Officials: Mom who lost custody kills kids’ services worker

As usual there is no reporting on the back-story of this case.

Yahoo News

BARRE, Vt. (AP) — A woman who was upset about losing custody of her daughter used a hunting rifle to fatally shoot a child-welfare agency worker who had handled her case, authorities said.

The shooting happened Friday outside a state office building that houses the Department for Children and Families, Gov. Peter Shumlin’s office said. The mother, Jody Herring, was detained by people in and around the building after the shooting, police said.  

Barre City Mayor Thom Lauzon said the worker’s shooting death was a tragedy not just for his city, which has about 10,000 residents, but for the state.

“My heart goes out to the victim and the victim’s family,” he said.

The Department for Children and Families worker, Lara Sobel, had been involved in a case that saw Herring’s 9-year-old daughter taken into state custody, officials said. Sobel had just left a DCF office on Friday afternoon when she was shot twice, authorities said. She died at the scene.

Herring was in police custody on Friday night and couldn’t be reached for comment. A home telephone number listed for her had been disconnected. She will be arraigned on Monday, police said.

The DCF has dealt with recent criticisms over its handling of cases, which prompted a new law.

A special legislative committee was set up to investigate the state child welfare system after the deaths last year of two toddlers who had been involved with DCF, 2-year-old Dezirae Sheldon, of Poultney, and 15-month-old Peighton Geraw, of Winooski. Murder charges are pending against Dezirae’s stepfather and Peighton’s mother, who have pleaded not guilty.

The new child safety law shifts the state’s priority in protecting children, focusing on their well-being instead of on an imperative to reunite them with their families.

Shumlin said DCF employees deal with challenging family situations and do their work “out of their dedication to the children and families of this great state.”

“To lose one of our own in the course of that duty,” he said, “is shocking and heartbreaking.”

Department for Children and Families staff members were directed to go out this weekend only on emergency calls and accompanied by law enforcement.

The DCF worker’s shooting happened on the last day of work for state police director Col. Tom L’Esperance, the Burlington Free Press reported. A retirement dinner for him was taking place in South Burlington, about 40 miles away, when reports of the shooting were broadcast, and troopers left to go to the scene, the newspaper said.

http://news.yahoo.com/officials-mom-lost-custody-kills-kids-services-worker-004928266.html

14 thoughts on “Officials: Mom who lost custody kills kids’ services worker

  1. Anyone that has had to deal with various state child “protective services” knows how criminal ALL these lying deceitful thugs are. Death is WAY too easy a punishment for them. My ex was OPENLY abusing our daughter and all these deserving of torture thugs would say is “WE HAVE TO WORK with HER to help HER over her shortcomings”! The abuse was not dealt as the crime it was but I had 5 restraining orders against me on the claims of this playing the system ex with each dropped after I challenged them. If I went with my righteous anger and was less concerned with my daughters welfare and more concerned with justice I would be in jail for killing two judges, three lawyers and 5 of these “social workers! All these criminals should be hunted!

  2. The back story is important, but now that she’s arrested the government can write the back story.

    If she did this out of anger/desparation over an insane agency’s abuse of power, good for her.

    Government sponsored kidnappers, take note as people lose their fear
    and fight back.

    -flek

  3. Excellent news. It’s about time we’re hearing about a real mother who loves her daughter, and isn’t going to allow CPS to sell her to a pedophile.

    This woman is a real hero. Remember her name so we can make sure we get her out of prison.

    This woman’s actions will make a lot of CPS child-snatchers think twice about stealing someone’s babies. She’s probably saved a lot of kids already.

  4. This was the correct action to take when someone thinks they have the authority to take your kids away. I know of at least one NAZI baby stealer that won’t be taking any ones babies anymore. This woman is a saint IMO.

  5. It’s about time. Libertarians call it “responsible vigilantism”.

    Government people better get yourselves a Green Zone. It’s coming.

  6. “Sobel had just left a DCF office on Friday afternoon when she was shot twice, authorities said. She died at the scene.”

    OUTSTANDING!!!

    B#tch got exactly what she deserved!!! The penalty for kidnapping is DEATH, so justice was definitely served in this case.

    “My heart goes out to the victim and the victim’s family,” he said.”

    Wish that was literally, as in ripped out of your child-thieving communist chest.

    “The new child safety law shifts the state’s priority in protecting children, focusing on their well-being instead of on an imperative to reunite them with their families.”

    Straight from the @sses’ mouth.

    Translation: KIDNAPPING!!!

    Hope this becomes an instant trend and goes VIRAL!!!!!

    1. “Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., issued the following statement Saturday:

      “Today is tragic day for Vermont. In the past 24 hours, a public servant was murdered and three other Vermonters were killed in circumstances that are not yet clear. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims’ families and friends. As is always the case, I know Vermonters will rally together in the aftermath of this horrible tragedy because that is what we do in a crisis. I have contacted Gov. Shumlin and I am confident there will be a full investigation into what happened and why.”

      Translation: more gun INFRINGEMENTS!!!

  7. Yah, the state focusing on someone’s well being means a drone strike is forthcoming. And people get sick of the state sticking their nose into family and community affairs at the expense of the family and the community. And I’m convinced that we all have to keep our noses out of this business because it isn’t a crisis at all. It’s obvious that the world needs mothers while the need for the state or service workers remains to be seen. Not that the mother was right in this instance but I feel the authoritarian nature of the state most likely makes these unfortunate outcomes more frequent and regrettable than they would otherwise be.

  8. Teach your children early who is CPS
    And what they do
    I’ve seen children win cases against them
    But this definetly ranks up there with 1 for our side
    All we can hope is that the message got received
    It’s really stupid to f#@k with a persons kids
    Make a game out of it or torcher a serious parent
    Let’s say that’s one State worker that had to get the message delivered at high speed

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