ATTENTION INDIANA: CPS Lets Two More Children Die, When Will Someone Do Something About Them?

Two more dear children died this past weekend in a house fire.  Dear Alyssa and Caleb Lynch lost their lives when mom’s fiance set fire to their house and left them to burn up while mom was at work.  The two children were recently with their father to celebrate a birthday, and the children told their father and grandfather that the fiance, Jeff Weisheit, was hitting and mistreating them.  Both the father and grandfather reported this to Indiana Child Protective Services over two weeks ago, and nothing was done about it.  NOTHING.

Now the children are dead.  Hope you all are sleeping well at night….their dear mother and father aren’t.

A short excerpt from WLWT:

Sheriff: ‘This Is Tough Stuff’

Weisheit is also facing charges in Indiana in connection with a fatal fire.

In Indiana, Vanderburgh County deputies said rescue crews were called to the fire at 10040 Fisher Road at about 4 a.m. Saturday.Fire crews said that the home was engulfed in flames when they arrived. Neighbors told firefighters that Weisheit lived at the home with his fiancée, Lisa Lynch, and her two children, Alyssa, 8, and Caleb, 5. Lynch was at work at the time of the fire.When deputies could not find Weisheit, an alert was put out to find him. That’s what led to the chase in Boone County. Indiana officials said that firefighters found the bodies of two children inside Weisheit’s home. The bodies have been taken to the Vanderburgh County Coroner’s Office for an autopsy and positive identification.

“This is tough stuff,” Vanderburgh County Sheriff Eric Williams said. “The fire was put out, and our people, along with German Township, began searching through that debris and as a result of that search we recovered two deceased children that were burned badly.”Investigators said they believe the fire was intentionally set.  Covington police said that Weisheit admitted to setting the fire and that he knew the children were in the home at the time.

And look here in the comments:

• Alyssa and Caleb Lynch were both recently in Panama City Florida celebrating a birthday almost 2 weeks ago with both my Father Joseph Lynch Jr. and Brother Steven Lynch. Caleb and Alyssa both notified my father and brother that Lisa’s boyfriend (Jeff Wesheit) was hitting them. Both my father and brother contacted CPS in Indiana about the incedent and nothing happened. Now our family has lost two wonderful children to the hand of a wicked man. The same man Lisa Lynch had an affair with while still married to my brother, ending their marriage. Joseph Michael Lynch 3rd
  Apr. 12, 2010 2:17pm EDT | from michaellynch
• In regards to the murder of Alyssa, and Caleb Lynch. These two beautiful children were my Neice and Nephew. I am thankful that police were able to apprehend the monster responsible, however this will never bring back these children. Joseph Michael Lynch 3rd
  Apr. 12, 2010 1:59pm EDT | from michaellynch

May this dear family get some justice for these horrible deaths.  Just because a broken family is involved…just because it involves children of divorce doesn’t mean you can keep blowing this off.  Run everyone into prison who works for CPS and has blown off child abuse charges, because too many children are paying the ultimate price here in Indiana.  May little Alyssa and Caleb rest in peace.

Also see Indiana CPS: Accessories to Murder

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How Do We Stop Domestic Violence In Indiana? Here is Our List!

Do we expect anything to come of this…hardly.  The courts in Indiana refuse to take domestic violence seriously.  If there are allegations of domestic violence in a relationship, the perp’s lawyer will have it pulled out of domestic violence court (Court #21 in Marion County) and pull it into family court, even if they didn’t start there.  This is where the perp’s lawyer will turn it into a he said/she said battle, with allegations even more outrageous, in an effort to cloud the issue on who the abuser actually is.  Even with actual evidence, the crooked judges here often ignore it.   And there are plenty of father-leaning Whores of the Court here to feed it to them (see Local “Stepfamily” Counselor Celebrates Baby’s Death and Leading Lambs to the Slaughter…).

When the Indianapolis Star gives a local neonazi/skinhead father’s rights guy Stuart Showalter, of Boone County Fathers, the opportunity to pimp a shared parenting bill he is getting his lackey State Senator Dennis Kruse to submit to the legislature, and not print a letter from us warning of the dangers of these abusive parents using claims of “Parental Alienation Syndrome” as an excuse to get children from mothers when Governor Daniels signed a proclamation day for this, it is horrifying (see Our New Letter for the Press: The “Parental Alienation Awareness” Scam gets our Governor Mitch Daniels).   But that is the patriarchal cultural of Indiana.  You only have to look at the front pages of the Indianapolis Star on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day this year to see that.  And did you catch the Mother’s Day message from Senator Evan Bayh.  That’s right, he didn’t send one, but he did to father’s on Father’s Day in preparation of submitting his Fatherhood Initiative bill to congress.  Listen to the talk radio stations here in town.  An hour hardly goes by without father’s rights lawyers Cordell & Cordell advertising on how they will get the kids for guys (yes, they know who has to the money to fight the fight) and “protect their financial means to do so.”  Gag gag gag.  It is not about the kids for these guys. It is about the $$$.

