FL - Danielle - Feral Child in Florida

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gaia227 said:
I am sick to death that you can torture a child for years and years and go relatively unpunished. I don't understand how any judge could look at this woman and what she did to Danielle and waive her community service and accept a plea deal. This woman should be in prison. She is obviously not fit to survive in society. She is a disgusting human being and I have not an ounce of sympathy for her.
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I absolutely understand why the judge accepted the plea. It was to ensure that Crockett would sign over her parental rights so Danielle could be adopted by the loving family who is now caring for her. And sure, the courts could have gone through the process of revoking Crockett's parental rights, however Danielle would have been the one who suffered. Again. Imho, sometimes, in our hurry to exact punishment, we forget the victim. In this case, Danielle. Otherwise put, I applaud the judge for truly putting the victim/child first.
 
Thank you for posting this. It proves to me again that there is no more cruel and stupid creation on earth than a human being. I don't want to touch upon religion here but.... in his image? I think NOT.
 
Florida gives the "parents" a slap on the wrist; it's disgusting. I know of another case which involved horrible child abuse of a foster child and both of the "parents" got away with everything due to a high paid lawyer and were also allowed to keep custody of their other foster children.
 
What a wonderful update. I did not know of Dani until today. I read the articles and cried for her, I'm not much of a crier.

I saw the picture of her here on this thread, where she is in a bubble bath and her eyes are vacant.

Then I see pictures like today where she is smiling and her eyes are the window of her soul.

God bless those parents that are taking care of her, they have sparked a fire in her soul and it shines out through those beautiful dark eyes.

God Bless you Dani!
 
Thank you for the update

Ive never read about this little girl.. I just sobbed my heart out

THANK GOD She didnt get stuck in a system or overlooked

This is without doubt one of the TRUE cases of adoption that makes me happy...very happy...thank god that someone called social services on this wicked woman that gave birth to dani

How could she do this ? how could she live in such filth herself

I have a pest man come twice a year , I can not stand ONE bug in my home

I change my babies nappies like one would use toilet paper as an adult !

I can not understand this depravity
 
I think they were on Oprah or Dr. Phil recently. How sad for this poor little girl. She was found in the most deplorable conditions. Her brothers and mother let this happen to her. :furious:
 
It is great to read that Dani is doing well. You can see such a huge change in her from then to now. The video that shows her hugging her family shows just how far she has come. I pray that she will continue to progress and can one day lead somewhat of a normal life.
 
Based upon the recent news article, I doubt Dani will ever be able to talk. That is, outside of saying a word or two. Simply bc research indicates the language centers are fully developed by the age of 8, and the likelihood of learning a base language after that is low. The Feral Children site goes into this a bit. The content on that site is also a good reminder that those cute little "jungle boy" stories we hear are generally about severely abused and neglected children. Not the storybook raised by the animals after the good parents were killed in some freak accident in the middle of the wilderness.

As far as those wondering about protecting children? Don't forget, CAPTA was only enacted in the mid-1970s. And that's not that long ago. Before that, children basically had no rights. You know, they were to be seen and not heard. And what that means is that people could be all kinds of abusive to them (and they were, to the point of, in some instances, murdering them), and society turned a blind eye. This was primarily due to the old "a man's home is his castle" and "spare the rod, spoil the child" mentality. And while women's lib did a great deal to change that, there are still plenty of old-school judges sitting on benches across america whose bias barometers are somewhat skewed toward the parents.
 
This is a great story. The only thing that disturbed me was they brushed William aside for this little girl. Putting him on a fold out cot between the washer and dryer where he is scared at night????

Anyway, I doubt that all of Dani's problems are environmental. Clearly, her mother has mental disabilities, with one other child pretty severely retarded. Her IQ rates at 77 which is very low for a woman her age. I think the combination of the two put this child in a lose-lose situation. What really gets me is the lack of response (AGAIN) from the Florida Dept of Children.
 
Wow, thanks for the update. I'm so glad to hear she's doing well. Even if she doesn't continue to get better, at least she now has parents who will love and care for her forever. She no longer has to be afraid of being alone.

Bless those parents for taking her in. That takes a pretty upstanding person.
 
I cried while I was reading her story. HEARTBREAKING!!!! I'm so happy for the update and to know that she is progressing. If she never speaks, at least she knows she is loved by her parents.
 
I too missed this thread originally and am only learning of Dani today- what a beautiful little girl she is and how heartening that she is responding to the love from her adoptive parents. Hearing her laugh lifted my soul. It's beyond words the damage one human being can do to another- I'm thankful they found Dani and rescued her from her hell - and hopeful she will continue to evolve and respond to the love she's getting. Thank you so much for posting the update story and the link to the family's website!
 
Assuming that Dani is attending school, I hope that she is being treated well there and her family not having to fight for services or consideration of the past history.
 
October 2013:

This year, Bernie and Diane published a book, Dani's Story: A Journey from Neglect to Love. They get e-mails every month on Dani's website, www.danisstory.org
...

She'll be laughing up a storm sometimes, but then she'll start bawling," Bernie said. "I won't know what's wrong, if it's something from what happened to her earlier, or if something just hits her the wrong way. It's tough for her. It is. Like being 5 in a 12-year-old body."

"Except 5-year-olds know their letters," Diane said. "They can sit still. They tell you what's upsetting them."

Dani used to melt down a few times a week because she was so frustrated that she couldn't communicate. Now that she can refuse things, and reach for others, she has fits only every few months.

The tantrums, difficult when she was 9, are much more awkward now that she's almost a teenager.
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http://www.tampabay.com/features/hu...-girl-in-the-window-learns-to-connect/1186860

June 2014:

Today, Danielle is a 15-year-old high school student. On a new episode of "Oprah: Where Are They Now?" producers check in with Danielle and her family where they live just outside of Nashville.

"The progress she's making in the last couple of years, it doesn't seem like a lot but they're little steps. And little steps are big steps for someone that's disabled," Bernie explains in the above video. "She's learned how to do things that we never thought she would do."

Though Danielle doesn't often speak, Bernie says that she's said, "Hey, Dad," and even "I love you" a few times. Socially, Danielle responds well to her father, brother and her teachers, but has had trouble bonding with Diane, which Bernie attributes to her experiences with her birth mother.
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http://huffpost.com/us/entry/5505079
 
Somehow I missed this whole story. How someone could neglect a child to that degree is unbelievable to me. What a wonderful family to care for this dear little girl. William should feel very proud of himself, I wonder how he is doing. Few of the links to update the story work for me.
I am so glad that now she is part of a warm, safe family
 
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