Julia, reporter for the San Jose Mercury News ,
You write on the podcast that as a young mother I moved from my parents to friends and back again. And soon fell into drug abuse – I spent my pregnancy and the first two years of Joshua’s life living at my parents home as a single mom – not a druggy mom. After Josh and I shared a home with friends until my world fell apart. Your writing makes it sound like as a new mother with a baby in tow I was hoping all over the place until falling into a world of drugs, I own that time when my world fell apart and I trusted you to share my story – It’s part of the story I have shared for years, what was happening with in me when Joshua came to be living with KW and Judy, There are no court complaints of drug user mom made by KW, no court action taken against me because of drug use . KW spit out drug user on the podcast interview because he read my webpage, he didn’t know how I was dealing with what happened to me when I didn’t have Joshua with me, it was none of his business. There came a time in my life when I stepped in the gutter and partied for days on end you are correct. I own it, I carry the shame and the guilt, I shared this because it is part of Joshua’s path, But for you to take my words and change them is so far over the wrong line.
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And I agree with Dennis’s comment to you about what you wrote about gas station day, there was no bolting from the car to find KW – KW canceled a visit with him again, this time to kill moose which was why once again Joshua was upset and it built up slowly and when he entered pre melt mode Dennis was driving and had to pull off the freeway to talk with Joshua where he continued to act out, Julia you read the description of his behavior and how Joshua and Dennis became separated, God bless sweet Joshua but he was blowing it big time with his behavior and he was blessed he recognized where he was when they became separated and walked to the Sheriff’s Office, you tossed out bolting from the car and fleeing to the public , you claimed our home was not the safe place I sold to the Judge – Why would you say that ? You skipped sharing anything about our struggles with the Klavers that caused Joshua to melt and misbehave after the Judge placed Joshua with us. You said nothing of our court response to the Klaver’s taking gas station day into court, you read the file- You shared nothing about him showing up at our home at midnight with a San Jose PD standing behind him wearing his gun on his hip demanding to enter our home to check on Joshua when we thought he was in Canada killing moose. And I don’t understand why you wasted your time rewriting history on this evening when it is discussed in out court file instead of talking about the Judges, the note in our file and Sheriff Smith’s involvement instead you choose gas station day with your own personal twist of bolting from the car in search of his father- really Julia ?
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I also have a huge issue with the I’m fuzzy bubble you kindly placed around Sheriff Smith when it comes to 1990 when Joshua’s social worker stood before the CDRT and gave the same statement from the podcast – Asst Sheriff Smith was heading up the Sheriff Office side of that and she never approached the social worker nor her boss who felt the same way she did, The Sheriff’s Office including Assistant Sheriff Laurie Smith made a choice in 1990- the same choice the Department made when Joshua died- the same choice they made at Joshua’s school – Twice and they collectively with Smith in charge choose to sit on all that information and you said nothing – – Sheriff Smith left Bobbi Klaver out there for 18 months after she gave her statement on the phone to the investigator that set forth the investigation, Under Sheriff Smith’s Watch we lost Bobbi’s true statement and you know this, you and I have been talking long before the case closed. This 2014 investigation started and ended with her fingerprints all over it and you gave her media time fuzzy – There is nothing of her involvement in 1990 or her mis management of the 2014 investigation on the podcast, Nothing – The people of Santa Clara County deserve to know what she is capable of doing, Do you think we are the only family that gets fuzzy from her when she speaks with the press about our loved ones. She tossed out the words possible cover-up in a sentence, But like you pointed out in the podcast everything that happened up until Joshua’s death she was just a low level jail guard at the time but about 15 months later she became the Assistant Sheriff of Santa Clara County, Wow is all I have to say about that. But just in time to be in charge of November 1990, where she learned everything about the department issues about Joshua, CPS statements to the CDRT and she choose to do nothing then she sits there on the podcast and tosses out the words possible cover up and something about it wouldn’t happen on her watch – Before 1990 when she became involved there was no cover up happening, just refusal and protection of Joshua’s father all out in the open for all to see for years, the Sheriff Office carried no shame for what they were doing with the knowledge they had ever. .The cover-up of past information she spoke of on the podcast could only have happened in 1990. Isn’t that correct Sheriff Smith? She became part of that cover-up in 1990 that she speaks of and for you to post that media moment of tragedy of tragedies for her on the podcast is disrespectful and a insult to Joshua’s memory
After all your hard work you could of had a much bigger moment here connecting everything that happened but along with the note put in our sealed court file by a Judge after Joshua death you dropped it and went with gas station day and opened ended comments by you and KW’s filth left to the readers imagination , His comment about the Judge giving me- the birth mother another chance – that never happened and you know this because you have our court documents but you put that on the podcast without challenging his statement. Why ? I have spent the last 11 years learning information of the systems actions years ago, every time I felt thats as far as I will get I would learn something else that kept me from putting my file away and I would pound on the California system some more. You found information that backs what I have been saying since before Joshua’s death and instead of pounding on that information and connecting the dots for the public you sold them a child custody case and went with gas station day and a media op for Sheriff Smith and ended the podcast by wasting so much time talking about how the world is so small with the Klavers old lawyer and Joshua’s social worker living close by to you, who cares !! Listening to their lawyer talk about how good looking and macho KW was and how women like that, You thought that was important ? are you serious ? Damn Julia.
