Woman accused of killing her adopted child

A Robbinsdale woman who adopted a Central American infant last year was accused Wednesday of killing the child, possibly by shaking her too hard.

Janet Marie Ostlund, 36, is nine months pregnant. An assistant Hennepin County attorney said that he will seek a court order to put Ostlund's child in protective custody as soon as the baby is born.

Ostlund was indicted on charges of second-degree murder in the July 15 death of 2-year-old Maria Catherine Ostlund, originally of El Salvador, who was placed in the home of Ostlund and her husband, David.

Maria's death was ruled a homicide after an autopsy revealed a rupture of a membrane surrounding the brain, according to the Hennepin County medical examiner's office.

Janet Ostlund had taken the baby to North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale the previous evening. She told doctors the child had fallen from a sofa, said Robbinsdale Detective Ronald H. Engblom.

Such an injury can be caused by the head being shaken or jarred, said a medical examiner's spokeswoman. There was no skull fracture or other external damage, the autopsy report stated.

Janet Ostlund says she is innocent, and is distraught over the prospect of her unborn baby being taken, said her attorney, Steven J. Meshbesher. David Ostlund said that neither he nor his wife would comment.

"She's a sincere and devoted mother and wife," said Meshbesher. "She can't even believe this is happening to her. She's been accused of murdering her own child - a daughter she loved very dearly. And now they want to take her baby away from her. To her, this is a nightmare."

"I feel we have a very good case," said Engblom. "When the facts come out in court, they will show Janet Ostlund was responsible for the death of that child."

Meanwhile, Robbinsdale police are trying to find and interview parents of children Ostlund cared for as a day-care provider. She stopped her day-care service after the death of her daughter, Engblom said. "I want to ask them about the care their children got," said Engblom. "So far I haven't reached these people."

Police and child protection workers apparently were notified of Maria's injuries by doctors at the life support unit of Minneapolis Children's Medical Center, where she was transferred before she died.

"The injuries were too severe to have been received in a fall from a sofa," said Engblom, who added that the investigation focused on the mother because "she was the only person at the residence at the time and she brought the child to the hospital."

In an interview, Meshbesher countered: "She is the victim of suspicious minds. She's not certain of what happened and neither are they. She was more than seven months pregnant, was working on household chores and lost sight of the baby. Their theory is she shook the kid to the point there was a cerebral hematoma. That may be true, but there's no evidence she did it."

At the request of police, Janet Ostlund turned herself in at the county jail. Second-degree murder is defined as causing a death while committing a felony - in this case, second- or third-degree assault. She was released after posting $10,000 bond.

John C. Brink, the assistant county attorney assigned to the case, said that as soon as Ostlund's baby is born he will file a petition in juvenile court on behalf of the county's child protection unit, asking that the baby be placed in protective custody, such as with a responsible relative or in a foster home.

Preparing such a petition, to submit at birth, is not unusual, said James Christiansen, program manager for the child protection unit. However, most previous cases have involved alleged abuses of other children, not another child's death, he said.

Meshbesher said he will argue against that petition, but he added that the Ostlunds have made arrangements for placement with relatives, should the court order it.

Engblom said Maria was adopted with the aid of Hope International Family Services, Inc., of Stillwater - one of the state's 14 licensed adoption agencies. Janet Ostlund "didn't think she could have children and she wanted to be a mother," said Meshbesher.

About three-quarters of the 400 children placed by the agency since its inception in 1978 have come from outside the country, most from Latin American and India, said Anne McManus, executive director of Hope International, formed by a group of adoptive parents.

McManus said privacy laws prevent her from even acknowledging the Ostlunds as clients, but she agreed to speak generally about how her agency helps in adoptions.

McManus said the agency conducts an extensive family study before deeming parents fit to receive a child. Approval then is sought from the Minnesota Department of Human Services.

The study can take up to six months and includes at least four interviews with the family, reviews of financial and medical records, reference checks and - since about a year ago - checks of local and state criminal records, she said. The additional checking for criminal records was prompted by a suggestion from the state, she said.

Under no circumstances would approval be granted for placement of a child in the home of prospective parents who had even a hint of child abuse on their records, McManus said.

Ruth C. Weidell, adoption supervisor with the Minnesota Department of Human Services, said her agency must approve the placement of any child coming from outside Minnesota. In addition, she said, the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service runs a background check on the prospective parents.