[ProactiveMom]

Lilmtncbn Sep 22, 2005 06:31

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/orego...38677936470.xm
lcoll=7
'Now I'm really scared of them'
Child abuse - Testifying against adoptive parents, Kayla Nickel, 11,
describes a life of hunger and violence
Thursday, September 22, 2005
MICHELLE ROBERTS
The Oregonian
SALEM -- A girl who prosecutors allege was nearly starved to death by a
couple who adopted her from the state foster care system testified
Wednesday that her adoptive father once held a gun to her head and
threatened to kill her after she tried to sneak a piece of pizza.
New details emerged during the first day of a Marion County bench trial
for Tammy and Christopher Nickel, both 33, who face two counts each of
felony criminal mistreatment.
Their adopted daughter, Kayla, weighed less than 27 pounds when she was
removed from their Salem home in December 2003 -- a month before her
10th birthday.
The girl, now 11, testified that she often became so thirsty that she
drank from the toilet and that she was closed in her room for hours and
days at a time. When she was given food -- rarely anything other than
oatmeal and SPAM -- she was forced to eat alone in her bedroom while
the Nickels and their biological son, the same age as Kayla, ate
together elsewhere.
"When I first came (to the Nickels)," Kayla testified as her former
parents looked on, "I thought they were going to be my forever mom and
dad. I never thought they would be mean. Now I'm really scared of
them."
Lawyers for the couple argued that the Nickels were never cruel to
Kayla and did not withhold food as a punishment. The Nickels adopted
Kayla when she was 5 years old.
Records obtained by The Oregonian show that the child weighed 33 pounds
at the time of her adoption and suffered from an eating disorder
triggered by the abuse and neglect of her biological parents.
On Wednesday, the Nickels' lawyers argued that the couple were simply
overwhelmed by the challenges Kayla presented. The couple, say their
lawyers, are guilty of second-degree criminal neglect -- not the
first-degree charges they face -- because they did not intentionally
hurt the girl.
"They're not guilty of intentional conduct," said Craig Rockwell, who
represents Chris Nickel. "Given the circumstances, they weren't
sensitive to what was going on. They should have been, but they
weren't."
The Nickels were arrested shortly after an anonymous caller contacted
the Oregon Department of Human Services on Dec. 9, 2003. The caller,
records show, "stated that Kayla is extremely underweight" and that
"the Nickels are starving her to death." The caller went on to tell a
DHS worker that the Nickels withheld food from Kayla as a form of
punishment and that in the week of Dec. 1, 2003, Kayla had become
briefly unconscious.
Condition shocks worker
Police officers and two child protective services workers arrived at
the couple's home on Dec. 10, 2003. They removed the emaciated Kayla
and the Nickels' biological 9-year-old son.
"I was horrified," Karen Shobe, one of the DHS workers, testified
Wednesday. "I had never seen a child in that condition."
Shobe said she and the other worker decided to remove the Nickels' son,
too, because of the "emotional impact of the abuse he may have
witnessed."
Kayla, who had large patches of hair missing and looked skeletal, was
transported to Salem Hospital and, later, to Portland's Doernbecher
Children's Hospital, where she received lifesaving treatment. Shobe
said workers at first thought Kayla weighed 40 pounds, but at the
hospital they realized she was wearing two thick layers of clothing to
hide her condition.
Shobe testified that she nearly broke down and had to leave the room
while helping Kayla undress. The girl's skin was translucent and
sloughing off in large patches, her teeth were discolored, and her
mouth was full of sores. She had pressure sores and "numerous bruises."
At one point, Shobe said she was sitting beside Kayla when the girl
said she "never wanted to go back home again."
"She said she wanted to change her name and her hair color," Shobe
testified, trying to hold her emotions. "She said I saved her life."
Growing in foster home
The girl now lives in a foster home in the Salem area. In the first 13
months after she was removed from the Nickel home, she grew 6 inches
and gained more than 54 pounds.
Kayla's foster mother, Brandi Plaster, testified that she was called to
the hospital that first night.
"The most unusual thing about Kayla (that night) was how apologetic she
was," Plaster told Marion County Circuit Judge Joseph Guimond. "She
kept saying, 'I'm sorry for being so disgusting. I'm sorry for being
such a pig. I'm sorry for being so bad.' She promised that if we would
take her home, she would be good."
When defense lawyers suggested that Kayla's behavior was manipulative
and that the girl could be lying, Plaster became visibly upset.
"She's not savvy enough to manipulate adults," Plaster said. "She was
261/2 pounds at age 10. There's no explanation for that.
"In my opinion, the Nickels are so lucky that DHS came. If they hadn't,
Kayla would be dead, and we'd be in a whole different courtroom right
now."
The trial is expected to last through Friday. The Nickels could face as
much as five years in prison.

She's now available for adoption in Marion County, Oregon but not on the waiting children site yet.

[ManyTimesBlessed]

Wow. This is a really horrible situation and it just breaks my heart. I hope that she finds a family soon. A REAL family who will love and care for her.

[jenf]

Your article really touched me. I will pray she finds a great home.

[mom2GRLC]

What a terrible story....and history for that child to endure. It just breaks my heart. She will be truly blessed to finally be adopted by a loving family....but I can see how hard that will be on her to build that trust and relationship...she has been horrifically abused by so many in her life. That is just so devestating =0(

My prayers go out to this precious girl.

[hotspice58]

I don't get it. Why adopt kids and then abuse them? Same thing happened in New Jersey only in this case, daughters were fed. Sons were starved.