she was no longer considered a foster child. ”

Foster father had history of violent temper before murder-suicide[NBC 2 4/27/17 by Dave Elias]

“Heidi Shinn had been living with her Lehigh Acres family for the last six years.

Her biological mother Rachel Shinn said she knew there were problems. She’s questioning why Florida Department of Children and Families allowed her daughter to stay inside a troubled home.

“She was loving and caring little sister I have,” described her biological brother Aaron Shinn.

While Aaron hadn’t seen his sister Heidi for six years, he said the two kept in touch.

He said he was shocked to hear about her murder on television.

“A friend texted me to see if it was true or not and I went and looked it up and found out. That’s when I called my mom and told her what happened,” Aaron said.

His sister Heidi was shot and killed by Jonathan Jensen, the man she had come to look up to as a father figure and had been her foster father for the last six years.

Neighbors who lived nearby were not surprised at the news of the double murder-suicide.

Neighbor Thomas Weber said that Jensen was known to carry a gun and had a sign on his home that you’ll be shot on sight.

ABC7 has discovered Jensen has a criminal past.

He had been arrested three times, twice in the last 10 years for hitting someone.

“It was very disturbing to even find out he had guns in the home and he went to jail several times,” said Rachel Shinn.

She said she last talked to Heidi two months ago and knew there were problems.

“She wanted help, and everything and I’d try to help her,” Rachel said.

She questions why DCF allowed her daughter to stay with Jensen knowing he had a criminal past.

“Or send her back home to me, and this would never have happened,” Rachel said.

She said she has more questions than answers as she prepares to lay her daughter to rest this weekend.

Rachel described her daughter as a sweet, loving, caring, generous, passionate young woman who loved animals.

Neighbors say there were often fights at the Jensen’s home.

DCF isn’t answering any of our questions and would only say they are investigating.

The family has set up a GoFundMe account to pay for their daughter’s burial.”

Lehigh teen killed in foster care; mom demands answers [ABC 7 4/26/17]

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