Jesse Lafferty Accused Of Starving 2 Children

[Fslenentine]

I'm just curious as the when the biological instinct kicks in... What the hell?

[misfirefly]

i wish there was some kind of test they could give people in the hospital, before they leave with a totally helpless new life, that would show if the understood and were capable and willing to meet the demands of parenting.

[greenwomen]

The children are doing as best to be exspected, from what is known the mother has been fighting tooth and nail to get her children back to her and their siblings. The mother of the children is being put under a microscope, mostly because she looks different. She has done everything asked of her and then some. CPS is dragging their feet and now all the children are suffering, the abused children are feeling very unwanted, due to being shipped from one foster home to the next. Mother is fighting, long days asking CPS people what she can do next and what more she can do she has taken parenting classes and child abuse and neglect classes to educate herself to be better, she has gone to CPS to get parenting coaches to learn how to be able to handle all that is to come.
From this end it is looking like because the mother of these children does not look like the every day house wife she has to fight harder and the children are suffering more then they should be at this time in there lives West Virginia needs to stop dragging their feet and get this family back together, how much more suffering can all five of these children go through???

[Robynne]

The children are doing as best to be exspected, from what is known the mother has been fighting tooth and nail to get her children back to her and their siblings. The mother of the children is being put under a microscope, mostly because she looks different. She has done everything asked of her and then some. CPS is dragging their feet and now all the children are suffering, the abused children are feeling very unwanted, due to being shipped from one foster home to the next. Mother is fighting, long days asking CPS people what she can do next and what more she can do she has taken parenting classes and child abuse and neglect classes to educate herself to be better, she has gone to CPS to get parenting coaches to learn how to be able to handle all that is to come.
From this end it is looking like because the mother of these children does not look like the every day house wife she has to fight harder and the children are suffering more then they should be at this time in there lives West Virginia needs to stop dragging their feet and get this family back together, how much more suffering can all five of these children go through???

I hope things work out for mom.

[Tundratot]

The state is stalling giving the (formerly) abused kids back to their biological mother? Because she looks different. How so? Is she covered in tattoos? A tiny person? Or is the problem more of a total package thing: too single, too alternative, too not in WV?

I would think a state would leap at giving the children to their biological parent if that parent has met the stated qualifications. If the state can get the other state to monitor the situation for a satisfying length of time, it's just perfect.

I hope she is able to win them back. It's heartbreaking to think they've been having a hard time in foster care, too. Being passed around? Why?

[greenwomen]

The mother has piercings, 14, tattoos,23, dreadlocks, colored green blues and reds. She has also been looking for more people to help her win this fight. But there is one thing that has been over looked in this whole case, the mother called CPS three months before to have them do a wellness check on the children and WV stated her claims were unsubstaincal, and they were not going to do anything, the mothers current husband even called the police two months prior to all this and nothing, when the mother brings this up she gets in trouble for being hostel and passing blame. The state was suppose to look in on all calls of concern and they did nothing and now the mother that has tried to get her kids back from this monster has to fight a bigger monster!!! The state, oh and the step dad to these children does have a marijuana charge, so now the step dad that helps the other children with school work, teaches them to build snowmen, holds their hands at the dentist, and loves them is called a bad step dad, the three kids with the bio mom are healthy, little over weight and happy, to a point.
So yes the bio mom has some issues and so does the step dad, but a loving home with laughter and happiness isn't that what a child needs? Show me the perfect family that doesn't have any issues. She's not perfect but she's trying.
Plus when mom does talk to her kids, or skypes them she has to explain to her children why they are not home with her and if she says one thing bad about WV and the system she gets in trouble by the system that's suppose to help the good families and keep families together CPS is hurting this family!!!!

[Tundratot]

Thank you for the explanation. It sounds like it is more than her look, though. If it were just her look, I'd say, hey, give it up. She could go back to it in the fullness of time, but if looking like June Cleaver would get my kids back, I'd wear petticoats, pumps, and a pearls. Of course, not much you can do about tattoos.

She should get good lawyers. WV CPS sounds like it's run by vindictive, scared people. No doubt they don't take criticism from someone is so alternative in outlook well, but their failure to respond to earlier reports is not the sort of thing they would want to hear about from someone who doesn't meet their expectations. Good old boys . . .

I hope she prevails.

[VXIII]

@greenwomen... All the things you described are changeable, take out the body armour, comb and dye your hair, put on long sleeved shirts and try to look normal to get your kids back, she can always add that shit back later, does she really want the kids back or is looking "different" more important? its what I would do and what I think I can say, any other mother here would do to get our kids back... Judges kind of balk at placing children with people they perceive as looking like circus freaks so change for a bit... for the kids sake...

