5-year-old missing for months before police alerted. Why?

Five-year-old Jeremiah Oliver was last seen by his Massachusetts relatives on September 14. But the investigation into his disappearance didn't begin until last week when the authorities were first alerted to it.
Now, the child is feared dead, his mother and her boyfriend are in custody, and everyone is left wondering how a child could simply vanish unnoticed for three months.
How could this happen, especially to a child who was supposed to be receiving monthly visits from a state-provided social worker?
Turns out, tragically, Jeremiah was not getting the visits, state officials say.
Who's to blame?
The finger pointing, demands for accountability and calls for investigations are reverberating throughout the state.
"This is a deeply concerning case of neglect and abuse," said Olga Roche, commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families. The state agency was charged with the responsibility of protecting children from child abuse.
Roche called the situation "a serious failure" and put the blame squarely on the shoulders of the boy's social worker and supervisor, both of whom were quickly fired.
"The social worker assigned to this case did not conduct the required in-person, monthly checks on the family," Roche said in a statement. "And the supervisor failed to enforce that policy."
Neither the social worker nor the supervisor have been named, but their union spokesman says they have been made "convenient scapegoats" at an overwhelmed agency.
"We are disappointed that Commissioner Roche is more interested in finger-pointing than accepting responsibility for yet another tragedy on her watch," said Jason Stephany of the Service Employees International Union Local 509, which represents caseworkers at the Department of Children and Families. "Instead, the Commissioner has chosen a convenient scapegoat to deflect blame from department administrators."
More blame to go around
But Gov. Deval Patrick hinted Friday that they might not be the only two held accountable.
"I've asked the Commissioner to look into the question about whether responsibility goes beyond those two," he said in an appearance on Boston Public Radio. "I have some reason to believe it does."
The last documentation of an interaction with Jeremiah was in May, according to Department of Children and Families spokesman Alec Loftus.
In June, Loftus says the social worker was told that Jeremiah had moved to Florida to live with his grandmother, but never bothered to follow up or verify whether that was the case.
The last time a visit to the home occurred was in November, at which Loftus says the social worker left behind a business card indicating that this would be DCF's final visit.
Just days later, on December 2, Jeremiah's 8-year-old sister disclosed to counselors at her elementary school that her mom's boyfriend, Alberto Sierra, 22, had abused her, according to a police affidavit.
Multiple calls to Sierra's attorney have gone unreturned.
"As a result of those statements" the affidavit continues, "[she] and [another brother that isn't Jeremiah] were removed from the home and taken into protective custody."
When cops asked Elsa Oliver, 28, where her third child Jeremiah was, she told them that he had moved to Florida, a law enforcement source involved in the investigation told CNN.
This time, however, she was going to have to prove it.
Where is Jeremiah?
Oliver went before a state juvenile judge at a hearing on December 13, where she was "observed to have bruises, disheveled hair, and appeared to have been assaulted," according to court documents.
She refused to divulge Jeremiah's whereabouts, according to the source.
The judge ordered her to produce the child within 72 hours. The time passed with no sign of Jeremiah.
Oliver was arrested.
The mother has been charged with two counts of reckless endangerment of a child and two counts of accessory after the fact of a felony (assault and battery with a dangerous weapon), according to a statement from Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early. A plea of not guilty was entered on her behalf.
Those charges may not necessarily pertain to Jeremiah and more details could emerge at a December 24 hearing, a spokesman for the district attorney's office said.
Elsa Oliver's attorney, James Gavin Reardon, wasn't able to elaborate either.
"I met with her for 10 hours and was unable to obtain any significant information" Reardon said, prompting him to seek a mental health evaluation to determine whether she was even competent enough to stand charges.
He says that evaluation is currently underway.
Sierra, meanwhile, is charged with two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and two counts of assault and battery on a child causing bodily injury, according to the district attorney's office said.
A plea of not guilty was also entered on his behalf.
He also has a hearing scheduled for December 24.
For now, authorities are holding out hope that Jeremiah might be out there somewhere, and they're asking anyone who might know anything to call the Massachusetts State Police.

Parents accuse Hawaii dentist of leaving daughter, 3, with brain damage

The parents of a 3-year-old in a "vegetative state" are suing a Kailua, Hawaii, dentist, alleging negligence and dangerous conduct that left the girl with massive, irreversible brain damage.

The lawsuit filed against Lilly Geyer and her practice, Island Dentistry for Children, alleges improper medications with incorrect dosages were administered to Finley Boyle on December 3, 2013, according to court documents filed this week.

