Opinion ID: 147525
Heading Depth: 5
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Child Services Bureau records

Text: The nature of Phillips's home life is described in the course of nearly two decades worth of CSB records that his counsel apparently never saw. Phillips's mother had three children in a prior relationship: Tracy (born in 1965), Mary (born in 1966), and Edward, or Eddie (born in 1968). She then married Phillips's father, William, Sr., with whom she had four children: William, Jr. (born in 1972), Petitioner (born in 1973), Eric (born in 1975), and Tanya (born in 1976). The family moved from Pennsylvania to Akron, Ohio, when Phillips was two years old. CSB records state that the CSB's counterpart in Pittsburgh contacted CSB to warn that [w]hile living in Pittsburgh, the three older children were frequently physically abused, and, on the seldom occasions when they came to school, were marked and bruised. The Pittsburgh caseworker described the family's situation as deplorable. CSB visited the Phillips home in Akron and described Donna Phillips as an inadequate mother and the family as functioning marginally with multiple problems. In 1977, when Phillips was three years old, CSB received a complaint that Phillips's father was beating his step-children, grabbing them by the throat, and threatening them with additional physical abuse if they revealed to anyone that they were being beaten. However, the complainant noted that William, Sr. did not abuse his own children in the same manner. The complainant also stated that there were dog feces all over the place at the Phillips home and that the children were always dirty and unkempt. Following a visit to the Phillips home that year, a CSB caseworker stated that [t]he house smelled terrible, was filthy dirty, was messy, and cluttered. The odor was overwhelming; it was a combination of their dog . . . old food and dirt. The children looked hungry and not very well nourished. ( Id. ) During this time, Donna Phillips informed CSB that Phillips's father comes and goes, and she falsely told CSB that they were divorced. The next year, in 1978, CSB received another complaint that the three step-children were being beaten by both parents and that the family had threatened their neighbors with injury if they reported the abuse to CSB. The complainant told CSB that the children are grabbed by the back of the neck, slapped across the face, beaten on [the] back and legs. The caller also believed that there were knives and guns in the house. When a CSB caseworker made a visit to investigate, she could not verify any abuse, but she described Phillips's father as screaming and swearing at the top of his lungs when confronted with the allegations, and she described the children as dirty and of marginal appearance. Two years later, in 1980, when Phillips was six years old, CSB received a call reporting that the three step-children were always being beaten and that the previous day they had been beaten badly. However, the caller stated that the children were afraid to tell anyone. The following year, in 1981, the principal of Eddie's school contacted CSB to report a bruise on his arm allegedly caused by his mother. Donna Phillips admitted that she had hit both Eddie and William, Jr. with a belt in a fit of rage. In 1983, when Phillips was nine years old, Eddie reported to CSB that Phillips's father had grabbed him by the shoulder and thrown him onto a bench, causing a red mark and difficulty moving the arm. At that time, Phillips's father was living at the home sporadically, and a total of fifteen people were living in the home. Later that same year, one of the adults living in the home contacted CSB to report that Phillips's father punches his three step-children and had recently punched Tracy in the face. Also in 1983, Eddie reported to CSB that his stepfather had twice pushed him, had pulled his hair, and had beaten him. On a visit to the Phillips home in 1983, a CSB caseworker described cockroaches crawling on the table and walls while she was interviewing Donna Phillips. In 1984, a caller reported to CSB that in addition to physically abusing the older step-children, William, Sr. was molesting Mary. When interviewed by a social worker, the step-daughter admitted that William, Sr. had physically abused her in the past, but she denied any sexual abuse. Following additional complaints in 1985, all three of the older stepchildren confirmed that they had been physically abused by both parents. Tracy, who is mentally retarded, arrived at work with a bruised arm and a cut lip, stating that her mother had struck her in the face. In 1988, a caller informed the CSB that a drug raid was occurring at the Phillips house, and children were involved. It turned out that Donna Phillips had been illegally selling the prescription drug Ritalin. Both parents and Mary were arrested on drug-related charges, and various drugs and weapons were seized from the house. CSB reported that, at this time, the Phillips home was in an extremely filthy condition with a rancid odor and dog feces throughout the living area of the house. Phillips, who was in seventh grade at the time, was temporarily sent to live with his grandmother. Later in 1988, an anonymous caller informed CSB that the Phillips children were running wild, that Donna Phillips was in jail, and that the children were living with Phillips's father. In 1992, CSB received a report that the house was disgusting [and] uninhabitable for human beings.