[Aeon]

<dp>

[Aeon]

Someone is making this battle unnecessarily hard.

She can and should IMMEDIATELY modify her self presentation. It is FAR less important than getting these children into a loving stable environment.

If they ask her to do cartwheels in a clown outfit, she should make a stink about it LATER.

Dreadlocks --- My Children. Tatoos --- My Children. Piercings --- My Children. My wardrobe --- My Children.

Each of these has a clearly defined choice involved. One is right. One shows your prorities are skewed.

Doesn't matter if its fair. Deal with fair after you've dealt with what's important.

If your hairstyle is the higher priority....then you shouldn't have custody.

[MadeaBecBec]

MARTINSBURG, W.Va.— The circuit court trials for a Berkeley County couple accused of starving two children in their care and locking them in the basement of their home were rescheduled Monday.(May 23rd)

Boback has agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts of gross child neglect and testify against Lafferty, who is the biological father of the children. Circuit Judge Christopher C. Wilkes decided to delay consideration of the plea agreement until after Lafferty’s case is resolved in order to make “a more informed decision.”

Six of eight counts pending against Boback would be dismissed if the judge accepts the plea, and she would serve two, one- to five-year sentences concurrently, according to court records.

The trial for Boback, who is not the biological mother of the children, was postponed until Aug. 29. In a separate hearing Monday, Lafferty’s trial was rescheduled for July 19. His defense attorney, Joseph R. Whiteoak III, requested time to allow an expert to review medical records of the victims.

Lafferty and Boback remain in Eastern Regional Jail.

http://www.herald-mail.com/news/tris...,4342735.story

[CasperGirl]

i will be back later, i am going to duck tape my kids to the hood of my car and go get my nails and hair done, then do some shoppin at the dollar general store then off to see a mantinee movie....................oh dont worry about the kids they will be fine on the hood.............and I have an interview later today ..............................i am trying to get a job at a bank, I am sure they won't mind all the piercings and tatts all over my face, and my dreds are still colored like a flag from memorial day, wish me luck! Hmmmm Maybe I should park towards the back of the bank parking lot, I don't want my potential employers to see that I don't have a baby sitter and my kids on the hood of my car just wouldn't make a good impression.

[greenwomen]

CasperGirl,
I find you quite funny! So judgmental. I am so happy that people I know raise there children not to be so closed minded. I know when I have kids I will teach them that people that think that the way you look is everything, are not worth your time. People like you don't understand that you are making the world so sad. But please but please keep going... Personally I thought it was the father that was being a bad person, who said the mother was? The mother I thought was just being investigated harder because of her looks not because she was a really bad parent? But I could be wrong.... I'm just another person on here that reads stupid opinions and believes, and anyone with an ounce of brains in their heads would know that banks and corporate monkeys all think like you and anyone with dreads and piercings would know that because they are all not stupid stoners. Get a clue fast, or be the one parents warn their kids about... Lol sorry you are so funny I have to laugh every time I read your post. I hope your world gets a little more opened lol.

[Nell]

@greenwomen

If you really knew me at all you would know that i have a very alternative lifestyle. So I see your point entirely. But don't you think that sometimes you should clean up and look the way the world accepts? I do, and one of those times is if you are fighting to regain custody of your kids. People will judge you on your appearance, and people involved in the Government will judge you even more harshly.

Take this for instance. My man had long hair he wore in a ponytail. Took him forever to grow it and he really loved it. But after 8 months of job hunting and no interviews much less a job offer, he cut it off. He looks like a banker now, and he did it all for his child. You dig?

When he gets a job he will start to grow it again. And once your friend gets her kids back she can do what she wants with her hair and such. But for now she needs to walk the walk, as much as she hates it.

[greenwomen]

Nell,
I dig what you say, and understand, my man had long hair, couldn't get a job cut it all off and he has one now. But the point I was tring to get at was CasperGirl, said the mother was being a bad mom because of said dreads an color. I know for a fact that the mother of these children, works, works hard, she does as she's been told by the government, I wish I was as strong as she is she says she does what she does for fear of losing, she's a fighter she is strong she doesn't listen to all this hype said about her, when I talk to her she blows a lot off, so my friend looking off the wall as far as I can tell has opened some eyes to what a mom is,hair looks and all that jazz who cares she loves her kids and hasn't given up and it's been a year almost. She hasn't quit her job or went down another path but the one a good mom would follow. She's a strong one. I pray for her everyday I hope she wins and all gose good for her.

