Woman accused of adult abuse
By PAUL QUINLAN
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Thursday, July 26, 2007
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/tcoast/epaper/2007/07/26/m1b_slleekin_0726.html
PORT ST. LUCIE — A 62-year-old woman accused of raising five teenagers
in her home while starving them, forcing them to sleep on the floor and
at times binding them with handcuffs and zip-ties now faces new charges
for inflicting similar abuses on four mentally handicapped adults also
found in her care, authorities said Wednesday.
Police arrested Judith Leekin while she was in jail Tuesday on four
counts of aggravated abuse of an elderly or disabled adult. Those
charges - combined with the previous five counts of aggravated child
abuse, one count of witness tampering and one count of possessing a
false driver license - raised her bail to $835,000.
She remains in custody at the St. Lucie County jail, where she turned
herself in on the advice of her Miami attorney.
Investigators say they believe Leekin adopted the children under various
aliases through the New York City Administration for Children's Services
and pocketed much of the money she received for raising them in her pink
two-story home at 114 S.W. Hawthorne Circle.
Like the five teenagers, the four adults - three men, ages 20, 23 and
26, and one woman, age 27 - all had scarring on their wrists from being
bound together and showed signs of neglect, court records show. One told
investigators he was adopted 20 years ago. None appeared to have been
educated to more than a fourth-grade level - or even to have attended
school - and did not appear to have seen a doctor or a dentist. In court
records, one was described as "brainwashed."
The Florida Department of Children and Families has placed the children
in foster care and the others in adult-living facilities, an agency
spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, the New York Police Department is investigating whether
Leekin committed fraud against New York state, Port St. Lucie police
Capt. Scott Bartal said. The FBI also is looking into the case.
But many details of the case remain unclear, including exactly how and
when Leekin gained custody of the five teenagers and four adults. Police
say they have asked a New York judge to unseal adoption records for the
children. But even their identities, as well as Leekin's, remain
unclear, police say.
Many of the children had false birth certificates, while Leekin has used
at least five aliases, police say. Although she immigrated to the United
States, police say U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has no
record of her name.
The investigation began July 4 when an employee at a St. Petersburg
Publix called police to report an 18-year-old woman who claimed to have
been abandoned by her adoptive mother at the grocery store. In
interviews, the woman, who was one of the teens in the case, described a
life of abuse that began at age 5, according to a police report.
At the Port St. Lucie home where she said she had been raised,
investigators found four adults and four children hiding in an upstairs
bedroom. Police also discovered a surveillance system the 18-year-old
had said was used to alert Leekin to the presence of police.
Investigators also found handcuffs and zip-ties in a bowl that Leekin
said were used to keep the children and adults from damaging the house,
arrest records show.
Leekin's Miami attorney, Mario Garcia Jr., who is a candidate for
circuit judge, would not comment on any of the allegations, saying he
continues to investigate the charges himself.
"We still don't have complete information," Garcia said.
CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....
CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.
every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf
http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com
Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS
*Perpetrators of Maltreatment*
Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5
CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING HUNDREDS OF INNOCENT
FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON...
BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...
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