Mom to be released after conviction for son's death

By KOMO staff and Kitsap Sun

PORT ORCHARD - A Kitsap County woman was given a 27-month prison sentence Friday for the second-degree manslaughter of her foster son, but she'll be released soon due to time already served.

Kimberly Ann Forder, 45, of Seabeck, has been in custody at Kitsap County jail since August 2006. Kitsap County Superior Court Judge Sally F. Olsen handed down a sentence at the top of the sentencing range for the crime — but it is largely moot because Forder will be released after she enters prison in Purdy.

Forder pleaded guilty Feb. 21 to the second-degree manslaughter of 8-year-old Christopher Forder in November 2002.

She originally was charged with homicide by abuse and first-degree manslaughter in the case, and Kitsap County Sheriff Steve Boyer at one point said her mistreatment of the boy amounted to "torture."

The Forders maintained that the boy suffered from "reactive detachment disorder" and had inflicted his own injuries.

The boy died Nov. 24, 2002, officially of pneumonia.

In the plea agreement reached Feb. 21, Forder admitted that "she knew (Christopher) was sick (with pneumonia) and she should've called 911 but she didn't," said her attorney, Roger Hunko.

Prosecutors acknowledged last week that they faced "serious inconsistencies" in the testimonies of some key witnesses.

Kimberly Forder and her husband, Robert, who lived at a Four Wheel Drive address, had also worked as independent missionaries in the African nation of Liberia.

They had seven foster children — four Americans and three triplets whose home country is unknown. Kimberly was arrested when she returned to the United States for medical treatment in August 2006.

All seven children were returned to the United States by the U.S. State Department after they were dropped off at a Liberian orphanage. They have been placed by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services in homes around Western Washington.