Cases

Palmdale resident Ingrid Brewer reported to the sheriff's department that her two adoptive children were missing on January 15. Deputies searching for the children, an 8-year-old boy and a 7-year-old girl, found them lying near a parked vehicle on a street near their residence hiding under a blanket. The children were not wearing warm clothing despite temperatures in the mid-20s.

The two children told deputies they ran away from Brewer because they were tired of being tied up and beaten by her. They told deputies that Brewer locked them up in separate bedrooms when she went to work every day, and that on numerous occasions she tied their wrists with zip-ties and beat them, sometimes with an electrical cord or a hammer. They were also reportedly deprived of food.

Both kids had injuries consistent with their descriptions of abuse, including wrist marks indicating zip-tie restraint.

A boy was sexually abused by his adoptive father, a 43 year old Lower Mainland area man. The man had previously helped build an orphanage in Mexico and mentored vulnerable children through Big Brothers. The man had extensive child pornography in his home and the abuse was discovered as a result of the Project Spade international porn bust.

Terry Achane and his wife Tira Bland, conceived a daughter in 2011. At the time the couple was living apart (she in Texas, he in South Carolina) due to work obligations. Tira Bland put up the child for adoption at birth, without informing Achane.

In November 2012, a judge ruled the girl should be returned to her father.

At least 3 of 4 children adopted from foster care by Nikki and Larry Russell were beaten, duct taped to their beds and deprived food.The 93 lb 17 year old was not in school, IcyHot was applied to his genitals and in his rectum. Russells also had a 5th biological child in the home.

2 girls adopted by Tiffany J Jack and Lt Col Dennis E Jack were hit with spatulas, tied to potty chairs and required to do extreme exercises with soiled diapers on their heads. At least 3 other children were in the home.

A girl adopted by her great aunt and her husband was sexually abuse from age 6 until age 16. The man was about 77 years old when the abuse started. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison.

Paul Alan Drake and JoAnn Marie Drake are accused of locking their 13-year-old daughter and 14-year-old son in the basement for three to four weeks. The teens were fed by sliding a plate under the door and were allowed them out only to attend school. 3 other adopted children were not imprisoned.

8 year old boy adopted along with 2 siblings was beaten and fed a liquid only diet by Russell and Mona Hauer. He weighed 35 lbs, the size of a 4 year old. His bones were protruding and he had a swollen belly. Prior to adoption, the Hauers were advised he had suffered trauma and should be provided therapy. He was normal weight at that time. Less than 2 months outside the home, the boy had gained 15 lbs and 2 inches in height.

4 children adopted by Richard and Cheryle Burton were kept locked in the house, malnourished and physically abused by their adoptive parents.

Girl adopted by Dorothea Vega was beaten, deprived food, confined in a room, given large amounts of psychotropic drugs and prevented from bathing.