Child Neglect Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Legislators Call For Action Following Fatal Neglect Of Boone County Teen

A Boone County teen was found deceased in her home earlier this month. Police say she was emaciated to a near skeletal state. It’s now come to light via a Freedom of Information Act Request filed by West Virginia Watch that the child was being homeschooled.

After a legislative session that swirled with debate around homeschooling and child welfare, some are left wondering what could have been done to avoid this.

Sen. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, said sources in Boone County have confirmed that the teen had not been in school since 2019. He says while he doesn’t want to name blame, the legislature should consider contributing factors.

“She was a living, breathing teenager. Like any other teenager that had a right to life, and that was she was deprived of that in a horrific way,” Woelfel said. “So it’s a wake up call for everybody in the legislature.”

Woelfel was the lead sponsor of a bill that would set up a critical review team tasked with discussing incidents involving deaths, and near deaths of children in the state. It passed unanimously in the Senate but was never voted on in the House of Delegates.

Woelfel has asked the governor to allow the bill to be considered in the upcoming special session.

Justice Calls For More CPS Reporting, Funding In Wake Of Child’s Death

Reports surfaced last week of the death of a 14-year-old girl leading to her mother’s arrest. Gov. Jim Justice said Tuesday that this was not a CPS case.

Reports surfaced last week of the death of a 14-year-old girl found emaciated, and of her mother’s subsequent arrest. Gov. Jim Justice said Tuesday that this was not a Child Protective Services (CPS) case.

According to reporting from Eyewitness News, Julie Anne Stone Miller, 49, of Morrisvale in Boone County was arrested and charged with child neglect causing death last week.

The girl’s grandmother told Chief Deputy Mark Abbott that the girl had not attended school since late 2019 or early 2020 and had barely been out of the house in years.

This detail prompted the media to ask Justice during his weekly media briefing if the girl had been homeschooled and if so, why an academic assessment hadn’t brought attention to her condition.

“I think the answer just got to be just one thing,” Justice said. “The CPS folks, from what I understand, [had] no idea about this, about this child, no idea whatsoever.”

Department of Human Services Cabinet Secretary Cynthia Persily released a statement Monday. The press release provided no further information on the minor who passed away, but in the headline, she called the incident a criminal case.

Justice also said more funding for staffing at Child Protective Services was necessary.

“The more money we have, the better we’ll do,” Justice said. “The more workers we’ll have, the absolute better we’ll do. You know, we have got to understand that we’ve got to step up in every way, and try to do more.”

According to the Child Welfare Dashboard, child welfare positions are 88 percent filled in the state. Most vacancies remain in the Child Protective Service Worker category with 78 vacant positions. Earlier this year, the Department of Human Services announced an easing of the staffing shortages.

Justice asked the public to speak up and speak out if they see something suspicious.

“This is a tragedy that, I mean, it’s unthinkable,” Justice said. “I mean, it’s totally unthinkable. But stuff like this happens. And really, and truly, we got a lot of people out there that may have known of this kid, or whatever, this child, and speak up. I mean, yeah, this, really and truly, this is no different than being diligent, you know, in every way, from the standpoint of, you see somebody that looks suspicious, something that may be possibly going on, speak up. Tell us about all this.”

DoHS Responds To Minor’s Death

West Virginia Department of Human Services Cabinet Secretary, Cynthia Persily released a statement on the recent death of a minor.

West Virginia Department of Human Services (DoHS) Cabinet Secretary, Cynthia Persily released a statement on the recent death of a minor in the state.

The press release provided no further information on the minor who passed away, but in the headline, she called the incident a criminal case.

Persily called the situation “tragic” and said her thoughts are with those affected by the loss.

“Our dedicated CPS staff work tirelessly on the front lines each and every day, often under very challenging circumstances, to protect vulnerable children and families across our state,” Persily wrote. “CPS staff adhere to stringent policies and procedures outlined in state and federal law to ensure that every report of abuse or neglect is thoroughly assessed and investigated with the utmost care and diligence.”

Persily said in the statement that CPS cannot prevent every instance of abuse or neglect but that the department strives to investigate every qualified report and intervene within legal authority and statute.

“DoHS remains steadfast in its commitment to addressing child abuse throughout West Virginia and urges residents to report any suspected cases to our Centralized Intake for Abuse and Neglect hotline,” Persily wrote. “Let us honor the memory of this young victim by supporting the tireless efforts of our CPS workers and working together as a community to create a safer environment for all children.”

Per West Virginia Code, all records and information concerning a child or juvenile that are maintained by the Department of Human Services, a child agency or facility, or court or law-enforcement agency, are confidential and may not be released or disclosed to anyone, including any federal or state agency.

Legislative efforts to provide more CPS transparency and oversight, while still keeping confidentiality, failed in the recent regular legislative session.

Bill Increasing Child Abuse, Neglect Penalties Moving Through Legislature

The bill raises fines and prison time for parents, guardians and custodians convicted of felony crimes involving child abuse or neglect causing degrees of bodily injury and/or risk of death

A new bill introduced in the West Virginia House of Delegates raises fines and prison time for parents, guardians and custodians convicted of felony crimes involving child abuse or neglect causing degrees of bodily injury and/or risk of death.

