Father of slain boy calls foster care reform 'sham'

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Grief has turned to anger for the father of a 2-year-old southwest Missouri boy who died one year ago while in foster care.

Sidney James lashed out Thursday at politicians and civic leaders for failing to change the state's foster care system since his son's death.

"In the two years that I had Dominic in my care, he was healthy and happy," James said as he stood on Springfield's downtown square with the local Missouri Department of Social Service's office in the background. "After two months in DFS care, he was dead."

James worried that more children -- particularly black children -- might be in danger as lawmakers and Gov. Bob Holden hash out a political stalemate.

Removed from home

Dominic, who was biracial, was removed from his mother's home after a domestic dispute and placed with a foster family. The boy remained in the foster home even after James and others expressed concern that he showed signs of abuse.

The boy died Aug. 21, 2002, at a Springfield hospital of what authorities say was a violent shaking. Foster father John Dilley Jr. of Willard, who is white, has been charged with second-degree murder, second-degree assault and child abuse in his death. He has pleaded innocent and is scheduled to be tried later this year in Osage County.

Soon after the boy's death, Holden appointed two investigators to study children's services. Committees also were formed by the Senate and by the chief justice of the Missouri Supreme Court. In May, the Legislature gave final approval to a broad revision of the way the state handles child abuse and neglect cases.

But Holden vetoed the massive package, saying it "would have caused more harm to the system than good." Republican legislative leaders have said they will attempt to override Holden's veto when they return to work to next month.

"Mainly what I want is justice," James told a handful of people gathered at the square for a memorial for Dominic. "I want the system to admit that it needs to make changes."

James also alleged black children were treated unfairly by the state's foster care system.

Disproportionate numbers

Division of Family Services statistics of active cases through July 31 show a disproportionate number of black children are in the system. U.S. Census Bureau figures show 14 percent of Missouri's children age 17 and under are black. Yet they represent 33 percent of the children in foster care.

That compares to 77 percent of children statewide being white, and 64 percent of foster children.

"I've come to realize that in America, black children and biracial children are the throw away children in foster care," James said.

Chris Whitley, spokesman for Missouri Department of Social Services director Steve Roling, said the grief of any father who has lost a child was understandable.

"But to accuse this department and its people of allowing race to become a factor in the care of any child in its custody is simply wrong and untrue," Whitley said.

James also pointed to laws and policies such as Megan's Law and the Amber Alert plan in saying the deaths of white children garner national attention and lead to changes, yet hardly anyone outside of Missouri has heard of Dominic.

He argued the deaths of Megan Kanka and Amber Hagerman, for whom those laws are named, are no more agonizing that the loss of Dominic, but the bill named after his son has stalled.

Amber Alerts, bulletins broadcast on kidnapped children and their abductors, were put into place in communities across the country after the 9-year-old was abducted and murdered in Texas. Megan's law, which is enacted in all 50 states, was named after the 7-year-old New Jersey girl who was raped and killed by a child molester who moved in across the street. It was designed to warn communities about the presence of sex offenders.

James said he was trying to remain upbeat and celebrate the happiness he shared during his two years with Dominic.

"It's hard because I'm angry," he said. "To me, nothing has changed."