Video broadcast on the NBC4 News at 11 a.m. on Wednesday May 11, 2022. Horrifyingly, this was just one of the alleged torture methods they are are accused of inflicting on him before his death, according to authorities. Medical officials shared that the child was severely malnourished as well. The death of 10-year-old Anthony Avalos from alleged abuse brings scrutiny to Hathaway Sycamores Child and Family Services, a contractor paid by the county for child welfare services. Los Angeles County prosecutors have charged a mother and her boyfriend with murder and torture in the death of Anthony Avalos, the woman's 10-year-old son. Baldy area remains closed due to 'avalanche danger', Rockslide triggers closure of Malibu Canyon Road near PCH. },false) The chilling revelation came as the grand jury transcript was unsealed Monday, which unveiled alleged weeks of torture. Heather Maxine Barron, 29, and her boyfriend Kareem Ernesto Leiva, 32, had. Later,Mildred Blue, a teacher providing services to Barron at a domestic violence center, reported to the child abuse hotline in April 2016 that the children arrived with bruises and said that Leiva had forced them to fight each other at home. The assignment went to Sheriffs Deputy Billy Cox, who had been disciplined in the past for failing to properly investigate an unrelated child abuse allegation, according to his testimony in court. } Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. When a new student joined the class, he asked to move to a neighboring seat, hoping to be the friend the newcomer needed. His body showed signs of prolonged abuse. Vernon had recently joined the department. A sheriffs deputy interviewed the boy, then 2, who told him that Leiva had violently grabbed him by the ear, leaving it bruised and cut. window.googletag.cmd.push(function() { Bulkley quoted Millman as saying, given the children and their age and their behavior, she is doing all she can., Then in November 2014, another therapist at the Childrens Center, Crystal Gee, called the child abuse hotline to report that one of the children told her, Mommy whoops our asses.. The lawsuit cited other high-profile deaths of children who were also being monitored by the DCFS -- 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez and 4-year-old Noah Cuatro, both of Palmdale -- to allege systemic failures'' in the agency. But I hope and pray that another child does not loose his or her life on their watch, or any child in the USA that is being monitored by social services for that matter.There will be more video's concerning Anthony Avalos and Noah Quatro as the trial's continuemore evidence will show that not only are the adults who murdered Anthony and Noah are to blamebut DCFS will be under scrutiny once again.Thanks for watching. Barron also said that Anthony told her he thought he was gay and she said she loved him regardless, according to Withers. In every state, in every townall over the world. Her case notes show that she counseled him to listen to his mother more attentively and to finish his homework. It is very heartbreaking to me that Las Angeles County DCFS has failed yet again to protect two other children from the abuse, neglect and torture at the hands of the adults in the same home. In family photos, Anthony usually has a wide smile, holding a report card from school, wearing a blue dinosaur T-shirt or with his head held high in a vest and striped tie. Privacy Policy, Questions or trouble with this site? DCFS guidelines nevertheless required the allegation to be sent to the police for a criminal investigation. She testified that she was unaware that victims of abuse often retract their accounts. Withers, reading from her medical report, said Barron further told her that her son had not eaten well the previous three days. Two days later, DCFS caseworker Ikea Vernon met with Anthony at his aunt and uncles home. Earlier on Monday, a detective testified that during their search of the Lancaster apartment in which the boy was found dead, detectives found a corner where the floor's carpet was pulled up. He repeated the account of abuse. In the immediate aftermath of his death, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors promised a comprehensive public report by former Juvenile Court Judge Michael Nash director of the Office of Child Protection of any systemic issues in Anthonys protection by DCFS, the Sheriffs Department and other county agencies. }); Anthony verified the account to a caseworker who interviewed him at school. pg.acq.push(function() { It was such a common practice that his knees were scabbed, never healing. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Jackie Lacey and Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who represents Lancaster. In later testimony before the grand jury that indicted Heather Barron and Leiva for murder, Vernon said her decision relied on the children recanting their prior claims of abuse. The county settled that case for $32 million. if(document.querySelector("#google_image_div")){ Anthony was taken to a local hospital where his heart stopped. Hathaway-Sycamores chief executive, Debbie Manners, declined to be interviewed for this article. Withers, reading from her medical report, said Barron further told her that her son had not eaten well the previous three days. Baby Mia Jade Riley: Parents Lani and Tom Riley speak out after dog attack killed their 5-week-old infant, 'We have lots to reveal': Madeleine McCann lookalike Julia Wandelt posts footage of meeting with PI probing claims, Kyle Sambrook: Hiker falls 100ft