Found Deceased IL - Semaj Crosby, 16 mos, Joliet Township, 25 April 2017

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Queena,I don't think anyone is here trying to judge and make this a "black" issue or an issue of what holidays we celebrate.
IMO this is a drug issue, and I know of plenty of white people raising their babies in those same situations. It's heartbreaking,I can't get Semaj big sad eyes from my mind and I do believe her mother is truly heartbroken as well.
But her own facebook shows as early as 2012 people were worrying about the safety of her children and spoke of all kinds of people coming in and out of her house. The condition of the house, the fact that there were random people living there ,going in and out makes me think drugs are involved not because they're black.
 
For those of you making excuses for the social worker's report claiming there were no safety concerns or health hazards... please go back and look at the pics of the inside of the home.
 
katydid23 said:
I'd have to know how extensive that visit was and if anyone went all the way into the home. The call was an emergency call of 'abandonment' of children, IIRC. So that was what the worker was setting out to look for. If she comes across the 4 children, all dressed, clean, full of food, and playing happily in the front yard, then she is going to cross that accusation off the list.
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The initial report was, that the DCFS caseworker actually did go inside the home and found no safety/health hazards or concerns. Of course all the articles have been edited/updated since this poor baby was found deceased so it's impossible for me to find the link now to that article - but that's the very reason it ticked me off so much when I learned of the actual conditions of the home.
 
Ontario Mom said:
The initial report was, that the DCFS caseworker actually did go inside the home and found no safety/health hazards or concerns. Of course all the articles have been edited/updated since this poor baby was found deceased so it's impossible for me to find the link now to that article - but that's the very reason it ticked me off so much when I learned of the actual conditions of the home.
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My thoughts exactly. My biggest problem is that the social worker stated no safety concerns noted. I understand they can't take away every child living in deplorable conditions, but at least make note that the home was a disgusting pig sty!

RIP Semaj!
 
Ontario Mom said:
For those of you making excuses for the social worker's report claiming there were no safety concerns or health hazards... please go back and look at the pics of the inside of the home.
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It's not only up to the worker. Their supervisor has to approve it.

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Queena said:
Or maybe they hired a lawyer because it's the correct thing to do when dealing with the police.
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Whether or not it's the "correct thing to do" in this situation is a matter of opinion. I can honestly say that if my child was missing, I would do everything I could to assist LE in finding my child.
My focus would be on my missing child and ONLY my missing child. Hiring an attorney would be the last thing on my mind. JMO
 
DatelineFan said:
It's not only up to the worker. Their supervisor has to approve it.

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I'm referring to the report only. IF that worker actually went inside the home, they would have seen the same exact thing LE saw (it was the very same day). Based on just the pics we've seen, there is no way in the world the inside of that house didn't present health and safety hazards to small children. Especially ones running around barefoot, as we've learned Semaj was.

So either the caseworker flat out lied, or never actually did go inside the home and just wrote it off as everything was fine. Clearly, everything was not fine.
 
So I just saw the photos and honestly it doesn't look as bad as I expected. Like someone else said...if they were to take kids out of every home like this, they would have to clear out whole neighborhoods. Do I think the social worker should have said everything was okay? Nope. They should have been told they need to get it cleaned up or else the kids WOULD get taken away. I've seen stuff like that happen with worse looking houses on the show Hoarders.

Growing up, I had a relative (with 4 kids) who had a house like the one in the photos...so maybe that's why it's not so shocking to me. It's gross, for sure. And I pretty much never went to their house because...eww. But I fear a lot of kids grow up in homes just like this. Very sad.
 
claudicici said:
Queena,I don't think anyone is here trying to judge and make this a "black" issue or an issue of what holidays we celebrate.
IMO this is a drug issue, and I know of plenty of white people raising their babies in those same situations. It's heartbreaking,I can't get Semaj big sad eyes from my mind and I do believe her mother is truly heartbroken as well.
But her own facebook shows as early as 2012 people were worrying about the safety of her children and spoke of all kinds of people coming in and out of her house. The condition of the house, the fact that there were random people living there ,going in and out makes me think drugs are involved not because they're black.
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The thanks button was not enough for this post! Well said!


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Each state has its own set of regulations and guidelines when it comes to removal of children from a home. Many people in this country want social services to be very limited in what they can hold families accountable for, especially when it comes to things like discipline types/severity and cleanliness of a home. As a country there is often a backlash for paying for services. The social service workers are often underpaid and overworked, trying to manage a broken and complex system that requires them to dismiss their own judgment in favor of what the rules and regs are. The burnout factor is great.

