NJ - Raymond & Vanessa Jackson for starving 4 adopted boys, Collingswood, 2003

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After reading this story and visiting the web site that the pastor of the Jacksons church set up at http://savethejacksons.org I am starting to wonder if LE has jumped the gun on this one. When I first read the horrifying story of these poor starving children, I too was very upset by it and could not understand how anyone can do such a thing, but maybe the whole story has not come out. I know that the web site was set up to defend the Jacksons so it really only talks about them being wrongly accused but it doesn't hurt to look at their story. It sets up reasonable doubt for me. After seeing the pictures of the Jackson family and the children, the only child (just judging by the pics) that looks terribly sick is the oldest, Bruce 19 years. Then I looked up some things on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome to see what some of the characteristics are and I think Bruce does show many of them.

Just being open minded about this one...don't shoot me.
 
Mysunshyn, (by the way LOVE your name),

I agree we need to wait until all the evidence is in before we rush to crucify these people. However, some questions, at least for me, beg answers.

First, why weren't the kids in school?

Second, if the kids were not starved, why was this boy in the garbage looking for food.

Next, why was the kitchen locked?

How have the kids managed to gain so much weight so quickly?

Why weren't the kids taken to the doctor for yearly check ups?

Why didn't the kids see a dentist?

How come child welfare workers didn't note the kids' weights on their visits?

If the state was paying for the children to receive medical care, why didn't the kids see doctors for their supposed illnesses?

If the state agency was not doing anything for these kids, who clearly had a need, how come the parents were doing nothing to try and get them the help they needed?

Why would the kids be eating the walls if they were not starving?

I certainly don't expect you to have the answers to any of these questions. I do hope that the answers come out during the investigation of this case though. I don't think the parents can get off the hook here at any rate. I believe the children may have been born with some problems because of the addictions they might have been born with. However, there are treatments for these ailments and for them to still be suffering the affects of any addictions they may have been born with appears to be unnecessary.
 
>First, why weren't the kids in school?
Homeschooled.

>Second, if the kids were not starved,
>why was this boy in the garbage looking for food.
Clearly he was starved. Only the social worker's union disputes the starvation.

>Next, why was the kitchen locked?
So the kids couldn't steal food, what else? Only the defense lawyers will come up with other reasons.

>How have the kids managed to gain so much weight so quickly?
Those nurses keep feeding them three meals a day.

>Why weren't the kids taken to the doctor for yearly check ups?
Costs money that could otherwise be spent on drugs.

>Why didn't the kids see a dentist?
See above.

>How come child welfare workers didn't note
>the kids' weights on their visits?
Probably because those "visits" were paper visits. You know, you sit in the office and fill out the forms for 86 home visits. Then you get on the telephone and spend the rest of the day selling magazine subscriptions.
 
A New Jersey couple accused of starving their four adopted boys were indicted by a grand jury Wednesday.

Raymond and Vanessa Jackson of Collingswood were each indicted on 28 counts of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of a child, said Camden County Prosecutor Vincent Sarubbi.

National attention focused on the Jacksons and New Jersey's embattled child welfare service last year when local police found the four emaciated boys at the Jacksons' house.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/05/06/malnourished.children/index.html
 
New Jersey officials said yesterday that they had offered more than $10 million to provide for the once-starving Jackson brothers, but that the lawyer for the youngest three boys had rejected their share of the package.

"We're committed to taking care of these kids for the rest of their lives," said Andy Williams, spokesman for the state Department of Human Services, whose social workers failed to detect the Jacksons' emaciation despite frequent visits to their Collingswood home.

Michael Critchley, the lawyer for the oldest brother, Bruce, said he had reached an agreement in principle with the state for $5 million. He represents Bruce, 20, for free.

"He's going to need every cent of this settlement," Critchley said, adding that Bruce is permanently disabled and will need care for the rest of his life.

The attorney for Keith, Tyrone and Michael Jackson disputed the amount of the state's offer but said talks were continuing. She said she was angry the information had been made public.

"It's inappropriate for the state to be revealing that sort of information," said the attorney, Marcia Robinson Lowry, executive director of Children's Rights Inc.

The cash would go toward housing, education, and any necessary support services for the four, Williams said. The brothers, who officials say were starved by their adoptive parents, suffer from a variety of disorders, including some developmental disabilities.

After Bruce was found foraging through a neighbor's trash can in search of food in October 2003, the brothers - ages 9, 11, 14 and 19 at the time - were removed from the home weighing a combined 136 pounds. Bruce weighed 45 pounds and stood 4 feet tall.

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/states/new_jersey/11339561.htm
 
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051111/NEWS01/511110378/1006



Under the agreement, the prosecutor's office will dismiss another 27 counts in the indictment, including all those charging aggravated assault. The one count she pleaded guilty to was amended to cover her lack of care for all four boys. It spans the period between December 1991 and October 2003, when she and her husband were arrested after a neighbor found their oldest adoptive son, Bruce, then 19, digging in a trash can for food. Bruce and his three adoptive brothers -- ages 14, 10 and 9 -- were among 13 people living in the Jacksons' rented home on White Horse Pike, which sometimes had no heat or electricity because of the parents' failure to pay utility bills

This is the case where 19 year old Bruce weighed in at 45 pounds when found looking in a neighbors trash can for food!!!!
 
