GUILTY FL - Melissa Stoddard, 11, tortured to death, Sarasota, Dec 2012

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OK Chiquita you are cracking me up, between you and cuckoohead I don't know what I will do.
 
This is such a sad case.

Two autistic children, Melissa's mom is forced to separate them due to the son's actions. Which, by the way, how is he going to be controlled as he is getting older? Is this going to be another nightmare? Yikes! Melissa is sent to her fathers house which is a totally different environment with five children.

Fathers generally do not have patience to deal with special needs children. Add one at Melissa's age, and it is a difficult situation for all! This dad worked all day, so when he was home, the last thing he wanted was dealing with her. The dad and stepmom were clueless on how to work with her. Punishment, as they knew it, brought out the worst in Melissa. Stepmom had her hands full, and then Melissa.

This case brings to light the very issue of what do you do with a child like Melissa? There are many Melissas in homes across the United States at this very second! PaRents don't know what to do or have the skills to deal with the child's actions. Abuse is not the answer. Punishment does not work. The child is of an age they refuse their medication. The majority of people are afraid to ask for help for fear of DFS taking all their children. Mental health funds have been reduced dramatically. So what is the answer? Children can only go to school a certain number of hours a day. It is the rest of the day and night the parents must handle. It is truly a horrific environment for many families.

Don't get me wrong, no human should be treated as Melissa was! Justice was served, and quickly today. Now father deserves guilty too. My heart breaks for the children who witnessed this, the son who testified, and all the children who will grow up with parents in jail.

My opinions only!
 
1&2&3 said:
This is such a sad case.

Two autistic children, Melissa's mom is forced to separate them due to the son's actions. Which, by the way, how is he going to be controlled as he is getting older? Is this going to be another nightmare? Yikes! Melissa is sent to her fathers house which is a totally different environment with five children.

Fathers generally do not have patience to deal with special needs children. Add one at Melissa's age, and it is a difficult situation for all! This dad worked all day, so when he was home, the last thing he wanted was dealing with her. The dad and stepmom were clueless on how to work with her. Punishment, as they knew it, brought out the worst in Melissa. Stepmom had her hands full, and then Melissa.

This case brings to light the very issue of what do you do with a child like Melissa? There are many Melissas in homes across the United States at this very second! PaRents don't know what to do or have the skills to deal with the child's actions. Abuse is not the answer. Punishment does not work. The child is of an age they refuse their medication. The majority of people are afraid to ask for help for fear of DFS taking all their children. Mental health funds have been reduced dramatically. So what is the answer? Children can only go to school a certain number of hours a day. It is the rest of the day and night the parents must handle. It is truly a horrific environment for many families.

Don't get me wrong, no human should be treated as Melissa was! Justice was served, and quickly today. Now father deserves guilty too. My heart breaks for the children who witnessed this, the son who testified, and all the children who will grow up with parents in jail.

My opinions only!
Click to expand...

Yes, ITA.

Everyone has their limits and these children are very difficult to keep safe. They wander, they have no fear of injury, they resist help and can often hurt their caretakers when having fits of anger. But, there is never, ever a reason to tie a child to a board at night or to cage them like an animal. I wouldn't even crate my dog! These people are evil.

I have two grandsons who are autistic. There are plenty of services available and if you really can't handle it, she could have given the child up. There are good people out there that would have loved her and cared for her. Torture and death?! No, never.

