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The horrific allegations depicting the death of 6-year-old Isabella “Ariel” Kalua has stoked smoldering public anger over her disappearance and highlighted the complexities of Hawaii’s child welfare system and of prosecuting cases of abuse and family violence.
Reports that Isabella died at her Waimanalo home while kept in a dog cage with her mouth and nose duct-taped shut focused public anger at her adoptive parents, who were formally charged last week with second-degree murder; the court system that approved her adoption; social workers who monitored her as a foster child; and police who may have received reports of abuse and neglect.
Officials with the various agencies involved in the case are sharing few details, citing privacy protections for children and the ongoing criminal investigation. They urge patience while the state Department of Human Services, which oversees Child Welfare Services, reviews its procedures and policies to improve the system and cooperation with essential partners.
Daisy Lynn Hartsfield, DHS Social Services Division administrator, said CWS is an easy scapegoat when a tragedy strikes involving a child under its purview, but it takes careful collaboration among multiple stakeholders to ensure the system protects minors and keeps them in healthy, nurturing environments.
Hartsfield would not comment on the agency’s handling of Isabella’s case but said she shares some of the public’s outrage.
“We feel the same thing the community feels. I feel disgusted. I feel angry. I feel sad because this is a child. This is a life cut short,” she said. “As a mother, I don’t have words. I am going to do my damnedest to prevent this from happening but we cannot do it alone. We all need to be on the same side and work together to prevent this from happening again.”
According to DHS, an average of 85 children enter foster care in Hawaii each month. In October, there were approximately 1,350 children in foster care statewide.
Additionally, CWS intake staff receive approximately 1,670 calls a month regarding possible abuse or neglect, and assessment workers go on to investigate roughly 270 new cases monthly, DHS said.
Meanwhile, there are 170 caseworker positions but only 125 are filled, the agency said, and each caseworker is carrying an average caseload of 50 children.
ONCE a Family Court judge approves the adoption of a child out of foster care, state monitoring stops unless allegations of abuse or neglect are filed.
CWS records obtained by police show that Isabella and her older sister, now 12, were placed in foster care with Lehua Kalua, 44, and Isaac “Sonny” Kalua III, 52, in February 2019. In January, the couple adopted them and a younger biological sister, born in 2018.
The Kaluas also are foster parents to Isabella’s youngest biological sister, who was born last year.
Isabella’s three siblings were removed from the home Sept. 13, when the Kaluas reported her missing, and are under CWS supervision, according to police.
Questions have arisen about why Isaac Kalua was allowed to foster and adopt the girls even though he pleaded guilty in 2001 to two counts of felony assault and one count of terroristic threatening. His probation ended in 2006, well before state law would have disqualified him from serving as a foster parent.
DHS officials said the agency is in the process of revising Hawaii Administrative Rule 17-1625, which addresses licensing of “resource family homes” for children, to provide more guidance on criminal convictions.
Currently, CWS is prevented from licensing a foster parent or adoptive parent home if any adult member of the household has a felony conviction for child abuse or neglect, spousal abuse, crimes against children or violent crimes including sexual assault, or has a felony conviction within the last five years for assault, battery or a drug- related offense.
If the potential foster or adopted parent has a criminal conviction other than those stated, CWS will conduct an assessment that considers the type of offense, when it occurred and evidence of rehabilitation to determine any potential risk to the health, safety and well-being of the child.
A judge must review and approve the adoption.
Complicating matters further for social workers responsible for checking in on Isabella’s youngest sibling, who was in foster care with the Kaluas, were the state’s emergency COVID-19 orders. Starting in March 2020, in- person visits by child welfare workers were done only if specific allegations of abuse were made.
Once CWS gets a report of abuse, the agency is mandated to see the child in person within 48 hours.
“With COVID-19, that was a challenge but we did our best. We masked up and followed safety protocols,” Hartsfield said. “For other families where there may have been (a prior relationship in good standing with CWS), in those types of situations, because of COVID and then the delta variant, if it was possible and appropriate, those visits could be done virtually.”
Sometimes the visits occur outside the home at a park or at school, as long as there is “direct contact with that child,” Hartsfield said. She urged anyone who is concerned for a child’s safety to report it as soon as possible.
“If we are notified that there is some type of injury we will follow up. We need the reports to be able to respond. If we don’t get the reports we can’t respond.”
HONOLULU Prosecuting Attorney Steve Alm, speaking Friday on the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s “Spotlight” livestream program, highlighted the formidable task faced by CWS workers. Isabella’s case will likely spark discussions about whether policies need to be changed to better protect children and help social workers do their job, he said.
“CWS has an extremely difficult job. People are going to hate the decision one way or another. Cases like this, as unfortunate as they are, will lead to a discussion about who is appropriate to get kids, is the vetting process strong enough … ,” Alm said. “I think it can have a good outcome, in that way, for the future.”
State Rep. Ryan Yamane, chairman of the House Health, Human Services and Homelessness Committee, said the community and lawmakers should discuss if DHS has enough resources and support services to continue monitoring former foster children after they are adopted.
Yamane, (D, Mililani- Waipio Gentry-Waikele) also urged public patience during the emotional aftermath of Isabella’s death.
“If the community is outraged and wants to do something, good families should apply to provide good foster homes … ,” Yamane said. “It’s hard enough to find committed health care workers to work in CWS. If we want the highest trained, most qualified workers with our highest at-risk youth, we need to make sure they are protected and supported. So let’s find out what happened first before we throw the first stone.”
THE KALUAS were indicted Wednesday by an Oahu grand jury on charges of second-degree murder, abuse, hindering prosecution, persistent nonsupport and endangering the welfare of a minor in the death of Isabella. The couple is also accused of abusing her 12-year-old sister.
Lehua Kalua was charged for the actions that led to Isabella’s death and for failing to call police or paramedics despite her legal obligation to do so. Isaac Kalua is facing murder by omission for failing to call police or for medical care to help the child. The Kaluas were arrested Nov. 10 and are being held without bail.
Police believe Isabella was killed in mid-August even though her adoptive parents didn’t report her missing until Sept. 13. Her body has yet to be found.
The couple is accused of abusing the two girls as early as Feb. 8, 2019. Isabella was just 3 years old when she went to live with the Kaluas, and her older sister was 9. The girls were subjected to “various forms of mental and physical abuse at the hands of both defendants,” a prosecutor told grand jurors.
Family violence and child abuse cases are difficult to prosecute because the suspects and victims are often related. Honolulu Family Prosecution Division Chief Tiffany Kaeo said the abuse often occurs in rural areas, in the home and outside of public view, severely limiting the potential witnesses who can corroborate the allegations.
Kaeo, who declined to comment on the Kalua case, reinforced the need to respect the confidential nature of the social services and the Family Court process that protects minors.
“These are … close relationships … with some level of trust. They all have this emotional connection,” she said. “We are asking children to be adults at that moment and appear in front of a court, in front of the defendants, and testify. We are asking them to do a very adult thing in a setting that is not very child-friendly. They feel bad talking about their parent that way.
“It is very adult subject matter. I think it’s important that all parties involved be as thorough as possible without traumatizing children.”
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TO REPORT CHILD ABUSE
Call the state Department of Human Services
>> On Oahu: 808-832-5300
>> Toll-free from neighbor islands: 888-380-3088
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