Latest news with #BrittneyDebruce
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Boy, 3, dies after being left in a hot car for 5 hours by child services on his way back to foster care
A 3-year-old boy who was in the care of a contractor for Alabama's human resources department died on Tuesday after a transport driver left him alone in a hot car for around five hours. The child was identified by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office as Ketorrius "KJ" Starks Jr, of Bessemer, according to The vehicle was left in the driveway of a home with the windows rolled up. Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said the boy had been left in the car from 12.30 p.m. until around 5.30 p.m. He was pronounced dead at 6.03 p.m. Temperatures were in the mid-to-high 90s on Tuesday afternoon in the area, but with humidity factored in, it would have felt as high as 103 degrees at 1 p.m. and 100 degrees by 5 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. According to the boy's aunt, Brittney Debruce, the boy was in the custody of the Alabama Department of Human Resources and was living at a foster home. When the foster parent went to pick the boy up from daycare, he was not there. According to Debruce, a transport driver — who was as a contractor for the DHR driving children to visitations — picked the boy up and took him to a DHR office in Bessmer for a scheduled visit with his father. After the visit, Ketorrius was never brought back to the day care. Debruce and the Birmingham police eventually found the child inside the car. The boy's mother was then notified that her son had died, leaving the family distraught. "We don't know what's going on," Debruce told The DHR provided a statement to about the incident. 'A child in DHR custody was being transported by a contract provider when the incident occurred. The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances," the agency said. Birmingham police are investigating the child's death. The company that picked up Ketorrius is called The Covenant Services. According to the Debruce family attorney, Courtney French, after the driver took Ketorrius from his visit with his father, the worker stopped to grocery shop and to buy tobacco. The worker then returned home and left the boy in the car. The Independent has requested comment from The Covenant Services. 'This is a heartbreaking and preventable tragedy.' French told the outlet. She estimated that with the heat index the day of the incident hitting 108 degrees Farhenheit, the temperature inside the car was likely around 150 degrees. Ketorrius's parents issued a statement, calling the situation their "worst nightmare." "Our baby should be alive," the parents said.
The Independent
5 days ago
- The Independent
Boy, 3, dies after being left in a hot car for 5 hours by child services on his way back to foster care
A 3-year-old boy who was in the care of a contractor for Alabama 's human resources department died on Tuesday after a transport driver left him alone in a hot car for around five hours. The child was identified by the Jefferson County Coroner's Office as Ketorrius "KJ" Starks Jr, of Bessemer, according to The vehicle was left in the driveway of a home with the windows rolled up. Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said the boy had been left in the car from 12.30 p.m. until around 5.30 p.m. He was pronounced dead at 6.03 p.m. Temperatures were in the mid-to-high 90s on Tuesday afternoon in the area, but with humidity factored in, it would have felt as high as 103 degrees at 1 p.m. and 100 degrees by 5 p.m., according to the National Weather Service. According to the boy's aunt, Brittney Debruce, the boy was in the custody of the Alabama Department of Human Resources and was living at a foster home. When the foster parent went to pick the boy up from daycare, he was not there. According to Debruce, a transport driver — who was as a contractor for the DHR driving children to visitations — picked the boy up and took him to a DHR office in Bessmer for a scheduled visit with his father. After the visit, Ketorrius was never brought back to the day care. Debruce and the Birmingham police eventually found the child inside the car. The boy's mother was then notified that her son had died, leaving the family distraught. "We don't know what's going on," Debruce told The DHR provided a statement to about the incident. 'A child in DHR custody was being transported by a contract provider when the incident occurred. The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances," the agency said. Birmingham police are investigating the child's death. The company that picked up Ketorrius is called The Covenant Services. According to the Debruce family attorney, Courtney French, after the driver took Ketorrius from his visit with his father, the worker stopped to grocery shop and to buy tobacco. The worker then returned home and left the boy in the car. The Independent has requested comment from The Covenant Services. 'This is a heartbreaking and preventable tragedy.' French told the outlet. She estimated that with the heat index the day of the incident hitting 108 degrees Farhenheit, the temperature inside the car was likely around 150 degrees. Ketorrius's parents issued a statement, calling the situation their "worst nightmare." "Our baby should be alive," the parents said.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
3-Year-Old In State Family Service Custody Died Inside Hot Car Parked For Hours: Lawyer
A 3-year-old Alabama boy who died while in the care of the state's Department of Human Resources was found inside a hot parked car on Tuesday after he was picked up from his father's scheduled visit. Ke'Torrius Starks Jr. was living in temporary foster care at the time of his death and was picked up from day care by a third-party DHR contract provider for a planned visitation with his father, Ke'Torrius Starks Sr., the child's aunt Brittney Debruce told However, the 3-year-old never returned back to the day care once the visitation was over. Courtney French, who is representing the child's family, told ABC affiliate WBMA-LD the child's visitation with his biological father ended at around 11:30 a.m. that morning and was picked up by a third-party contract worker. However, Ke'Torrius Starks Sr. did not hear about his son's well-being until 6:40 p.m., French told the outlet. He said police informed Starks that the child was found unresponsive inside a vehicle that was parked for over five hours. 'Based upon a preliminary investigation, with the current extreme outside temperatures and the heat index of 108 degrees, the interior temperature of the car where KJ was trapped likely exceeded 150 degrees,' French said, calling the incident 'a heartbreaking and preventable tragedy.' French told the outlet the worker had stopped to pick up food for her family after picking up Ke'Torrius from the visitation, then shopped at a tobacco store before returning back to her home, leaving the boy outside, fastened in his car seat. Ke'Torrius was pronounced dead once Birmingham Fire & Rescue Service arrived, according to a press release shared with HuffPost. The contract worker was taken in for questioning and authorities claimed she had 'accidentally' left the boy inside the car. DHR told HuffPost in an email 'the provider has terminated their employee' and due to confidentiality, they cannot comment further regarding the exact circumstances surrounding Ke'Torrius' death. In a statement to WBMA-LD, Ke'Torrius' family called the boy's death 'a parent's worst nightmare,' adding, 'our baby should be alive.' Related... Nine Migrants Have Died In ICE Custody Since Trump Took Office, ICE Head Says Temperature In New York City Reaches 100 Degrees As East Coast Swelters Under Extreme Heat Wave Hundreds Of Temperature Records Could Be Broken During This Week's Dangerous Heat Wave