I have one student who has had no less than 25 caseworkers over the course of 6 years. And, I won't even talk about the number of foster homes, which are a limited resource. On top of that, the student has been in 7 schools from 5th to 9th grade. No wonder my student has been hospitalized for 6 or more months at a time. You can't get continuity. You can't get the help needed because each new worker has to reassess and take the time to understand the needs of the child/family.

The things that got this home marked as uninhabitable were the non-working stove, mold and rooms filled with bags and debris. We don't know what the home looked like before the squatters came in---I guess probably better than it did on the day Semaj was killed. A social service worker would not likely know that stove was or was not working. We don't know the cause of or type of mold without testing, so I am sure the social service worker did not know either.

Beyond the Semaj tragedy, I know that there are many more children living in situations that are as chaotic and unsafe as this child/ these children lived in. It is important to recognize that this exists on a wider scale and ongoing basis. These children lack resources and respite in cycle is bound to repeat itself, while many in our country attend FyreFest, debate budgets, and demand to pay less for the care and oversight of our most precious resource: children. I am not trying to be political but, whatever side of the aisle you sit on, it is a darn shame that these children live lives that are so marginalized.
 
deedee21 said:
The mothers cousin had to be removed by cops when the mother was being questioned. She was banging on the door screaming "dont answer any questions". The baby was still missing at this point. WHY? That same cousin told her to" look concerned" when a woman with a enternet based show interviewed her. Something is ROTTEN.
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I think it may be because their community has mistrust of LE and also if she is in fact slow they were concerned that she would be easily led into statements.


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Queena said:
Neither was my baby. Not everyone believes in Easter. There are no bunnies in the Bible. I digress. I too have several friends in common with this family and have heard that it was the paternal grandma and aunt.
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No offensive meaning. Some don't celebrate. But the cops brought them baskets so the family wasn't opposed. Hell, I am poor as Shizz but I got my kids candy and dollar tree stuff (bubbles etc)


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Ugh.... One of the candles at the memorial set up at Semaj's home caught a balloon on fire and did damage to the house. :(

(See post on Anita's page)

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My friend just posted the house was on fire [emoji91]


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Hey yall, first reply to a post on WS.. long time reader. Anyway - I am a DFCS worker. I wanted to read all the posts before contributing to this because I wanted to make sure I had all the facts correctly laid out. Seeing the pictures of the home and reading about the specific conditions of the home makes me believe that the worker definitely committed misconduct in their duties regarding the investigation.

As stated by others there are specific circumstances that are evaluated in every case and for a "child welfare" investigation. DFCS places a lot of importance on:

1. Welfare of the child such as obvious signs of abuse as bruises, malnutrition, sickness ect.
2. Physical condition of home which focuses on bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen. Working plumbing is big. Now kitchen is even more specific because the investigation should be focused on preparation of food. For example even if a family's stove does not work - if they have a working microwave and a working fridge that is acceptable if no other form of malnutrition is apparent. Family will usually make the case that they run off canned goods and prepackaged meals. Plus, when a DFCS worker is on the way to a visit or has had cases reported to them previously about the said family - they are aware of their food stamp and medicaid status (or should be)

That being said, as a mandated reported there are a lot of circumstances in which we are required (and trusted) to make judgement calls on the home. Unfortunately, I read in an above post that the family had been visited frequently with no result of removal of children. This could lead to decision making that is not the best for the family because if it is a small agency investigating chances are there is some sort of relationship between DFCS worker and family. As much as we all hate to say it and think in this way - DFCS workers DO NOT want to take children away from families. Especially families who are already living in poverty because in order to get the children back from DFCS custody the family will have to meet certain requirements (that cost money as in repairs for home, drug treatment facility ect.) We try to place children in the custody of family members but if many are incarcerated, have unknown whereabouts or are living in the home that the child is currently residing they may end up in foster care after some time.

I could go on and on but my opinion on this case just by the pictures and reports alone is that worker should have called for emergency removal of child (even temporarily) if there was mold on the ceiling and apparent drug use (which in the case of multiple squatters is almost always the case). If anything the DFCS worker could have removed the child from the home and even kept her at the office (they did visit during office hours 8-5) so they did not have to shell out more money at a hotel to place the child until a LEO could have discussed options with the family. From my experience what I can infer from what has been presented is the DFCS worker probably knew the family and child and knew that their home is always in deplorable conditions so they didn't report the conditions of the home as they should have. There is a possibility also that there were multiple people in the home with all that garbage and debris the DFCS worker did not want to be there and the worker simply scooted through the home like business as usual once they saw the child was in OK physical condition. That child should have been removed.. probably on one of the previous visits.
 
Ontario Mom said:
For those of you making excuses for the social worker's report claiming there were no safety concerns or health hazards... please go back and look at the pics of the inside of the home.
Click to expand...
Is there a link? I probably missed it somewhere.

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Welcome, tyeezo, and thank you for your input!

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