foster children

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Foster Dad Who Abused Turpin Children Is Sentenced

California's Marcelino Olguin gets 7 years; kids had previously endured years of torture from parents

(Newser) - A California man was sentenced Friday to seven years in prison for abusing foster children he'd been assigned to care for in his home, including some who'd been previously tortured by their parents. Marcelino Olguin, 65, was handcuffed and led away by sheriff's deputies in a courtroom...

Christian Bale Breaks Ground on Community for Foster Kids

He's been working on project to keep siblings together for 16 years

(Newser) - Christian Bale broke ground Wednesday on a project he's been pursuing for 16 years—the building of a dozen homes and a community center in Los Angeles County intended to keep siblings in foster care together. The Oscar winner stood with a grin and a shovel full of dirt...

US Couple to Pay $28K for Mistreating Foster Child

Some Ugandan activists are angered by the outcome

(Newser) - The US couple charged in Uganda with child trafficking and torture of their 10-year-old foster son has instead pleaded guilty to child cruelty and "inhumane treatment," reports the BBC . Whereas Mackenzie Leing Mathias Spencer and Nicholas Spencer faced life in prison if convicted of the original counts, they'...

This Christmas Ad 'Will Leave You Staring Into the Abyss'

Mostly in a good way, though reaction is mixed to John Lewis & Partners' poignant holiday promo

(Newser) - It's that time of year when Christmas ads start flooding the landscape, and some retailers are trying to take a "more muted approach" as people continue to struggle with inflation and the cost of necessities, reports the BBC . One promotion in particular, by the John Lewis & Partners...

Foster Parents Charged With Abuse of Rescued Children

Court filing says 7 others in family's care were physically assaulted

(Newser) - Three members of a Southern California family pleaded not guilty Friday to abusing their nine foster children, including two girls from the Turpin family who were rescued from nightmarish conditions three years ago. Marcelino Olguin, 63, of Perris, entered pleas in Riverside County Superior Court to felony charges that included...

Foster System Was Shrinking. Then the Opioid Crisis Began

92K kids entered foster care system because of parental drug use in 2016

(Newser) - Across the US, soaring use of opioids has forced tens of thousands of children from their homes, creating a generation of kids abandoned by addicted parents, orphaned because of fatal overdoses, or torn from fractured families by authorities fearful of leaving them in drug-addled chaos. "This isn't a...

70 Foster Kids Staying in Ex- Penthouse Exec's Fla. Mansion

'They hadn't showered for a week and you saw how excited they were' after Irma

(Newser) - In the wake of Hurricane Irma, 70 foster children found themselves staying in some pretty fancy digs. After Marc Bell got a call from the SOS Children's Villages Florida—on whose board he sits—telling him there was no power at the facility and the children who live there...

Parents Who Can't Stop Using, Kids Sent to Foster Care

The US foster system is overwhelmed because of the opioid epidemic

(Newser) - "I felt like I lost my mom to this pit that I couldn't pull her out of." That's how 20-year-old Brianna McLaughlin describes her mom, Kelly, after the former Head Start caseworker became addicted to OxyContin, then heroin, after neck surgery. As Julia Lurie details for...

Girl Yanked From Foster Family for Being 1/64th Native American

6-year-old Lexi has lived with the Pages for 4 years and considers them her family

(Newser) - A 6-year-old California girl whose birth parents were plagued by substance abuse and criminal infractions was taken in at age 2 by a foster family. But Alexandria (aka Lexi) is also 1/64th Choctaw Native American, which means where she ends up is dictated by 1978's Indian Child Welfare Act—...

London Mom Sues NYC After Baby Put in Foster Care

UK cop allegedly left her infant alone twice in hotel

(Newser) - A London police officer and single mother is suing every agency involved in placing her baby in foster care during a visit to New York in April. Louise Fielden was arrested at the Chelsea Highline Hotel for leaving her son, Samuel, who was younger than six months at the time,...

Mom Convicted of Poisoning 4-Year-Old Foster Son Freed

Texas' Hannah Overton, convicted for 2006 death of Andrew Burd, out on $50K bond

(Newser) - For the first time in seven years, Hannah Overton will be able to hug her five kids instead of waving to them through plexiglass. The Corpus Christi mother, who has been in prison since 2007, was released on $50,000 bond yesterday, more than two months after a Texas appellate...

Orphan Who Won America's Heart Kicked Out by Family

Davion Only 'has built up a lot of anger,' says head of foster agency

(Newser) - The Florida foster child who became a media darling and received 10,000 offers for a new home is back in foster care after a family kicked him out, Tampa Bay Times reports. In fact, efforts with four families went sour, and 16-year-old Davion Only has shut down lines of...

Police Find Boy Cuffed With Dead Chicken on Neck

Foster parents Dorian Lee Harper, Wanda Sue Larson arrested

(Newser) - A neighbor sums up the situation: "That's some sick people." An animal control deputy responding to concerns about a pig on the loose in Union County, NC, found something far more horrifying on Friday: a boy, 11, handcuffed to a porch, with a dead chicken wrapped around...

Mom Abducts Her 8 Kids From Foster Care

NYC mom on the run with baby girl, 7 boys with same name

(Newser) - New York City cops are seeking a fugitive mother and her eight children—seven of whom have the same name. Shanel Nadal, 28, abducted her seven boys, between the ages of 4 and 11, and baby girl after a group visit at a foster care agency, police say. The boys...

Teen Girls Charged With Murdering Foster Mom

One was already on probation for battery charges

(Newser) - Two 15-year-old girls who went missing after their foster mother was killed have been apprehended and charged with murdering her, New Mexico authorities said yesterday. A search for the teens began after Evelyn Miranda, 53, who was specially trained to take in troubled youths, was found dead Wednesday morning of...

Teen Stowaway Survives Flight in Landing Gear

Russian foster kid ran away from Siberian home

(Newser) - A 17-year-old Russian ran away from his Siberian foster home in dramatic fashion today, crawling into the landing gear compartment of an Antonov An-24 turboprop plane. Wearing only a light coat, the boy survived a 50-minute flight in temperatures as low as -22 to the regional center of Irkutsk, the...

Our Foster Care System Bullies Gay Kids

Many are moved around, harassed, or even experience violence

(Newser) - Kenneth Jones should have been an easy foster kid to place: Decent grades, no criminal record, and he even liked doing chores. Just one problem: He’s gay. Mother Jones relays Kenneth’s story in a long piece exploring the problems the foster care system has: According to one study,...

After Foster Care, Kids in Dire Straits

College is a rarity and crime is common, new study finds

(Newser) - States cut loose foster kids when they age out of programs at 18, and the abrupt cutoff usually takes a toll on their prospects for success, says a new study. The University of Chicago survey found that by 24, just 6% of former foster kids have a college degree of...

18 Stories