Everett, Wash.
Published: Friday, April 11, 2008

State withheld records on abused boy, suit says

By Diana Hefley
Herald Writer

 EVERETT -- The state has illegally withheld records about how social workers handled abuse allegations involving a young boy who nearly starved to death last year, according to a civil lawsuit filed Thursday against the state Department of Social and Health Services.

Shayne Abegg, now 5, was removed from his father's south Everett apartment in 2007 after he was found severely malnourished. The boy could barely walk and his hair was falling out when police found him. His father, Danny Abegg, recently was sentenced to 8 years in prison for starving Shayne. The man's girlfriend, Marilea Mitchell, also was sentenced to 8 years behind bars.

Seattle attorney David Moody alleges that the state has failed to turn over thousands of documents he requested under the state's public records laws. He requested the documents in December and has received only a fraction of the records the state has about its involvement with Shayne, according to the lawsuit filed in Snohomish County Superior Court.

"It is clear that Shayne's records were being requested and reviewed at the top levels of state government almost immediately after his story was made public in March 2007," Moody said. "For DSHS to drag its feet and fail to turn over Shayne's records is shameful. I suspect that there are dozens of documents that DSHS does not want the public to see."

A spokesman for DSHS declined to comment about the lawsuit.

"We can't debate the issues in the news media," spokesman Steve Williams said. "We have been and continue to process the records that were requested."

The state must be careful to protect the identities of other people named in the records and must read each document carefully, he said.

Moody, who was hired by Shayne's court-appointed guardian, also plans to file a civil lawsuit against the state for failing to protect Shayne and ignoring numerous warning signs that the boy was wasting away even as state social workers visited the family.

Shortly after Shayne was removed from his father's apartment, an executive review was ordered by the Children's Administration, part of DSHS. The review was completed in December. State social workers missed a pattern of abuse and neglect, didn't follow policy to make sure Shayne was safe and failed to hold his parents more accountable for their son's well-being, according to the review.

Moody on Thursday released testimony from a neighbor, who called Child Protection Services as early as May 2006. She alleged that Shayne and his brother were being abused and always seemed hungry. The woman said she was never contacted by state social workers.

Documents show that caseworkers investigated the allegations but concluded they were unfounded. They encouraged Danny Abegg and Mitchell to move away from the neighbor.



Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA