Again, this article emphasizes the importance of reporting any abuse one is aware or suspicious of. Below are details behind the violent deaths of 7 out of the 115 children recorded for the construction of the Indiana Tenderness Trail. Just think, if these people would have done the right thing it would currently be 108. You might someday be in a position to report suspected or known abuse and, in choosing to report it. You might just help to save a life.
#94. Brittany Nicole Smith
#81. Christian Durnell
#84. Xavier Hill
#75. Joshua Henson
#76. Terry Lynn Henson
#72. Jonathon Nix
#95. Aspen Fultz
Reference: http://www2.indystar.com/special/childabuse/
tim.evans@indystar.com
After Brittany Nicole Smith died, more than a dozen family members, friends and neighbors told investigators they had seen injuries on the baby's head.
One said Brittany looked lifeless. Another recalled her tiny head covered with bruises.
They had reason to suspect the child was being abused, but they did not tell authorities who might have been able to help the 9-month-old Morgan County girl.
They weren't alone -- even though a state law requires all citizens to report suspected abuse or neglect.
The Star's review of Child Protection Services fatality reports found case after case across the state in which family members, friends, neighbors and even doctors failed to speak up -- until it was too late.
In Brittany's case, those who saw the battered baby chose to believe her mother, Trina Smith.
She told them the little girl kept hitting her head on her crib.
An autopsy told a different story. Brittany had a skull fracture. She also had healing fractures in both legs, a recent break on her left leg and a fractured hand.
Brittany died April 29, 1998. Smith said she had been afraid to seek medical help. She said her boyfriend, Timothy McSchooler, had warned: "The welfare doctors will take her away."
Smith, then 22, was convicted of three counts of neglect and sentenced to 33 years; McSchooler, then 29, was convicted of one count of neglect and sentenced to 20 years.
"You could have sought medical treatment in time to save that baby's life," Morgan Superior Court Judge Jane Spencer Craney told Smith at her sentencing.
"And therefore, not only are you legally responsible . . . you are morally responsible."
Other examples of children failed by people who could and should have reported their suspicions were found in Child Protection Services fatality investigation reports:
• Two-month-old Christian Durnell died Dec. 3, 1999, after suffering a brain injury and more than a dozen broken ribs at the hands of his father.
Family members said the Porter County baby had earlier injuries that they found upsetting in hindsight, according to the Child Protection Services report.
One said that, when Christian was about 2 weeks old, she saw bruising to the child's ear and blisters on his feet, the state report said.
She also saw blood.
Christian's father, Grant Durnell, then 26, pleaded guilty to reckless homicide and battery and was sentenced to 20 years. No one was charged for failing to report.
• Xaevier Hill's family knew Darryl Forrest had trouble controlling his anger. But that didn't stop them from leaving Xaevier with his mother's boyfriend.
It was a fatal decision.
Forrest, then 24, killed the 1-year-old boy in August 1999, and doctors found signs of earlier abuse.
There were previous injuries the Marion County family should have been aware of, said the Child Protection Services report.
Forrest was convicted of murder and sentenced to 60 years. No one was charged for failure to report.
• Jennings County toddlers Joshua and Tarry Lynn Henson were left alone outside for 30 minutes on April 10, 2000. The brother, 2, and sister, 4, wandered to a neighbor's swimming pool and drowned.
"There appears to be a problem with mom supervising children according to statement taken from neighbors," the state report said.
• Child Protection Services workers investigated after Lee LeMaster took his battered son to a Morgan County hospital on Sept. 30, 2000, and said he dropped the boy in the shower.
"The family was protective and supportive of the father," the state's report said. It also noted that law enforcement and medical professionals concluded the father's explanation was plausible.
A month later, LeMaster brought 10-month-old Jonathan Nix back to the hospital with multiple head injuries. This time, the child didn't survive.
After Jonathan's death on Oct. 30, 2000, family members mentioned at least five other incidents in which the boy was injured while visiting his noncustodial father, according to the Child Protection Services report.
LeMaster, now 27, was convicted of neglect of a dependent and sentenced to 20 years. No one was charged with failure to report.
• After 8-month-old Aspen Fultz drowned in a bathtub on March 4, 1998, family members and friends admitted they should have reported the parents before the tragedy, said Carroll County Sheriff Dennis Randle.
The day Aspen died, she and her 2-year-old brother were in the care of their father, Michael E. Fultz.
"The father, evidently, had the reputation for drinking heavily and sleeping very soundly," the report said.
"Father fell asleep for an extensive period of time, possibly four hours, and admits to have been drinking . . . During that time, the children were left unsupervised, resulting in the death of the younger child."
Fultz, then 23, pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent and was sentenced to six months' home detention. No one was charged with failure to report
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