OKDHS Revenue Generating Adoptions: Judge Tammy Bass ...

Oklahoma County District Attorney, David Prater finalized the case actions in the settlement regarding the now former Judge for Oklahoma Family Civil Courts, Tammy Bass LeSure following her March 2012 conviction for obtaining public assistance under false pretenses.

Mrs. Bass LeSure and her husband Karlos LeSure adopted infant twins after housing the children for two years of fostercare for OKDHS and then through OKDHS permanency placement programming. The children were diverted to another caregiver and this was recently brought to public attention through court proceedings against this couple.

Settlement agreements included but were not limited to Bass LeSure stepping down as County Judge and agreeing not to practice as Judge or hold public office in Oklahoma. This position of Judge was as an elected not appointed official. Mrs. Bass LeSure?s license to practice as an attorney has been suspended by this court action, which implies it has been directed to the Oklahoma Bar Association, the governing body for review of her actions under their licensure.

The former Bass LeSure twins, now 4 years of age were returned to OKDHS fostercare and are awaiting re-adoptions.

Tammy Bass LeSure and her husband were asked to repay close to $70,000 to the State (and Federal Government?) agencies who fostered the adoption and gave incentive or other payments to this couple. There is a 12% interest rate on this money. The couple has 3 years of deferred sentencing regarding the felonies. Judge Paul K. Woodward was appointed by the Oklahoma Supreme Court to hear the case which was very high profile.

Tammy Bass LeSure and her husband petitioned the State of Oklahoma to adopt through the Oklahoma Department of Human Services two infants who were twins. These children were reportedly brought to that home. Somehow, the children found their way into the care of the extended family of the Bass LeSure Bailiff of the then Judge Bass LeSure. The then Judge Bass LeSure received the initial financial benefits that accompanied adoption of these children, which appears to include incentive pay, tax deduction of about $13,000 per child and ongoing Medicaid coverage to approximate age 21.

It is unclear what the dollar break out was for the $70,000 repayment due, or whose hands that money would be paid into.

OKDHS receives federal dollars for the placement of children out of fostercare and into permanent adoptive homes. Incentive pay is gauged by the federal agency Administration for Children and Families, under the header of Health and Human Services. In December 2010 there was a projection published dollar amount to be received by OKDHS from HHS ACF at about 3 million dollars total. More recent figures have not surfaced. States are considered for this incentive pay after a certain number of children are placed annually for adoption, and once that cap is reached, anywhere from $4-9,000 is paid per head/child based upon a formula of age and special needs.

OKDHS has 8000 children in some version of foster placement. Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of diagnosed mental health problems in children in the USA. Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of imprisonment of women in the USA. 90% of all pick up orders from OKDHS are honored by the court.

Fostercare adoptions can happen in as little as 3 months, and do not involve mental health therapy prior to, during and after the process. for the child or prospective adoptive parent. Such a tracking process would further assess fitness and monitor for such problems. Fostercare adoptions often involve free legal services through the Public Defenders office, acting as guardian ad litems for the child being adopted. Adopted foster children can be returned to OKDHS, and basically recycled in adoptions processes. It is unclear if moneys must be returned or tax deductions are defunct in those cases.

HHS ACF has loosely deemed the incentive pay on adoptions be used to encourage child adoptions out of foster care. OKDHS has acknowledged this, but has not acknowledged if workers are given direct pay for retention of children in fostercare, and then for making placements. ? OKDHS workers are never paid on individual cases? said one OKDHS worker who will remain unidentified. HHS ACF has a graph of incentive payments by state for foster adoptions.

The Bass LeSure adoptions involved workers from OKDHS, and court services personnel beyond the accused. Disclosed investigations and prosecution have been on Bass LeSure family. What about the rest of these people? Who was the Judge who signed the order for the adoption? The guardian ad litem? Placement staff and supervisory staff from OKDHS? CASA worker? Medical Doctor? Counselor? Benefits worker?

The Bailiff?s sister who took the twins in faces 6 felony charges in June. Her name is Ravonda Edwards.

OKDHS has returned again to Oklahoma Legislators and asked for more money in the Pinnacle Plan to address their issues.

None of those dollars independently look at how children died, what has been done to prevent that, why so many Oklahoma children are being extracted from their families, and under what justification or qualification are these processes happen initially, much less cases held open for the required two years that then forces they be tipped to adoptive processes.

There is no independent body of investigation in Oklahoma appointed to look at this process. Federal agencies are prohibited from acting and are not permitted by federal policy from 1997 to intervene. Federal Justice Department investigations or court of inquiry, but this requires someone file against Oklahoma. To date the public has not sought alternative investigations of similar known problems.

Attribution:

OKDHS Revenue Generating Adoptions: Judge Tammy Bass LeSure
Diana Winslow
May 14, 2012
Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/article/okdhs-revenue-generating-adoptions-judge-tammy-bass-lesure

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