DEANDRE GREEN - 2 1/2 yo - Long Beach CA

Long Beach CA ----A 26-year-old man has been
arrested on suspicion of murder and child abuse after his girlfriend's 2
1/2-year-old son was found dead in Long Beach, officials said.

Deandre Fitzgerald Green was brought to Long Beach Memorial Hospital unconscious around
6:40 p.m. Saturday, and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful, said Officer
Jackie Bezart of the Long Beach Police Department.

The boy was taken to the hospital by his mother and her boyfriend,
who has been identified as Hector Ernest Jr. of Hawthorne.



Bezart said there was "evidence of abuse to the
child's body" and that homicide detectives the Los Angeles County Coroner's
office were called to the hospital.

The child's mother lives in the 3100 block of Springdale Drive
where detectives believe neighbors may have heard the
child being abused, Bezart said.

Police asked anyone with information
regarding this incident to contact Long Beach Police
Homicide Detectives Mark McGuire or Greg Krabbe at (562) 570-7244.

Family members of Deandre Green, a 2-year-old boy who was fatally
beaten last week, allegedly by his mother's boyfriend, said they had
warned police and Los Angeles County child welfare officials at least
twice about possible abuse in the last few months of the child's life.Deandre's
father told The Times in an interview Tuesday that in October, he had
taken his son to the Hawthorne Police Department to show officials
bruises on the child's chest and stomach. Deandre's cousin said she had
called the county Department of Children and Family Services in February
to report her concerns. The cousin, Lavetta Jones, and other family members said their calls
went unreturned for weeks. At one point, a someone at the county told
them the person they needed to talk to was on vacation, the family
members said. "It wasn't as urgent as it should have been," the
boy's grandmother, Sharlynn Pinkard, 43, said. "We truly sensed
something wasn't right." County officials declined to comment
immediately on Deandre's case. It remains unclear exactly what
steps authorities took after receiving the allegations of abuse
regarding Deandre -- and whether social workers ultimately confirmed the
accusations. Under law, police and social service agencies are required
to notify each other of such allegations. What is clear is that
Deandre continued to live with his mother and her boyfriend. On
Saturday, the boy, who was living in Long Beach at the time, was
pronounced dead at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center. Officials said he
showed signs of repeated abuse, and Long Beach detectives have arrested
his mother's boyfriend, Hector Ernest Jr., 26, on suspicion of killing
the boy. He is being held without bail. Deandre's death comes as
the county continues to face scrutiny in its handling of child abuse
cases. Earlier this month, 2-year-old Viola Vanclief was killed while in
the care of a foster family agency that contracts with the court
despite a long history of child abuse incidents. About 35 children since
January 2007 who passed through the county system have died from abuse
or neglect. They have declined to disclose records related to the dozen
most recent cases. Long Beach Police Officer Jackie Bezart
confirmed that detectives are examining at least two reports of abuse
submitted to the county before Deandre died but said she could not
provide more details.Officials at the Hawthorne Police Department said they got involved
in the case in February when the county informed them of an abuse claim.
Patrol officers made at least three visits to an address in Hawthorne
where authorities believed Ernest was living."We acted
immediately," Hawthorne Police Lt. Gary Tomatani said. "Within 24 hours
we were on the doorstep investigating." Hawthorne police apparently didn't know that Ernest was living in
Long Beach with Deandre and the boy's mother, Cameo Green, at the time. According to relatives, care of Deandre was shared among several family
members, including his mother and father. But in an interview
Tuesday at the family's Hawthorne apartment, the father, Deandre
Fitzgerald Franks, 22, a baggage handler at LAX who is separated from
the mother, said he had initially tried to report allegations of abuse
to the Hawthorne police several months ago. In October, he said,
he began to suspect that his son was being abused when Deandre told him
his mother's boyfriend had pulled on his lip. When Franks lifted up the
boy's shirt, he found bruises on the child's chest and stomach, he said.
Other relatives who helped care for the child, including his
grandmother, said he had complained of pain from where his mother had
allegedly hit him. The family bathed and dressed Deandre and took
him to the Hawthorne police station, Franks said, adding that he sat
the child on the counter and asked officers if they could take a report
for an abuse case. Franks said the person working the desk was
dismissive of his assertions and warned him that if he was lying, he
would be arrested. Angry at their response, he left the station, he
said. Hawthorne police said they have no record of Franks' visit
but plan to contact him to sort out exactly what happened. "It
doesn't mean he wasn't at our lobby," Tomatani said. "But if he was, we
didn't officially document it." The department is investigating
whether there was a lapse in their response, he added, so they can
correct it to "prevent future tragedies such as these." When
Franks called the boy's mother in October to confront her about the
abuse, she told him the child had been hurt while falling off of a toy
firetruck, Franks said. (Green could not be reached for comment.) Over the next few months, Franks and other family members said they
continued to notice bruises and scratches on the boy's face and legs.Hawthorne police said county social workers informed them of abuse
allegations Feb. 24.The next morning, officers visited the
Hawthorne home where they thought the boy was living and did so again
twice more. Sometime after March 1, they referred the case back to DCFS and to
the Long Beach Police Dept., Tomatani said. Out of frustration,
Franks said he was tempted to take his son away from the mother and her
boyfriend to protect him from abuse but wanted to do things legally. "By the time it took to go through the right channels and avenues,"
said Denise Haywood, 46, the boy's great aunt, "it was too late." On Saturday, the mother called the father's family to say that the boy
had died. Franks visited his son after he died, kissing him and
squeezing his face, where he had a scar near his right eye and tears
dried on his cheeks. "That tore me up inside," he said, wiping
away tears. "I keep waking up every day crying because I haven't
been seeing him," he said. Deandre, his family said, was a lively
little boy who shared his father's love of cars and would parade around
the house singing songs and scribbling on photos and toys.
Franks would carry him around the neighborhood on his shoulders. And on
Tuesday, before going to the mortuary to make funeral arrangements, the
family bagged up Deandre's toys: a ball, toy cars and a red bike with
training wheels they had given him for Christmas. The bike was
too big for him; they had hoped he would grow into it.

