Out of the Frying Pan Into the Pot

August 6, 2013 permalink

Child protectors took two-year-old Alexandria Hill when they discovered that her parents smoked marijuana while the toddler was sleeping. Hill's foster mom, Sherill Small, killed the girl by slamming her head.

In this commentary by Alex Jones, YouTube and local copy (mp4), Alex points out that the real killer is not the foster mom, but the social services system that took the girl from her parents. And Alex missed the most outrageous fact: after removing the girl from parents for smoking pot, social workers placed her with foster parents convicted of marijuana offenses. Two articles are enclosed.

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Sherill Small, Foster Mother, Charged In Murder Of 2-Year-Old Texas Girl

The Huffington Post | By Andres Jauregui Posted: 08/06/2013 11:10 am EDT | Updated: 08/06/2013 11:41 am EDT

Sherill Small faces murder charges in the death of 2-year-old Alexandria Hill

A Texas foster mother has been accused of murdering a 2-year-old girl placed in her care.

Sherill Small called 911 the evening of July 29 and reported that the child, Alexandria Hill, had stopped breathing. The girl was taken to a Rockdale area hospital, where she remained in a coma until she was taken off life support Wednesday.

Rockdale Police Chief Thomas Harris told KWTX that Small tried to hide what caused the girl's injuries, but the truth soon came out.

"Initially the story was [that] the child was running backwards and fell," Harris told the station. "You don't get these types of injuries from a 2-year-old child running backwards and falling."

Doctors said she had brain hemorrhaging and retinal hemorrhaging in both eyes. Small later told police that she has shaken the girl and accidentally let her go. She was arrested on Aug. 1.

Two-year-old Alexandria Hill was taken off life support July 31.

Screengrab: KXAN

The victim's father, Joshua Hill, told KXAN that his daughter was placed in foster care "because her mother and I smoked pot at the time." An examination of court records by the station revealed that the girl's mother had a medical condition that did not allow her to be left alone with the child.

In a separate interview with KVUE, Hill said he and his wife only used marijuana while their daughter was asleep, and that she never came to harm while in their care.

“We never hurt our daughter. She was never sick, she was never in the hospital, and she never had any issues until she went into state care,” Hill told the station.

Hill said that his daughter moved in with Small after he and his wife complained that a previous home wasn't safe.

"She would come to visitation with bruises on her, and mold and mildew in her bag," Hill said.

According to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Small was a licensed foster parent through the foster care agency Texas Mentor, and gained custody of the girl in January. As part of her licensing, Small was required to undergo training through Texas Mentor.

TDFPS spokeswoman told KXAN that Small's foster care record included "one allegation of a previous foster child in her care that had bruising and lead poisoning, but no deficiencies were found."

Source: Huffington Post

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Despite criminal background, foster parent still qualified

by ANDY PIERROTTI / KVUE News and photojournalist DEREK RASOR khou.com Posted on August 5, 2013 at 6:20 PM Updated August 5, 2013 at 6:40 PM

AUSTIN -- Monday afternoon friends and family said goodbye to a two-year-old girl police say died by the hands of her foster mother.

Alex Hill's biological parents took her off life support last week after the girl’s foster mother, Sherill Small, admitted to fatally injuring her.

We’re learning more about Alex's foster father Clemon Small. He's not charged with her death, but he does have a criminal history that includes multiple marijuana drug charges and suspended driver licenses.

Despite his background, the Department of Family and Protective Services says minor drug charges 10 years or older do not disqualify potential foster parents.

Police say Mrs. Small said she wanted to foster more children to earn extra income. Texas Mentor, the adoption agency that placed Alex, said it pays its foster families up to $600 a month to take care of children.

Austin child welfare attorney Tracy Harting says foster parents are a mix of families who genuinely care and families who do use the system as an income.

"The state, at least historically, tried to weed those out by saying that foster parents had to have another source of income in the house, so they were not relying solely on fostering in order to make ends meet,” said Harting.

According to court records, a state investigator discovered Alex's biological mother, Mary Sweeny, suffered from seizures and a doctor determined, "she is not allowed to drive or be alone with Alexandria."

Her biological father, Joshua Hill, admitted one time to "smoking marijuana in the house when his daughter was upstairs sleeping."

The state also said he could not allow Alex to live with him at his parents because the "paternal grandfather is a registered sexual offender," for an offense that happened more than 20 years ago.

Source: KHOU-TV