Would-be adoptive father is charged in death of baby

BY JENNIFER PALMER

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

The man charged Thursday in the death of 1-year-old foster child Davion Winrow was in the process of adopting the boy.

Joleet "Joey" Poole, 23, had unsupervised visits with the boy and was watching Davion last week when the child suffered a fatal head injury, authorities say. On Sept. 27, Poole took the child to the Nebraska Medical Center, where he died.

Poole, of Omaha, was arrested Wednesday. He is charged with felony child abuse resulting in death. If convicted, he faces a sentence of 20 years to life in prison.

Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said there was significant lag time between when the child was injured and when he was taken to the hospital.

Davion, who had been in state custody since birth, lived with a foster mother near 160th Street and Bedford Avenue. Poole, who knew the foster mother, had begun visitation with Davion with the approval of Child Protective Services, Kleine said.

The visits were steps toward Poole's adopting Davion, Kleine said.

Information was not available on when Poole's visits with Davion began or details about their length or frequency.

Jeanne Atkinson, a spokeswoman for the Nebraska Health and Human Services Department, which oversees CPS, said it's not unusual for prospective adoptive parents to be allowed unsupervised visits with a foster child after they have passed a number of background checks.

Atkinson would not comment specifically on this case or confirm that Poole was a prospective adoptive parent.

In general, she said, people who want to adopt have to pass checks of a nationwide criminal database, the sex offender registry, and child abuse and adult abuse registries. They also have to provide fingerprints, an employment history and references, and complete training.

As part of the checks, an HHS representative will visit the person's home and make sure it's appropriate for a child, she said. Kleine said in Poole's case, that had been done.

An arrest warrant was issued for Poole on Sept. 11 for failing to appear in a driving under suspension case. It is unknown if that would have affected his approval as a prospective adoptive parent.

The Rev. Daniel Lubega of Bethesda Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church said in a statement that church members were mourning the loss of a young member — Davion. He also said Poole was a paid employee of the church, serving as a musician and choir director.

Poole's grandmother, Mary Poole, said that several months ago Joey Poole started talking about Davion. Soon after, he brought the boy to her house and told her Davion was her new great-grandson, she said.

Joey Poole, despite not having married, wanted a child and loved Davion, she said.

"I swear to God, I don't believe he would've hurt that baby because he loved it," Mary Poole said.

Last Thursday, Joey Poole came to her home upset and screaming, she said. "I said, 'Where's the baby?' He said, 'He's gone. He's dead,'" Mary Poole recalled.

She told him to stop and pray.

He never told her how Davion died.

An autopsy revealed that Davion died of bleeding on the brain caused by a traumatic head injury, police said. Kleine said the boy also had skull fractures.

A review and permanent placement hearing for Davion's adoption was scheduled for February. His mother's parental rights were terminated Aug. 31.

As in any case when a child in state custody dies, an internal investigation will be conducted, Atkinson said.