Editorial- Mercury News – Would we still fail Josh Klaver today?
http://mercurynews.ca.newsmemory.com/publink.php?shareid=00bfb8db9
Editorial: Child’s apparent suicide in a San Martin barn holds lessons for us today
I found this editorial written by the Mercury News Staff > “Atkins blames herself for her years of drug abuse that allowed Klaver to initially take custody of the child.” Take a moment in – Who I am for details –
I could be seen by some as splitting hairs. Was it the 8 months that I own when life became harsh for a time, KW and I legally agreed with no courtroom involvement that it was best for Joshua at the time to have his main residence with his father not years of drug abuse the paper has decided to push out twice now in these editorials. After everything Joshua went through I could just own the difference in time but it’s not the truth. In our court documents KW complaints at this time were – no home base besides my parents -true sleeping on the couches at friends –at times true – a chronic issue of being un employed- true – During these months when my choices became Joshua’s lifetime he was not with me when I slipped in and out of partying too much. KW knew the harshness that happened in my life at this time but he still couldn’t resist being a pig for the reporter and she just printed what fell out of his mouth. .I carry enough guilt and responsibility without you adding un-truths on top of this nightmare for the public but it did win you those nifty awards .
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My plan was to listen to each podcast again one-at-a-time as I wrote but I’m feel a strong energy pulling me to talk about Sheriff Smith. I will not go into detail of my interactions or thoughts about her because those thoughts are addressed on other pages. As I listened to one of the podcasts the reporter was speaking with Sheriff Smith on the phone and I was listening for the serious questions about her misconduct when it came to Joshua, 1990 and the first CDRT Review where Joshua’s social worker spoke; the 2014 investigation mess, how could she be fuzzy about that it just closed 10 months ago and her hands were all over it. I waited for those questions–if they were asked, they never made it to print or podcast in the Mercury News. What I did hear Sheriff speak about was doing everything for the children; really?? I know better as do many other families of blotched investigations in Santa Clara County. . “tragedy beyond tragedies.” All of them.
Mercury News Reporter >
For months, her office refused many interview requests, instead emailing a statement calling Josh’s death a “tragedy beyond tragedies.”
Then, suddenly she took my call — days after we started publishing this series. “Klaver was a problem employee,” she told me, but said she couldn’t discuss personnel matters, only her feelings about the former deputy. She wasn’t shy about that.
“He just seemed to be a problem all the time, you know, kind of like, I don’t want to say a scammer, because that’s not the right word. … Devious maybe. He’s always seemed devious,” the sheriff said. “He was always suspect for something. I don’t mean a suspect. But there was always a sense that there was something wrong.”
Frankly, the sheriff was fuzzy about many of the details of the multiple investigations into Josh’s death — she was a sergeant back when Josh died.
But she said she was aghast at how Klaver’s fellow deputies handled the child abuse complaints against him, especially the one at Josh’s school. That’s the time a Child Protective Services worker confronted Klaver and a group of fellow deputies as they surrounded Josh after he told the school his dad had knocked him down some steps.
