There are many cases of child abuse reported every day. It’s a sad state of affairs in this country when even one child suffers at the hands of their abuser.
One case involving allegations of child abuse, stands out, in particular, as one of the most bizarre cases that I have come across in recent years.
The events surrounding this case are even more inexplicable. While many of the facts appear to be based on ‘he said, she said’, what is real is that there is an innocent victim involved.
This story brings with it allegations of wrongdoing by Child Protective Services (CPS), intentional ignoring of the facts by the District Attorney’s office (DA), conflict-of-interest claims against some attorneys involved in the case, and claims that the judges in the matter are not acting in the best interests of the victim.
The victim in this case is a child by the name of Lexi Dillon, who is 9 years old. Her parents were never married but became involved in a paternity action in Family Court in Orange County (OC), California, located 34 miles south of Los Angeles.
The strange twists and turns in this case, if true, are unexplainable and end with the ‘deportation’ of an American citizen back to her alleged abuser.
According to an organization whose mission it is to inform the public, a summary of the timeline of this case is, as follows:
Ruby Dillon, a practicing dentist and mother of Lexi Dillon, filed a paternity action and was awarded sole custody in 2005, after alleging that Lexi’s father was abusive. The father, Mahathep ‘Matthew’ Srikureja, is a Pakistani national with Thai citizenship.
In 2010, Srikureja filed for a custody modification. In March 2011, a doctor examined Lexi and concluded that Dillon should have primary custody. The court agreed.
The case doesn’t end there, however.
In February, 2012, Dillon notices that her child is bleeding from her rectal area and immediately takes her to the hospital. The ER doctor allegedly confirms that sexual abuse occurred and reports his findings to the police.
A hearing in Family Court is then scheduled to request an investigation. The Court Commissioner denies the investigation and removes five days of Dillon’s monthly custody.
In December 2012, Lexi evidently makes an allegation against her father, is removed by Tustin police, and subsequently placed in CPS custody. Almost immediately, she is removed from CPS custody and returned to her father. It is alleged that her own minor’s counsel helped in having her removed and returned to her father.
Approximately one month later, Lexi again reported an allegation against her father. As before, she is removed by Tustin police, placed in CPS custody, and then removed by CPS and given back to her father.
As if it wasn’t bad enough that CPS had apparently betrayed Lexi’s trust, the court continued the betrayal when they allegedly denied expert witnesses the ability to testify on her behalf.
Next, things worsened when it was discovered that Lexi’s minor’s counsel may have had a hidden agenda. Evidently, father’s attorney previously represented minor’s counsel in his own personal case. This information was not revealed to the court.
When Dillon brought the conflict-of-interest to the court’s attention, the removal was apparently denied by the court.
Additionally, at one point, Lexi disclosed to the police that her father had taken pictures of her and placed them on his computer. Even with all of the prior allegations made by Lexi against her father, the police were evidently denied their request for a search warrant from the DA’s office.
Subsequently, when the police sought to have criminal charges brought against the father, the DA’s office once again were of no help and allegedly refused to file charges.
Lexi’s father was then later awarded full custody in June 2014 by OC Judge James L. Waltz.
No comments:
Post a Comment