Dontel Jeffers
March 6, 2005
During his short life,
Dontel Jeffers lived in nine different homes. His first home was a homeless
shelter where he spent the very first, few months of his life. Dontel's
patents had separated before he was born and the beginning of his life
with his mother was in the shelter.
Elary Rohan Jeffer's
is the biological father of Dontel. Elary's life was filled with a history
of criminal behavior and at first he didn't want to be a father to Dontel.
Eventually, his love for his son would win out and he would do his best
to provide a good, stable life for his son.
Elary. who immigrated
from the Caribbean, was deep into drugs, drug trafficking and had many
run-ins with the law. He had solicited a prostitute and was a construction
laborer who attracted many women. One day in the summer of 2000, there
was a knock at Elary's door. A neighbor was telling him that there was
a child outside his door. Elary looked down and saw a baby in a car seat
had been left in the hall and he knew instantly that this was his son and
that he had been left there by his mother. Dontel was only four months
old.
Elary began to change
his life from that point on. Dontel was well cared for by his father
who dressed him well and even volunteered at the day care center he took
Dontel to. At times, Elary was the only man at a homeless shelter that
took in single parents:
''He took care
of his child better than many women here"
Fannie Stewart-Gibbons
Elary was a proud
father and in August of 2002 he was shocked when Christal Claiborne, Dontel's
biological mother, took him to court to try to get custody of him. A family
court judge ruled that Dontel was going to stay with his father. Eventually,
Elary would be in trouble with the law, once again. In December of 2003,
Elary got into an
argument with his
girlfriend. At the police station, Danielle Walton would tell them that
Elary had pushed her against the wall and had beaten her at least one other
time, she told them she was in fear for her life. At the same time, she
said he had never been abusive in any way at all towards Dontel:
"That's how
it was. He was abusive, but he took care of his son"
Danielle Walton
Elary denied that
he had ever put his hands on his girlfriend in a any kind of violent way.
The girlfriend would regret filing the police report which would bring
out information showing that Elary had an order for deportation that stemmed
from a drug conviction in the early 90's. On May 12, 2004, Elary
was going to court with hopes that he could clear up the domestic violence
charge against him. Dontel had asked his father:
''Daddy, can
I come with you?"
Elary told him that
he could not and that he would be right back. Sadly, Elary was placed in
jail and was held overnight while his papers for deportation were processed.
Dontel would never see his father again.
Dontel would become
the center of a battle for custody. His mother and his paternal grandmother,
Agatha Jeffers, both wanted custody of him with his mother saying she should
be his caretaker and his grandmother saying that Christal had abandoned
him and was not a fit mother. The judges ruled that Dontel should be with
his mother.
This would turn
out to be a big mistake.
The Department of
Social Services was receiving complaints about Christal neglecting Dontel
and his half sister, Ayanna and that she was using Cocaine. One month after
Elary, the only REAL parent Dontel had ever known, was deported, social
workers took the two children away from Christal and placed them in foster
care. This would prove to be another big mistake.
By late February
of 2005, Dontel had spent a few months in a residential evaluation center
and was place in the home of Corinne N. Stephan. Corinne was a foster mother
who had cared for adolescents and teenagers in her home in the past and
had a two year old son of her own. Dontel would only spend 11 days in the
home of Corrine
before he would
be beaten to death.
On March 5, 2005,
Dontel was taken to Carney Hospital after his foster mother claimed that
she found him unresponsive and called 911. With a body temperature of only
94.1, it was determined that he had most likely been dead for several hours.
It was also found that Dontel had died of heart failure.
Dontel's family went
to the medical examiners office and said that they wanted to see his body:
"Seeing a lot
of bruises on Dontel's face, and his face was swollen with a lot of different
bruises
on the face.
I seen a lot of bruises, and that is what I seen"
Dontel's uncle
- Vincent James
A preliminary examination
was completed by the state Medical Examiners office. David Procopio, a
spokesman for the Suffolk County District Attorneys office said that police
were treating the death as suspicious and that test results would tell
them if Dontel's death was a homicide or an accident.
Corrine claimed that
Dontel was jumping on the bed and had fallen and hit his head on a radiator.
Dontel's family believed that the bruises they saw on his face, were a
sign that he had been beaten to death in his foster home.
