Keterrius Sparks, 3, Was Left Inside A Hot Car For Over 5 Hours By Department Of Human Resources Contracted Worker

[Sugar Cookie]

The Birmingham Police Department said 3-year-old Keterrius Sparks was left inside a vehicle while in the care of a third-party contracted worker through the Department of Human Resources (DHR).

Attorney Courtney French said police received a 911 call at around 6:40 p.m. reporting that a child had been found unresponsive in a vehicle parked at a worker's residence. The attorney's office said KJ was in temporary foster care and had been picked up from daycare at 9:00 a.m. for a supervised visit with his biological father, which ended around 11:30 a.m.

The attorney's office claims that instead of returning KJ to daycare, the worker, employed through The Covenant Services, Inc., stopped to pick up food for her family and shopped at a tobacco store. The employee reportedly returned to her home and KJ was left in the parked car for more than five hours.

The attorney's office said KJ was found unresponsive, fastened in his car seat, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

"A heartbreaking and preventable tragedy. Based upon a preliminary investigation, with the current extreme outside temperatures and the heat index of 108 degrees, the interior temperature of the car where KJ was trapped likely exceeded 150 degrees," said French.

Continue reading

Family of toddler who died in hot car hires attorney to probe incident

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The family of a 3-year-old boy who died in a hot car in Birmingham while in DHR custody announced it hired an attorney to look into the incid

abc3340.com

The worker needs to be arrested and incarcerated!

The Department of Human Resources released the following statement:

"A child in DHR custody was being transported by a contract provider when the incident occurred. The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances."

Police say the contracted worker has been cooperative, and was taken to the Birmingham Police Headquarters for questioning.

The Birmingham Police Department is investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.

3-year-old boy dies after being left in hot car in Birmingham

The boy has been identified by family as Keterrius 'KJ' Sparks of Bessemer.

www.waff.com

 

[HEREIBE22]

View attachment 186638



Continue reading

Family of toddler who died in hot car hires attorney to probe incident

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The family of a 3-year-old boy who died in a hot car in Birmingham while in DHR custody announced it hired an attorney to look into the incid

abc3340.com

The worker needs to be arrested and incarcerated!

3-year-old boy dies after being left in hot car in Birmingham

The boy has been identified by family as Keterrius 'KJ' Sparks of Bessemer.

www.waff.com

See why I don't trust CPS, DSS, DHR or all the millions of names they are coming up for these lazy, ignorant, leaches on tax payers...

Beautiful boy! This shouldn't have happen!

 

[Sugar Cookie]

KJ

 

[Sugar Cookie]

French told PEOPLE a DHR contractor was taking Ke'Torrius, who was in temporary foster care, to his daycare around 11:30 a.m. after a supervised visit with his biological father.

However, the woman then allegedly left him in the car and went shopping for her family, French said. Once the DHR contractor returned to their own residence, she allegedly left Ke'Torrius in the car for five hours.

"This is a parent's worst nightmare. Our baby should be alive," the child's parents said in a statement through French, per the outlet.

DHR previously told AL.com that the contract provider has since terminated the employee.

Boy, 3, Who Died After 5 Hours in Hot Car Was 'Forgotten' by State Contractor Transporting Him to Visit with Dad

Ke'Torrius Starkes Jr. died in a hot car on July 22 in Birmingham, Ala.

people.com

Why has this woman not been arrested? Why has this woman not had her children removed from her custody and placed into foster care.

I hope the family does not only go after the deep pockets but also goes after woman and bankrupts her.

 

[the cat did it]

If this was the parent who did this they would of been arrested right off and kids removed-but why has this person not been arrested??? B/c they are a government contract worker? Yup Yup-total BS. That poor baby, that poor family....

RIP Ke'Torrius

 

[Sugar Cookie]

If this was the parent who did this they would of been arrested right off and kids removed-but why has this person not been arrested??? B/c they are a government contract worker? Yup Yup-total BS. That poor baby, that poor family....

RIP Ke'Torrius

Not sure - too many parents are getting away with "I forgot my child in the car."

 

[Sugar Cookie]

Kela Stanford, 54, is charged with leaving a child in a vehicle. She was arrested Aug. 1.

The charge, which is part of the Amiyah White Act, prohibits leaving a child or incapacitated person unattended in a motor vehicle in a manner that creates an unreasonable risk of injury or harm.