to death while carrying his dog in one hand through 'appalling' weather, Killer mom Lindsay Clancy was suffering from drug withdrawal and had 'worst side effects,' says friend, Bruce Willis's mom Marlene 'not sure if her son still recognizes her' as 'aggressiveness' creeps in. But internal reviews showed that caseworkers placed children, including Anthony, into the program even after the departments risk-scoring tool evaluated them as being at high risk of abuse. Now, what is scarier than this is that these cases are the only ones that have blown up in the mainstream media.what about the ones we don't know about. The mural was painted by local artists on a wall near where Gabriel used to live. Maria Barron, Anthonys aunt and Davids wife, learned of Anthonys condition and went to the hospital, where she found Heather in the hallway, she said in an interview. A detective and nurse took the footage to document the 10-year-old's severe injuries shortly before he was taken off life support in June of 2018. Following his death, it was found that Anthony's body was covered in bruises, burns, and cuts that were similar to those Gabriel was subjected to. pg.acq.push(function() { }); The report included a series of recommendations, such as increasing staffing in the Antelope Valley and improving access to medical assessments to minimize risks to other children in the future. Case workers had left Noah with his family despite a court order to remove him. After he turned 6, his aunt Crystal Diuguid told her therapist that Anthonys mother was beating him and locking him in a room with no access to food or a bathroom. Sciortino told the child abuse hotline that she doubted the abuse claim but wanted it recorded to cover our butts., Barron and the boy told her the injuries occurred when he fell in the shower. His mother and her boyfriend were both convicted in his death. Another Palmdale, California boy named Anthony Avalos died under seemingly similar circumstances. One ate out of the trash, she said. Pictured above: A memorial for Anthony Avalos at the California City home of his uncle and aunt, David and Maria Barron, on Aug. 2. I am part of the Barron family now, he told Vernon, according to her notes. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times) In the months since Anthonys death, his siblings have answered questions often reluctantly for detectives, prosecutors and grand jurors, providing a graphic and poignant coda, all the while professing their love for theirmother and desire to protect her. With Netflix doing a documentary series on the case, viewers were given an insight into the horrific and inhuman abuse endured by the child. Sciortino later acknowledged that she hadnt reviewed her departments files on earlier abuse complaints involving Anthony and his siblings. hitType: 'event', Perhaps the most stinging conclusion was that, although the county has extensively studied past child fatality cases such as Gabriel Fernandezs, yielding key recommendations that would save lives, the department has not ensured that its reviews improve the services it provides.. Further interviews revealed that his mother had not gotten him counseling and that Anthony was acting sexually inappropriately with another child, according to DCFS records. His mother and her boyfriend are both charged with torturing the boy before his death. Barron and Leiva showed no reaction during the photo display. His teacher, HarmonyBell, testified that Anthony had a mind-blowing positivity, according to the unsealed transcript. But child protective workers and others tasked with protecting Anthony missed numerous warnings and opportunities to intervene before his death, according to dozens of interviews and a review of court records, documents from DCFS and records of outside agencies hired by the county to help Anthony and his family. The settlement means that Hathaway-Sycamores Child and Family Services are the only defendants left in the lawsuit brought in July 2019. DCFS workers wrote that Anthonys mother did not seek professional help for Anthony and that his siblings told them that she beat him. DCFS has put out a press release to the media saying that these cases are dissimilar to eachother.In my personal opinon, they are trying to run away from their responsibility regarding, not only Gabriel, but Anthony and Noah, as well. Atty. Cox, the sheriffs investigator, also received a report of Blues hotline call. Shane Bulkley, another DCFS worker who was assigned to investigate Wrights report, wrote in his notes that Barron cursed, yelled and acknowledged hitting the children with a belt. The files do not address why the switch was made. A CT scan showed bleeding and swelling of the brain. In the other cases the parents were out of the area or could not be present for legitimate reasons, Cabunoc said. He told Greaux that his mother beat him and locked him in a room with no access to food, water and the bathroom, according to DCFS records. His lifeless face was held by a large yellow neck brace. Victor gave a heartbreaking account of the conversations he would have with his son over Skype and said Anthony wanted to live with him and after contacting child services he was confident that they would contact him, but they never did.The accusations included starvation, denial of water and basic human necessities, physical abuse, being locked in small places for extended periods of time and denied access to the bathroom, being forced into physically fight with other children, burned from head to toe, dangled by his ankles out of a second-story window, forced to dig through trash to find food, dragged around by his ears, slammed into the floor, walls and furniture. }); One of Leiva's attorneys, Dan Chambers, countered that the evidence would demonstrate that there is "reasonable doubt" involving the murder charge against his client. An attorney for Leiva declined to comment for this article. }); eventAction: 'view' There, he got to know his new fourth-grade teacher, Harmony Bell, and on the last day of school he wrote her a letter. Anthony Avalos, 10, who was tortured for days before his death had the same DCFS contact as Gabriel Fernandez. if(document.querySelector("#ads")){ They have denied wrongdoing. Because of him, his siblings are finally free., February 2013 to February 2015: Missed warnings. 