Nebraska News
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System blamed in death of boy
MINDEN, Neb. — A failure of the system.
That's what former neighbors say contributed to the death of 4-year-old Landon Payne of rural Kearney County.
Landon's aunt, Sharon Payne Turnell, 37; her husband, Charles Turnell, 38; and her daughter, Katie Payne, 19, each have been charged with aiding and abetting child abuse that led to Landon's death Dec. 22.
The family lived in Pleasanton, Neb., from September 2006 to October 2009. During that time, neighbors say they called law enforcement and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services numerous times to report suspected abuse and neglect.
“No one ever really watched after them,” former neighbor Bernadine Dauel said of the children in the home. “They just took care of themselves. You never saw affection like you see with parents and children. They were just all there. They didn't have a ball or anything. The kids' biggest pastime in the summertime was just the hose and running water. That was their one thing to do for fun.” -
Cooper Village to close
An Omaha center that provides psychiatric treatment for adolescent boys will close next May, raising concerns about the availability of such care.
Officials of Cooper Village — one of just three organizations in Omaha providing residential care for that population — confirmed the decision to The World-Herald.
Uta Halee Girls Village, which runs Cooper Village, and the Omaha Home for Boys, which helps pay for it, informed their staffs on Wednesday.
Uta Halee's management agreement with the 47-bed Cooper Village will end next May. Uta Halee provides residential psychiatric treatment for adolescent girls, along with a range of community-based programs for girls and boys. -
Nebraska Courts Celebrating National Reunification Day
The Tenth Judicial District County Court is joining Douglas and York Counties to celebrate National Reunification Day 2010.
Both the Nebraska Supreme Court and The Eyes of the Child Initiative have encouraged county and juvenile courts to join other courts across the nation to celebrate the reunification of families who have had their children removed from their custody within the juvenile court system.
National News
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Child abuse, neglect in WV: Stats don’t tell whole story
The number of child abuse and neglect cases nationwide has been decreasing and that's also the case in West Virginia. While victims' advocates say this provides some hope, the problem is still prolific.
In West Virginia, child abuse cases were increasing until four years ago.
“There is just no way of denying that child abuse is decreasing, which is great and means a lot of things that we have done to try to prevent child abuse and intervene in child abuse has been making a difference and so that is a reason for hope,” said Emily Chittenden, state coordinator for the West Virginia Child Advocacy Network. -
Drug court provides hope to parents
For Lena Smith, joblessness and living without basic necessities were not the catalysts for her to stop using methamphetamine. She did not hit rock bottom and realize she needed help until Sept. 17, 2007, when three of her four children were removed from her care by Bartow County Department of Family and Children Services officials.
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Adopted children at greater risk for mental health disorders
Melissa Fay Greene woke up at night crying and wondering if she had "ruined our life."
Long before her decision to adopt a boy from Bulgaria, she learned that raising an adopted child could be challenging. It wasn't going to be a fairy tale to raise a child who had spent most of his life in an orphanage.
Upcoming Events
| Time | Event Title |
|---|---|
| Sep 8th | Judges Webinar: Judicial Ethics in Child Welfare Cases |
| Sep 15th | 8th District - Team 1 (Valentine) Team Meeting |
| Sep 17th | Helping Babies from the Bench: Phase II - Ogallala |
| Sep 17th | 7th District team meeting |
| Sep 21st | 12th District - Team 1 (northern Panhandle) Team Meeting |
| more … |
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Priorities
- Reduce the time to reunification
- Improve systems effectiveness with parents with substance abuse issues
- Improve the use of parenting time to improve permanency
