Ephrata mother convicted in boy's death by abuse

EPHRATA, Grant County — Maribel Gomez was convicted Wednesday in the 2003 homicide-by-abuse death of her 2-year-old son, who spent more than half his life in foster care.

But problems in the state's child-protection system that contributed to the little boy's death remain, according to the head of an expert panel that reviewed the case.

Gomez, 32, wailed as she was led from the courtroom by law-enforcement officers. She was convicted of homicide by abuse and first-degree manslaughter.

Grant County Superior Court Judge John Antosz found that Gomez caused Rafael Gomez's death after a pattern of assaults. (He heard the case because Gomez waived her right to a jury trial.)

An autopsy indicated the 25-month-old toddler had suffered two broken legs, as many as four skull fractures, shoulder separations, burns and other injuries during his short life.

His mother claimed her son died after he violently fell backward and hit his head during a tantrum over food. His father, Jose Arechiga, was not charged in Raphael's death. Gomez's four other children have been placed in foster care.

Prosecutor John Knodell said the case was difficult to try because of the horrific nature of injuries the toddler suffered in the last weeks of his life and because much of the evidence was circumstantial.

"Raffy couldn't come to court to testify," he said. "We're very grateful for the verdict we got."

Rafael's life was marked by a pattern that was repeated three times: suspicious injury and removal to foster care, then a return to Maribel Gomez with the strong backing of social workers from the state Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). The child spent 14 months in foster care and 11 months with his mother.

DSHS scrutiny

Rafael first came to the state's attention before he was born, when Gomez failed a drug test in her third trimester of pregnancy.

After his birth, he stayed under continuous DSHS scrutiny. As he was treated for a series of injuries, the case was reviewed by five different Child Protection Teams. The teams, which are organized by but independent of DSHS, review caseworkers' decisions.

His foster parents expressed concerns to DSHS, as did three doctors, school officials, police and one of Gomez's ex-roommates. All suspected the boy's injuries were caused by abuse.

Gomez claimed Rafael had a disorder that caused him to hurt himself.

Rafael's social worker, Murray Twelves, did little verification of Gomez's claim and admitted in court testimony that he never read the family's huge file after it was transferred to him in 2002, a year into Rafael's life.

A 13-member group, known as a Fatality Review Committee, which included legislators, police and doctors, spent months analyzing errors made in Rafael's case, and most strongly recommended changes to the Child Protection Teams.

Those teams — made up of outside experts like social workers and medical professionals — were created after previous preventable child deaths to double-check decisions by DSHS before children are returned to potentially abusive homes. But in Rafael's case, each team agreed with DSHS recommendations to return him to his mother, despite what was determined later to be a pattern of abuse.

"Devil's advocate"

The Fatality Review Committee's report after his death recommended a statewide review to make sure Child Protection Teams were getting enough information from DSHS to make good decisions, and that someone was playing "devil's advocate" to challenge DSHS recommendations.

Linda Katz, who chaired Rafael's fatality review, said she hasn't seen any action on that recommendation, or others. "I'm not aware of any policy or procedure changes that I see on a daily basis," said Katz, head of King County's CASA/GAL program (Court Appointed Special Advocates/Guardian Ad Litem), which gathers information to help judges assess child-dependency cases.

According to DSHS spokeswoman Kathy Spears, however, the state has made a number of changes. For example, foster parents are given more information and invited to important meetings about children in their care.

Also, Child Protection Teams no longer include DSHS staff members, and team members have access to investigative documents, Spears said.

The review also recommended consequences for DSHS social workers or supervisors who violate state policy or law.

In Rafael's case, social worker Twelves was sharply criticized by the fatality review for becoming Maribel Gomez's "advocate and ally," rather than Rafael's protector. He still works for the DSHS child-welfare office in Moses Lake, screening child-abuse complaints.

Gomez faces up to 26 years in prison at her sentencing, which is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday.

Seattle Times staff reporters Jonathan Martin and Maureen O'Hagan and The Associated Press contributed to this report.