3-year-old Ke’Torrius Starkes Jr. was under the care of the Alabama Department of Human Resources and was being transported by Stanford who was a Covenant Services employee at the time of his death. Covenant Services was contracted by DHR to help with child transportation.

The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office confirmed that Starkes was left inside the vehicle July 22 on Pinetree Drive in Birmingham from approximately 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. He was found unresponsive and pronounced dead about 30 minutes later.

Woman arrested in hot car death of 3-year-old in Birmingham

Kela Stanford, 54, is charged with leaving a child in a vehicle.

www.wsfa.com

 

[elmgems]

 

[Sugar Cookie]

I really do hope that Stanford is given more than a slap on the wrist.

 

[HEREIBE22]

I really do hope that Stanford is given more than a slap on the wrist.

She deserves worse than parents get for the same charge as she is the person that is supposed to be superior and direct/teach parents...

 

[the cat did it]

WOW even CPS accused her of rushing visits yet she leaves a poor baby in the car 5-6 hours (that's what the CPS worker said to her in the conversation above). Her entire job was to drive kids to visits and she FAILED big time, and she looks really inconvenienced in her mug shot, sorry but she just looks like a bitch, I could be wrong but nah I'm probably not-she rushed court ordered visits and then killed a poor child-bitch

 

[Sugar Cookie]

The family of an Alabama foster child left to die inside a locked car where temperatures reached in excess of 140 degrees has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

Ketorrius “KJ” Starkes Jr., a 3-year-old foster child, died July 22 while in the care of a DHR transport driver who had picked him up for a scheduled weekly visit with his father.

The driver, 54-year-old Kela Stanford, has been charged with leaving a child unattended in a motor vehicle, which is a Class B felony. Stanford worked for Covenant Services but was immediately fired after KJ’s death.

The lawsuit was filed in Jefferson County Circuit Court and names as defendants Stanford, Covenant Services, and multiple employees with the Alabama Department of Human Resources and the Jefferson County Department of Human Resources.

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the family by Birmingham attorney Courtney French of Petway, French and Ford.

DHR did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.

The lawsuit contends that the defendants breached their mandatory duty to KJ by allowing him to remain in an “unsafe environment” exposed to ongoing abuse and/or neglect which caused his death.

The defendants’ actions, the suit states, were negligent.

“The mother and father, the entire family, they’re devastated by their son’s death, and especially how he died – a very tragic and brutal death,” French said previously.

Stanford in the days following KJ’s death called the boy’s father to apologize.

A woman with KJ’s father at the time of the call told Stanford, “Baby you got us sick over here. We can’t breathe. You left a 3-year-old in the car. He couldn’t defend hisself. You supposed to look in the back seat when you knew there was a child there from the get-go,” she said.

“It’s nothing you can call to say to make him feel better,” she said

“I’m not trying to make him feel better. I’m not,” Stanford said.


“There’s nothing I can say to make him feel better. I’m so sorry. Sorry don’t even express how deeply sorry I am.”

“She rode around for over an hour, from 11:30 until after 12:30, with KJ in the backseat and drove back to her home where she said she forgot he was in the car,” French said.

“She had one job, and that was to pick KJ up from the daycare and take him back to where she picked him up.”

Lawsuit filed in ‘tragic and brutal death’ of child left in hot car while in DHR’s care

Ketorrius “KJ” Starkes Jr., a 3-year-old foster child, died while in the care of a transport driver who picked him up for a visit with his father.

www.al.com

 

[Sugar Cookie]

I am so heartbroken for the family - KJ looked like he was a character - who could brighten your day up with his smile.

 

[the cat did it]

OMG that SMILE!!! Such a sweet special smile he had! So sad and so avoidable! it was her JOB for cryen out loud!

 

[runninfawn]

two things are really making me wonder about this one 1) if i remember correctly when my kids were 3 if i was a few minutes late with their lunch they sure would be reminding me it was past their meal time... that little one was in her car with her from 11:30 to 12:30 at which time she got home ... 2) she was to bring him back to where ever she picked him up for the visit to his dad but those people never bothered to call to see why he was late?? it was pass his supper time by the time she called about an unresponsive child so i guess the people where that child was suppose to be dropped of didn't much care about this little one