The mother of a 2-year-old girl who is fighting for her life at a Grand Rapids hospital may lose custody of her children, according to court documents.
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Samantha Slater had sole physical custody of her children at the time her daughter allegedly sustained the injuries. She shares legal custody with her ex-husband, Brent Slater.
A judge last week suspended the parental rights of the Slaters after 2-year-old Brooklyn Weimer ended up at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital with life-threatening injuries and was placed into a coma. Brooklyn's 4-year-old sister has been removed from the care of her mother, and Brent Slater's parenting time has been suspended, the court documents show.
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Brooklyn remains at the Grand Rapids hospital with injuries doctors once feared would kill her. On March 24, she was flown from Spectrum Health United Hospital in Greenville to Grand Rapids with severe swelling and bleeding of her brain and a lacerated liver, according to court documents.
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Doctors in Grand Rapids suspected child abuse. However, no one has been charged for such crimes, and police remain mum on their investigation.
Samantha Slater's boyfriend, Benjamin Wilkins, has been arrested for obstructing justice and for a parole violation. Greenville Department of Public Safety interim Director Michael Stuck said Wilkins' arrest is not related to Brooklyn's injuries. Wilkins was caring for Brooklyn the night she went to the hospital, and his bizarre series of calls that night led police and medical personnel to the West Grove Street home where he was staying, court documents show.
On March 24, Wilkins told a Montcalm County Department of Human Services caseworker that he put Brooklyn in a time-out in the bathroom about 7:50 p.m., according to the court documents. He said he heard a "thud" about five minutes later. He went into the bathroom and found Brooklyn unresponsive, the court documents stated.
The documents, obtained from both a child abuse and neglect file and an ongoing custody dispute between the Slaters, also detailed a series of phone calls Wilkins made that night. He called Spectrum Health United Hospital about 8:35 p.m. and said his friend jumped off the roof, was unconscious but breathing. Wilkins wanted to know what to do. The nurse who took the call told him to hang up and call 911.
That nurse then called Montcalm County Dispatch, expressed her concern over the call and asked that someone check into the situation, according to the court documents. A dispatcher called Wilkins, who said he made up the story about his friend jumping off the roof. He told the dispatcher that he and his friend were wrestling and his friend was knocked unconscious. His friend was now conscious and breathing, Wilkins told the dispatcher.
At 9:02 p.m., Wilkins called dispatch to request an ambulance for an unresponsive 2-year-old child, the documents stated. A woman's voice could be heard in the background. Wilkins later admitted to a detective that he made up the stories about his injured friend "because he and Ms. Slater did not want the police and DHS to become involved," according to the court documents.
An affidavit filed in court stated "there has been no plausible explanation given for how Brooklyn received her injuries or for who caused her injuries." The affidavit also quoted a doctor who examined Brooklyn.
"The significant and unreasonable delay in seeking care for an unresponsive 2-year-old child shows definite evidence of medical neglect," the doctor stated.
This was not the first time Brooklyn went to the Grand Rapids children's hospital with injuries doctors suspected were caused by abuse. According to a separate child abuse and neglect case, Brooklyn had significant bruises and other injuries in May 2012. The court file stated Brooklyn had bruises and abrasions on her face and neck. There was a "classic slap" mark on her face, cuts to her lips and more bruising to her ears.
At the time, Samantha Slater told her caseworker that Brooklyn had woken up in the morning with the injuries. She thought her daughter was having an allergic reaction. She later said Brooklyn had been playing with a boy who sometimes was rough. Samantha Slater thought the boy could have choked her daughter, according to the court documents.
The caseworker wrote that Samantha Slater's behavior toward children was violent and out of control, that her explanation was unconvincing and that she likely caused harm to Brooklyn, the documents stated. She requested Brooklyn and her sister be removed from Samantha Slater's care.
In July 2012, the abuse and neglect case against Samantha Slater was dismissed after a divorce between the Slaters was finalized. Brent Slater was granted primary physical custody of both children, according to the divorce settlement. He was not considered "a substantial risk to the children," court documents stated.
Brent Slater, however, signed a motion on Feb. 4, 2013 that gave his ex-wife sole physical custody of both children. In the motion, Brent Slater wrote that he was moving to the Grand Rapids area for a job opportunity, and he and his ex-wife wanted to keep the 4-year-old child in Greenville schools. Samantha Slater was granted custody of on Feb. 19.
"Brooklyn will reside with Samantha as I'm not her blood father," Brent Slater wrote.
