NJ - Boy, 4, found starving in apartment with dead mom, 26 March 2013

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UNION, N.J. (AP) — After realizing the emaciated child inside was too weak to follow their instructions to get on a chair and reach the chain lock keeping them from getting in, rescue workers simply kicked in the door.

They found the naked, malnourished 4-year-old boy in an overheated apartment where he had been trapped for days with the decomposing body of his mother, a bag of sugar his only source of food. The child weighed only 26 pounds and may have been neglected even before his mother's death, authorities say.

"The only way to describe the little boy was it was like a scene from World War II, from a concentration camp, he was that skinny," Officer Joseph Sauer told The Associated Press. "I mean, you could see all his bones."............

The apartment belongs to Workman's mother, who is recuperating from surgery at a nursing center, said police, who could not track down any other relatives. Adoption offers have poured in from around the world.

Officers were called to the apartment after neighbors complained to the maintenance crew about a terrible stench.

Police quickly pieced together that the boy had been inside the apartment with his mother's body for days. He had put lotion on his mother, police said, leaving behind handprints, in an attempt to help her.

Investigators believe the boy's mother died of natural causes, and do not suspect foul play, as the door was locked from the inside and the windows were secured, Zieser said.

The boy, now in state custody, remained in the hospital where he was being treated for malnourishment and dehydration, police said.


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/us/artic...m-weighed-26-pounds-4390473.php#ixzz2Orex29FJ
 
Poor little guy :(
I hope he is surrounded by loving people to help him through this horrible ordeal.
 
This made me cry. Can't imagine how he felt during that time.
 
Poor little boy. He loved his momma to put lotion on her. Maybe she was poor. I hope he wasn't abused. May he heal quickly, prayers for his healing.
 
I wonder if we'll find out the cause of death of his mother? Perhaps she was sick and incapacitated for a while before her actual death?

This poor boy - regardless of anything that may have happened prior to her death - I just cannot imagine a child dealing with that... If I think too long on it - especially the part about his putting the lotion on her - well, I'll just break down. Such a horrific story... He will remain in my thoughts and prayers for a while, I am sure of it...
 
yep, this one makes me cry too - and that's saying a lot in light of all the recent kidnappings, murders and other bad things happening. Thankfully he is only 4 and might not have much memory. I know there is a lot of discussion about that area, but I can hope.
 
Just following up on this case a bit...

The little boy has been released from the hospital and is in temporary foster care. His grandmother is in assisted living, and it is reported that Social Services are looking for other relatives.

NJ Boy Found With Dead Mom out of Hospital
AP - Samantha Henry via ABC News published 3/28/2013
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/nj-boy-found-dead-mom-living-sugar-18825280#.UVeOgxwWLc8

Autopsy Inconclusive on Emaciated NJ Boy's Mother
AP - Samantha Henry via ABC News published 3/29/2013
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/nj-boy-found-dead-mom-hospital-18835926#.UVeOmRwWLc8
EXCERPT:
Union Township Police Director Daniel Zieser said autopsy results were inconclusive for 38-year-old Kiana Workman. Authorities are hoping to learn more when toxicology results come back, a process that Zieser said may take two or three weeks. Police don't suspect foul play and said Workman had some underlying health issues, which they declined to specify.
 

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