A conviction of serious bodily injury for example, calls for imprisonment in a state correctional facility for not less than five nor more than 15 years, instead of the previous two and 10.

House Bill 4302 also includes people in a position of trust with a child, such as a day care worker, as those subject to the same penalties upon a child abuse or neglect conviction.

The bill’s sponsor, Del. Doug Smith, R-Mercer, said that inclusion is vital in 2024.

“Those people are responsible for our children,” Smith said. “The same as any adult would be – father, mother, grandparent. We need to provide an all around inclusion for the protection of the kids.”

Any person convicted of a second or subsequent felony offense under this proposal may be imprisoned for a term up to twice the term otherwise authorized and fined an amount up to twice that otherwise authorized, or both.

Anyone convicted of a misdemeanor offense under this bill may be required to complete parenting classes, substance abuse counseling, anger management counseling, or other appropriate services, or any combination of the above.

On third reading in the House on Monday, the child abuse penalty bill passed 96-0. It now goes on to the Senate, where Smith said it has not advanced in three previous attempts.

Adoptive Parents Charged With Felony Neglect After 3 Children Found Alone In Dangerous Conditions

Two adoptive parents have been charged with felony neglect after two children were found locked inside a small barn and a third child was located in an unprotected loft inside an adjacent home.

Two adoptive parents in West Virginia were charged with felony neglect after two children were found locked inside a small barn and a third child was located in an unprotected loft inside an adjacent home, police said Tuesday.

The parents were arraigned Tuesday on charges of gross child neglect creating a substantial risk of injury.

Authorities began investigating after they received a call Monday from someone expressing concern about the children’s welfare. Kanawha County sheriff’s deputies forced their way into the barn, where a boy and a girl were locked inside a small room. The children had been deprived of adequate food and hygienic care, and the room had no running water or bathroom facilities, the sheriff’s department said in a news release.

Inside the main residence, a small child was found alone in a loft about 15 feet (4.6 meters) high with no protection from falling, the statement said.

No adults were present at the home. The adoptive parents were arrested when they returned, and each was being held in jail on a $200,000 cash bond. An Oct. 12 preliminary hearing is scheduled. Jail records didn’t indicate whether the parents have attorneys who could comment on the charges.

The Associated Press is not naming the parents in order to protect the identity of the children, who have been placed with Child Protective Services.

TikTok Ban, Natural Gas Power And More Pass Senate

The Senate passed several bills Wednesday, including one designed to ban TikTok from government devices.

With Sen. Charles Trump, R-Morgan, presiding, the Senate passed several bills Wednesday, including Senate Bill 426, which allows the state’s chief information security officer to establish standards for, and ultimately block or ban, access to technological services, apps, programs or products on government devices.

Sen. Ryan Weld, R-Brook, made it clear on the floor that the bill, which originated from the executive, had one particular app in mind.

“This bill comes to us as a result of, I’m sure a lot of you are familiar with discussions regarding TikTok,” Weld said. “TikTok, as we all know, is the very popular social media platform, video sharing platform, that is owned by a Chinese tech conglomerate, ByteDance. It has been in the news recently, the federal government enacted a ban of TikTok on all of its systems due to privacy concerns, concerns that the app collects much more data than is needed for its intended purpose.”

An amendment to the bill introduced and passed on the Senate floor Tuesday would create exceptions for law enforcement purposes.

Also passed on third reading Wednesday were:

Senate Bill 188, the Grid Stabilization and Security Act of 2023, would encourage the development and implementation of natural gas electric generation projects. Sen. Laura Chapman, R-Ohio, Sen. Randy Smith, R-Tucker, and Sen. Rupie Phillips, R-Logan, voted against the bill.

Senate Bill 240 would require state board of examination or registration proceedings to be open to public inspection

These three bills now go to the House of Delegates for their consideration.

The Senate also took action on Senate Bill 128, amending the House amendment to the bill and passing the bill, with Sen. Smith voting against. The bill, which implements limitations on the governor or legislature’s ability to declare a state of emergency, now awaits the Senate’s request that the House concur on today’s changes.

To The Executive

The Senate also completed legislative action on three bills, including:

House Bill 2506. The bill allows the Department of Motor Vehicles to take advantage of modern advances in secure digital titles for property to create a title clearinghouse to produce titles for nonresidential businesses.

Constitutional rules were suspended to pass the bill the same day it was introduced.

House Bill 2029 repeals the creation of an all-payer claims database by removing the original authority provided to the Department of Health and Human Resources.

House Bill 2018 permits the managed care case coordinator to attend the multidisciplinary team meeting. Under West Virginia code, a multidisciplinary team must be convened within thirty days of the initiation of a judicial proceeding to assess, plan and implement a comprehensive, individualized service plan for children who are victims of abuse or neglect and their families.

Senate Bill 132 clarifies the criminal offense of harassment to include stalking as a form of harassment.