Page 12/The Battalion/Wednesday, December 14, 1983
Killer convicted, jury
sentences him to death
United Press International
HOUSTON — A Vermont
hitchhiker, sentenced to death
for stabbing an Alabama man,
licked the blood of his victim
from a knife and from his hands,
a prosecutor said on Tuesday.
Harris County Assistant Dis
trict Attorney Eric Hagstette
won a conviction of Robert
Drew, 23, of West Pawlett, Vt.,
and a jury Friday sentenced him
in Texas’
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to die by injection
death chamber.
During the investigation of
the case, Hagstette said a second
man in the car when Jeffrey
Leon Mays, 17, of Birmingham,
Ala., was killed told of Drew’s
actions. Evidence indicated
Mays was stabbed 13 times and
dumped by the side of a road in
Baytown.
The second victim was identi
fied as runaway Bee Eugene
Landrum, 18, of Alabama.
Authorities said Ernest Pur-
leaski, 33, of Chicago was hitch
hiking with Drew across coun
try, and that the two teenagers
picked them up in Louisiana.
“The older men began beat
ing the two teenagers, and then
it became a robbery. They
started taking their posses
sions,” Hagstette said.
Offices ‘incompatible’ ip
United Press International
AUSTIN — The state attor
ney general’s office said Tues
day a Fort Worth woman re
linquished her seat on the
Texas College and University
System Coordinating Board
when she was re-elected to a
junior college board.
In an advisory opinion,
Attorney General Jim Mattox
said Dr. Gwendolyn Morrison
cannot hold two civil offices
which are incompatible.
Morrison was appointed to
the coordinating board by for
mer Gov. Bill Clements in
October 1979 for a term that
was to expire August 1985.
But, against Clements’
advice, she continued to hold
her seat on the Tarrant Coun
ty Junior College Board, and
was re-elected to a six-year
term in April 1982.
Gov. Mark While, taking
the position that Morrison was
not qualified for the coordi
nating board, appointed Dal
las lawyer George Brambletl
Jr. to replace her.
Mattox’s opinion said
itinued
But the
lys to th
Euroj
Brambletl is the
,er tel- 1 nencan
der of the position. The opin
ion said it would be improper
for Morrison to serve on tw
state boards that might come
in conflict.
Child
often
abuse problems real,
overlooked too long
nferenc
ivsto m;
Soviet
estmorc
ry close
Europ
“It’s cle
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his is ;
nds and
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by Chris Cox
He said Landrum told law
men “Drew was showing the
other hitchhiker the knife, and
as he was showing off he licked
the blood from the knife blade
and from his hands.”
The
May’s body was found 30
miles east of Houston, court re
cords showed. Police in Houston
stopped the car with the three
men because it was spattered on
the outside with blood and be
cause they could see Landrum
was hysterical.
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Battalion Reporter
Harris County welfare
case on Merica Moss closed
when she was pronounced dead
at a hospital emergency room.
Cause of death: ruptured kid
ney, adrenal gland, and abdo
minal injuries, or simply child
abuse. Two days later her unem
ployed parents were charged in
connection with her death.
The Harris County Child
Welfare Division had been
watching the family for more
than two years. Merica had been
placed in a foster home once be
fore her death. Case workers
noted that the parents were also
victims of overdiscipline.
A baby sitter for the girl said
she was not completely sur
prised by her death. Dora
Matthews said when the mother
would come and bring the child
to her, she would always explain
how the child got “another new
scar.”
For some in Harris County it
brought home the reality of
what child abuse can do. To
others, the event went un
noticed.
Like Merica, 1 million U.S.
children will be victims of abuse
this year. Out of these, about
2,000 children die. 2,000 per
year... that’s Five a day — or one
child every Five hours. In 1980
alone, Texas reported 110
deaths from child abuse.
Closer to home in Brazos
County, 389 families received
protective services in 1981 to
prevent the reoccurence of child
abuse. That same year, 729 chil
dren received protective ser
vices to prevent the reoccurr
ence of child abuse. Also in
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1981, 50 children were in the
custody of the Department of
Human Resources in Bryan be
cause of child abuse and/or child
neglect.
The Texas DHR reported last
year at least 76 child deaths were
caused by abuse or neglect. Of
the 39,476 reports of suspected
child mistreatment, 13,885 were
found to be valid. In the reports
found valid, at least 1,510 chil
dren had been victims of sexual
abuse.
These Figures reflect only re
ported cases. Studies have indi
cated that each year in Texas at
least 8.5 percent of the state’s
children are in danger of being
abused or neglected. Relatively
few abused children from this
state are being brought
DHR’s attention.
to
Several forms of child
abuse exist, including
physical abuse and
neglect, sexual abuse,
and emotional abuse
and neglect. Often a
child is the victim of
more than one form
of abuse.
Parents who abuse or neglect
children can be found at every
social and economic level and in
all ethnic and religious groups.
