How Could You? Hall Of Shame -Scott and Drewanne Hamrick 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 Eatonville, Washington, veteran Pierce County firefighter and foster-to-adopt father Scott D. Hamrick committed suicide by carbon monoxide on June 30, 2011 by apparently pumping exhaust from a generator into the living quarters of a horse trailer at the family’s ranch rather than faces the investigation into repeated molestation of his adoptive daughters.

The News Tribune reports “Sheriff’s detectives had been investigating allegations Hamrick and at least one other person were physically, sexually and emotionally abusing female relatives and possibly their friends.”

Kiro Tv reports “Police documents say Hamrick left a note, saying he was “afraid he would be going to prison.””

“After a confidential source informed Investigative Reporter Chris Halsne that Hamrick was under police investigation for sexual abuse of children at the time of his death, KIRO Team 7 Investigators contacted Central Pierce County’s Fire Chief, Doug Willis. He confirmed that a detective had been talking with him and others within the department regarding some “particularly disturbing allegations” especially because Hamrick and his wife had been involved with foster and special needs kids.

Chief Willis shared with KIRO 7 Eyewitness News a resignation letter sent to him by Hamrick June 23 which states, “Personal issues have caused me to tender my resignation to the department effective immediately. I have enjoyed my time with the department and sincerely regret having to leave. Please list my reasons as personal only with no contact to be made. (Signed) Scott Hamrick ,” Station 68 A-shift.” Hamrick had worked at for Central District Fire and Rescue for 27 years.”

“A few months ago, an adopted foster daughter of the Hamricks was arrested by Eatonville police on accusations that she stole an iPod or iPod Touch. At first, the girl claimed she used the stolen item to send text messages to friends, claiming she had been molested by her father, Scott Hamrick. Police never investigated the claim, though. Eatonville Mayor Ray Harper told KIRO 7 the reason was that the girl recanted her accusation while being interviewed by an officer.

“Our officer was involved, he did arrest her, she did go to Remann Hall (where the juvenile court is located),” Harper said. “She had told the officer that she was just looking for attention from her friends and denied it to the officer.”

But law enforcement sources told KIRO 7 the police interview of the girl took place with the Hamricks in the same room. Only then did the girl claim the texts were all lies.

KIRO 7 learned that the Department of Social and Health Services also may have been notified of the molestation claims.

DSHS spokesperson Sherry Hill would only confirm that the Hamrick’s were licensed foster parents from October 1997 to September 2004. She said DSHS can’t confirm any investigation because the case involves a juvenile.

In Eatonville, there are still questions about what could have been done differently, now that the allegations against Scott Hamrick are being investigated by the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.

Asked if Eatonville officials would be looking into their handling of the case, Harper said, “Oh, most certainly. We always look at our procedures if something we feel wasn’t followed through.”

Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesperson Ed Troyer asked that KIRO 7 hold off reporting on our findings for a few days because his detectives are “going to be making some arrests.” Troyer described the case as “disgusting and horrific,” but ongoing. Troyer indicated that the sexual abuse involved more than just Hamrick.

A Facebook page, run by Hamrick’s wife, Drewanne, says she and Scott had five daughters and three sons.”

Seattle Weekly reports that “Pierce County Sheriff Spokesman Ed Troyer calls the continuing investigation into Hamrick’s crimes “disgusting and horrific,” and says that Hamrick’s wife may be charged with abuse as well.”

‘Horrific’ Child Sex Abuse Investigation Linked To Dead Fireman
[Kiro TV 8/9/11 by Chris Halsne]

Sexual abuse: Man kills self; officials say others involved
[The News Tribune 8/10/11 by Adam Lynn and Stacey Mulick]

Scott Hamrick, Firefighter and Alleged Child Molester, Kills Himself Before Arrest
[Seattle Weekly Blog 8/10/11 by Curtis Cartier]

Update: “Police believe Scott Hamrick sexually abused at least four of his foster children and worry there may be more victims, possibly friends.

