Found Deceased IL - Andrew Freund, 5, Crystal Lake, 17 April 2019 *Arrests* - #4

[nyvictoria]

Thanks. I’ve found it both ways. The requirements are such anyone can be a foster parent. Idk where y’all live but in my town, there’s a sign on every corner, with an 800#, urging people to call & get started in the process.
It is very common for down on their luck people to foster, some briefly, in between jobs. It is what it is.
There’s a huge demand to find placement for the kids. Many of the kids have problems a foster family can’t adequately handle, some foster for the paycheck, some for the right reasons. Moo

And knowing how lax DCFS has been in this state, I bet the vetting process is merely a formality.

 

[bmacmillan1]

Newly-released photos show conditions in home of murdered Crystal Lake 5-year-old AJ Freund

More photos of the home I hadn’t seen before - including a basement bedroom with several rolls of fly paper hanging from the ceiling.

Photos reported to be taken in 2013 before AJ was born - but likely this is the hell AB was living in before Grandma got custody.

I have to say, once upon a time this house was actually nicely furnished...

 

[Trudie]

omg. and he was around AJ for some period of his life too? no way.

Now, if he’s the father of the unborn baby, he will have an opportunity to offer input as to the child’s future. Moo
I’m working on some links about his role (if he is the dad) but I have a lot to wade thru.
I think the baby’s father can exercise his right to parent, even if incarcerated, if he has someone to care for the baby until he’s released. This is moo.

 

[Trudie]

I have to say, once upon a time this house was actually nicely furnished...

Early on msm said Drew grew up in the house & inherited it. Later, as time allows, I’ll see if the articles are still posted.

 

[gitana1]

IMO It’s fairly difficult for an attorney to get a client declared incompetent. As long as she understands the charges and the diff between right and wrong, she’ll be ok to be tried. Her attorney will find a Psychiatrist to say she’s one step away from being a vegetable but the State will counter with the opposite opinion and her own videos and actions will show she functioned just fine. She’s a monster but she’s competent. I’m pretty sure the judge will decide she’s ok to move forward . The absolute worst case scenario would be for the trial to be delayed for 6 months or so to get her stabilized with meds. The State can try him while they’re waiting.

This is all JMHO. Maybe an attorney can chime in here. Is @gitana1 here?

You rang? It could be longer but she's going to be in jail until she's deemed competent. It took several years in the Elizabeth Smart case.

But what evidence is there that she's not competent to stand trial? Because she's a nasty meth head?

 

[Tippy Lynn]

Here’s Daniel Nowicki‘s mug shot.

We can't post full names - only initials. I'm not trying to be bossy, just wanted to give you an FYI in case you didn't know.

 

[kaen]

Apparently she was a DCFS approved foster parent. SMDH

“The Department’s first interaction with this family began in 2012, prior to Andrew’s birth. JoAnn Summerkamp (maiden name Cunningham) mother of Andrew was a DCFS foster parent who had two prior unfounded cases in 2012. The first case was for Inadequate Supervision and the second case was for Risk of Harm and Environmental neglect.”

Murdered boy's mom was former foster parent

In IL, you can be licensed or a family/relative placement foster parent. You get more money if you are licensed but you can be a relative placement although the department recommends getting the license. See below.

"How are licensed foster care and unlicensed relative foster care different?
Where it is in a child's best interest, DCFS and the courts may place a foster child in the home of a willing and able relative who is not yet licensed as a foster home. While relative foster families help meet urgent needs and provide some continuity in a child's life, it is most beneficial for relatives to become fully licensed as foster parents. During the period relatives are unlicensed, they receive significantly lower reimbursements for costs than licensed foster parents. DCFS strongly encourages all family members proving relative foster care to become licensed foster parents, but because licensure can take several months, many family members start out in the relative foster care program." Foster Care - Foster Care

 

[Trudie]

You rang? It could be longer but she's going to be in jail until she's deemed competent. It took several years in the Elizabeth Smart case.

But what evidence is there that she's not competent to stand trial? Because she's a nasty meth head?

There’s none, that we know of.
Her mom said JC is a diagnosed bi-polar person & LE reports indicate a lengthy heroin addiction.

 

[Trudie]

In IL, you can be licensed or a family/relative placement foster parent. You get more money if you are licensed but you can be a relative placement although the department recommends getting the license. See below.

"How are licensed foster care and unlicensed relative foster care different?
Where it is in a child's best interest, DCFS and the courts may place a foster child in the home of a willing and able relative who is not yet licensed as a foster home. While relative foster families help meet urgent needs and provide some continuity in a child's life, it is most beneficial for relatives to become fully licensed as foster parents. During the period relatives are unlicensed, they receive significantly lower reimbursements for costs than licensed foster parents. DCFS strongly encourages all family members proving relative foster care to become licensed foster parents, but because licensure can take several months, many family members start out in the relative foster care program." Foster Care - Foster Care

I think she was only a relative-foster.
Wonder if the relative she fostered for is the relative that later fostered AJ?