Long Beach CA ---- A
26-year-old Long Beach man has pleaded not guilty to murder and other
charges in the beating death of his girlfriend's 2-year-old son. Prosecutors
say Hector Ernest entered not guilty pleas Tuesday in Long Beach
Superior Court to one count each of murder, assault on a child causing
death and child abuse. The toddler's mother, 22-year-old
Cameo Green, pleaded not guilty to one count of child abuse. The
criminal complaint also alleges that she failed to protect her son,
Deandre, resulting in his death. Ernest and his girlfriend
brought the little boy to a hospital on March 20, but staff could not
revive him. Hospital personnel called police after noting
signs of physical abuse on the toddler's body.

A 22-year-old Long Beach
woman charged with felony child abuse in connection with her 2-year-old
son's slaying was denied her request to be released from jail on her own
recognizance Thursday. Defendant Cameo Green appeared more than a
week ahead of her scheduled preliminary hearing setting to request the
release, which would have allowed her to be let out of jail without
posting bail pending her trial. Green is charged along with her
boyfriend, 26-year-old Hector Ernest Jr., who is charged with murder for
the beating death of the toddler, Deandre Fitzgerald Green. Long
Beach police began their investigation after the couple, who lived in a
Long Beach apartment with the toddler, took the child to Long Beach
Memorial Medical Center on March 20. The boy was unconscious and,
though emergency room staff worked on him for 45 minutes, he was
pronounced dead within less than an hour of arriving at the hospital. Ernest
was arrested the following day on suspicion of murder. He wasn't
formally charged until last month, when Green was also arrested. The
child's father and his family came out shortly after Ernest's arrest
and said they had complained about signs of abuse on the 2-year-old to
Hawthorne Police and the Los Angeles County Department of Children and
Family Services officials to no avail. Ernest is charged with one
count each of murder, assault on a child causing death and child abuse.
The complaint also alleges Ernest was on probation at thetime of his arrest for a 2009
conviction of having a concealed firearm in a vehicle, according to the
Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office. Green is charged with
one count of child abuse. The complaint further alleges that Green
failed to protect the child, resulting in his death, according to the
DA. Prosecutors allege Ernest inflicted the fatal injury on March
20. If convicted on all counts, Green faces a maximum state
prison term of 10 years and Ernest faces the possibility of 25 years to
life, authorities said. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty
and are scheduled to return to the Long Beach Superior Court on June 1. Los
Angeles County Sheriff's Department jail records show bail was set at
$1 million for Green and Ernest is being held without bail due to the
probation violation.

A Long Beach couple was
ordered to stand trial Wednesday in the beating death of a 2-year-old
boy.

Authorities have charged 26-year-old Hector Ernest Jr. with
murder for the slaying of his girlfriend's son, Deandre Fitzgerald
Green.

Also charged is the dead toddler's mother, 22-year-old Cameo
Green, who stands accused of child abuse.

The pair were arrested after they took the unconscious child
to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center on March 20. Though emergency room
staff worked on the 2-year-old for 45 minutes, he was pronounced dead
less than an hour after arriving at the hospital.

Ernest is charged with one count each of murder, assault on a
child causing death and child abuse.

Green is charged with one count of child abuse. The complaint
further alleges she failed to protect her son, resulting in his death,
according to court documents.

If convicted on all counts, Green faces a maximum state prison
term of 10 years and Ernest faces 25 years to life, authorities said.

A preliminary hearing was held Wednesday in which a judge
found there was sufficient evidence to hold both Green and Ernest to
answer, according to court staff.

The couple are scheduled to return to the Long Beach Superior
Court on July 27 for arraignment.

Mom pleads guilty in death of son, 2

LONG BEACH - A 24-year-old Long Beach woman pleaded guilty Friday to the 2010 beating death of her 2-year-old son, prosecutors said.

Cameo Green pleaded to one count of felony child abuse and admitted an allegation that - under circumstances and conditions likely to produce great bodily harm or death - she willfully caused and permitted her child to be harmed resulting in his death, said Deputy District Attorney Amy Wilton.

Long Beach Superior Court Judge Joan Comparet-Cassani immediately sentenced Green to six years in state prison.

Had she gone to trial and been convicted on all counts she faced a maximum term of 10 years, authorities said last year.

Green was the mother of Deandre Green and she was arrested along with her boyfriend, Hector Ernest, following her child's March 20, 2010, death.

The Los Angeles County Coroner's Department determined the cause of death was blunt force trauma to the abdomen.

Evidence presented at a preliminary hearing showed that Green, the child's primary caretaker, failed to protect the boy and allowed him to remain in a harmful, abusive living situation, the prosecutor said.

Green and her boyfriend were charged after a felony complaint was filed and an arrest warrant issued on April 15.

Ernest, 27, who lived with Green and the boy in a Long Beach apartment, was charged with first degree murder.

That case includes a count of felony assault on a child causing
death and child abuse and also alleges a 2009 conviction of having a concealed firearm in a vehicle.
If convicted on all counts, Ernest faces a term of 25 years to life in prison.

He is being held without bail pending trial, which is scheduled to begin March 25.

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