Child-rape case shows safeguards failed | Caring For Our Children ...

By Kelli Wynn, Mark Gokavi and Kyle Nagel

Staff Writers

1:27 AM Sunday, March 4, 2012

The disturbing case involving the alleged rape of three boys by their adoptive father, who also allegedly prostituted one of the boys to two other men, unfolded despite safeguards designed for adoption agencies and prospective parents.

Kenneth H. Brandt, a 39-year-old from Troy, adopted three children from Texas and was adopting a fourth child when he was arrested last month. Brandt had a clean record when police took him into custody. He faces three counts of rape and one of compelling prostitution.

Brandt worked with a private, nonprofit agency named Adopting Children Today Information Option Network (ACTION) Inc. A Texas official said that in the past seven years, 28 adopted children from that state have been placed in homes through Dayton-based ACTION.

?We all know that no matter what happens, there are people who can get around the system,? said Mary Anne Cole, executive director for Access for Youth Inc., a Riverside foster and adoption agency.

Brandt was familiar with the foster care system. Miami County confirmed Friday that four foster children were placed in his home between November 2006 and August 2007.

Those children included a 15-year-old boy who was later moved to a group home.

Montgomery County officials said they placed two children in Brandt?s care for a week when he was a foster parent from May 2008 to October 2009.

It is not known whether Brandt housed other children besides those six and the four who were living with him until his arrest. The FBI and local authorities are investigating.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine called the case ?horrible.?

?This case stands out because of what appears to be a systematic way that this guy was exploiting foster children in a particularly reprehensible way,? DeWine said.

Online connection

Authorities tracked down Brandt and fellow suspects Patrick Rieder and Jason M. Zwick as a result of an Ohio Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force investigation involving criminal activity on Craigslist. A detective responded to an ad and made contact with Zwick, who introduced the detective to Rieder and Brandt, who was arrested Feb. 24.

Brandt had three boys, ages 12, 10, and 9, and a girl, 9, under his care.

Brandt is in Miami County Jail on an $800,000 bond. In addition to the Miami County charges, he has been charged in Montgomery County with one count of rape and four counts of complicity to commit rape. Brandt?s preliminary hearing in Miami County is 1 p.m. Tuesday.

Rieder, 31, of Dayton, and Zwick, 29, of Beavercreek, have both been charged with rape. Rieder is being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1 million bond, while Zwick is in the Miami County Jail on a $500,000 bond.

Greene County seized computer equipment from Zwick?s home, and Dayton police took electronic equipment and other items from Rieder?s apartment.

ACTION is called a tight-knit, supportive group by its officials.

?Our mission is to place children in the foster care system into loving, adoptive homes,? founder Patricia A. Hill said in YouTube videos. ?I?m the adoptive mother of 22 children, and that?s pretty much what I do in my spare time.?

ACTION has been certified in Ohio since 1998. The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has received three complaints about the agency. The ODJFS would not describe the complaints.

ACTION?s attorney released a statement Friday that the agency follows state laws and practices, and its officials cannot discuss Brandt?s case.

?ACTION complies with and follows the rules and regulations in the cases that it?s involved with,? attorney Jeff Rezabek said.

Troy Police Capt. Chris Anderson said Friday that ACTION officials reached out to the police department after Brandt?s arrest and confirmed that agency officials are cooperating with the investigation.

In YouTube videos, ACTION details the process families go through to adopt foster children, including an FBI and BCI background checks, medical statements, vaccination records for pets, fire inspection, training, a home visit and a safety audit.

Recertified in 2011

Agencies of this type are certified by the state for two years. ACTION was recertified in 2011.

The ODJFS does not interview adopted children when recertifying adoption agencies. Benjamin Johnson, an ODJFS spokesman, said the criteria for recertification is spelled out in the Ohio Revised Code.

The process consists of several reviews, including: entrance interview; interviews with random samples of foster and/or adopt parents; interviews with staff; review of foster and adoptive records for training, criminal background checks and other requirements.

Common practice

Robert Crimmins of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services said the interstate adoption process Brandt used is a fairly common practice.

He said that states are members of the Interstate Compact Agreement and that each state has an Interstate Compact for Placement of Children office, which is responsible for notifying other states of potential placements, and to seek and give approval for such adoptions.

Crimmins said TDFPS is reviewing the Brandt case.

?So far, all of the appropriate steps appear to have been taken,? Crimmins said. ?We?ve reviewed the contract and have found no past problems. (Texas has) adopted several of our children through this agency.?

Article source: http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/springfield-news/child-rape-case-shows-safeguards-failed-1338103.html

Source: http://www.caringforourchildrenfoundation.org/?p=18237

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