whew, thanks for letting me get that out of my system...:banghead:

http://www.autismspeaks.org/resource-guide/state/FL
Florida

Adult - Ages 22 and Older
Day Programs [20]
Department of Rehabilitation Services [3]
Employment Services [18]
Health and Dental Services [8]
Post Secondary Education [11]
Recreational and Leisure Activities [44]
Residential Services [43]
State Information - Adults [10]
Transportation Services [7]
Advocacy, Financial and Legal Resources
Additional State Agencies [8]
Advocates [48]
Attorneys [35]
Family Grant Opportunities [7]
Financial Planners [12]
Guardianship - Conservatorship [11]
Home and Community-Based Waivers [4]
Biomedical Interventions
Diet or Nutrition [57]
Other Biomedical Interventions [4]
Community and Support Network
Autism Speaks Communities [12]
Conferences [8]
Grandparents [1]
Local Autism Events [21]
Local Autism Organizations [48]
Military Family Resources [27]
Online Support Groups [4]
Other Local Organizations [39]
Religious Resources [9]
State and Local Resource Guides [17]
Support Groups [87]
Early Intervention - Ages Birth-3
Early Intervention Services [214]
State Information - Early Intervention [15]
Health Services
Community Mental Health Centers [13]
Crisis Intervention Services [3]
DAN! Practitioners [21]
Dentists [34]
Family Practitioners [11]
Gastroenterologists [11]
Inpatient Treatment Care Centers [1]
Neurologists [40]
Other Professionals [91]
Pediatricians - Developmental [19]
Pediatricians - General [37]
Psychiatrists [41]
Psychologists [142]
State Mental Health Centers [8]
Substance Abuse Treatment [5]
Interventions
Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) [259]
Floortime or DIR [24]
Other Interventions [111]
Picture Exchange Communication (PEC) [40]
Relationship Development Intervention (RDI) [17]
SCERTS Model [2]
TEACCH [10]
Verbal Behavior [104]
Preschool - Ages 3-5
Schools - Preschool [52]
State Information - Preschool Age [9]
Related Services
Augmentative and Alternative Communication [58]
Equine Therapy [38]
Music Therapy [28]
Occupational Therapy [195]
Physical Therapy [124]
Sensory Integration [108]
Social Skills [283]
Speech and Language Therapy [237]
School Age - Ages 5-22
After-School Programs [79]
Parent Training [41]
Schools - Nonpublic (Private) [134]
Schools - Residential [26]
State Information - School Age [10]
Transition to Adult Services [50]
Services
Blood Draw or Phlebotomists [2]
Camps [69]
Haircuts [16]
Other Services [111]
Recreation and Community Activities [146]
Respite Care [37]
Service Dogs [7]
Where to get an Autism Diagnosis
Where to get an Autism Diagnosis [87]
 
1&2&3 said:
This is such a sad case.

Two autistic children, Melissa's mom is forced to separate them due to the son's actions. Which, by the way, how is he going to be controlled as he is getting older? Is this going to be another nightmare? Yikes! Melissa is sent to her fathers house which is a totally different environment with five children.

Fathers generally do not have patience to deal with special needs children. Add one at Melissa's age, and it is a difficult situation for all! This dad worked all day, so when he was home, the last thing he wanted was dealing with her. The dad and stepmom were clueless on how to work with her. Punishment, as they knew it, brought out the worst in Melissa. Stepmom had her hands full, and then Melissa.

This case brings to light the very issue of what do you do with a child like Melissa? There are many Melissas in homes across the United States at this very second! PaRents don't know what to do or have the skills to deal with the child's actions. Abuse is not the answer. Punishment does not work. The child is of an age they refuse their medication. The majority of people are afraid to ask for help for fear of DFS taking all their children. Mental health funds have been reduced dramatically. So what is the answer? Children can only go to school a certain number of hours a day. It is the rest of the day and night the parents must handle. It is truly a horrific environment for many families.

Don't get me wrong, no human should be treated as Melissa was! Justice was served, and quickly today. Now father deserves guilty too. My heart breaks for the children who witnessed this, the son who testified, and all the children who will grow up with parents in jail.

My opinions only!
Click to expand...

I think it's wonderful that you're asking these questions! When these sweet angels' lives are cut short I always find myself hoping that it's not in vain & that another child's life will be saved because of awareness brought by that child's death.

Perhaps the mods would consider having a "Not again" section in the private forum? Where we could continue to respectfully rehash and perhaps debate needed changes in various bureaucracies? Identify areas where help &/or education is needed? Basically a "community involvement" area where people can offer ideas that can be explored?

