OK - Woman whose special needs teen brother died calls for investigation of state DHS

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Oklahoma woman whose special needs brother died calls for DHS investigation. (newsok.com)
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A woman who says her special needs brother died from abuse is calling for an investigation into Oklahoma's child welfare services.

Valerie Wood-Harber presented an electronic petition with 460,000 signatures to Gov. Mary Fallin's office Wednesday. Wood-Harber is calling for an investigation into the agency after she made 22 unanswered calls in a span of weeks to report alleged abuse of her brother. Fifteen-year-old Quinten Wood later died of pneumonia.
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more at the link
 
oh my, I knew this was familiar. I have read of this case either here or elsewhere (maybe it showed up on my FB feed) about a month or two ago. Horrific. This poor girl, she tried so hard to look out for her brothers. Devastating. She was trying to get things in her own life in order so her future could somehow involve taking custody from her father and making her brothers' lives better.



Valerie Wood-Harber's brother, Quinten, needed a lot of special care.

He was born with a rare chromosomal abnormality, which meant even as a teenager, he needed help doing things that most people take for granted.

Getting dressed could be a challenge. So could eating.

But Quinten was also a happy child, who loved water, hugs and the music duo Daft Punk, his sister said. He smiled and laughed about everything.

"Honestly, my biggest worry about him was that he was going to outlive the people that were able to take care of him," said Wood-Harber.

"That was my biggest fear. He was healthy."

Quinten Douglas Wood, 15, died on January 4.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/29/us/oklahoma-boy-death/ (article from October)

the Justice for Quiten FB Page https://www.facebook.com/JusticeForQuinten

Valerie's blog about the case :( So many photos some of this sweet young man, some show the horror in which he was living. Caution. Graphic descriptions of terrible living situation. http://imgur.com/gallery/T9Vr1

ETA I just revisited the blog and some of the worst photos have been removed along with teh graphic details about how he died on a urine soaked couch covered in his own filth for lack of care. So the blog is not as graphic as I may have led readers to think above.
 
http://www.news9.com/story/24999336/father-dhs-employees-facing-charges-in-quinten-wood-death

DHS employee Rachelle Qualls and supervisor Paul Myers have been charged with willful neglect to perform a duty of public trust. Myers has also been charged with unlawful use of a computer network.

Reasoning has come and past for Valerie and her father, who is charged with two counts of child neglect. "I don't think he has a bit of humanity left in him, and I think he's a danger to other people, because he refuses to take responsibility for what he did," said Wood-Harber. "I don't even view him as my father; I view him as the man who killed my brother."

http://www.people.com/article/valerie-wood-harber-quinten-disabled

Qualls pleaded guilty and was given a one-year suspended jail sentence and one year probation, her attorney, Irven Box, tells PEOPLE.

"She pled guilty because she didn't fulfill her duties but she was overworked," he says, "and we believe the system is overloaded."

http://www.news9.com/story/27676686...entenced-in-the-death-of-a-special-needs-teen

A DHS worker is sentenced following the 2013 death of special needs teenager Quinten Wood. Paul Myers will serve one year for computer fraud and two for neglect, but the sentences run concurrently.

Quinten's sister believes Myers, a second DHS worker and her father all bear some responsibility for his death.
 
I hate to say it because in many ways it's a state filled with good people, but I'm glad I don't live in Oklahoma anymore.
 

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