 

[nyvictoria]

You rang? It could be longer but she's going to be in jail until she's deemed competent. It took several years in the Elizabeth Smart case.

But what evidence is there that she's not competent to stand trial? Because she's a nasty meth head?

Thank you for answering!

 

[osu]

We can't post full names - only initials. I'm not trying to be bossy, just wanted to give you an FYI in case you didn't know.

Thanks. I’ll edit it.

 

[kaen]

I think she was only a relative-foster.
Wonder if the relative she fostered for is the relative that later fostered AJ?

Could be. I can't imagine she would pass the screenings for foster caregivers in terms of mental health and/prior drug use.

"How do you become a foster family?
Foster families come from all walks of life and are needed all across Illinois. Foster parents must be at least 21 years old and can be married, in a civil union, single, divorced or separated.

To ensure your success as a foster parent, prospective foster families are required to:

• Participate in a home inspection and social assessment;
• Complete 27 hours of training focused on foster care and the needs of children who are in foster care;
• Complete a criminal background check of all household members;
• Be financially stable; and
• Complete a health screening that includes verification that immunizations are up-to-date." Foster Care - Foster Care

 

[osu]

I have to say, once upon a time this house was actually nicely furnished...

Even in some of the photos that JC had posted around Christmastime, the house looks clean and nicely furnished. Maybe they cleaned up the place because she was expecting a visit from DFCS sometime soon? IIRC, one article did say that DCFS met with the family in December 2018, but not at the home on Dole... they met at the police department.
JMO

 

[nyvictoria]

In IL, you can be licensed or a family/relative placement foster parent. You get more money if you are licensed but you can be a relative placement although the department recommends getting the license. See below.

"How are licensed foster care and unlicensed relative foster care different?
Where it is in a child's best interest, DCFS and the courts may place a foster child in the home of a willing and able relative who is not yet licensed as a foster home. While relative foster families help meet urgent needs and provide some continuity in a child's life, it is most beneficial for relatives to become fully licensed as foster parents. During the period relatives are unlicensed, they receive significantly lower reimbursements for costs than licensed foster parents. DCFS strongly encourages all family members proving relative foster care to become licensed foster parents, but because licensure can take several months, many family members start out in the relative foster care program." Foster Care - Foster Care

Thanks for researching this. I suspect if there was money involved she may have applied to be licensed. I can’t imagine DCFS approving her but, as we’ve seen, they seem to turn a blind eye to some horrific situations.

 

[nyvictoria]

Even in some of the photos that JC had posted around Christmastime, the house looks clean and nicely furnished. Maybe they cleaned up the place because she was expecting a visit from DFCS sometime soon? IIRC, one article did say that DCFS met with the family in December 2018, but not at the home on Dole... their meeting was at the police department.
JMO

That was when LE said the house looked unlivable . Probably why she met them at the station.

 

[osu]

That was when LE said the house looked unlivable . Probably why she met them at the station.

Yeah maybe the Christmas photos I’m thinking of were from the previous Christmas in 2017?
I know there were just a few of the boys playing in the living room, you could see Christmas stockings hanging on the fireplace and the living room looked cleaned up and the furnishings were pretty nice.
JMO

ETA: I’m not sure that I saved those specific photos. I think they were posted here pretty early in probably on in he first thread.

 

[Trudie]

Ugh. If he’s the father of the baby, I shudder to think he might ever get custody.

Well, given the history in IL, I’ll never say ‘never’.

 

[dixiegirl1035]

I bet this never happened. AJ was probably left home alone.

Agree. I think they all fled the house for a reason. To give time to the other child to make their story more believable? I do hope that businesses around his office have surveillance cameras that dispute the fact that he was there and went in a separate door.

 

[Trudie]

Agree. I think they all fled the house for a reason. To give time to the other child to make their story more believable? I do hope that businesses around his office have surveillance cameras that dispute the fact that he was there and went in a separate door.

Maybe take P for an outing, hoping he’d forget his brother had “Owies”, giving the supposed father figure time to do some light cleaning?

How dumb was it for her to appeal to the court for P’s return? Not making excuses, but clearly she had no touch with reality, at that point. Once she’s had the baby, her WD program can get serious, hoping they strip her of her clothes & restrain her in her locked room.

 

[Trudie]

Agree. I think they all fled the house for a reason. To give time to the other child to make their story more believable? I do hope that businesses around his office have surveillance cameras that dispute the fact that he was there and went in a separate door.

Would the train depot not have security cams?