Iowa's Department of Health and Human Services is responsible for investigating allegatons of child abuse. (Main image by Catherine Falls Commercial and Getty Images; logo courtesy the State of Iowa)
The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services says it can’t comment on a teenager’s alleged murder of a child-care worker in May and it has yet to disclose related emails that were requested three months ago.
In May, 15-year-old Jovahn Mathis was charged with second-degree murder in the death of 50-year-old Kathleen Galloway-Menke at Ellipsis, a juvenile treatment center in Johnston. Mathis, who is alleged by police to have had a history of threatening violence, allegedly ran up to Galloway-Menke on May 8 and shoved her, causing her to fall and strike her head. The fall resulted in severe brain damage and, ultimately, Galloway-Menke’s death.
The Iowa Capital Dispatch subsequently asked DHHS whether Mathis was qualified for placement at Ellipsis, whether a particular employee in the agency’s Family and Well-Being Protection Division was involved in that decision, and whether the DHHS director was aware of the transfer or had approved it.
In response, an agency spokesman said state law prevents DHHS “from commenting on any matters related to child welfare without the proper authorization” – although, in the past, the agency has openly discussed its actions in child-welfare cases that have resulted in a death.
The spokesperson noted that the standard procedure for the transfer or placement of a child who is in the state’s custody, as Mathis was, begins with the agency reviewing the child’s well-being and care needs. After that, DHHS makes a recommendation to the court for placement of a child, and the court then approves or denies the agency’s recommendation.
On May 22, the Capital Dispatch asked DHHS to provide access to two weeks’ worth of emails and other written communications that involved the Family and Well-Being Protection Division employee and the death at Ellipses.
On June 21, DHHS said the requested records had been retrieved and were being reviewed for confidential information. On July 8, the agency said the emails and written communications were still being reviewed. The documents have yet to be disclosed.
In response to the Capital Dispatch’s request that steps be taken to preserve the documents while the request is pending, the spokesperson said the records “had already been placed on a litigation hold” to preserve them due to the potential for a lawsuit.
Polk County prosecutors have yet to determine whether Mathis will be charged as an adult, a youthful offender, or a juvenile. That decision is expected to follow the completion of an evaluation by Juvenile Court Services.
A status conference in the case is scheduled for Aug. 29.
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