Isaac not 1st child that center had failed
Isaac not 1st child that center had failed
January 29, 2007
TINA LAM and JACK KRESNAK
FREE PRESS
Isaac Lethbridge and his sister weren't the only children the Lula Belle Stewart Center failed. In early 2006, Betty Robins' complaints sparked an investigation that should have signaled another alert about the agency.
Robins spent seven months trying to get custody of a relative's child after he bounced through Lula Belle foster homes. On his first day in her home during an extended visit at Christmas 2005, Robins offered the 8-year-old cake and ice cream. "I can't eat it," he said. "My mouth hurts too much."
She opened his mouth and saw red, inflamed gums, broken teeth and cavities.
A month later, she got the boy placed in her home, after he had spent 14 months in five foster homes.
The boy was scrawny and had a sinus infection. Robins took him to a dentist who told her the boy's entire mouth was infected. Two teeth were broken off at the gum line and had to be pulled. The dentist treated five cavities and said one tooth needed a root canal.
"He had been in the state's care for more than a year, " Robins said. "Nobody took care of it."
On Feb. 12, she wrote a five-page letter to Gov. Jennifer Granholm and Attorney General Mike Cox, saying: "I am totally appalled at the way this system has treated this child. He was removed from his mother's care due to neglect and then put in a system who neglected him worse than his own mother did."
Her letter triggered an investigation by the Department of Human Services, which substantiated Robins' allegations.
The records showed his last dental exam was Oct. 28, 2004, just before Lula Belle took charge of his case. The dentist said the boy needed another appointment quickly. During the next 14 months, he never saw another dentist.
Lula Belle caseworkers said they told his second foster mother he needed to go to the dentist but didn't follow up. She never took him. The workers failed to tell his other foster parents to take him to a dentist and no one made sure it happened. Yet the caseworkers wrote three reports to a juvenile court referee saying "services provided -- monitoring of health and dental needs."
The workers later admitted not following up.
Under foster care rules, each child over age 4 must have dental exams and necessary treatment within 90 days of being put into foster care.
The investigation noted that this was a repeat violation for Lula Belle.
In July 2005, the Department of Human Services renewed Lula Belle's license despite multiple violations, including of medical and dental care rules.
DHS gave Lula Belle a provisionary license. The agency promised to fix the problem. There were no fines or discipline.
Last June, after Robins' complaints, Lula Belle promised again to fix the problem.
In August, the agency's license was suspended -- six days after Isaac Lethbridge's death in foster care.
Contact TINA LAM at 313-222-6421 or tlam@freepress.com.