Woman found guilty in foster child's death

St. Petersburg Times

Author: MARK JOURNEY

CLEARWATER - A 50-year-old white woman was convicted Saturday of allowing her black foster child to die because touching the infant gave her ''the willies.''

An all-white, six-member jury deliberated about an hour before convicting Judith Lundy of manslaughter and third-degree murder in the July 1985 death of 4-month-old Corey Greer.

''Corey was the only child, the only human being that was totally dependent on Judy Lundy for everything,'' assistant state attorney Mary McKeown said. ''She relegated the care of that child to an 8-year-old child. Why? Because she didn't want to touch him. . . . Judy had a problem touching and that problem led to Corey's death.''

Mrs. Lundy showed no emotion when the verdict was read. Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Susan Schaeffer could sentence the Treasure Island woman to a maximum of seven years in prison under state sentencing guidelines.

Judge Schaeffer allowed Mrs. Lundy to remain free on a $2,000 bond until sentencing Aug. 9. Mrs. Lundy has no prior criminal record.

Defense attorneys Ky Koch and Rob Bauer said they will ask Schaeffer to sentence Mrs. Lundy to probation or community control, essentially house arrest. They said they are not sure whether they will appeal.

Mrs. Lundy refused to comment after the verdict.

''She's upset about it,'' Koch said. ''Traumatized.''

When Corey died on July 21, 1985, Mrs. Lundy, an unemployed former foster mother, was caring for 12 foster children and her own daughter.

She was licensed by the state Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) to care for only four children.

After Corey's death, HRS officials admitted that they had not taken enough steps to ensure that foster children were placed in clean, uncrowded foster homes. Eventually, 13 HRS employees were disciplined, and major changes were made in the way HRS monitors foster homes.

But prosecutors said Mrs. Lundy, not HRS, was responsible for Corey's death.

''If you find her not guilty,'' Ms. McKeown told jurors in closing arguments, ''you're telling this community, 'If you have 12 kids and a hectic day, its okay to let a baby die.' ''

Prosecutors said Corey died of dehydration and too much sodium in his blood. They blamed Mrs. Lundy, saying she neglected Corey because he was black. Excessive sodium in the blood can be caused by too much salt, not enough water or extreme loss of water, prosecutors said.

Mrs. Lundy left Corey in a steamy room that reeked of urine and feces, and allowed another 8-year-old foster child to care for him, prosecutors said. The day Corey died, his weight had dropped by about 15 percent, and his eyes and brain had shrunk from lack of fluids, doctors testified.

The foster child who cared for Corey testified during the trial that she told Mrs. Lundy the infant appeared sick the night before he died. Mrs. Lundy ignored the warning, prosecutors said.

''The process leading to his death was not short, was not quick,'' assistant state attorney Doug Crow said in closing arguments. ''It stretched out over a period of agonizing days. . . . She neglected him. She ignored obvious warning signs that he was desperately ill and dying.''

Witnesses said that Mrs. Lundy told them that she got the ''willies'' when she touched black children. They said she compared Corey and his sister to apes and referred to the boy as a ''black blob.''

But defense attorneys said that although Mrs. Lundy may have used racial slurs, she did not hate blacks.

''They're talking about the degree of racism that equates to genocide - to the conscious decision to kill a child,'' defense attorney Bauer said.

Mrs. Lundy was a caring foster mother who was unable to turn HRS workers down, even though her house was crowded, defense attorneys said.

''Think to yourselves what a parent goes through with even one child,'' said Koch, the defense attorney. ''When you magnify it by 12 or 13, that's what Judith Lundy is faced with.''

Mrs. Lundy was so busy that she might not have noticed signs that Corey was dying, said defense attorneys, adding that Corey had been ill from birth and may have suffered from other ailments.

But prosecutors said Corey was a healthy child who fell victim to racism.

''If Corey Greer were white,'' prosecutor McKeown said, ''we wouldn't be here today.''