Four child welfare workers have been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of a state Department of Human Services investigation surrounding the beating death of a 5 year old girl.

Serenity Anne Deal died of a severe head injury less than a month after she moved in with her father, Sean Devon Brooks, 31. He is charged in Oklahoma County District Court in connection with her June 4 death.

Child welfare workers in Pottawatomie County recommended she live with her father. She had been taken away from her mother, who is accused of sexually assaulting another child.

The DHS employees on leave from their jobs are Wes Priest and Jennifer Shawn, both level 4 child welfare specialists, and Randy Lack and Donald Wheeler, both level 3 child welfare specialists.
 
Level 4s are supervisors, and level 3s are lead workers.

Priest has worked for DHS since 1998, Wheeler since 1981, Lack since 2000 and Shawn since 2006.

Wheeler and Priest are assigned to Lincoln County. Lack and Shawn are assigned to Pottawatomie County.

Sheree Powell, DHS spokeswoman, said the social workers will continue to be paid while the agency completes an internal investigation into Serenity’s death.

“Following any child death, we review the actions of staff involved to determine if policy was followed and appropriate recommendations were made to the court,” Powell said.

Powell said DHS should be releasing a report on its internal review next week.
 
Deaths raise questions about DHS approach
 
Serenity is the fourth child in the last 9 years that has died after having been under the supervision of DHS in Lincoln and Pottawatomie counties.

Melissa Ellison, 5, of Prague, was beaten to death in 2002 by her father and dumped near Meeker.

Kelsey Smith-Briggs, 3, of Meeker, died of blunt force trauma in 2005 after being returned to her mother.
 
Aja Johnson, 7, of Davenport, was kidnapped and killed in March 2010 by her stepfather.
 
House Speaker Kris Steele said Serenity’s death raises more significant questions about the approach used by DHS to care for children in state custody. Steele, R-Shawnee, lives in the district where Serenity’s case was decided and authored child welfare reform laws spurred by the Kelsey Smith-Briggs case.

Steele said the outcome of Serenity’s case is unacceptable.
 
“When a child’s life is on the line, the practice should always be to steer on the side of caution,” Steele said. “In Serenity’s case, it appears she was sent to an environment with documented safety concerns when other options were available.”

Steele said there should be a full explanation of the circumstances that led to her death.
 
“It is incumbent upon all of us to do the best we can to protect all children, particularly those who cannot protect themselves.”

The Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth released its report this week on Serenity’s death and DHS’s involvement.

The report indicates there were disagreements between social workers in Lincoln and Pottawatomie counties over Serenity’s case.

Workers from Lincoln County investigated and documented allegations that Serenity had returned from two separate visits with her father in January with black eyes and multiple bruises.

Workers from Pottawatomie County made the recommendation that Serenity live with her father and vouched to a judge that Brooks’ home would be a safe environment for the girl, the report states.

Serenity and her younger half sibling had been under the supervision of DHS officials since late 2009. The children’s mother, Samantha Ann Deal, 36, is accused of molesting a 10 year old boy and faces charges in Lincoln County District Court.

Samantha Deal is expected to enter a blind plea July 5 allowing a judge to determine her sentence. She is pregnant.
 
The children lived with their maternal grandparents but were removed from their home when DHS officials suspected they were allowing Serenity to stay overnight with her mother, according to the report from the Oklahoma Commission on Children and Youth.

The grandparents’ attorney, Joe Vorndran, said the couple deny the allegations made by DHS. He said Serenity lived with them for three years, and they tried to adopt her.

 If you have been charged with murder, sex crime, fraud, assault, etc., please contact The Swain Law Firm at (405) 501-0827 for your free consultation.

Law Offices of Matt Swain

405-501-0827

Family violence is a serious danger and threat to society and its members.  Victims of family violence are entitled to the maximum protection from harm or abuse or the threat of harm or abuse as is permitted by law.

In any law enforcement, prosecutorial, or judicial response to allegations of family violence, the responding law enforcement or judicial officers shall protect the victim, without regard to the relationship between the alleged offender and victim.

If you or someone you know is suffering from family violence, please contact The Swain Law Firm at (405)501-0827 to receive a free consultation.

Law Offices of Matt Swain

405-501-0827