Showalter blamed Angie Warnock for her own death by saying she shouldn’t had gotten a protective order against him, that it just caused the situation to get worse (see Joseph Warnock Takes Responsibility For Killing Angie, but Stuart Showalter Still Blames Her).  Really?  Stuart believes that every father, violent or not, deserves to share the child…50/50, even if the parent didn’t share in parenting before, even if the parent abused the other parent in front of the childen (he just needs family counseling Showalter claims).  I wonder how Angie’s two daughter feel about their father now, having witnessed him stabbing her in front of them.

Until the patriarchal, victim-blaming, mother-bashing culture comes to an end here, we will continue to see more victims at the hands of these violent men. 

1.  Stop the Mickey Mouse diversion programs…put the abuser in jail. 

2.  Stop pulling domestic violence charges out of the DV court.  It is not a civil matter, it is a CRIMINAL matter. 

3.  Stop taking children from mothers and giving them to the abusers, often with the mothers not allowed to see their children again.  Yes, that happens here.  It happens all the time.

4.  Start making the judges here follow the law.  Stop slapping their hands…fire them (see Miami County Judge Publically Admonished by Indiana for Awarding Child Custody to Father Without Telling Mother). 

It’s time to wake up people.

From today’s Indianapolis Star:

County forms task force to review deaths from domestic violence

Recent domestic violence deaths spurs county to form task force

By Bruce C. Smith

Posted: September 24, 2009

The Hendricks County Commissioners have approved the formation of a task force to review local deaths from domestic violence.

The county has been stung with at least three such deaths in the past year, and that has triggered the formation of at least two organizations that will probe the causes and try to prevent more deaths.

One is a task force created with a new county ordinance to review previous deaths and report to state agencies that track statewide trends in domestic violence. The other organization is the revival of the long-dormant Hendricks County Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

October is National Domestic Violence Month.

The most recent of the three domestic violence deaths that have raised concerns in the county was the June killing of Angela Warnock, who was stabbed more than 50 times in front of her daughters. Her husband, Joseph Warnock, pleaded guilty to murder and faces sentencing Oct. 9.

The task force to review fatalities from domestic violence was created in response to a year-old state law.

Hendricks County Prosecutor Patricia Baldwin said the law requires each county to create a group to analyze causes and responses to domestic violence and report findings to the state.

“Domestic violence cuts across all economic and social levels in our communities, or at least that’s what we believe is the case, but it isn’t always easy to confirm,” Baldwin said. “This is part of a program to track the trends and our response.”

The ordinance requires the formation of a task force with about 15 members, including government officials, a judge, police, prosecutors, an emergency room physician, a defense attorney, a religious leader or pastor, a worker in a battered women’s shelter, and a pathologist or coroner. It also requires an educator, a probation officer, an animal control officer and representatives from the business community.

Baldwin said the task force would look at past deaths to see what could have been done to avoid or prevent such a tragedy.

“I think our responses have been pretty good. I don’t know that much would have changed” to affect the recent cases in the county, she said.

The Hendricks County Coalition has reformed after having lapsed for eight years.

Since August, about 15 people whose jobs touch domestic abuse and violence, have met twice to revive the coalition.

Julie Randall, a former director of Danville’s Sheltering Wings Center, said a preliminary online survey of professionals dealing with domestic violence found 72 percent believe violence is increasing.

Members of the coalition said they would step up efforts to educate the public about the causes of violence and the resources available to settle situations.

If necessary, they said they would look for reforms in state law, law enforcement and social services. They would train volunteers to expand on the county victims assistance program, with trained volunteers in the courthouse to direct victims of domestic violence to shelter and aid.

They look to the success of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, which educated the public about the dangers of driving while intoxicated.

“MADD stigmatized the crime of drunk driving so that it is not socially acceptable,” said Brian Johnson, a defense attorney from Brownsburg. “If you want to effect real change in domestic violence, than you have to create deterrence.”

In another Hendricks County death related to a domestic dispute, Michael R. Gelinas, 49, was killed in the driveway of his Avon home on May 27. John Gary Cooper, 58, Avon, faces one count of murder. Investigators said Cooper believed his wife was romantically involved with Gelinas.

In a third case that deeply affected Hendricks social and domestic violence workers, 44-year-old Yvonne Kretzer died of brain trauma in March in an Indianapolis hospital, after years of beatings. The Ohio woman had sought comfort in the Sheltering Wings Center in Danville, and then went back to her husband.

Attention Indiana Lawmakers and DSC, CPS: Don’t Take the Children, Take the ABUSER Away

When will they start taking abusers seriously?  The victim and children don’t ask for it…although some people here think they do.

Whenever the Department of Child Services responds to calls of domestic violence, “the first thing we do is see if the children need to be removed”

No, remove the violent abusive father and don’t put him in some Mickey Mouse diversion program, and the problem is solved.  Why are DCS, CPS, and the rest ofthese Indiana state agencies still holding this mentality?  Don’t take the children, take the abuser away…for a LONG time.  In this case, this Bozo is currently in the crowbar hotel, but many abusers get away with an out…and that out is diversion programs.

Nobody in this state takes domestic violence seriously, nor do they take abusers seriously.