“Drew Anne Hamrick is charged with unlawful imprisonment, witness tampering, and criminal mistreatment. And they’re still investigating if anyone else knew about the abuse and if there might be more victims. Drew Anne Hamrick’s first court appearance could happen Thursday.”
Wife knew of firefighter’s sex abuse, police say
[King 5 News 8/10/11 by Meg Coyle]

The Declaration of Determination of Probable Cause for Drew Anne can be seen here. It states that there are 5 adopted daughters from foster care–twins who are 21 and a 17-, 14- and 12-year-old. CPS got involved in March 2011 when the 14-year-old told a neighbor that food was being withheld if she did not complete her chores. She also alleged that she was being locked in her bedroom and that the windows were boarded up. CPS concluded that was unfounded. The 23-year-old biological son Justin reported to police in June 2011 that his mother said Scott was cheating on her with the 14-year-old.

The 21-year-old biological son Aaron was questioned by the deputy and told him that Scott had been unfaithful and that Scott has been “touching, licking, and exposing” himself to the 12- and 14-year-old girls.

The 26-year-old biological son of just Scott, Trey, and Trey’s wife reported that the 12-and 14-year old confirmed that they endured “ongoing sexual abuse”. Trey reported to the police that Drew Anne admitted that the 12-year-old had been abused 5 years prior but not the 14-year-old. Trey reported that she said Scott would reach down the 12-year-old pants,” touch her vagina, fondle her breasts and kiss her inappropriately.”

The 14-year-old girl disclosed that Scott began abusing her when she was “5 or 6 years old.”Scott “would use his hand to rub and grope inside her clothes on the skin of her breasts. He would use his mouth on her breasts as well. He would take her pants off, pull down her underwear, and rub her vagina with his fingers.He would put his fingers inside her vagina and she said that it hurt. He would also use his mouth on her vagina.He would also make her touch his penis.” He did this more times than she could count and threatened her that they would live on the streets if she told.

Drew Anne called the 14-year-old a “liar” and “skank” when she found out and forced the girl to write a letter saying that she was not abused.

The 14-year-old also disclosed that she would have to defecate and urinate in a bucket when she was padlocked in a room and eventually on the floor when the bucket was taken away. She claims in late May that she was locked up for 1 week.

The 12-year-old says she was abused for “ever since I can remember.” She said that Drew Anne hit her with a “metal spatula once or twice a month.” She said that the 14-year-old had “no belongings and only had one set of clothes. she was very skinny and slept on the floor in her room.” Drew Anne instructed the other children to sometimes lock the 14-year-old in her room and they would be punished if they ever gave food to the 14-year-old.

One of the 21-year-old twins said that she was sexually and physically abused by Scott and that Drew Anne “slashed her with scissors when she was 14 years old and then used tape to close the wound.” She has scars on her arm from “throwing a hot curling iron at her and/or beating her with a metal spatula.”

Update 2: Drew Anne “pleaded not guilty today to charges that she physically abused the girls and also turned a blind eye to the alleged sexual abuse they suffered at the hands of her now-deceased husband.”

“Drew Anne Hamrick’s attorney told ABC affiliate KOMO that she had no prior knowledge of the alleged repeated molestation and kicked her husband out of the house when she learned of it.”

Wife of Washington Firefighter Denies Link to Child Sex Abuse After His Suicide
[ABC News 8/11/11 by Alyssa Newcomb]

Update 3: “Haeli Hamrick and Staci Craney, adoptive daughters of the couple, seek undisclosed monetary damages from the state and the Town of Eatonville. The women, both 21, filed their personal-injury lawsuit in Pierce County Superior Court last week.

They contend they suffered neglect and unspecified physical and sexual abuse at the hands of Scott and Drew Ann Hamrick, who were state-licensed foster parents from 1997 to 2004.

A spokesman for the state Department of Social and Health Services said his agency did investigate complaints against the Hamricks last year and worked with them for nearly six months to rectify problems.

“They really let us all down, both as a community and an agency,” DSHS spokesman Thomas Shapley said.

Patrick McMahon, a lawyer for the town, said Eatonville police acted appropriately and that the lawsuit is “without merit.”

“We don’t have any liability exposure,” McMahon said.

Hamrick and Craney were young foster children when they moved in with the Hamricks in 1999, their lawsuit states. The couple had several natural children as well.

Scott and Drew Ann Hamrick later adopted both girls, Shapley said.

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department in June began investigating allegations that the Hamricks mistreated children in their care. Some allegations included that Scott Hamrick, a lieutenant with Central Pierce Fire & Rescue, sexually abused some of the children.

Scott Hamrick committed suicide while the investigation was ongoing.

Drew Ann Hamrick later was charged with two counts of tampering with a witness, aggravated unlawful imprisonment and fourth-degree criminal mistreatment.