Discussion aids progress.
 
I guess we now await the trial of Richard Stoddard. Is that later this year? I hope he is given the same sentence as Misty. imo
 
Melissa was doing better, right? She was thriving at school according to her teacher, she was working towards goals, she was helping to set the rules that she had too much trouble with early on. Melissa's brother was acting out and molesting her. Maybe I am missing something-but the media I have read seems to imply that to keep her brother from a group home, Mom sent Melissa away. I need to go back and read some more.
 
Gabrielle Russon@GabrielleRusson · 3h

Looks like closing arguments and deliberations will be tomorrow. #StoddardTrial


Gabrielle Russon@GabrielleRusson · 18m

Melissa Stoddard's teacher is being investigated by state for failure to properly report child abuse #StoddardTrial @HeraldTribune

https://twitter.com/GabrielleRusson
 
They deserved the sentences they got.
Hog tying the child regularly is horrific enough. Duct taping her mouth was a particularly brutal murder. It prevented the child from breathing, she could only breathe through her nose.
When she started crying her nose slowly filled with fluid from her tear-ducts. This slowly reduced her ability to breathe, she died from slow suffocation because of the duct tape over her mouth. She was hog-tied so she could not take the tape off of her mouth.
All of this would have been explained in the court proceedings.
They deserve the sentences they got. They were monsters!!!
 
They deserved the sentences they got because of what they did, and also because they regularly did this. It was particularly horrifying to read that they did this regularly, it was only on this occasion that she suffocated and died. The poor child must have told her mother that they hog-tied her!! I do not know why her mother left her there if they treated her like this.
Whether or not her mother knew does not alter the fact that they regularly treated her like this, it only went horribly wrong on this occasion when she suffocated.
I am still enraged at the horrible death the poor child died and the monters who treated her like that...the jury got it right they were guilty on all counts...justice for the poor child.
I also read somewhere that her teacher is going to have to explain failing to report child abuse...that is also good news...more justice for the poor child.
I still think her mother must have known, I cannot imagine she would not have told her mother how they were treating her. Just my opinion only.
 
seattlechiquita said:
WHAT? We missed the trial?
Click to expand...

It was another twitter trial with no live stream. There was nothing new presented than Misty's trial. She got life , we will see about daddy. If I find a stream for closing tomorrow I will link it.
 
Gabrielle Russon‏@GabrielleRusson·3 mins
Jury is being called in #StoddardTrial

Gabrielle Russon‏@GabrielleRusson·1 min
guilty aggravated manslaughter #StoddardTrial

Kim Kuizon FOX 13‏@kkuizon·1 min
Jury finds Kenneth Stoddard guilty of agg manslaughter, guilty of aggchild abuse and guilty of tampering w evidence #Sarasota #StoddardTrial

Kim Kuizon FOX 13‏@kkuizon·20 secs
Ken Stoddard sat there emotionless as he was found guilty of all charges #StoddardTrial #Sarasota

Kim Kuizon FOX 13‏@kkuizon·15 secs
There are tears in courtroom from Ken's sister #StoddardTrial #Sarasota
 
Gabrielle Russon‏@GabrielleRusson·40 secs
Kenneth's sentencing hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. Oct. 16 #StoddardTrial @HeraldTribune
 
Kim Kuizon FOX 13‏@kkuizon·55 secs
Ken Stoddard has been placed in handcuffs waiting for his ex wife Licia Stoddard, Melissa's mom to make a statement #StoddardTrial #Sarasota
 
Gabrielle Russon‏@GabrielleRusson·39 secs
Melissa's biological mother will speak to the judge. She lives in Greensboro and won't be here for the sentencing #StoddardTrial

Kim Kuizon FOX 13‏@kkuizon·16 secs
Ken sheds tears when Melissa's mom turns and speaks to him #StoddardTrial #Sarasota
 
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