State had 'big file' on child who died

Thursday, January 27, 2005

State had 'big file' on child who died
Case of 4-year-old in Lake Stevens is investigated

By CLAUDIA ROWE AND CHRISTINE FREY
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTERS

A 4-year-old who died last week at her Lake Stevens home had repeatedly come to the attention of state child welfare workers as an alleged victim of abuse or neglect and spent time in foster care before being returned to live with her family, authorities said yesterday.

Kathy Spears, a spokeswoman for the Department of Social and Health Services, could not say how many referrals the state received on Sirita Sotelo, who was dead when Snohomish County sheriff's deputies arrived Friday night at the unkempt home where she lived with her father, John Clifford Ewell, 30, and stepmother, Heather Ewell, 25.

But the records are "voluminous," Spears said. "It's a very big file."

Investigators with Child Protective Services are now reviewing the case.

Sirita had been living with the Ewells -- neither of whom has been the target of any child welfare investigation -- since leaving foster care in November 2003, Spears added.

The child's biological mother, Patricia Sotelo, 40, has been in the Snohomish County Jail for the past six weeks on an unrelated matter.

She has been in and out of court on drug charges since 2000, and her ex-husband, Ewell, was convicted of a burglary and forgery during the 1990s, records show.

The exact cause of Sirita's death is still under investigation, but Rich Niebusch, a spokesman for the Sheriff's Office, said her body showed signs of "homicidal violence."

No one answered the door of the house in the 2500 block of 101st Avenue Northeast, a narrow, wooded street in a middle-class neighborhood, though last night a light and television were on.

Inside, a miniature Christmas tree stood by the window amid other holiday decorations, and a children's portrait hung on a wall.

Deputies arrived there Friday at 11:25 p.m., after an aunt at the home called 911 to report that a child was unconscious and not breathing.

Five other children -- two boys and three girls ranging in age from 11 months to 8 years -- were immediately removed.

One was Sirita's cousin, the others her half-siblings, Niebusch said.

"They didn't appear to be harmed, but the deputies, for safety reasons, took them into protective custody," he added.

All are now staying with relatives.

No arrests have been made.

One neighbor, who didn't want her name used, said she had seen the parents swear at their children and described the home as "a problem house, period."

Another, Jaime Drivdahl, said: "I don't know what to think. It's really sad. Everybody's got problems, but what a shock."

Sirita's mother was told of her daughter's death by an investigator.

"That was a painful notification," Niebusch said. "The detective said it was very, very difficult."

P-I reporter Claudia Rowe can be reached at 206-448-8320 or claudiarowe@seattlepi.com

Add P-I Local headlines to