Police obtained a
search warrant and went looking for evidence of the abuse that Dontel had
suffered. The Boston Herald had reported, through anonymous sources, that
Dontel had been tied up and was beaten to death. An autopsy would reveal
the truth of what had happened in that home. Family members were understandable
upset about the circumstances of the death and different stories being
told about what happened:
"They are giving
us conflicting stories, and we, the family members, don't buy that"
Vincent James
Corinne's story of
Dontel jumping on the bed didn't seem to match up with anything they were
told and the fact that Dontel was not taken to the hospital immediately,
made them suspicious:
"They didn't
take him to the hospital same time he fall. Take him up, get him to the
hospital.
They did not
do nothing. They wait until another day"
Agatha Jeffers
- Dontel's grandmother
Family members had
been trying, with no success, to get custody of Dontel:
"He was very
energetic and happy, cheerful, you know, and he always liked to play with
other
kids and be
around kids"
Phillipa Jeffers
- a family member
"We are the
family for Dontel, and DSS took Dontel and sent him to a person that he
doesn't
know, no family
members there. They just separated us totally. It's devastating to us"
Phillipa Jeffers
- Dontel's aunt
"They sent
him to a foster home, and now we get a phone call today that he's dead"
Vincent James
Relatives had been
visiting with Dontel up until the time he was put into the foster home.
The family was informed that Dontel was placed into a foster home, though
they were not given the address to where he had been placed.
DSS Commissioner
Harry Spence announced that he was going to do a full investigation of
the case and events that lead up to the death of Dontel Jeffers:
"Our condolences
go out to the family. Our apologies and regrets for whatever part we come
to learn we
played in that. Even if none, our deep apologies go out"
DSS Commissioner
Harry Spence
"As we understand
it, the child's heart had stopped. That was the immediate cause of death.
I think one
of the questions that now lies behind that is what led to that heart failure"
Harry Spence
Harry Spence confirmed
that the Dontel had bruises on his body.
Corrine M. Stephan
was arrested four months later and charged with second degree murder for
the death of Dontel Jeffers. At her arraignment, District Attorney David
Deakin spoke of how doctors at Caritas Carney Hospital had tried for at
least 45 minutes to revive Dontel and were not able to do so. David said
that during an 11 day time span, Dontel had been beaten by Corrine and
that eventually the beating had killed him
David also said that
during the time after they had driven Corrine and Dontel to the hospital
and returned home, Corrine's family and boyfriend might have tried to get
rid of evidence as police knocked on the door and were ignored by the people
inside of her apartment. For three hours the police knocked while a female
cousin and Corrine's boyfriend were allegedly busy cleaning up the evidence
of what had happened to Dontel.
A search warrant
was issued and when the police finally entered the apartment, they found
a bucket of dirty mop water and a ten foot telephone cord which had been
put into a garbage bag. Neither of the two suspected of cleaning up were
identified by police.
Judge R. Peter Andersonail
set bail at $100,000. for Corrine who had no previous criminal record as
she, with a jacket covering her face, plead not guilty to the charges against
her. After the hearing, Carl N. Donaldson, Corrine's lawyer, said in a
phone interview that she was innocent of the charges and that Dontel had
been alive when he reached the hospital:
''All of the
allegations of beatings are categorically untrue. The child was not dead
when the child was taken to the hospital. We question that, significantly
question, that the child was dead when the child was taken and delivered
to the hospital"
Carl N. Donaldson
Carl Donaldson also
stated that he could not confirm that anyone had been inside the apartment
or cleaned it up before the police were allowed inside.
David Deakin gave
details of what the Department Of Social Services said was a horrible case
of abuse. At least 20 family members were in the courtroom and often cried
during the proceedings. Agatha Jeffers had to be helped out of the courtroom
twice because she was crying so hard.
David told how the
Medical Examiner had said Dontel was dead at least three hours before being
brought in, based on the temperature of his body and reports from hospital
employees who said that his body had been cold when they touched it. David
pointed out that Corrine had given three different stories about how the
injuries had
occurred on Dontel's
body.
Doctors had found
Dontel's hands were swollen since they had been tied together and Dontel
had a bruised left eye as well as scratches on his face and back. Also
present were bruises on his arms as well as his shoulders. During the hearing,
it was announced that Dontel had died as a result of two internal injuries
which could not be discussed due to the ongoing investigation.