> > “If I were to look at that today, I would say it was an attempt to cover it up,” Smith said
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This is where you hear me scream loudly – In 1990 when the child death review board pushed Joshua’s death out for review Laurie Smith was no longer a sergeant. She was Assistant Sheriff to the people of Santa Clara County. Twenty months after his death she sent homicide deputies into my home, lied to us that a full investigation was opening, gathered the information they needed for the CDRT and then harshly shut me down. I heard no questions or comments about this on the podcast. I heard no questions about the statements made in the Klaver Trilogy about the issues that effected KW’s stance with the Sheriff’s Department started in November 1990. This was the time in history when the Sheriff’s Office wanted to remove their misconduct from Joshua’s nightmare, a practice they continue to use today.
After Joshua’s death someone in the family courts placed in our legally sealed court documents the news article on Joshua’s death with a hand written note on it disowning their actions of returning Joshua to his father. . Where are the reporters comments about the Fogel court decision from the Bench document and letter slide . .I sat and wondered where were all the questions and comments that should be asked about this, Nothing came. The reporter made it clear that she asked many questions of Sheriff Smith, she spoke of Smith being fuzzy about issues, I wanted to hear her ask the questions so everyone could hear the fuzzy, I know I wanted to hear it. Instead I listened to Sheriff Smith talk about picking the right word for KW’s employee issues – It was like listening to a carnival wheel spin until it landed on just the right word . . . . She said she was aghast at how Klaver’s fellow deputies handled the child abuse complaints against him. . She knew every single detail in 1990 after her new job as Assistant Sheriff started, 20 months after Joshua’s death she was in charge of the 1990 invasion into our home with homicide deputies for information for the child death review, CPS gave the statements that are spoken of on the podcast to the CDRT and the Sheriff’s Office did not react at any level. I remember living the moments but the claims of the Klaver Trilogy- written by PORAC – Legal Defense for Law Enforcement are that Sheriff Smith ( Assistant Sheriff ) was in charge of this process. – She said to the reporter that she would have been aghast – She stood by and did more than stay silent, she worked hard to make sure it stayed that way.
The paper gave the Sheriff Office, DA’s Office, Medical Examiners Office, and the Attorney Generals Office the grace of conducting investigations and reviews of Joshua’s death multiple times which did not happen professionally, there is a difference and they all know that. I expected the paper to have seen all these investigation reports from each of these agencies to print such a statement but there are no investigation records from the AG’s Office – emails of me begging them to help while the 2014 investigation was conducted like it was but you won’t find any investigation records – The Medical Examiner – Before the 2014 re enactment I contacted the ME’s Office multiple times and they told me to go away- No investigation records – Just to do the re-enactment the ME and the SO combined had Nothing – As I listened to the podcast I heard the words, they asked the homeowners for two things – A kitchen chair and a rope and my heart crushed, for me, for them to be asked such a thing, Bobbi picked out the rope out on line – could they not stop at a farmlife tackle shop and buy one – Excuse me homeowner we are here to reenact a child’s death in your barn, can we borrow a chair and a rope, we lost ours. My jaw dropped and I cringed. To the home owners, I’m sorry that was asked of you for conducting such a thing on your property. . I have always had a problem with this re enactment without truth and now that two new witnesses have stepped forward claiming to have been there that night, the husband helped cut Joshua down he said. None of Bobbi’s statements on video to the reporter of that night had other people in the barn helping, She walked the reporter through what she remembered , she called a neighbor to watch over the children and 911, gated dogs – opened property gates. Bobbi says she raced back to the barn and encouraged KW to keep up with cpr but the neighbor said KW had not cut Joshua down yet when he entered the barn- I’m left with more questions now and one is how long will the Sheriff’s Office leave these people unquestioned — The paper said not one word that Sheriff Smith while she was sharing the care about Joshua’s death on the podcast that she left Bobbi Klaver sitting out there for 18 months after the phone call between her and the investigator that opened the investigation – Not one word from the Mercury News.
