Two former ACS workers were indicted today in connection with the death of a 4-year-old Brooklyn girl who was starved, beaten and drugged last year, authorities said.
Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes announced the indictments in the case of Marchella Brett-Pierce, who died last Sept. 2, during a news conference.
“Baby Marchella might be alive today, had these ACS workers attended to her case with the basic levels of care it deserved, or had her grandmother stepped in and put a stop to the shocking abuse she is charged with facilitating,” said Hynes. “Children are our most precious gifts and we, as a society, must come together to fight and prevent child abuse wherever we see it.”
Hynes also announced that a special investigative grand jury will be convened to look at evidence of “systemic failure” at ACS.
Damon Adams, the former ACS caseworker assigned to the Brett-Pierce family and his former supervisor, Chereece Bell, were both charged with criminally negligent homicide, official misconduct and endangering the welfare of a child.
Adams and Bell resigned shortly after the girl’s death. Both were arraigned this afternoon in Brooklyn Supreme Court.
Adams was also charged with tampering with public records and falsifying business records.
Little Marchella suffered from child abuse syndrome, including acute drug poisoning, blunt impact injuries, malnutrition and dehydration. She weighed 18 pounds when she died.
In a statement released this afternoon, ACS said the agency and the Brooklyn DA “are doing everything possible to protect children’s lives” across the city.
“The particular merits of this criminal case aside, we are very concerned that today’s indictments of social work staff may have the opposite effect from what’s intended because it may discourage excellent, idealistic individuals from taking jobs helping our society’s neediest and most vulnerable children,” the agency said.
Also indicted was Marchella’s grandmother, Loretta Brett, who was charged with manslaughter. Brett was also arraigned this afternoon.
At the arraignment, Assistant DA Jacqueline Kagan said, “By her own admission, [Brett] took on the responsibility of being a co-parent. The child was drugged, bound, beaten, starved and given no water.”
The girl’s mother, Carlotta Brett-Pierce, 30, was charged in November with second-degree murder in connection with beatings administered to Marchella weeks before her death.
The DA said Adams falsified ACS computer records by postdating an entry to make it appear as though he had visited the Brett-Pierce family when he had not.
The entry was made after the child died, according to the indictment.
As Adams’ supervisor, prosecutors said Bell “neglected to properly oversee and monitor Adams’ work” with the Brett-Pierce family.
The indictment charges that both Adams’ and Bell’s failures were factors which contributed to Marchella’s death.
The indictment against Brett allege that she “witnessed Marchella bound to her bed most days between March and Marchella’s death, in September, including the period from May to September, when Marchella was tied to a toddler bed in Loretta Brett’s bedroom.”
If convicted, the DA said Bell could face up to four years in prison; Adams up to seven years; Brett up to 15 years; and Brett-Pierce could face up to 25 years.