[Nell]

If what you are saying is true i really hope she gets them back too. Good moms come in all sorts of packages. As long as the love is there they need to be with mommy.

[carolinablue]

I have also lead a pretty alternative lifestyle, and now that the kids are grown and on their own, I do again. But when the kids came along, I realized that my life was no longer my first priority. My kids and their total well being was at the top. Very early on I realized how important fitting in is. Even in pre kindergarden it was important that I look like "all the other moms"; they never said it out loud, but I knew. Kids will be teased and bullied over bs like this and I wasn't going to do one thing to make childhood more difficult and challenging than it is. So, I wore the skirts and low heels or tailored slacks and a blouse. It was a minor inconvenience. Now I'm back to what they call "Mama's hippie outfits"...long skirts, worn jeans, band tshirts and bare feet (not out in stores or the like), I dye my hair peculiar colors and don't give a hoot what people think or say. You do it for the kids, you choose your battles. There are some battles you can and should avoid when your kids are involved. Your friend should not use her kids to make a statement. Sticking to her guns and demanding that she be accepted as she is has resulted in the loss of her kids AND their being given to a vicious sob who abused them and undoubtedly scarred them. Please help her to reassess her priorities.

[greenwomen]

From what I understand she won't even have her new husbands mom watch her kids because she falls asleep randomly and she knows that's not safe for her kids.... That's a good mom to me

[blacksheep]

i would LOVE to look more interesting and "alternative"....

Sticking to her guns and demanding that she be accepted as she is has resulted in the loss of her kids AND their being given to a vicious sob who abused them and undoubtedly scarred them. Please help her to reassess her priorities.

carolina blue, I concurr.

[BlueAngel]

In the end, like everyone is saying, it's all about doing what is best for these children-no matter what. I hope that their biomom truly is a good mom and does whatever is necessary to get them back and to give them the best life she can. I hope this as fervently as I hope their male biodonor and his female burn in the depths of hell for what they have done to these sweet kids. I hope that they experience misery for the rest of their days.

[badfish76]

Call me a heartless bitch, but if it were between conforming and being a "sheeple" to get my kids back or leaving them in foster care to retain my "individualism", I would sell out so fast it would make heads spin. Period. End of.

Any parent worth their salt would crawl thru the depths of hell on their knees and chew the balls off the devil to get their kids back.

Just because a person loves their kids, doesn't beat them and feeds them meals doesn't make a fabulous parent. Priorities must be in order and if some piercings, funky ass hair and freaky clothes are more important than the kids, well you can probably guess what I think.

[walkingeagle]

One of my bosses cusses now when I grow my beard. He, and his job, are not that important to me. He cries about it looking like a Hell's Angel maintaining the property. What he doesn't recognize is that most of his customers know me from my other job. They knew me when I had hair down to my ass. Let him find someone else who can do what I do there in the time that I do it though.

[missidoll]

The Lafferty children have been re-united with their mother, older siblings, new baby sister and stepfather.
I have heard that they are doing alright, though stil traumatized by their ordeal I'm sure.

The mother and stepfather have been able to pass drug tests and prove that they have a safe home for the children- which, due to all of the rumors everyone was spreading about her, was all I wanted to hear.
Charyl and I are no longer friends, and I'm ok with that. Just knowing the children are safe makes me so damn happy. Jesse's trial is slated to begin on Aug. 30th, and I hope there will be no more delays. He deserves to be punished to the fullest possible extent.

[CasperGirl]

Now enquiring minds really want to know, did she change her appearance at all? Don't get me wrong here. I am very happy she got the kids and I wish all the best for them. Just curious..............

[this is going badly]

I wish they'd give an update on the children. Where are they? Are they doing well?

He was arrested 8.23.10 but this child abusing loser is still awaiting trial which has been postponed until Jan 2012...

Re: The LAFFERTY Children - 5 and 3 yo - Martinsburg WV

by TomTerrific0420 on Tue Sep 06, 2011 4:50 pm

.MARTINSBURG, W.Va. —

The trial for a Berkeley County man accused of
starving two children in his care and locking them in the basement of
his home was postponed until Jan. 24 to allow his new attorney more time
to prepare for the case.

Jesse A. Lafferty, 33, of 292 Labonte
Drive, along with his girlfriend, Karen S. Boback, were indicted on
felony charges of child abuse causing serious bodily injury, gross child
neglect creating substantial risk of bodily injury or death and conspiracy.

