Alabama child dies after being left in hot car while in state custody
Ke'Torrius Starkes Jr, who was in foster care, had been picked up in the late morning on Tuesday by the worker after a supervised visit with his father, the New York Times reported. He was supposed to be transported to a day care program by a worker for the department, which oversees child protection other social services.
Instead the boy was left alone strapped in a vehicle with tinted windows on a hot day in Bessemer, a suburb of Birmingham.
The Birmingham police department said officers went to a private home in Bessemer to respond to a report of an unresponsive child at around 5.30pm and found that the boy was 'accidentally left inside of a vehicle while in the care of a third-party contracted worker through the Department of Human Resources'.
The boy was pronounced dead at the scene, the police said.
The chief deputy coroner of Jefferson county, Bill Yates, told the Times that 'the child was found in a car that was ignition off, doors closed, windows up and it was hot in the car' and so far there was 'no other competing cause of death'.
'A child in DHR custody was being transported by a contract provider when the incident occurred,' a spokesperson for Alabama DHR said in a statement. 'The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances.'
Police are now investigating the incident to examine for any possible criminal charges in the case.
'We need answers, and we may need to examine state law to make sure this never happens again,' said state senator Merika Coleman, a Democrat.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
43 minutes ago
- The Independent
Senior judges reveal regret at handing out ‘unfair' indefinite jail terms and call for scandal to be ‘put right'
Senior judges who imposed 'unfair' indefinite jail terms, which have left scores of inmates locked up for minor offences languishing in prison for decades, have revealed their regret for their part in the 'injustice'. Former High Court judge Sir John Saunders said he would apologise to offenders he handed imprisonment for public protection (IPP) jail terms, which were scrapped in 2012, but not retrospectively, leaving thousands already jailed incarcerated with no release date. Now the very judges who dished out the punishment have joined calls for the government to take urgent action to help more than 2,500 prisoners still trapped under the abolished jail term, which has been branded 'psychological torture' by the UN. Victims of the scandal, whose tragic cases have been highlighted by The Independent, include Leroy Douglas, who has served almost 20 years for stealing a mobile phone; Thomas White, 42, who set himself alight in his cell and has served 13 years for stealing a phone; and Abdullahi Suleman, 41, who is still inside 19 years after he was jailed for a laptop robbery. Sir John, 76, who served as recorder of Birmingham before he was appointed to the High Court, told The Independent that if he met an IPP prisoner he had jailed who was years over tariff, he would apologise. 'I should say I'm really sorry this has happened, it's extremely unfair,' he said. 'I didn't want to be party to unfairness. I would feel very bad about it, I would apologise to them.' He said that when the sentence was introduced in 2005 by New Labour in a bid to be tough on crime, it appeared there was a 'certain degree of sense' to plans to ensure offenders completed rehabilitation courses before they were approved for release by the Parole Board. But judges had no idea those prisoners would find themselves trapped in prison indefinitely, often without access to the courses they needed to be released. He added: 'I think the essence of the job of a judge is to be fair. And we really do all try to do that. So when we conduct criminal trials, we attempt to be fair. In passing sentences, we attempt to be fair. 'If we have been party to something which has been accepted by everybody as unfair and we have been part of it… it's a bit of an affront to the job.' He and Simon Tonking, the former recorder of Stafford, have lobbied prisons minister Lord James Timpson to help those still trapped under the jail term. Both have backed a package of proposals put forward by an expert panel convened by the Howard League for Penal Reform, calling for IPP prisoners to be given a release date within a two-year window at their next parole hearing. Mr Tonking recalled imposing an IPP sentence with a minimum tariff of just six months for a relatively minor offence after a man was caught following a woman in an alley. 'Now I wonder what happened to him,' he told The Independent. 'He was in his late twenties. For all I know, he may still be there [in prison]. 'And when I look back at that case, I think I should have tried harder not to impose it.' Although he was doing his best to administer the laws in place at the time, he is now determined to be part of the solution. 'I don't feel guilty, but I do feel, having been part of that, I should be doing all I can to put what has turned out to be an injustice right,' he added. 'And I am driven in part by the fact that I was part of the administration of justice at a time when these sentences were being passed. 'I have been a part of the system that is wrong. I feel that I ought to be part of the system to put it right.' Successive governments have resisted calls to resentence IPP prisoners, claiming they cannot risk letting prisoners out until they have passed the Parole Board's release test. However, at least 94 inmates have taken their own lives in custody after losing hope of being freed, according to campaigners, with many struggling as their mental health deteriorates in prison. Mr Tonking urged the Labour government to use its majority to finally end the injustice by taking up the Howard League's proposals, adding: 'Virtually everybody who has had any professional dealings with IPP knows that it's unjust and now is the time to act.' The proposed reforms also include providing a package of mental health support for released IPP prisoners and tightening up the criteria for recalling them. Currently, many find themselves hauled back to prison indefinitely for minor breaches of strict licence conditions, despite committing no further offences. Paul Glenn, who last year retired from his role as the most senior judge in Stoke-on-Trent, also backed the charity's proposals. He told The Independent: 'Nobody envisaged that 10 years after they should have been released, they would still be in custody. The injustice there is pretty obvious. 'It's undoubtedly right that we should be sentencing people for what they have done, rather than what they might do in the future.' Prisons minister Lord Timpson said: 'It is absolutely right that the IPP sentence was abolished. 'As the IPP annual report shows, we have significantly improved support for these offenders, with greater access to rehabilitation and mental health support. 'There is more work to do as we reduce the number of IPP offenders in custody, but we will only do so in a way that protects the public.'