She is accused of covering up the alleged molestation, hitting the couple’s 12-year-old daughter with a metal spatula and locking their 14-year-old daughter in a bedroom for up to a week without food, water or access to a bathroom.

She has pleaded not guilty, and her lawyer has said she would vigorously fight the charges.

Haeli Hamrick and Craney contend in their lawsuit that multiple complaints were made to DSHS about alleged abuse in the house but that a thorough investigation never was conducted.

“Reasonable investigations and appropriate action would have resulted in the removal of Haeli and Staci from the care of Scott and/or Drew Ann Hamrick,” their lawsuit contends. Instead, the plaintiffs continued to be exposed to “abuse and harmful living conditions.”

Shapley said there were no complaints about the Hamricks when they served as licensed foster parents from 1997 to 2004 and that there were no allegations of sexual misconduct when Child Protective Services launched its investigation last year.

“This is a difficult situation for Children’s Administration,” he said. “This was a couple that was well-respected in the community.”

Complaints also were made to Eatonville police regarding the safety of the children, the lawsuit contends. Police failed to investigate the allegations or report them to the Sheriff’s Department or DSHS, which prolonged the plaintiffs’ suffering, the lawsuit states.

Because of the inaction by DSHS and Eatonville police, “Haeli and Staci suffered severe damage,” the suit contends.”

Women file lawsuit over alleged abuse by former foster parents
[The News Tribune 11/7/11 by Adam Lynn]

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update 3:” Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist has charged Washington State Trooper Justin Hamrick with two counts of failure to report child abuse. State law requires that any law enforcement officer that has knowledge of child abuse report it immediately.

“Our mandatory reporting laws exist to help protect our children,” Lindquist said in a statement released Wednesday. “Law enforcement officers in particular are expected to follow our laws.”

On. Dec. 27, Hamrick appeared in court and pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was released on his own recognizance.

In 2011, Hamrick allegedly learned that his father, Scott Hamrick, had been molesting his two stepsisters for five years. He reportedly asked his mother, Drew Ann Hamrick, to report the incident to police, but she did not and she was charged in August 2011 with trying to cover up her husband’s alleged crimes. She pleaded guilty to three counts of tampering with a witness and one count of unlawful imprisonment and was sentenced to one year in prison.

After he allegedly learned of the abuse, Justin Hamrick spoke with his brothers about the incident and after a few weeks, his older brother told him to report the abuse or he would call the police, Lindquist said. At that point, Justin finally contacted police.

During an investigation, the two girls, then 12 and 14 years old, told police that Scott Hamrick began abusing them when they were five or six years old. They also told investigators that Drew Ann Hamrick physically abused them. Scott Hamrick’s other two daughters told police they had been abused by him when they were younger.

Before the investigation was completed, Scott Hamrick, a former Pierce County firefighter, killed himself.

Justin Hamrick is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 24. He has been placed on administrative leave with pay.”

Trooper charged with failing to report child abuse pleads not guilty[Q13 Fox 12/27/12 by Vicki]

“In July 2013 the Nursing Commission charged licensed practical nurse Drew Anne Hamrick

(LP00044526) with unprofessional conduct. In 2012 Hamrick was convicted of four counts of
tampering with a witness and one count of unlawful imprisonment”

http://www.doh.wa.gov/Portals/1/Documents/1500/NewsReleases/2013/13-118-DisciplineNewsRelease.pdf

Update 4:

According the the Washington court files,He plead guilty as charged to “FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH MANDATORY REPORTING LAW” on 7/15/13.The judge suspended his sentence.

Update 5:“Five former Eatonville foster children who allege they were abused will have another chance to argue the state failed to protect them before they were adopted, an appellate court said Tuesday.

The five are now adults. In earlier court records, two — Haeli Hamrick and Staci Craney — are identifed by name. In the appellate court documents, the other three people are identified only by their initials: K.E.H., J.B.H. and K.M.H.

They previously sued the state and alleged they suffered physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect in the household of Scott Hamrick, a Central Pierce Fire & Rescue lieutenant, and his wife, Drew Ann Hamrick.

A jury awarded the five nothing in 2015, deciding the state Department of Social and Health Services was not negligent in investigating the allegations of abuse.

Lawsuit against state for alleged foster home abuse gets new trial[The News-Tribune 12/13/16 by Alexis Krell]