Their victims range in age from
infants to adolescents, and
almost half are 6-years- old or
younger. They are most often
their own children, or those of a
close friend or relative.
Not until the late 1960s and
the 1970s did most states adopt
laws requiring the reporting of
child abuse cases and providing
immunity to those who file the
reports. There are now laws de
fining a physicians legal respon
sibility in reporting child abuse.
A Texas law that went into
effect January 1, 1974, requires
everyone who suspects child
abuse or neglect to report it to
the proper authorities and asses
ses a penalty for not reporting a
suspect. In 1976, the Supreme
Court of California ruled that
any physician who fails to iden
tify and report a child with his
torical, physical and radiologic
findings that indicate abuse is
guilty of professional negli
gence.
Several forms of child abuse
exist, including physical abuse
and neglect, sexual abuse, and
emotional abuse and neglect.
Often a child is the victim of
more than one form of abuse.
Susan Leuking, child protec
tive services specialist at the
DHR in Bryan, is one person
who investigates allegations of
abuse and neglect.
Leuking, who is also responsi
ble for placing children in foster
homes, says reports usually
come in through the phone and
others walk in to give a com
plaint. Once a person calls and
DHR determines it is valid, the
situation will be investigated if it
falls under abuse or neglect, she
said. It is often hard to deter
mine if the call is real, she said.
Leuking said the DHR inves
tigates by going out and meeting
with the family. She said the
DHR is specific on telling the pa
rents what the visit is for.
“The DHR gets many diffe
rent reactions from parents,”
she said. “Some of the reactions
are hostile, some are just kind of
in shock, and some say thank
God you’re here. The majority,
however, are upset.”
Leuking said if there is resist
ance, DHR always has the option
to come back with the police
since the department has a court
order. By that time the parents
usually let us in, she said.
“If the DHR feels a child’s life
is in danger, a court order will be
given and the child will be re
moved,” she said. “If one is
granted that order, the child
comes into the custody of the
DHR. After this, there is a 10-
day hearing to determine what
happens to that child. If it is an
emergency removal, the district
judge then decides, based upon
a court report and parent’s testi
mony, if the child should return
or not. If the child doesn’t, the
DHR will place the child in a fos
ter home or institution.”
Leuking said the removal of
child is very rare since the re
moval can be as dramatic for the
child as the abuse itself. The
DHR removes the child only
when the child’s life is in danger,
she said.
“Much of child abuse is situa
tional,” she said. “There is no
thing actually wrong with the
parent mentally. The action just
culminates through one direct
abuse because of unemploy
ment of one of the parents or
ue bef
economic stress, 't hese kind d|es an d
people appreciate any kindo
hel
telp offered.”
lough
tn. He
Patricia Bush, head of tl» ktalks
child protective service at ti
DHR, said 99.99 percentoftl
But, he s
time it is not the parent buttlt
child who thinks there is somt
thing wrong personally,
child feels “that Mommy
Daddy abuse me because In
bad,” she said. She saysparei
ikii
u
United 1
have unrealistic expectationso
their children.
Bush also commentedon»
ual abuse. Children now kno.
that it is not socially acceptable ^NOV!
Moreover, children arecominj fojvie
into contact through televisw mer wa
explaining that sexual abuset jdiung
wrong. Bush said one in fourit', twc
dividuals has been sexualli |
abused sometime in theirf
And, she added, men arej s jg
ones who really ignore theirp
sexual abuse because they ten
to think it was the way (lit
I’m still
)
0
learned about sex.
Anthony Arden, who to
Ph.D. in psychology, gets niM
of his child abuse referalsftts
the DHR. The Bryan psycho^ h
ist provides services not only If ,
children but abusive and nt| k.
lectful families as well
“Working with child abuse
an extremely difficult job,"ft ” he s;
Arden said. “The commum kleina
would be amazed at someoffc UPI fr
horrible abuse workers have
account for on a daily basis.It
very emotional and drainii
job.”
Arden said it is noteasytoj
up to someone’s door andi
that there has been a reporttl ,
someone is abusing a clii 1 e
They feel someone is wanting
take their child away, he
But, he said, the goalofDHlj
to keep families together
apart.
“One of the importantthn
is to find strengths in theft
ly,” Dr. Arden said. "Wetty
build on their strengths by
ing realistic goals. The fai
often need support structui™
put in place, especially pares ?” zesto
with a retarded child becau(
support will be needed them P ollce ,
of their lives.” sfonde
Dr. Arden says abused effl l e . tr 'P
dren come from a “Variety^ r 0 z
In the families ft
lut the t
was s
fy’s jo
rom M
at Nc
ay bee
:e haras
spectrum. ... , ,
involved with most are low | ,.
middle, lower class. Most of th U s 1S<
abusers are caucasion beat* I, . .
Hp 531(1
most of the population is ana
sion. However, DHR hashed
with abuse from every incoS Fj
bracket and profession."
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