Child crisis in Columbus

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I have spent a great deal of time on these
here airwaves, ranting and raving asking what it is you
have to do to go to jail, because it seems
like you apparently break in well breaking into the courthouse.
But I am I'm gonna say, I am glad this
is a serious subject here. I am glad that they

(00:22):
are pursuing murder charges against Billy Joe Tustin. This was
that story a couple of weeks ago, eleven o'clock news
came on. They showed up the you know, the the
police and fire crews in front of the house. Nine
month old baby passed away. Mom threw him across the room.

(00:50):
According to the charges filed in the courts again, thirty
year old Billy Joe Tustin charged with aggravated murder and murder,
along with previous charges including felonious assault and endangering children.
Investigator said she threw her infant about fifteen feet oh God,

(01:14):
onto his head last Wednesday night at an apartment along
North fourth Street and Italian Village. I don't have never
and will never understand any soob that hurts a child,
but mothers, it's even more difficult for me to understand

(01:41):
you created this, You brought life to this little being.
I I have never been able to understand it. In
a nine to eleven call obtained by ABC six, Tusting
to be heard telling this dispatcher's my nine month old
isn't breathing. It's unclear how long Tustin waited to contact

(02:04):
emergency crews after allegedly assaulting her son. Police at Tustin's
three year old daughter also was in the home when
the alleged sault occurred, but was not harmed. Her boyfriend
told ABC six that he lives with Tustin and her children,
and he is being charged with involuntary manslaughter and endangering children.

(02:24):
I don't know to what extent that's that's going to happen,
he said. He lives there, but I don't know what
he might have done. Neighbors who live along Fourth Street
expressed shocked that the neighbor could allegedly commit such a
violent act on her own child. Well, I agree with that.
I'm frustrated when someone does something to someone that is

(02:45):
so innocent, said one neighbor to hear that she was
spank slapped, launched, and thrown. I can't even imagine what
a three year old probably has endured before something like
this happened. I don't even know. She didn't even know
she had a second child, because she never comes out
and no one knows her. Franklin County Children's Services the

(03:05):
most useless organization on the government planet. Franklin County Children
Did I say that out loud? Confirmed that it had again,
here we go prior involvement with the family. How many
dead children will there be before their prior involvement actually
results in maybe taking children away from situations where they

(03:25):
end up like this. Officials said that Tustin was attempting
to end her affiliation with the agency before Wednesday's assault. Duh,
really her three year old daughters now and Children's Services customer?

(03:50):
What is a six six in recent history? Here six
children that are dead, all of which had some involvement
with Franklin County Children's Services, but were left in dangerous
situations and not rescued. I'm serious. Somebody needs to ask

(04:10):
some very hard questions about the oversight, the governance, the
mission of Franklin County Children's Services, because honestly, it seems
to me that they don't do anything except up, you know,
get involved to put their name on something and then
close the case and move on, and then we get

(04:33):
a story like this this case. The story continues from
WSYX continues among growing concerns about the connection between mental
health crises and child abuse. According to court records, twenty
year old Hunter Dalton allegedly assault his two month old
baby after he couldn't find his vape. Just last month,

(04:56):
Allison was talking about it. I don't again, what the
hell really you think the two year old had your vape?
It's the two year old behind the crib getting a
little nicotine, you morn. Thirty year old Danielle Neil arrested
after police said that he killed his son by throwing
him to the ground after he made a mess. Children

(05:17):
have been known to do that. You saka crap. According
to the National Children's Alliance, more than five hundred and
fifty thousand children are reported as being abused in the
US every year. FCCS defended its process, but says the
community and caretakers must play a larger role. Shut the

(05:38):
hell up the community, you you frankly county children's services
that have all been you can walk up to somebody's
door and take children whenever you feel like it. You
can issue orders, you can have investigations, you can do
all that, but caretakers in the community must play a
larger role. Either do it or get off the pot.

(06:02):
And of course, what's children's services, say Scott Varner, which
is it's not about pointing blame. Yes, Scott, yes it is.
But as a community we have to ask what can
we do better to help families avoid crises that put
kids at risk. Here's an idea, Scott. When the crazy
mama and the crazy daddy are a danger to the children,

(06:24):
take the children out of the home. How about that.
Our caseworkers are not police officers. We rely on those
who are around them to share information. And they share
the information and your caseworker goes, can I come in?
And the crazy parent goes hell no, and the caseworker
goes away, and then dead child in the news. So

(06:47):
perhaps you need to up your game, Scott. I'm sorry, man,
but when it comes to protecting children, if we can't
get that right, we can't get anything right. They only
exist because we create them. They should be precious, they

(07:09):
should be valued above all else, and here we are
sacrificing them at the altar of insanity on a fairly
regular basis, and the organization that is entrusted and charged
with protecting the interest of the children says we were

(07:29):
not police officers. We need to have the community. The
community has to step out and be really. I used to. Actually,
I was a big supporter of Franklin County Children's Services.
At the holidays, I was working on a FM station.
I would go to a toy drive and broadcasts for
like twelve hours from their facility over on frank Road

(07:53):
to try to get toys donated for all the kids
that were stuck in the system during Christmas, that weren't
in foster homes, that weren't with families, that were in
some group communal situation within Franklin County each other's versus.
I tried to help, and I almost regret that now,
except for the fact that maybe I made a few
kids smile.