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Child Welfare Workers Charged In Brooklyn 4-Year-Old's Death

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A special investigative grand jury will be convened to look at evidence of "systemic failure'' at New York City's child welfare agency after the death of an emaciated 4-year-old girl, the Brooklyn district attorney said Wednesday.

Charles J. Hynes said former workers with the Administration for Children's Services didn't do enough to help Marchella Brett-Pierce, who weighed 18 pounds when she died in September. Marchella's death was the latest in a line of troubles linked to the agency and harkened comparisons to the 2006 case of Nixzmary Brown, a 7-year-old New York City girl who died of abuse and malnourishment.

"There's an Italian word, it's called 'basta.' It means, 'enough,'" DA Hynes told CBS 2's Pablo Guzman.

1010 WINS' Carol D'Auria reports from the criminal courthouse in Brooklyn

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In another case earlier this week, a man was charged with assault and reckless endangerment after his girlfriend's 17-month-old foster child was found unconscious and badly beaten. Kymel Oram suffered bruising, fractured ribs, a lacerated liver and a bruised spleen. He remained in critical condition, though a criminal complaint against the suspect, Kysheen Oliver, says the toddler was likely to die.

The medical examiner said Marchella suffered from child abuse syndrome and was starved, beaten and drugged.

WCBS 880's Irene Cornell with reaction from Brooklyn DA Joe Hynes

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Child welfare caseworker Damon Adams and supervisor Chereece Bell, who resigned in October, pleaded not guilty to  criminally negligent homicide and official misconduct.  The girl's grandmother Loretta Brett was charged with manslaughter.

Their lawyers say the three are being blamed for crimes they didn't commit.

"ACS has a single overarching mission to protect abused and neglected children in New York City. Our staff live up to this difficult and heart-breaking challenge every day,'' the child welfare agency said in a statement. "Yet when we fail, it can be with tragic results, which we try to learn from and make adjustments. ... When staff have failed to carry out their basic responsibilities, ACS will and does take appropriate action.

"The particular merits of this criminal case aside, we are very concerned that today's indictments of social work staff may have the opposite effect from what's intended because it may discourage excellent, idealistic individuals from taking jobs helping our society's neediest and most vulnerable children,'' the agency added.

"This is a terribly wrong thing and sets a bad precedent," said Joshua Horowitz , the attorney for Bell.

The city's public advocate blamed ACS budget cuts and wonders how the charges will affect employees.

"If they think literally they might be indicted for murder no less for the work they're doing, even if they try to do their jobs well, I think that could be very, very problematic," Bill de Blasio told CBS 2's Sean Hennessey.

Marchella's mother told police that she found her daughter's cold and unconscious body on Sept. 2 and tried to resuscitate her before calling 911. The girl was born with underdeveloped lungs, had serious trouble breathing and had a breathing tube in her throat, authorities said. She had been hospitalized in the months before her death.

Marchella's mother, Carlotta Brett Pierce, was previously indicted on murder and other charges, and has said she is innocent.

Nixzmary's death, coupled with a series of other high-profile deaths of children known to the agency, sparked public demands for child welfare reform. City officials responded by bolstering the corps of caseworkers. A state child protection law signed in October 2009 increased the penalties for an adult convicted of torturing a child, changing the maximum penalty to life in prison.

Nixzmary's mother is serving a prison sentence of up to 43 years for failing to act as her battered, malnourished child lay dying in their home. Her stepfather is serving 29 years on a manslaughter conviction for delivering the fatal blow.

(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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