Slain North Texas Toddler's Journey for Justice Continues with Amended Lawsuit Against Foster Care Organizations and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott

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May 16, 2022, 08:47 ET

New claims detail failures that could have prevented Amari Boone's death

DALLAS, May 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The parents of Amari Boone continue to seek justice for their son, a North Texas toddler who was killed in April 2020 while under the watch of his temporary foster care placement. The amended lawsuit, filed in May during National Foster Care Month, names Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who is responsible for the state's foster care system as the head of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), as a defendant. The suit also cites new details of how the private foster care organization our community. our kids. and the state of Texas failed Amari. The Boone Family claims Amari's death was preventable if our community. our kids., its employees and contractors, and DFPS had followed safety protocols, proper supervision, and timely intervention.

Amari Boone was just 3 years old when he died after his third visit to the emergency room at Cook Children's Hospital just 40 days into his temporary foster care placement under the supervision of our community. our kids. An autopsy confirmed he suffered from a severe brain injury, and his death was ruled a homicide.

The suit alleges that our community. our kids. publicly positioned itself as the premier private organization to take over case management duties before Amari's death. According to the complaint, the state of Texas paid the company more than $90 million to serve as an exemplary, more efficient foster care system that would protect children from abuse. Sadly, Amari died under the supervision of our community. our kids., despite multiple signs of abuse that were reported by his Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), daycare director, family, and neighbors as early as two months before his death. The suit also claims that employees of our community. our kids. did not properly document these reports or follow procedures to conduct home visits and personally check on Amari.

"Texas foster care failed Amari at every step," says lawyer Russell Button of The Button Law Firm, representing the Boone Family. "It is infuriating to see our community. our kids. accept responsibility for Texas' foster children like Amari while collecting millions from the state, yet the organization simply passes the blame when tragedy strikes."

In addition, the three our community. our kids. employees named in the complaint—Shelia Roberson, Chaisity Frida-Caro, and Jalah Lawrence—were former DFPS workers. According to the complaint, our community. our kids. should have known the individuals' performance at the state agency did not comply with set standards of care or state laws to protect children. The suit states our community. our kids. hired the individuals, including Amari's case manager, who was assigned with the same case load, but never provided any further training or additional supervision to ensure that safety and legal compliance would be met when their roles at the private case management organization began in March 2020.

Lastly, new arguments in the suit state that CK Family Services, the DFPS subcontractor responsible for overseeing placements of foster children, did less than the bare minimum when screening Amari's unlicensed foster parents—failing to perform an adequate home study on the foster parents and neglecting to conduct separate individual interviews with the couple, which is required by law. The suit also claims that CK Family Services recommended the couple as safe fictive kin to DFPS even though the assessment revealed one had a criminal history and the couple "had very little experience caring for young children."

"We want Amari's legacy to spur positive changes in the Texas foster care system and prevent other children from experiencing the same fate as Amari's," says Button.

Amari Boone's family is represented by attorneys Russell Button and Ashley Washington of The Button Law Firm. The case is Ariana George and Rodney Boone, Individually and as Representatives of the Estate of Amari Boone, Deceased vs. ACH Child and Family Services, Shelia Roberson, Chaisity Frida-Caro, Jalah Lawrence, Gov. Greg Abbott, in his official capacity over the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, and Covenant Kids, Inc. d/b/a CK Family Services, Cause No. CC-21-01363-D in Dallas County, Texas.

About the Button Law Firm
The Button Law Firm (buttonlawfirm.com) is a Texas-based personal injury law firm that represents individuals in meaningful litigation to make local communities safer, including medical malpractice, daycare injuries, catastrophic injuries, and automotive accidents. The firm has offices in Dallas, Houston, and Midland.

SOURCE The Button Law Firm