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Seven twisted rapists who abused kids in underground bunker could face death penalty for deplorable crimes
Two lawmakers in Alabama are pushing to make child rape cases eligible for the death penalty, after a gang of seven were arrested in a horrific sexual abuse case. Police in Bibb County said the group subjected their victims, one of whom was just three years old at the time, to heinous sexual attacks inside a nightmarish underground bunker. William Chase McElroy, 21; Dalton Terrell, 21; Timothy St. John, 23; and Ricky Terrell, 44, are facing rape charges for allegedly sexually abusing small children. Three others - Andres Trejo-Velazquez, 29; Rebecca Brewer, 29; and Sara Louis Terrell, 41 - were also arrested in connection to the crimes. Rep. Matt Simpson and state Senator April Weaver are organizing a bill that would make those convicted of rape or sodomy of a child younger than 12 eligible for the death penalty. Speaking earlier this week, Rep. Simpson said: 'When you have situations like what happened in Bibb County, that would be up to the Bibb County prosecutor. 'But this would be a tool that they would have in their belt that they could if they decided to use that.' Weaver added: 'I defy anyone anywhere with any conscience or any sense of morals to look at this case and others like it and argue the death penalty is not appropriate.' Rep. Matt Simpson, left, and state Senator April Weaver are organizing a bill that would make those convicted of rape or sodomy of a child younger than 12 eligible for the death penalty The victims in the case, aged between three and 15, were abused with shock collars and raped inside the grimy storm bunker in Brent. At least two of the victims were found performing sexual acts on each other, with some of the victims said to include some of the suspects' own children. Images shared by police of the inside show a lone stained mattress with no sheets or blankets was seen stuffed in a corner of the barren and dirty room. The outside of the bunker, which was located near a family member of McElroy, didn't look any better in repair with a shabby roof and a desolate appearance. The suspects would allegedly arrange and pay for the children and abuse them inside the storm bunker. The group also allegedly used a shock collar as a form of punishment, court documents said. Police began investigating the group in early February after a tip from the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR). After they were discovered, the children allegedly told investigators that McElroy had abused them, taught them sexual acts and what they did to each other. William Chase McElroy, 21, (left) and Timothy St. John, 23, (right) face rape charges, among others Andres Trejo-Velazquez was charged with human trafficking. His citizenship is also being investigated. And at least one member of the group has been connected to a Mexican gang known for using sex trafficking as its main source of income 'He would tie one child to the bed, one child to a chair and one to one of the support poles,' Assistant District Attorney Bryan Jones said of Velazquez-Trejo, whose citizenship is now being investigated. Velazquez-Trejo has also been accused of using a white powder in the children's drinks to drug them. He also allegedly sold nude images of the children. 'As bad as it sounds with [Velazquez-Trejo] drugging them, it may be a blessing in disguise because they don't remember a lot of things,' Jones said. The group also sold the children for up to $1,000 a night to abusers. Dalton paid at least two adults to use the children, who are now three, six, eight, and 10. And at least one of the seven has been connected to a Mexican gang that uses sex trafficking as its main source of income. St. John has also been accused of having sex with a dog. All the children are now in the custody of DHR. And authorities are still investigating how many children were abused. McElroy was charged with rape, sodomy, and human trafficking. Dalton was charged with rape, sodomy, human trafficking, and kidnapping. St. John was charged rape, sodomy, human trafficking, kidnapping, bestiality, and cruelty to animals. Trejo-Velazquez was charged with human trafficking. Brewer was charged with human trafficking, kidnapping, and sexual torture. Ricky was charged with rape. Sara was charged with sexual torture and sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. They are expected back in court for their arraignment in August.
BBC News
3 hours ago
- BBC News
Charity fun day held in Birmingham to remember 12-year-old Leo Ross
A family fun day has been held to keep alive the memory of a 12-year-old boy who was stabbed to death on his way home from school. Leo Ross died from a wound to the stomach on a riverside path in the Shire Country Park in Hall Green, Birmingham, on 21 Legacy Foundation Family Fun Day was held at Highfield Hall on Sunday, more than six months on from the Shah, Leo's former foster carer who helped to set up the Leo's Legacy Foundation, said: "We've started this in memory of Leo and to keep Leo's memory alive." Mr Shah said setting up the charity had not only helped him after his loss but could also inform others about the impact of knife crime."It's to get other young people to think about Leo and think about the impact it has on young people, the victims themselves as well as the perpetrators and their families," he added: "We can't stop people from leaving their homes with knives, but if we can get them to think twice before they do, I think that's going to be a big achievement." Family friend Syd Femtinos was at the fun day with her pet bird called Baby, which is a type of parrot called a conure that Leo used to play said: "My bird doesn't go to kids usually, and when they first met, he just flew over to Leo. He spent the whole afternoon with him."Ms Femtinos said: "That just goes to show the nature that Leo had."The event included crafts, food and drink traders, and entertainment, including face painting, DJs and alpacas. Funds raised will go to the charity. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