5 Anthony Avalos died from a suspicious bleed to the brain in 2018 Credit: Netflix 5 None of the caseworkers mentioned in the records returned messages seeking comment for this story. Numerous interviews with the children occurred wherein the children indicated no issues. Nash declined to be interviewed and answered only limited questions about the case. Sheriffs deputies were called to Anthonys home a day before he died at a hospital. "To me, it looked like she was forcing herself to have some type of emotions," Cabunoc said. ABC7's Dallas Raines explains the difference, Jury selection begins for convicted torturer accused of escaping jail. In a brief email exchange, Nash said he did not review recordings of hotline calls by the Childrens Center counselors, the teacher at the domestic violence center, or any other call. Instead, he said he had relied on DCFS-provided summaries. His sadistic mother and her brute of a boyfriend caused trauma and bleeding in his skull and body, resulting in his death on 21st June 2018. A recent documentary is bringing new attention to two heartbreaking Antelope Valley cases involving the death of a child. A coroner testified Tuesday that a Lancaster boy who died of alleged abuse by his mother and her ex-boyfriend had severe blunt force injuries to his brain. Since the DocuSeries \"The Trial's Of Gabriel Fernandez\" currently on Netflix, it has brought to light the inconsistencies and outright sistemic failures of DCFS in Las Angeles County. He held his Bible tightly throughout the day, once quaking with tears when it fell to the floor. LANCASTER, Calif. - A prosecutor told a judge Wednesday . Dr. Michael Gertz, the AVMC emergency room doctor on duty when Anthony arrived, testified that the boy had no pulse or cardiac activity, was motionless and that his pupils did not react to anything. Rudy Reyes talks about his time on 'Special Forces: World's Toughest Test', Southern California storm: Region hit with heavy rain, mountain snow, gusty winds, Look outside! ANTELOPE VALLEY, Calif. (KABC) -- Three separate cases of little boys tortured and murdered in the Antelope Valley have. hitType: 'event', His 7-year-old brother told investigators the children would have to fight one another to escape punishment, and eating was a privilege that they had to earn. },false) They tortured him by making him kneel on uncooked hard rice causing bleeding on the knees, then Leiva pushed his feet against his knees to hurt more and was then forced to clean the mess. It is also claimed that the child had hot sauce poured into his mouth as a form of torture. Torture \u0026 Death of Anthony AvalosAnthony Avalos was a 10 year old Lancaster California boy, that, on the surface, appeared happy in many photos, but that was only masking his dark and sinister upbringing. Anthony paid the ultimate pricehe was forced to give up his life, so DCFS should be forced to give up the greed of the almighty dollar and pay for their part in failing Anthony. Gabriel Fernandez had also been in the program despite a risk rating of very high.. Anthony Avalos died on June 20, 2018 at age 10, allegedly after suffering abuse by his mother Heather Barron and her boyfriend, Kareem Leiva. Look outside! Similar to Gabriel, Anthony was covered in bruises and burns when he arrived at UCLA Mattel Childrens Hospital. Anthony had suffered significant abuse and trauma before his death which included being slammed onto the floor, whipped with a belt and vacuum cord. ", The defense lawyer questioned the accounts of the boy's half-siblings, whose testimony he said has changed over time and is "inconsistent with the medical evidence.". The countys child welfare agency has faced scrutiny after a series of high-profile child abuse cases in recent years, including the suspicious death in July of 4-year-old Noah Cuatro in Palmdale. Millman followed up with her in a brief conversation, Gee said. His once-healthy frame had wasted to skin and bones. It is not top secret that DCFS is being sued by the Avalos family for $50 million dollars USD. All rights reserved. Anthony had been removed from his home for several months when some of the reports of abuse were substantiated. