The state of Kansas is set to pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit over the death of a seven year old boy who was brutally abused and murdered by his father and step-mother nearly 10 years ago.
The lawsuit was filed in 2017 by Adrian Jones’ mother, maternal grandmother, and sister who claimed the Sunflower State and social workers failed to intervene and remove the boy from an abusive home where he was starved, tortured, and had his body fed to pigs.
The settlement was approved on March 12 by Gov. Laura Kelly and several top leaders of the Kansas Legislature, according to the Associated Press.
Matt Birch, an attorney representing Adrian’s mother and other family members, celebrated the major case update saying it has been a “long journey.”
“This has been a long journey for Adrian’s family,” Birch said.
“The most important thing for the family was to hopefully make a change and make this less likely to happen in the future.”
In their lawsuit, Adrian’s family argued that the state failed to “recuse” the seven-year-old at any time during the years-long abuse he faced from his father and step-mother.
The lawsuit claims that social workers and state officials instead “chose to act like disinterested bystanders.”
HORRIFIC ABUSE
Adrian, 7, was living with his father Michael Jones and stepmother Heather Jones in Kansas City, Kansas at the time of his death.
The two are currently both serving life sentences in jail over the horrific abuse and murder of the boy.
Adrian’s remains were first discovered in November 2015 near a barn where his father and stepmother kept pigs and chickens.
At the time, police had been called to the property over a domestic violence call and soon learned that Adrian had not been seen for months.
It was later discovered that the couple had abused the boy for several years before his death, forcing him to endure painful conditions such as standing overnight in freezing water.
Authorities also claimed that Adrian was subjected to beatings, zappings with a stun gun, and being locked naked in a shower stall.
At times, the boy was also reportedly strapped to an inversion table, handcuffed, and was forced to suffer from starvation.
The Sun previously reported that the abuse got so bad that it ultimately left the boy’s ankles bent out of shape.
After Adrian ultimately died from the abuse, authorities said Michael and Heather fed his body to the pigs on the property.
Michael admitted to abusing and murdering his son ahead of his trial in 2017.
At the time, Adrian’s maternal grandmother Judy Conway said she was “relieved” by the confession.
“It makes me pretty happy,” Conway said.
“I’m relieved that he and Heather will hopefully be behind bars for the rest of their life. It won’t bring Adrian back, of course, but it makes me feel really good that neither one can hurt another child again.”
“A Long Journey”
“This has been a long journey for Adrian’s family,” said Adrian’s family’s attorney Matt Birch. “The most important thing for the family was to hopefully make a change and make this less likely to happen in the future.”
FAILED ACTION
In the lawsuit filed against the state of Kansas, Adrian’s family argued that social workers had investigated and “carefully documented the abuse” against the boy for years.
However, the Kansas Department of Children and Families reportedly had limited contact with Adrian and his abusers, reportedly having physical contact with him nearly four years before his death, according to the Associated Press.
“But their idea of intervention was limited, almost exclusively, to having A.J.’s father and stepmother sign a piece of paper agreeing to stop torturing the child — the legal equivalent of a ‘pinky swear,’” the lawsuit reportedly said.
“As it turned out, that signed paper might as well have been A.J.’s death warrant.”
In response to the lawsuit, the state reportedly argued that Michael and Heather frequently moved, making it difficult to track Adrian.
Following the announcement of the recent settlement, Kansas Senate Minority Leader Dinah Sykes said she believes the state faced “a lot of liability” over Adrian’s death.
Meanwhile, state Rep. Susan Concannon, chair of the Kansas Legislature’s Joint Committee on Child Welfare Oversight, told the Associated Press she was “a little bit surprised” the settlement was not more than its agreed amount.
‘MORE EYES’
In the years following Adrian’s death, a multiyear legislative review of the child welfare system was conducted, according to the Associated Press.
By 2021, “Adrian’s Law” was put into effect requiring all state officers and caseworkers to visually observe any children that were flagged as alleged abuse or neglect victims.
At the same time, the state of Kansas has also reportedly worked to improve training for doctors in order to better recognize signs of abuse as well as provide “wrap-around” services for families.
Birch told the Associated Press that through the lawsuit and the legal advancements, Adrian’s family hopes there “will be more eyes of these kids.”