Foster Parents Indicted a Year after Baby Dies

Zeroboss

Tucson, ArizonaMore tales of Foster Parents Behaving Badly, I’m afraid. This case brings with it some serious questions about why it’s taken the district attorney’s office so long to file charges. Emily Mays died in Tucson, Arizona on August 24th, after being brought to the hospital with brunt force trauma to the head. Doctors said immediately that these injuries were "non-accidental". So why didn’t the authorities move more quickly against Randall and Penny West, who finally stand accused of killing the child? The delay rested with the Medical Examiner’s office, which wouldn’t affirmatively back the doctors in calling the injuries purposeful. This older article on the case highlights the frustration of detectives and prosecutors, who were simply waiting on affirmation from the DA to bring their case to court.

This case is now over a year old; if the Wests are indeed responsible (which seems likely), the DA’s  office is going to have a harder time proving it now that it would have shortly after the incident. As it is, the Wests only face child abuse charges, and not manslaughter or murder raps. Is this kind of delay normal for MEs? Or did the ME’s office blow it?

The flip side of this question is Katherine Mays, Emily Mays’ mom, whose lawyer has been monitoring the glacial progress of this case. Why were her children taken into foster care in the first place? Mays’ lawyer won’t say. It’s an important bit of information, though, given that Mays is suing the state for compensation. Is this a case of Child Protective Services in Arizona run amock? Or did Mays’ own bad parenting set this chain of events into motion? Stay tuned; as facts become available, we’ll have ‘em here.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 13th, 2006 at 2:34 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
  • Jay

    CPS, CYFS, under any name, they screw up time and time again.
    I’ve lost my kids WHEN I ASKED FOR HELP! I kept them out of harm’s way (being their father, like I always say, hot coal, broken glass and fire, a parent does these things to keep the kids safe) but an emotionally and physically abusive woman has abused my kids (costing the younges boy forty percent of his vision) and what does the NZ version of CPS do? Give the old hag custody and additional guardianship. Because I am not that confident with all four kids (well, hello…. how many victims of sex abuse and DV are totally confident,… and made the mistake of telling a psychologist I felt I may have needed help. CYFS know of the abuse and the sad thing is, in the case of this little angel who has been treated so bad, something could’ve and should’ve been done. but in true red tape form, the child’s best interests go out the door along with common sense, while SWs try to sort out their personal shit with the family. To Emily’s family, my love and my heart goes out to you.

  • Jay

    CPS, CYFS, under any name, they screw up time and time again.
    I’ve lost my kids WHEN I ASKED FOR HELP! I kept them out of harm’s way (being their father, like I always say, hot coal, broken glass and fire, a parent does these things to keep the kids safe) but an emotionally and physically abusive woman has abused my kids (costing the younges boy forty percent of his vision) and what does the NZ version of CPS do? Give the old hag custody and additional guardianship. Because I am not that confident with all four kids (well, hello…. how many victims of sex abuse and DV are totally confident,… and made the mistake of telling a psychologist I felt I may have needed help. CYFS know of the abuse and the sad thing is, in the case of this little angel who has been treated so bad, something could’ve and should’ve been done. but in true red tape form, the child’s best interests go out the door along with common sense, while SWs try to sort out their personal shit with the family. To Emily’s family, my love and my heart goes out to you.

  • hattie

    SOO SORRY!! I was also in Tucson when this poor child was killed and I was also dealing with my own ordeal with cps there! Those people represent the new BLACK MARKET for our children. They rob us of gods gifts(our children) and sell them to worst people than we could ever be.What monsters. My child was taken from me and she is not well because of what they have done to her. She is a mental patient more or less and since 2005 she was a perfectly healthy child. Now look! By the way OUR HEARTS are with you in each possible way as I almost feel as if my daughter was killed also! Our youngest child is named Emily in loving memory of your daughter. Hope these people rot in he** for the lives they have ruined!!!

  • hattie

    SOO SORRY!! I was also in Tucson when this poor child was killed and I was also dealing with my own ordeal with cps there! Those people represent the new BLACK MARKET for our children. They rob us of gods gifts(our children) and sell them to worst people than we could ever be.What monsters. My child was taken from me and she is not well because of what they have done to her. She is a mental patient more or less and since 2005 she was a perfectly healthy child. Now look! By the way OUR HEARTS are with you in each possible way as I almost feel as if my daughter was killed also! Our youngest child is named Emily in loving memory of your daughter. Hope these people rot in he** for the lives they have ruined!!!

  • http://www.myspace.com/justiceforemily just me
  • http://www.myspace.com/justiceforemily just me
  • http://www.myspace.com/justiceforemily just me

    Justice for Emily ( In Memory of Emily A. Mays ) So what made you take her away, from family and friends on that day, deciding that a strangers hand was indeed a better plan. And who was this you trusted dear, to provide a home much better then here, for fifteen months we kept her safe, in less then one you sealed her fate . So now I wonder how could this be? No Justice yet for Emily! I have to ask who is to blame, as you continue to play this red tape game, the facts they point a certain way, of the violent events that happened that day. Now a child is lying dead, from battery upon her head, scrapes and bruises were also found, and in that month she lost twelve pounds. So again wonder how could this be? No Justice yet for Emily! The coroners claim was Homicide, the police have said theyre on our side, and still to date not one arrest, yet all do say theyre doing their best. Lets join together and raise our voice, in the name of this girl who had no choice, I say its time for those to pay, for this precious life they took away. I truly hope one day well see True Justice done for Emily! YOUR LOVING FAMILY

  • http://www.myspace.com/justiceforemily just me

    Justice for Emily ( In Memory of Emily A. Mays ) So what made you take her away, from family and friends on that day, deciding that a strangers hand was indeed a better plan. And who was this you trusted dear, to provide a home much better then here, for fifteen months we kept her safe, in less then one you sealed her fate . So now I wonder how could this be? No Justice yet for Emily! I have to ask who is to blame, as you continue to play this red tape game, the facts they point a certain way, of the violent events that happened that day. Now a child is lying dead, from battery upon her head, scrapes and bruises were also found, and in that month she lost twelve pounds. So again wonder how could this be? No Justice yet for Emily! The coroners claim was Homicide, the police have said theyre on our side, and still to date not one arrest, yet all do say theyre doing their best. Lets join together and raise our voice, in the name of this girl who had no choice, I say its time for those to pay, for this precious life they took away. I truly hope one day well see True Justice done for Emily! YOUR LOVING FAMILY