• Video shows three-year-old Alejandro Andreas Perez Jr., the child confirmed to have been killed at a home in Oildale on February 9, as well as the accused killer, and reports related to the investigation.
• The family of the three-year-old child killed in Oildale is speaking out about the death and the pain it's caused them, especially given the child was allegedly in a foster care home at the time of his death.

The family of three-year-old Alejandro Andreas Perez Jr. is mourning the loss of the young toddler, especially given the child was allegedly in a foster care home at the time of his death.

"He was one of the sweetest boys you'll ever meet, always full of life, friendly," said the child's grandfather Ed Walton III.

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- A woman who adopted several children has been arrested and charged with the murder of two of them who haven't been seen for years.

Police say Avantae Deven is the adoptive mother of Blake and London Deven. She was taken into custody Wednesday and faces numerous charges in connection to their disappearance and deaths.

"Our evidence shows that both Blake and London are deceased," Fayetteville Police Chief Kemberle Braden said at a Wednesday afternoon news conference. Braden said their adoptive mother is the person responsible for abusing and ultimately killing the children. He said part of the abuse included starvation.

Avantae Deven was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of concealment of death, one count of kidnapping related to London Deven's death, and two counts of felony child abuse related to Blake Deven's death. She was being held at the Cumberland County Detention Center with no bond.

Police say Deven tried to throw off detectives with different stories that prolonged the investigation.

A Blount County couple charged with capital murder in the death of their foster child have been falsely accused and loved the 18-month-old boy, their lawyers say.

Brooklyn Paige Posey Grimes, 31, and Mason John Grimes, 36, are charged with capital murder of a child, murder, felony murder and aggravated child abuse under the age of 6.

Grimes Slams Elon Musk For Taking Son 'X' To Oval Office With Donald TrumpGrimes Slams Elon Musk For Taking Son 'X' To Oval Office With Donald Trump

Editorial: Natalie Finn and her siblings were the victims of abusive parents, of an inadequate child welfare system, and of policymakers who refuse to provide the staffing needed to protect children.

The Register's editorial

Ja’Ceon Terry was living at Brooklawn’s psychiatric treatment unit for about three weeks when two employees put him in a physical hold that left him unconscious. He was pronounced dead at the hospital a couple hours later.

A report obtained by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting from the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services offers new details into what happened at Brooklawn, a foster care facility in Louisville, the day that 7-year-old Ja’Ceon Terry died last July.

This story was supported by the Pulitzer Center.

Warning: This story contains graphic descriptions of the death of a child.

Two nurses, a chaplain and a Louisville police detective were at the 7-year-old boy’s bedside when his time of death was called — 4:48 p.m. on July 17, 2022. His emergency room chart noted that he was a foster child with no parents.

ROSE HILL, Kan. (KAKE) – The adoptive parents of a 6-year-old girl found buried in a Rose Hill backyard last summer have been arrested for murder, child abuse and torture.

On September 11, 2024, law enforcement dug up the back yard of a home in a residential neighborhood. There, they found the remains of a small child.

Rose Hill police Chief Taylor Parlier said that his detectives discovered the remains after a person in distress call at the home.

"While dealing with that individual and the circumstances surrounding that person's crisis, information was gathered up, which indicated that there might be human remains in the backyard of this residence," Parlier said. "The search warrant was secured on the morning of the 11th, and we started digging in the afternoon, and located the body."

The child was identified as Kennedy Jean Schroer, also called Natalie. She was born in July 2014 and is believed to have died in late 2020.

Video on file

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MEPs call for automatic cross-border recognition of adoptions

Press Releases PLENARY SESSION 02-02-2017 - 12:01

To protect adopted children’s best interests, MEPs have urged the EU Commission to require all EU countries to recognise each other’s adoption certificates automatically. Their resolution, voted on Thursday, proposes a European Certificate of Adoption to speed up the automatic recognition process.

A Maryland woman convicted of killing her two adopted daughters and storing their bodies in a home freezer is sentenced to life without parole.

Renee Bowman, seen here being escorted into a courthouse in Prince Frederick, Md., on Jan. 8, was sentenced on Monday to two consecutive life terms in the deaths of two adopted daughters.Ann Heisenfelt / AP

March 22, 2010, 10:41 PM GMT+5:30 / Source: The Associated Press