"As a direct and proximate result of the medications administered to (Finley) by defendants, (Finley) suffered cardiac arrest during her dental procedure," the lawsuit said.

It also alleges that as a further result of administering improper medications, Finley "suffered severe and permanent brain damage."

Geyer and Geyer's attorney, John Nishimoto, did not respond to repeated requests by CNN for comment. The Island Dentistry website states it has been permanently closed and directs patients to an e-mail address.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in Hawaii's First Circuit Court, also alleges Geyer did not have a plan or procedures in place to respond to medical emergencies, such as the one Finley suffered. It seeks unspecified damages.

Finley's mother, Ashley Boyle, said she first took her daughter to the dentist in November, when she was told her daughter needed six fillings and four root canals, she said.

They returned to the dentist in December to undergo the root canals, Boyle said.

The parents allege that Finley was sedated and left unmonitored for 26 minutes.

Finley was moved from a hospital to a hospice in late December.

"She will probably not be with us much longer," Boyle said.

Finley's pediatric neurologist, Dr. Gregory Yen, said the girl has been in a "persistent vegetative state" since she was brought to him a month ago.

Finley has undergone four MRIs on her brain, which have shown severe damage, the doctor said.

It is difficult to say how long Finley will be alive, Yen said.

Young Parents Sentenced to 60 Years in Prison for Starving Baby

21-year-old Justin and Brittany Alston were sentenced to 60 years jail time after they were charged with neglecting and abusing their child who they nearly starved to death.

The couple explained to authorities that they didn’t feed their child “because they had better things to do.”

A teen was attending a party at the couple’s home when he heard a faint whimpering coming from the room. He entered the room only to find a severely malnourished baby lying in his own feces and vomit. He immediately called an adult to the home, and baby Riley was immediately rushed to a local hospital.

Close to death, doctors fed the baby through an IV until he was finally able to accept food.

“These parents, I don’t know if they wanted him to die but they were waiting for him to die and I believe if he had they’d have thrown him in the trash,” Hood County District Attorney Robert Christian said.

For the past few months, Riley has been in the care of a foster family.

“The foster mother is not a nurse. All she did was feed this baby,” Christian added. “The only difference between the pictures is a few months and food.”

Arizona Father, 2 Daughters Found Dead in Home

A father and his two young daughters have been found dead inside a home in the Phoenix suburb of Tolleson in what police are calling a murder-suicide.

Police cordoned off an area in the neighborhood on Wednesday after getting a call from a relative who found the bodies.

Tolleson Police Sgt. Obed Gaytan says the girls, ages 6 and 8, had been shot. Police identified the father as 45-year-old Alejandro Gallardo and said he died of a self-inflicted gunshot to the head.

Neighbors and those who work in the area told police they heard screaming coming from the home Wednesday morning.

Police Say Phoenix Father Kills Son With Ax

Police say a Phoenix father has confessed to killing his son with an ax.

Sgt. Steve Martos says 51-year-old Gary Sherrill was arrested on New Year's Eve and booked on a charge of first-degree murder. It's not clear whether Sherrill has an attorney.

Sherrill's ex-wife called police after he failed to return their child. Sherrill picked up the 13-year-old boy a day earlier, but the mother had not been able to reach them.

KNXV reports Sherrill initially told police the boy wasn't home. Officers asked more questions, and Sherrill let them in. Police found the boy dead. He had stab wounds and lacerations to several parts of his body.

Martos says Sherrill told police he believed his son was a demon and that his son was going to eat him.

Dad Files $130M Suit, Alleging His Son Was Unknowingly Put Up for Adoption

An unmarried Utah father has filed a $130 million federal lawsuit against his son's biological mother, claiming she put their son up for adoption without his knowledge.

In a complaint filed in U.S. District Court Friday, Jake Strickland alleges the boy's mother, Whitney Pettersson Demke "essentially kidnapped" his son shortly after birth three years ago. Strickland alleges Demke, the adoptive parents and the adoption agency conspired in an "illegal, deceit-ridden infant adoption" that deprived him of his son, according to the suit.

"My son doesn't deserve to go through this. I don't deserve to go through this. This has been very heart-wrenching for everyone involved," Strickland says on GetBabyJack.com, a website explaining his fight to gain custody of the son that he has never met.

Pettersson and LDS Family Services, which facilitated the adoption, didn't respond to ABC News' request for comment.

Strickland and Demke met in 2009 but broke up before the baby was born in December 2010, according to court documents obtained by ABC News. But Strickland contends they remained friendly and agreed to share custody. Strickland says they even decided to name the baby boy Jack.

"I helped her with as much as I could. Gave her money whenever she needed it," Strickland explains in a video posted on the website.

