Case worker suspended after child's death

ATLANTA - The child welfare worker who handled the case of a 3-year-old girl who died has been suspended for five days without pay. <br> <br> Alexis Headspeth died last week, after her grandmother took her to a hospital with water in her lungs and massive head injuries. Beverly Headspeth told police that Alexis nearly drowned in the bath while the toddler&#39;s 11-year-old uncle was trying to clean her. <br> <br> Officials with the Division of Family and Children Services said Thursday that the worker violated a number of practices when he began investigating a series of complaints that the children in the family were neglected. <br> <br> DFCS had been monitoring the family since 1999. But the caseworker did not know Headspeth had asked not to be saddled with her grandchildren, and did not know another grandparent wanted the children. <br> <br> In fact, the caseworker had never read the family&#39;s file, officials said. The caseworker had only three months on the job. <br> <br> The state identified other mistakes in the Headspeth case: <br> <br> A caseworker never contacted neighbors or others to check out the family. <br> <br> A caseworker never questioned the grandmother&#39;s boyfriend, despite complaints of possible sexual abuse. <br> <br> A caseworker never contacted all the children in the house. <br> <br> Caseworkers did not visit the house as often as required by law. <br> <br> Police are still waiting for the medical examiner to release the cause of Alexis&#39; death before deciding whether additional charges will be filed. <br> <br> Alexis was taken off life support Aug. 1. <br> <br> Headspeth and her boyfriend, Gregorio Mena-Perez, remained in East Point Jail on Thursday in lieu of $15,000 bond on child cruelty charges. The medical examiner&#39;s office has not completed its investigation.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/8/191505