Palmdale, CA – Two children were found, an 8-year-old boy and 7-year-old girl, after they’d been reported missing by their adoptive mother, 50-year-old Ingrid Brewer. The children were located by local deputies, hidden under a blanket near a parked vehicle, not far from their residence. Neither were properly attired for the frigid winter temperatures.
The children explained they had intentionally run away in order to avoid continued abuse at the hands of Brewer, reports KTLA . They were tired of enduring repeated beatings . Allegedly Brewer would bind the children’s hands behind their backs with zip-ties and hit them as punishment. They were deprived of food. When she would leave for work during the day Brewer would lock them in their bedrooms, separate from one another. When they needed to use the bathroom, Brewer forced them to use waste baskets in their bedrooms. They described being restrained and hit with electrical cords and blunt instruments like hammers.
No prior reports had been made regarding the abuse of the children, by school administrators, as they had been home schooled.
Deputies observed injuries and bruises consistent with the statements the children were making, and Brewer was arrested . She is being held on $2 million in bail and faces eight felony counts including torture, assault with a deadly weapon, and cruelty to children.
Unfortunately, abuse of a child is not uncommon in adoption situations. Although not proven as the circumstance in this particular case, it is surmised that some people take in children in hopes of being monetarily compensated by the state through adoption subsidies. There are Adoption Assistance Programs that provide healthcare, financial assistance, and tax breaks to adoptive parents taking in children with special needs, paying out up until the child is 18-years old. The US Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families defines “special needs” as either children three years of age or older, a member of a sibling group trying to remain together, or who are of a race, ethnicity, or possess a disability that is considered a barrier for adoption. Federal Title IV-E Adoption Assistance is distributed to those who quality, so long as the children are still within their care.
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