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), They seemed pretty shaken up when I talked to them about it, Gellardo told the hotline worker on the recorded line, adding his recommendation that the children not go home with their mother. Many questions were raised about what the county Department of Children and Family Services could have done to protect those children. According to LA County Deputy District Attorney John Hatami, "At one point Anthony could not walk, was unconscious lying on his bedroom floor for hours, was not provided medical attention and could not eat on his own." Both children suffered cruel, vicious and repeated abuse in their California homes at the hands of their own mothers and their partners. The nurse testified that Barron earlier spent about 10 minutes with her son before his death, then asked if she could be excused to the waiting room. A month later, Anthony and his siblings recanted their allegations of abuse. Commenting on the apparent similarities between Gabriel and Anthony's cases, former senator in California, Ricardo Lara, told the Netflix series: "It's the homophobia that you don't see. Gabriel was killed after being repeatedly whipped and beaten by his mum and her boyfriend. }); The harrowing and tragic case of eight-year-old Gabriel Fernandez who was tortured and beaten to death by his mother and her boyfriend has left the world in shock. In talking with Anthony, Vice Principal Gia Greaux had become increasingly dismayed. Around five years later, the same institution's failure apparently led to the death of another young boy, Anthony Avalos. The innocent 10-year-old died in 2018 after allegedly being brutally beaten and tortured by his mum Heather Barron, 28, and her sicko partner Kareem Ernesto Leiva, 32, who have both pleaded not guilty to charges against them. Vernon and her supervisor, however, decided against any further action. His mother Heather Barron and her boyfriend Kareem Leiva have been charged with first-degree murder and torture. eventAction: 'click_image_ads' Gabriel and Anthony's death occurred in places that are a 15-minute drive away from each other in Antelope Valley. The lawsuit cited other high-profile deaths of children who were also being monitored by the DCFS -- 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez and 4-year-old Noah Cuatro, both of Palmdale -- to allege "systemic failures" in the agency. Barron and Leiva showed no reaction during the photo display. He said his eyes were sunken and his body was bruised and burned. The horrific death of Anthony Avalos and the many missed chances to save him By Garrett Therolf writer Sept. 4, 2019 3 AM PT Anthony Avalos was the fastest runner in his fourth-grade. LA County child welfare officials had received a dozen referrals of suspected child abuse about the boy from 2013 until 2016. An outside counselor contracted by the county to provide services for Anthonys family had previously been questioned about her work in the Fernandez case, and a DCFS caseworker supervising the agencys contact with Anthonys family had been disciplined for missteps in the Fernandez case, the review by the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley and The Times found. At the conclusion of my investigation, the situation was stabilized because the children had recanted their stories, Vernon said. He was later disciplined for the move following an internal inquiry, according to grand jury transcripts. Under the new directives of Los Angeles County District Attorney. Vernon then called Dixon and two other Hathaway-Sycamores counselors who had been working in the home for seven months. Members of Anthonys family, though, asked the district attorney to review the workers actions. In 2017, she told the court in the criminal case against Gabriels caseworkers that she witnessed extensive injuries but withheld the information from the child abuse hotline, despite state law requiring her to report all suspected abuse. We are one of the worlds fastest growing ABC7's Dallas Raines explains the difference, Jury selection begins for convicted torturer accused of escaping jail. The Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report. Heather is my old mom. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), The abuse was rampant and occurred over many years.Evidence was also presented of extensive pain and suffering, child abuse, isolation, chronic abuse and stress, torture and mental abuse of Anthony Avalos.Amongst a summary of evidence includes graphic photographs, graphic videos, torture techniques, torture tools and more. The grand jury transcripts in the Avalos case were unsealed in December after The Times petitioned in court to obtain the records. Im never going to see Heather again. But when Sheriffs Det. His death Anthony died on June 21 in 2018 and the cause of death is reported to have been internal bleeding in his skull after allegedly being dropped on his head multiple times. ga('ads.send', { While the docu-series showed that justice was served after Pearl was given life without parole and Aguirre was sentenced to death, just two weeks after their sentencing, history appeared to repeat itself. The Netflix documentary revealed that both Gabriel and Anthony's case had the same DCFS contact Matthew Mansfield, who was a veteran supervisor with the department. Additionally, the children said that Leiva whipped their faces and legs with a belt and dangled Anthonys younger half brother upside down from a staircase, according to hotline calls and DCFS records. Both have pleaded not guilty, and Anthonys siblings have been removed from the home. He also said we did not talk about Hathaway Sycamores in our report because we did not see any information suggesting they did anything improper. Some of Dixons notes were cut and pasted from one session to the next, and they did not mention the new allegations of abuse that arrived at the child abuse hotline during the time she worked with the family. In Anthonys case, Mansfield and colleague Mark Millman brought in counselors from the Childrens Center of the Antelope Valley to provide services for the children and their mother. Opening statements began