OK, how many adoptive parents are we looking at now? Not the ones that provide personal funds to their children but the ones that rely on State funded supplements. The ones that adopt to receive the benefits.
 
concernedperson said:
OK, how many adoptive parents are we looking at now? Not the ones that provide personal funds to their children but the ones that rely on State funded supplements. The ones that adopt to receive the benefits.
Click to expand...
Almost all children adopted from state foster care receive state funded subsidy's. I adopted my son and just because he was of mixed race he receives it. I use it to help cover the cost of private school.
 
Linda7NJ said:
Almost all children adopted from state foster care receive state funded subsidy's. I adopted my son and just because he was of mixed race he receives it. I use it to help cover the cost of private school.
Click to expand...

Clearly, I did not mean any harm only that some of these families use the funds as their only income. Kudos to you for using the funds in the best light and to give your child an upper hand in this world. Please do not be offended by my post as I meant it only for the scammers and abusers.
 
concernedperson said:
Clearly, I did not mean any harm only that some of these families use the funds as their only income. Kudos to you for using the funds in the best light and to give your child an upper hand in this world. Please do not be offended by my post as I meant it only for the scammers and abusers.
Click to expand...
No no no, I wasn't offended at all! I was just telling ya;)

Actually, I was offended when they told me my son was classified "special needs" because of his mixed heritage! Sounded crazy & racist to me! But who in their right mind would turn down almost $700 a month that you could used for your child's best interest? I divide the payment in half every month. Half goes to his school and the other in a college fund.

I saw MANY foster parents and adoptive parents begin to collect children for the money. You can tell who they are because they usually quit work and drive a really great car! They are also the folks that take vacations without their kids all the time.
 
Linda7NJ said:
No no no, I wasn't offended at all! I was just telling ya;)

Actually, I was offended when they told me my son was classified "special needs" because of his mixed heritage! Sounded crazy & racist to me! But who in their right mind would turn down almost $700 a month that you could used for your child's best interest? I divide the payment in half every month. Half goes to his school and the other in a college fund.

I saw MANY foster parents and adoptive parents begin to collect children for the money. You can tell who they are because they usually quit work and drive a really great car! They are also the folks that take vacations without their kids all the time.
Click to expand...

"Special needs" because of mixed heritage? Now that offends me. Don't turn down a dime.....remember the people who are in charge of politics right now. You are providing for a possible exceptional human being...a someone who may never have had a chance. A someone I might just vote for one day...you let me know when he is running and I know with the parenting that goes with this beloved child the world will be a much better place. Bless you everyday of the week.
 
Linda7NJ said:
No no no, I wasn't offended at all! I was just telling ya;)

Actually, I was offended when they told me my son was classified "special needs" because of his mixed heritage! Sounded crazy & racist to me! But who in their right mind would turn down almost $700 a month that you could used for your child's best interest? I divide the payment in half every month. Half goes to his school and the other in a college fund.
Click to expand...

That's a great use for the money! This child is blessed to have you as his mother.

.[/QUOTE]I saw MANY foster parents and adoptive parents begin to collect children for the money. You can tell who they are because they usually quit work and drive a really great car! They are also the folks that take vacations without their kids all the time.[/QUOTE]

Those are the ones I worry about. They're in it for the money only.
 
it makes me angry to think that a mother could do that to her own children... These parents receive allowances for the children that are often more than enough to survive on. These parents shoukd be ashamed of themselves... and should never be allowed to act as parents again.
 
Linda7NJ said:
Almost all children adopted from state foster care receive state funded subsidy's. I adopted my son and just because he was of mixed race he receives it. I use it to help cover the cost of private school.
Click to expand...
----------------------
Linda,you are a sweet loving Mom.
 
Linda7NJ said:
No no no, I wasn't offended at all! I was just telling ya;)

Actually, I was offended when they told me my son was classified "special needs" because of his mixed heritage! Sounded crazy & racist to me! But who in their right mind would turn down almost $700 a month that you could used for your child's best interest? I divide the payment in half every month. Half goes to his school and the other in a college fund.

I saw MANY foster parents and adoptive parents begin to collect children for the money. You can tell who they are because they usually quit work and drive a really great car! They are also the folks that take vacations without their kids all the time.
Click to expand...
What a good Mom you are Linda. Many children of mixed parentage are difficult to place. But I don't know how they came up with him being a "special needs" child because of his racial heritage. If that were the case, my whole darn family fall under special needs category. I check off everything listed on forms asking for race. LOL!! Our family get togethers look more like company picnics. From the darkest Black to Blue eyed blondes, and everything in between, all blood related. My sister's daughter looks like Trya Banks, my brother's daughter looks like Brittany Spears, and my Mother is Japanese...go figure LOL.
 
Linda,

Please do not answer if this is too personal...
Although I am offended that social services said he was special needs due to his heritage...
Is it possible his mother was using drugs or alcohol while she was pregnant?
SOme other factor they relayed badly to you??
 
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