118: "I'm No Pearl Fernandez" - The Case of Anthony Avalos - Lancaster, CA - [Part 1 of 2]

A letter, repeated calls to DCFS, and gang ties. On June 20th, 2018 Heather Barron called 911 to report that her 10-year-old was unresponsive and not breathing.  She gave multiple accounts of what happened that day and how her son had been injured but not one of her stories explained the severity of Anthony's injuries. As investigators took a closer look it was an all too familiar story. Anthony's case was strikingly similar to the murder of Gabriel Fernandez in 2013. Some of the same child welfare officials who failed to take action in Gabriel's case, also failed Anthony, despite years of abuse allegations of Anthony and his siblings at the hands of their mother and her boyfriend, Kareem Leiva.  Least of These on Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/leastofthesepodcast/ Least of These Discussion Group: https://m.facebook.com/groups/288046119723080/?ref=pages_profile_groups_tab&paipv=1 Least of These on Instagram: www.instagram.com/least_ofthese/ Support the show and get your episodes ad free at: https://www.patreon.com/leastofthesepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices