Official: Social Workers Had Visited Home Of Killing Suspect
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — Child welfare workers repeatedly visited the California home of a woman now under investigation in the deaths of two children to check on complaints of neglect, an official said Wednesday.
The five children were not removed from the care of their aunt -- 39-year-old Tami Joy Huntsman -- because there was no evidence they were at risk, Elliot Robinson, head of the Monterey County Department of Social Services, told The Associated Press.
He said there were four complaints between September 2014 and August about general neglect, a category that includes poor supervision, improper feeding, lice infestation and dirty household conditions, Robinson said, adding that none of the complaints alleged physical abuse.
"General neglect calls rarely will result in the removal of the child," he said. "More often than not it's about poverty."
Robinson said two of the children at the home belonged to the woman, and the other three had been placed in her care by their incarcerated father after their mother died.
On Friday, a 9-year-old girl suffering from neglect and abuse was found near a house in Quincy, where the woman had recently moved. Later, police investigators found two children, ages 3 and 6, dead in a storage locker in Redding.
Autopsies are planned Wednesday for the two children whose bodies were found. The children -- who have been identified as Delylah and Shaun Tara -- were in Huntsman's custody following their mother's death.
The Huntsman and 17-year-old Gonzalo Curiel were arrested and charged with child abuse, torture and mayhem. Each remained jailed on $1 million bail.
They have been named as suspects in the deaths but have not been charged.
The investigation began Friday with the discovery of the starving 9-year-old girl who was taken to a hospital.
Plumas County Sheriff Greg Hagwood told the Sacramento Bee some officials were so shaken by the abuse endured by the girl that they might have to take time off to recover.
"When you see what has been done to a beautiful little 9-year-old girl ." the sheriff said before stopping to regain his composure. "Anyone not affected needs to get some help."
The case took another turn Sunday, when Plumas County authorities got a call from someone in Monterey County asking about the two younger children.
Detectives questioned Huntsman and Curiel again, and learned of the storage locker, the sheriff said.
Redding police Lt. Pete Brindley wouldn't say whether the children were killed in the storage unit or elsewhere.
The Huntsman and Curiel appeared in court Tuesday but did not enter pleas. Their arraignments were set for Jan. 7. Their attorneys declined to comment.
Social services officials were reviewing the agency's handling of the four neglect complaints.
"We're looking at the case to see if there's anything we should have done differently that could have prevented this tragedy," Robinson told the San Francisco Chronicle.
