Gov. Patrick Morrisey said his administration is focused on reforming West Virginia’s troubled foster care system. (Photo courtesy of West Virginia Governor’s Office Patrick Morrisey)
After a 4-month-old baby died in a West Virginia foster home last week, Gov. Patrick Morrisey had no information about the case to share with reporters Monday but said, “We definitely want to get to the bottom of things.”
“I can say that we never want to impede existing law enforcement investigations,” the governor said during a news conference at the state Capitol.
Three women have been charged in connection the discovery of a dead four-month-old baby on June 20 in Mingo County.
The infant’s mother, Jonda M. Whitt, 35, was charged with child neglect resulting in death and possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. according to the Mingo County Sheriff’s Office. Officers found what they believed to be fentanyl at the scene, and Whitt told officers that she had taken fentanyl before the child’s death criminal complaint said.
Tonya Hayton, 50, was also charged in the case for violating Child Protective Services orders after taking the baby into foster care.
According to a Criminal complaint filed in Mingo County Magistrate Court and reported by WOWK, Hayton allegedly allowed the child’s mother to live in her home for two years, even though CPS told her not to allow Whitt to have contact with the child. Hayton reportedly saw Whitt taking drugs while the baby was in the room.
The complaint also states that Hayton confessed to using substances while the child was in her care.
Morrisey, who has dealt with the state Care crisissaid his administration has “worked so hard on so many CPS reforms.” There are 5,880 Children in foster care in West Virginia.
While the state has made progress in hiring CPS employees, state officials said this continues to be the case burdened by high case numbers.
The governor before called for an internal investigation in the death of an 11-year-old girl, Miana Moran, in Taylor County after she weighed 43 pounds. WCHS-TV reported CPS visited the home several times, including just days before the girl’s death, but took no action.
Morrisey told West Virginia Watch he has not yet called for a separate investigation into the child’s death in Mingo County.
“It’s very difficult and heartbreaking to see what’s happening in some of these individual circumstances and it’s terrible and we should try to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again,” he said.
According to the criminal complaint, Whitt told 35-year-old Merissa Pruitt over the phone on June 20 that her child was dead and that there were drugs in the house. Whitt is also accused of instructing Pruitt not to call emergency personnel for fear of the drugs being discovered.
Pruitt was charged with failing to contact emergency services after learning of the child’s death and failing to seek medical attention for the child. Pruitt allegedly allowed Whitt and the baby to live in her home in Varney.
The complaint states that Mingo County Sheriff’s Office deputies and members of the West Virginia State Police began investigating on June 20; The investigation is ongoing. A spokesman for the state Department of Human Services said it could not comment on the case due to confidentiality reasons.
Morrisey said he believes the state is making progress in improving its long-troubled foster care system.
“We have strengthened our human services department, and I think in the coming month or two you will most likely see a pretty robust legislative initiative to address some of the issues and eliminate some of the issues that arose last year,” Morrisey said.
The Governor vetoed it Earlier this year, he passed several Republican-sponsored foster care bills for reasons including costs and what he called too stringent requirements.