Defense attorney Christopher J. Prezioso was appointed last month to
represent Lafferty after his public defender, Joseph Whiteoak III,
requested to withdraw from the case, citing an ethical conflict involving his office.

http://www.herald-mail.com/news/tris...,4845485.story

I bet the chicken shit is stalling so he can do as much of his time as possible in the county jail instead of in the prison ...Unless their status is updated the trial it's doubtful that anyone will know what happens with the children.

It's too bad that the jail can't make him sleep on a cold floor or skip feeding "dad" for 3-4 days every week...

[Dakota Valkyrie]

I bet the chicken shit is stalling so he can do as much of his time as possible in the county jail instead of in the prison ...

Well he really IS an idiot then. The amenities at state prisons are far better than at a county jail. I say let him rot in the jail as long as possible.

[Jerri Blank]

Man pleads guilty to starving children
Offender accepts counts of child abuse causing serious bodily injury

MARTINSBURG - A Berkeley County man accused of starving of his 5-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter and forcing them to sleep in an unfinished basement pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of child abuse causing serious bodily injury as part of a plea agreement.

Jesse A. Lafferty, 34, who is currently incarcerated at Eastern Regional Jail, was originally named in a seven-count indictment issued in February 2011 by a Berkeley County grand jury. The agreement resulted in the dismissal of the remaining counts.

Lafferty is scheduled to be sentenced July 16 by West Virginia 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge Christopher Wilkes and is represented by local attorney Christopher Prezioso. As part of the plea agreement, the court will be unfettered in sentencing. Lafferty faces two to 10 years in prison on each of the counts.

"I willfully withheld food from my children in order to punish them, which led to neglect and malnutrition, sir," Lafferty told the court.

Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney Pamela Games-Neely told the court that the state's evidence would show that there were periods of time where food was withheld from the two victims for more than 24 hours at a time as punishment and that during certain weeks the children were sometimes not fed for periods of three to four days. When the children were rescued by authorities, Games-Neely said they were found to be severely malnourished and had distended abdomens similar to starving children from third-world countries.

"Let the record show that the defendant has executed the written guilty plea form. ... Sir, are you sure this is how you want to resolve this matter?" Wilkes asked the defendant.

"Yes," responded Lafferty, who was shackled and wearing an orange prison jumpsuit.

As a result, Lafferty will be required to register with the state's child abuse registry and the court also could make a finding at his sentencing that he is an abusing parent under state law, which would result in his parental rights being terminated.

A co-defendant in the case, 45-year-old Karen S. Boback, of Berkeley County, will appear before Wilkes May 7 for a plea and sentencing hearing. She was named in the same seven-count indictment as Lafferty and is accused of failing to inform authorities that Lafferty, her then-boyfriend, was starving his two children.

She accepted the terms of a proposed plea agreement last year that could see her plead guilty to two felony counts of gross child neglect.

The case was investigated by West Virginia State Police Cpl. J.M. Walker and the state Department of Health and Human Resources. The abuse came to the attention of authorities in 2010 after neighbors noticed the children appeared to be malnourished.

When Walker traveled to Lafferty's former residence at 292 Labonte Drive near Martinsburg, he found the children appeared to be sickly and were suffering from "classic signs of starvation," records show.

Walker noted that the refrigerator had a padlock installed on the door and the food pantry had a deadbolt that required a key to open, records show.

Walker also found the basement door had a lock on it with a doorbell installed at the top, which would sound every time the door opened and closed. Other than a small piece of carpet and a few blankets, the concrete basement was unfinished. Walker also found a baby monitor and toys in the vicinity of the blankets and a child's portable toilet in the corner.

Boback later told police that Lafferty would punish his children by making them take cold showers, withholding food from them, spanking them with a belt and making them stay the night in the basement.

http://www.journal-news.net/page/con....html?nav=5006

[Tundratot]

I wish they would give us an update on the children. It's so frustrating not knowing if they are recovered, placed in good families, being forced to testify or far away from the court proceedings . . . Luckily for these two, the guilty pleas should keep them out of it.

[greenwomen]

No, she did not... she walked into the CPS office with dreads, piercings, and tattoos.....

[greenwomen]

Update on the children, a few days before Lafferty was sentenced, all Lafftery's children and their half sister welcomed a new brother... all the children go to the doctors when they are sick and have a very high GPA!!! They know they are loved and never worry about being starved or hit... They have a great mom and an awesome stepdad that just took it upon himself to get a lawyer and make it legal he is their dad and will always be their dad....One happy ending.

Just an FYI, piercings and tattoos do not say if your a good parent.... the sperm donor had one tattoo... mom and step dad has multiple and youll never see a happier family or better parents!!!!!!!