Claims of the system doing multiple investigations – NO NO and NO In a investigation people are spoken with, statements are taken. The reporter spoke to people with serious information; people the 2014 investigation never approached, In 1990 CDRT review- The Sheriff Office did not approach these people, Joshua’s CPS worker told the review board the information she shared on the podcast and the Sheriff Office never knocked on her door, Assistant Sheriff Smith at the time was in charge of the 1990 “investigation” and I don’t think they wanted this CPS workers words in their limited file on Joshua. In 1989 when Joshua died the Sheriff Office did not approach these people or myself. The Attorney Generals Office nor did the Medical Examiners Office approach these people . .The reporter did all that for them after the Sheriff Office closed the 2014 case. These investigations they claim, I think it’s clear to everyone now that they never happened.
Mercury News- Dr Jordan – Medical Examiner / Reenactment specialist
I asked Dr. Jorden whether the death review team had looked at Stewart’s ruling — where he listed eight acts of abuse that Josh had suffered at the hands of his father, including whipping, kicking and hitting. Surprisingly, she said, it had not.
“This is the first time I’m hearing of it,” she said.
I spoke with Dr Jordan on the phone and in emails about everything that has happened in 2014 before the 2nd CDRT meeting and I gave her permission to access our Court files and any other records she can find that would need a parent approval. I was more than a bit surprised by her statement. If she is claiming to not of had Stewarts child abuse finding what do they have from those Sheriff Office child abuse files, they are the only other avenue of documented child abuse outside the family court system and they refuse to share the reports even with me without a court order. Joshua received a Sate of California Database update for whats in those files. Would it have been the same database outcome if she had pulled the court records I gave her permission to have ?
9/9/17 – I feel like talking about our Judges, Judge Fogel stands out right now because of his statement to the reporter in the Podcast. He said he knew nothing of Judge Stewarts findings of child abuse, I have a huge problem with that and the issue that the system passed Joshua between three Judges. Joshua had One Family Court file and that day Judge Fogel is saying the child abuse findings- CPS child abuse findings – Court Mediator child abuse findings- testimony of child abuse – Sheriff Office child abuse reports where not in his file and claims that he never saw any of that information when he returned Joshua to his abuser that day. I have nothing kind to say about this man, this protector of the people that did not take the time to read my sons file. He made this decision on his lunch break, I have court documents declaring we will take up once again after lunch and when everyone returned the Court without even speaking with me about why Joshua was mentally tipping over had a plan built to return Joshua to his father and KW’s attorney was instructed by Judge Fogel to put his orders from the Bench in a document. I have hand written notes from our court file that I pulled in 2015 instructing the Klaver’s attorney to do this. In our file that I pulled in 2015, along with the handwritten court record making a very clear decision from the Bench I also found a photocopy of a article written about Joshua’s death by the Mercury News with a hand written note saying the court had no involvement in returning Joshua to his father’s.
SJMN-Article-InFile2
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When I talk about what Joshua went through my thoughts always wonder when Bobbi started living with one foot out the damn door while she participated in Joshua’s nightmare
I think I learned the answer to my question from the Mercury News Podcast – Bobbi makes claims that these serious issues started at the beginning of their marriage – They ran off to get married the week I found out about the abuse and she stayed and stepped forward to back KW in Family Court and to Joshua’s mental health doctors for years before Joshua’s death.
The details of the other restraint orders on the Oklahoma Court system page are unknown to me but they are there.
I came across a conversation about Joshua and the Mercury News podcast on reddit, The conversation had been closed so it was too late to add my thoughts and maybe that was for the best – A poster at the end of their comment said > Also still not a fan of the reporter, just showing up at that poor ex wife’s doorstep. Her trumped up podcast story isn’t worth traumatizing these people again. The words Poor ex-wife causes my heart to cringe because Joshua’s step-mothers protected KW and kept the abusive behavior a secret for him, ex-wife #2 Bobbi Klaver just became more involved in the harshness. There are NO poor ex-wives in the room. One must understand the Klavers have never been traumatized, at least not for long. Everyone heard KW say on the podcast that he’s fine with the suicide ruling, I bet he is. Everyone is fine with it he said except his mother. I never will be.