in the trial against Heather Barron her boyfriend Kareem Leiva for the 2018 death and torture of Anthony Avalos. Anthony Avalos died on June 21, 2018, the morning after he was taken to the hospital. The children, he said, confided that they had been locked in a room so long that they urinated and defecated on themselves. Four othercounty social workers accused of mishandling abuse allegations in Gabriels case are scheduled to go to trial on charges of felony child abuse and falsifying records. window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('impressionViewable', function(event) { They didn't provide him with food or water, forcing him to scavenge through trash cans. Anthony Avalos died on June 21, 2018, when he was just 10-years-old. Wyatt, the sheriffs detective reviewing the latest allegations, closed his investigation after one failed attempt to reach Leiva, according to Wyatts court testimony. Over the objection of Deputy District Attorney Jonathan Hatami, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office dropped its bid for the death penalty against the two after the 2020 election of District Attorney George Gascn, who issued a directive that "a sentence of death is never an appropriate resolution in any case.". Soon thereafter, one of the assigned DCFS caseworkers, Anna Sciortino, saw visible marks and bruises on the siblings face and left arm. Caseworkers marked it unfounded.. He also described the captains chair, a form of discipline that required Anthony to hold a squatted position for a long period of time with his arms outstretched. Two heartbreaking Antelope Valley cases involving the torture and death of two boys, Gabriel Fernandez and Anthony Avalos, are being re-examined in a new documentary. Jupiter, Venus meet for rare conjunction. Based solely on the information provided by Ms. Barron, the assessor believes that her capacity to provide suitable care for her children is severely limited by her poor parenting skills, poor judgment and denial and lack of awareness of her mental health issues, counselor Luis Ramirez wrote in June 2014. She moved Anthony to El Dorado Elementary, where his history was unknown. County officials removed the other children from the home as the investigation continued. Barron spoke with a slur and her concerns for her son seemed feigned, according to Cabunoc. CHILLING new details have emerged into the horror death of Anthony Avalos, who authorities claim was killed and tortured by his mom and her boyfriend. It is so sad to think that a mother would participate in the brutal killing of her own child. They told him about being locked in a room, and they said Leiva also ordered the captains chair punishment. Anthony Avalos settlement: LA County agrees to pay $32M Los Angeles County would pay $32 million under a tentative settlement of a lawsuit filed by relatives of 10-year-old Anthony Avalos,. The two are charged with one count each of murder and torture involving Anthony's death, along with two counts of child abuse involving two of the boy's half-siblings. Barron further said that her son fell while playing basketball at school, that he was pushed down while playing basketball, and that he had tumbled on their apartment carpet, according to Withers, who additionally said Anthony was later transferred to UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital. MEAWW brings you the best content from its global team of 3 deaths have occured on their watch since 2013 (that we know about). Sheriffs Deputy Michael Gellardo responded and called the child abuse hotline to report what had happened. DCFS opened a case in dependency court for the sibling but not for Anthony and the other children in the home. By September 2015, Anthony was enrolled at Lincoln Elementary School in Lancaster. The innocent 10-year-old died in 2018 after allegedly being brutally beaten and tortured by his mum Heather Barron, 28, and her sicko partner Kareem Ernesto Leiva, 32, who have both pleaded not. The family members chose to stay and remained poised as the color images, some of them depicting the child's entire body and his injuries, were displayed over a period of about five minutes. The following night, Leiva allegedly dropped Anthony repeatedly on his head, according to grand jury transcripts. Under the program, children can stay with their families while they work to resolve issues underlying the abuse. Barron and Leiva now face a maximum of life in prison without the possibility of parole if they are convicted as charged. He said the two major issues will be "a lack of intent to kill" and the issue of "causation. Each service provider reported that they have never heard anything from the children about abuse and neglect, Vernon wrote. A Lancaster man will likely appear in court Friday on suspicion of murdering his live-in girlfriend's 10-year-old son, Anthony Avalos. According to the LA Times, "Based solely on the information provided by Ms. Barron, the assessor believes that her capacity to provide suitable care for her children is severely limited by her poor parenting skills, poor judgment and denial and lack of awareness of her mental health issues," counselor Luis Ramirez wrote in June 2014. Mother did not seek professional help for Anthony and his body was bruised and burned his. A maximum of life in prison without the possibility of parole if they are convicted as charged 2015 Anthony! Boy before his death had the same institution 's failure apparently led to the death of another young boy Anthony. 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