CLEARWATER, Fla. — Shavon Grossman said she had just wrapped up visitation with Khloe Williams one week ago, when Khloe was dropped off at Pamela Maser’s home. Pamela is her foster grandma.
“I put her in the car and I said be a good girl, next week we get unsupervised and we are going to go do yoga,” she said. “I got a big smile and she rattled her toy and I just expected to see her again.”
ORIGINAL STORY: Homicide detectives investigating death of 7-month-old killed by foster family's dog
As part of the investigation, Chief Daniel Slaughter said while at the home, Khloe became hungry.
“Pamela began to prepare this bottle. And at some point because of this dog that was in this kennel, maybe acting a little energetic or something, opens up that door and the dog immediately goes and attacks Khloe,” Chief slaughter said.
Grossman's lawyers are calling for an independent investigation because Pamela's husband is a former deputy chief, her son is a detective and the baby's paternal grandpa works for the Clearwater Police Department as a civilian employee.
In a press conference today, Chief Slaughter said the department remains impartial.
“There are levels of redundancy to make sure that we are actually living up to the high ethical standards that you all demand,” Chief Slaughter said. “If I felt my staff was acting in a way that was inappropriate or that I felt my staff was not doing their job, I would make a phone call to either sheriff or FDLE immediately to make that request.”
Grossman is in recovery and said Khloe was her motivation to be better.
“She opened my eyes to realize that I can be a good person and I can be the best mom for her and her brothers and nobody was going to take that for me,” Grossman said.
Grossman’s attorneys are requesting an investigation into Eckerd Connects and its vetting process.
Ecker Connects released the following statement:
“A child’s death is a devastating and heart wrenching event for everyone that works with us to care for these children and underscores the seriousness of our work. Each time a loss of this magnitude occurs our agency as well as every one of our partners welcomes a fair and comprehensive investigation and we work to seek answers and coordinate the best possible care for the vulnerable children we serve.Anytime we lose a child a thorough review is conducted by Child Protective Investigators, law enforcement, and the Department of Children and Families through the CIRRT or special review process. The results of the DCF reviews are available to the public and any recommendations or findings are immediately followed up on by our agencies.In Khloe’s tragic death, her foster family was licensed through A Door of Hope, a faith-based community child placing agency. In complete transparency, we have released the licensing file of the foster family.The Maser family is one of nearly 970 foster families in Tampa Bay who step up each and every day to care for the most vulnerable children in our community. We commend these families for their unselfish desire to provide each child the love that they need.We pray for all those who loved Khloe and are saddened beyond measure by this terrible event. We are committed to working with the agencies investigating this tragedy to provide a full account of the circumstances surrounding Khloe’s death.”
