REFORM Talk’s Forgotten Angels 2011Updated

Forgotten Angels will be a category of children that REFORM Talk will honor every November during National Adoption Month.

Forgotten Angels include adopted children that are missing; missing and presumed dead; killed in previous years and finally received some justice; deaths of US foster children and/or related to the out-of-original family placements and surrogacy industry that are otherwise forgotten since November of the previous year.

Missing

In January, we reported that up to 400 Russian International Adoptees to the US are missing . This story has not been reported by US media. The Russian Ombudsman stated “we do not know what is going on with more than 400 children because the primary adoption was cancelled and after that the child “got lost.” ” Were the children re-adopted after disruption? Abandoned? It is unknown.

Missing and Presumed Dead

In 2011, it was brought to light that two adoptees from the same family were missing. Austin and Edward Dylan Bryant  have been missing for up to 10 years and presumed dead. The adoptive parents adopted them from foster care in Colorado, but the family moved to Texas in 2005, where they continued to collect foster care subsidies for the children. Austin would be 15 today and Edward would be 18. Their brother David, who was adopted as part of a sibling group, is accounted for. Last week, trials were set for February 2012 for Linda Bryant and April 2012 for Edward Bryant.

Finally Receiving Some Justice, or Adoptive Parents Under Scrutiny or on Trial

Samuel Hudson, age 13, of Texas was beaten to death in 2008. In December 2010, his adoptive mother, Cynthia, was sentenced to life in prison. Her husband, William was supposed to go on trial in 2011. So far, there are no updates of his impending trial.  See post here.

Tristan Dosdall, age 3, of Colorado died from a blow to the head in 2010. In January 2011, his adoptive mother Michelle, was sentenced to 6 years in prison. See post here

Nathaniel Craver, age 7, of Pennsylvania and adopted with his twin sister from Russia, died of complications of traumatic brain injury and failure to thrive in August 2009. In September 2011, after the DA dropped the possibility of the death penalty, adoptive parents Michael and Nanette Craver were convicted of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and three counts of criminal conspiracy. Their sentencing is November 18, 2011. They are currently out on $50,000 bail. See post here.

Forgotten Death from Surrogacy Industry

Cooper Chen, age 2, of Washington died of multiple knife wounds in August 2011. His reported origins were murky at the beginning of this case, being wrongly classified as a international adoptee from Southeast Asia. He was the product of a surrogacy, conceived with Dr. Louis Chao Chen’s (aka Bryan Wayne) sperm and the egg of an anonymous Taiwanese woman. He was adopted by Dr. Chen’s partner, Eric Cooper. Dr. Louis Chao Chen stabbed Cooper and his partner to death, possibly due to an impending breakup. A hearing is scheduled for December 5, 2011. See post here.

Forgotten Death Adult Adoptee Under Guardianship

Christina Harms, 22-year-old disabled adult adoptee Christina Harms was found dead after being horribly abused. She had been adopted by her aunt. After the aunt’s death, she was then placed in the care of guardians Dale and Sherrie Beckering. After 8 months, she came into the care of Sherrie’s daughter, Cassandra Shepard.

Christina is believed to have had Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. She leaves behind a 2-year-old daughter who is now in protective custody. Police believe that she had been “bound in a crucifix formation in a small closet .”

The suspects were accused of putting a pepper seed in the eyelid of 22-year-old Christina Harms and covering her hands with bandages to stop her getting it out.

Investigators found Harms’ body covered in bruises with marks on her wrists and ankles.

In a closet protected by an alarm system, they discovered a metal bar and plastic zipper ties officers believe were used to bind her.

“An autopsy conducted by the Utah state medical examiner revealed ‘significant injuries to Harms’ body,’ which were ‘consistent with with evidence’ found at the scene, according to Salt Lake County Jail report.”

Cassandra Shepard, 28, is facing charges of murder and intentional aggravated abuse of a disabled adult, both first-degree felonies, and obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony.

REFORM Puzzle Piece

Update:

US Foster Care

Kyra Zubah. See here. Sharon Lee Whitecloud, 61, had a preliminary hearing on a first-degree manslaughter charge in the 2009 death of her 3 year old foster child, Kyra Zubah.

“Kyra died from blunt force trauma to her head the day after Whitecloud took her to a hospital.”Sharon was found guilty of manslaughter. She received 4 years in prison and a $1000 fine.

Emily Meno. See here. Joy Heaven killed Emily Meno on July 17, 2010 when she “pushed the girl hard enough to send her across the kitchen floor where she hit her head and became unconscious.”Joy Heaven was sentenced to 25 to 50 years.

Aubrey Littlejohn.See here. Aubrey died on  January 10, 2011.Her great aunt, Ladybird Powell “ left her in a car seat for 12 hours the day before and given only a few bites of a hot dog and sips of soda, according to court papers.

She was wrapped in a blanket and wearing only a diaper soaked in urine and feces and a T-shirt when she arrived at the hospital.” Powell “has since pleaded guilty in the child’s death and was sentenced two months ago to 12 years in prison.”

Braxton Taylor. See here. Kathleen Ganiere on February 7, 2010 shook him to death.Upon examination at the hospital, he had the following injuries: cauliflower ear, a bruised groin, bruised testicles, and a subdural hematoma.

Kathleen receives maximum sentence of 10 years for the charges that she pled to.

Missing and Presumed Dead

Adam Hermann. See here. His Adoptive Parents “Doug and Valerie Herrman pled not guilty on Tuesday February 22, 2011 “to felony charges that they fraudulently collected adoption subsidies long after their 11-year-old son disappeared in 1999.”  Doug was sentenced to nine months in prison; Valerie was sentenced to seven months. They were each ordered to pay $2,500 in court costs. They have also been ordered to repay the state $15,488.

US Adoptees

Nubia Barahona. See here .” Jorge Barahona, was found along side his 10 year old adoptive son on I-95 on February 14.2011. Details are still coming in, but the boy was ” soaked in chemicals and next to a five-gallon gas tank. His “twin sister’s “body [Nubia]was found hours later wrapped in plastic bags, wedged between chemical containers in the bed of the pickup truck. ”

The girl’s partially dissolved corpse..”  is how [Daily Mail]describe it. They also give further details about Nubia. “She was also said to have become very thin, was losing her hair, was ‘nervous and jittery’ and had started stealing food.
Though the ten-year-old suffered from a medical condition involving her hormones, there was no documentation to say that she had seen a doctor.” Victor is living with his aunt and uncle. Jorge goes on trial in June 2016.

 

Laurne E. Clark/Mollie E. Sliker. See here. She died on March 23, 2011. She died when her adoptive father Jeffrey Sliker” bang[ed] her head against a hard surface and threw her into a crib.”He received 15 years to life in prison.