For the first time
a motive was alleged for the beating death of this little boy. It was thought
that Corrine though that Dontel was going to do damage to some of the belongings
and that she thought he was too rough with her two year old son.
Carl Donaldson said
that Corrine was not a killer and added the she and her family were deviated
by the death of Dontel offering their condolences to the family:
''They are
extremely sorrowful. They took this child their family as one of their
own, and they
lost a life
as well. It's a very, very sad ending to a life"
Well, Carl, you are
right about that...It IS a very sad ending to a life. You're wrong
when you say they are sorry. How does a person tie up a child and then
beat him to death and then try to convince people they are sorry for doing
it?
Carl argued that
Corrine should get lower bail because she had stayed in Boston knowing
that she was under investigation:
''She doesn't
have anything to run from because she is innocent. She has an impeccable
record. Any
parent would love to have her as a daughter"
Any parent? Not me...I'm
a parent and I wouldn't love to have her as a daughter at all.
Christal Claiborne
was in court with the father of her two month old son, the day before Corrine's
hearing. Anthony R. Ellison, Christal's lawyer had suggested she not answer
any questions and she didn't. Christal and the Jeffers family were fighting
over the rights to Dontel's estate which would entitle them to any money
won over a wrongful death suit. How disgusting that this woman didn't care
enough about her son to clean up and raise him properly and now she wants
to profit from his death. I think any and ALL money should go to
Elary Jeffer's, the one who cared for and loved Dontel the most.
''She misses
her child dearly. She does not wish any ill will towards Stephen but supports
the investigation into his death"
Anthony R.
Ellison
Agatha Jeffers had
been fighting DSS to get custody of Dontel and she refused to talk to reporters
at the hearing. Shawn P. O'Rourke said that the description of the abuse
Dontel suffered in his last days had been overwhelming for his family:
''Dontel was
a bright, happy boy who loved his family and was loved deeply by"
Corrine Stephen was
convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the beating death of Dontel Jeffers.
After two days of deliberations, a jury found her guilty, though not of
second degree murder since they could find no evidence that Dontel had
been abused prior to the day he had died and she had failed to seek medical
attention for him
though she knew
he was in a lot of pain and had given him a massive does of Tylenol with
Codeine.
Corrine was emotionless
as the verdict was read though Agatha Jeffers and other family members
shook their heads in disbelief and talked quietly to each other. Judge
Margaret Kinkle revoked bail and Corrine was taken into custody. Her sentencing
hearing was set for December and her lawyer said he would appeal.
After the verdict,
prosecutors stated that Corrine had either given the wounds to Dontel herself
or allowed someone else to do it and she made a choice not to get him the
medical treatment he needed in order to save his life. Daniel F. Conley,
the District Attorney said that involuntary manslaughter convictions carry
a possible s
entence of up to
20 years adding that it was too early to know what her sentence would be:
"The conduct
by the defendant was egregious, and our recommendation will reflect the
nature of "
Also stated was the
fact that while there was no direct evidence to show that Corrine had beaten
Dontel herself, there was a lot of circumstantial evidence:
"She was very
evasive during the nine days that Dontel was in her care, refusing to let
people
who had previously
cared for him into her house to see the boy. Corinne had long fingernails,
and the evidence
shows that Dontel's face was gouged by what were likely fingernails. And
when the police
went to her house after Dontel was dead, several people inside the house
denied them
entry, and when authorities did go in with the defendant, the house had
been cleaned
with bleach"
In another DISGUSTING
miscarriage of justice, in December of 2007, Corrine Stephen was sentenced
to ONLY eight years in prison for what she put Dontel through. Something
is SERIOUSLY wrong in this world when people can torture and kill
innocent children and get away with it.
Dontel was laid to
rest in the Fairview Cemetery in Hyde Park on March 17, 2005. Some mourners
wore shirts with his picture on them.
At the funeral for
Dontel, Reverend William Dickerson stood before his wooden coffin and said:
''This
is not a time to point fingers"
William tried to
encourage everyone to remember Dontel and his smile as well as his energy
stating that Dontel was in his final home, with the lord:
''Dontel made
it from earth to glory. Why do I know it? Because he's in the hands of
a just God"
Christal Claiborne,
who was pregnant again when she attended the funeral for her son, put her
hand on her belly as she walked up to Dontel's coffin. Dontel wore a white
suit, white knit cap and was also wearing a turquoise cross shaped pin.