Estranged husband with gun arrested

By SOPHIA VORAVONG • svoravong@jconline.com • September 3, 2009

A rural Lafayette teenager who called 911 late Tuesday, reporting that her father had a firearm and was threatening her mother, could be credited with saving her mother’s life.

Tippecanoe County sheriff’s deputies who were called at 11 p.m. to the family’s home on Primrose Path, off County Road 200 East, found a loaded and cocked handgun in the father’s waistband, according to court documents.

The father, Flavio M. Gonzalez, 40, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, domestic battery, intimidation with a deadly weapon and resisting law enforcement.

He was being held Wednesday in the Tippecanoe County Jail on a $250,000 surety bond.

The mother, Yolanda Gonzalez, was able to get away from her estranged husband. She suffered a minor injury to one hand but was otherwise unharmed, Sheriff Tracy Brown said.

He said the couple’s four children, ranging in age from 7 to 16, were in the house when deputies arrived. They also were unharmed. Brown said a 15-year-old dialed 911.

The Tippecanoe County prosecutor’s office on Wednesday was granted a request to hold Flavio Gonzalez for 72 hours, not including weekends and Labor Day.

That would give the prosecutor’s office until Tuesday to file formal charges.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday with the 72-hour hold request, Yolanda and Flavio Gonzalez had been married for nearly 16 years but are going through divorce proceedings.

Yolanda Gonzalez told investigators that her estranged husband recently lost his job due to a conviction for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

He allegedly was drinking Tuesday night and got angry over a bill for a vehicle that belongs to one of their daughters. Yolanda Gonzalez told investigators that Flavio Gonzalez allegedly ordered her to say goodbye to their children and forced her into the garage.

She claims that her estranged husband made her kneel down and that he was waving a handgun at her.

Sheriff’s deputies reported hearing two people yelling and a loud smack near the garage, followed by more shouting and a door slamming shut, when they arrived on Primrose Path.

Flavio Gonzalez allegedly ignored commands by Lt. Scott Hodson to stop and put his hands in the air. Other deputies who came around the back of the garage were able to stop him.

Along with the handgun, deputies found several cell phones and a knife on Flavio Gonzalez.

“An action that he took with the firearm, directed at his wife, is the reason for the preliminary charge of attempted murder,” Brown said.

Brown declined further clarification, pending formal charges.

The Indiana Department of Child Services also was called out because children were involved. Angela Smith Grossman, director of the Tippecanoe County branch, said she was unable to discuss the case because of privacy laws.

Whenever the Department of Child Services responds to calls of domestic violence, “the first thing we do is see if the children need to be removed,” Grossman said.

Flavio Gonzalez, who appeared before a court magistrate on Wednesday, is scheduled for another hearing this afternoon because he requested a language interpreter.

Attention Indiana Lawmakers: Child Protective Services STILL Mishandling Cases

Well, CPS is totally ate up.  Take children from parents who have experienced a horrible accident and lost their loved one.  And leave children with abusers because “it is in the middle of a custody battle.”   When are the lawmakers in this state going to realize CPS personnel STILL are not doing their jobs right!

From TheIndyChannel.com:

Toddler’s Canoe Death Prompts CPS Investigation

DNR: Girl’s Father Had Been Drinking

POSTED: 6:40 am EDT August 13, 2009 

INDIANAPOLIS — Child Protective Services has stepped into the investigation of the death of a 2-year-old girl during a canoeing accident on the Driftwood River over the weekend.  Megan McNair died when the canoe she and her family was riding in capsized in northern Bartholomew County on Saturday. 

McNair’s father, Patrick McNair, mother and 5-year-old sister were also in the canoe, but all were able to get to shore. A spokeswoman for the Department of Natural Resources said Patrick had been drinking.  The Department of Natural Resources said McNair was swept under a log jam, where she became trapped.

CPS Director James Payne said the department wants to ensure that the 5-year-old girl is safe in her home environment.   “We are assessing the issue of safety,” Payne said. “We’ll look at the family structure, the family dynamics, the allegations, prior history if any, what is going on in the family.”  6News’ Sarah Cornell went to the McNair’s home in Indianapolis Wednesday, but the family did not want to comment. 

No charges have been filed in the case, and Indianapolis police said the couple has no record of abuse or neglect in Marion County.  “Our effort is to try to get parents to understand their role and responsibility of keeping children safe and taking care of children,” Payne said.   The state’s assessment will also attempt to determine whether the child was wearing a life jacket and if her parents were properly supervising her. The investigation could take weeks or months, Cornell reported.  

It was unclear if the 5-year-old girl was still living with the family. A neighbor told 6News that she saw police come to the home on Monday and hasn’t seen the girl since. Under state law, CPS officials are not allowed to release that information.  Megan McNair’s body was recovered on Tuesday. She would have turned age 3 on Monday.  

Previous Stories:

• August 11, 2009: Drowned Toddler’s Body Recovered
• August 10, 2009: Search Scaled Back For Presumed Drowned Toddler
• August 10, 2009: Crews Continue Search For Toddler Believed Drowned

Our condolences go to the McNair family.  Rest in peace, dear little Megan.