The baby was born Dec. 29, 2010 and was put up for adoption the next day by Pettersson, Strickland says in the suit. Pettersson, according to Strickland, didn't tell him about the adoption until one week later.

"She had my son without telling me and put him up for adoption the next day," Strickland explains in the video.

Days later, Pettersson confessed that she had been planning to put Jack up for adoption from the beginning, according to Strickland.

"The moment that I found out, I filed for paternity, which was already too late. I know I should have filed earlier, but I trusted her," Strickland says.

But there was still another surprise waiting for Strickland, who thought Pettersson was divorced. But, in fact, she was still married to her estranged husband, who under Utah law, was presumed the father of Jack and had the right to give custody away.

Soon after Strickland learned the adoption was completed, he filed a paternity claim. That battle is still being fought in Utah's 2nd District Court.

Strickland's suit is challenging the boundaries of an unmarried father's rights in Utah.

"Under current Utah law, if you are the biological father, and have not filed every paper required, you could permanently lose your child," said Utah attorney Mark Wiser, who is not affiliated with this case.

Strickland continues to use the website to send messages to his son, who just turned 3 years old Sunday, and hopes to someday deliver them in person.

Terri Schiavo's family joins family of teen Jahi McMath in fight over life support

The family of Terri Schiavo has joined the battle over Jahi McMath, a 13-year-old girl on life support who has been declared dead by doctors.

"Together with our team of experts, Terri's Network believes Jahi's case is representative of a very deep problem within the U.S. healthcare system -- particularly those issues surrounding the deaths of patients within the confines of hospital corporations, which have a vested financial interest in discontinuing life," the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network said in a prepared statement.

The organization said it has been overseeing the efforts of several groups to help get Jahi transferred out of Children's Hospital Oakland and brought "to a safe place."

Jahi's family said Tuesday it had found a facility in New York willing to take her. The Oakland hospital "refused to agree to allow us to proceed in that matter," Jahi's uncle Omari Sealey said.

The hospital denied the accusation.

"We have done everything to assist the family of Jahi McMath in their quest to take the deceased body of their daughter to another medical facility," hospital spokesman Sam Singer said.

"To date, they have been unwilling or unable to provide a physician to perform the procedures necessary, transportation, or a facility that would accept a dead person on a ventilator. Our hearts and thoughts go out to them in this tragic situation, but the statements being made by their attorney and some family members are misleading and untrue."

Family attorney Christopher Dolan had accused the hospital of being "hell bent" on ending Jahi's life.

A judge has declared Jahi brain dead as well. Doctors say there's no chance she will come back to life.

Omari Sealey, Jahi's uncle, said Wednesday that the family still hopes to move her to another facility.

He accused the hospital of starving his niece by not using a feeding tube to provide her with nutrients.

Singer said a judge Tuesday had dismissed the family's request for additional medical procedures, including a feeding tube.

A deadline loomed Monday as a judge had said the hospital could disconnect the machines after 5 p.m. (8 p.m. ET). But shortly before Jahi could have been cut off, that same judge extended his order to 5 p.m. (8 p.m. ET) on January 7.

Terri Schiavo died in 2005, nearly two weeks after doctors removed the feeding tube that had sustained her for more than a decade. She was severely brain damaged and became a national focal pointin the right-to-die battle.

Her husband and guardian, Michael Schiavo, said she wouldn't have wanted to live in her condition, which Florida courts deemed a "persistent vegetative state." Her parents fought to have her kept alive.

Schiavo's parents, brother and sister created the Life & Hope Network.

The statement Wednesday about Jahi included a quote from Bobby Schindler, Terri Schiavo's brother and executive director of the organization.

"Families and individuals must make themselves aware of what so-called 'brain death' is and what it is not," he said.

"Every person needs to understand that medical accidents happen every day. Families and individuals must be more aware of the issue of accountability and patient rights."

Last month, Jahi had surgery to remove her tonsils, adenoids and extra sinus tissue. Doctors had recommended the surgery to treat pediatric obstructive sleep apnea, a condition that made her stop breathing in her sleep and caused other medical problems.

Before the surgery, Jahi said she was worried that she would never wake up, according to her uncle. She seemed fine after the surgery and asked for a Popsicle because her throat hurt.

It wasn't long before something went terribly wrong. In the intensive care unit, the girl began bleeding profusely -- an image that her mother told CNN would be forever seared in her mind.

According to family members, Jahi went into cardiac arrest. Days later, she was declared brain dead.

Hospital officials have said privacy laws prevent them from discussing details of the case.