Elary's family was also there and their attempts to delay the funeral until
he could be there, were not successful.
William Dickerson
had asked the families to come together for the funeral. William had also
asked the crowd of mourners not to blame Dontel's family for his death:
''They are
the parents of Dontel Jeffers . They need your love. They need your support.
They
don't need
your judgment"
William spoke directly
to Christal:
''Christal,
you have other children, a child here and a child on the way. Pour your
love into them.
Tell them
about their brother. You don't have to look back, or look down. All you
have
to do is look
forward, because God has got your back"
William let the mourners
know that DSS Commissioner Harry Spence was joining them and sat in a pew
at the church. This seemed to startle some of the mourners as they turned
their heads to see where he was sitting:
''I told them
to come. This is God's house. And I wanted them to be here because they
needed to be here to understand the sentiment of this church and the pain
of this family"
William went on to
say that if the autopsy found that Dontel had been beaten to death, DSS
should be held responsible:
''DSS needs
to be challenged to change some of its policies as they relate to the placement
of children
in foster care. If there are perpetrators, the perpetrators need to be
dealt with to
the full extent
of the law"
William also spoke
to the Department of Social Services asking them to come up with
answers for the family.
"The main thing
that was done means somebody actually took Dontel's life. And the perpetrator
s
hould be punished
to the full extent, and DSS should rework its policies in reference of
placement
of children"
The mourners began
to applaud and shout "Amen".
"He was a very
joyful, vivacious young man, full of life, vibrant and spry. The love he
shared with
us, I told
(the mourners) to share it with one another"
William Dickerson
Harry Spence stood
outside of the church with family members and friends crying all around
him and said that he felt partly responsible for Dontel's death and that
this was a hard lesson for him:
''We are constantly
trying to figure out what are the ways we can reduce the harm to any child.
So it is obviously
always harder for us when it is one of our own who is suspected of
doing the
harm. Next time maybe we can get there earlier. Maybe we can prevent someone
intent on
doing the child harm from actually doing the harm"
Questions still remained
after Dontel was buried. Donte's family wanted to know the truth behind
what had happened to him. Family members had heard reports that the foster
family he had been placed with had complaints of domestic violence even
before he had been placed with them:
"What we want
to find out from DSS is if he had any bruises on his body before he went
into a foster
home. We went to know why DSS put kids into a home with domestic issues"
Vincent James
Agatha Jeffers said
that the last time she had seen her grandson was a week before he was sent
to live in the foster home and at that time, he didn't have any bruises
on his body
"He was in
good condition"
Agatha Jeffers
Governor Mitt Romney
even admitted that the system had failed to protect Dontel:
"What is overwhelming
is the sense of sadness and the sense of having let down a child.
Whenever the
state intervenes in the case of child, it is to hopefully make the condition
better, not
worse, and that certainly did not
happen here"
A plant, a balloon,
and some stones were all that marked the grave of Dontel Jeffers at Fairview
Cemetery in Hyde Park on what would have been his fifth birthday.
(Globe Staff Photo / Evan Richman)
After one life
turns around, another is lost
By Patricia
Wen, Globe Staff - July 4, 2005
Carrying a balloon
and a potted plant, a young woman approached the small concrete slab that
covered the burial plot of 4-year-old Dontel Jeffers.
''This is it?" said
Danielle Walton, 21, at the Fairview Cemetery in Hyde Park on an April
day. ''He doesn't even have a headstone?!"
Walton is a former
girlfriend of the boy's father. On this day, which would have been the
boy's fifth birthday, she tied the helium balloon to a rock and placed
the plant beside it. They were the only markers for the boy's grave.
Dontel died March
6 in a Dorchester foster home, a place he ended up after a series of decisions
about his care that were triggered, inadvertently, by Walton.
Like so many who
cared for the boy, Walton that day was full of second-guessing about her
role in his short life.
Looking into the
dirt where Dontel was buried, she said quietly, ''I'm sorry, Dontel. I'm
sorry."
Part of an article
found here: Boston.com
By Patricia Wen
- Globe Staff - July 4, 2005
For information
about preventing child abuse in the state of Massachusetts, click the links
below. If they can't help you, ask for someone who can. NEVER give
up looking for help for an abused child!
Call this number
to report child abuse ANY WHERE in the United States!
1-800-4-A-Child
1-800-422-4453
   
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