Episode 103: Heaven Watkins (Part 1)

When eleven-year-old Heaven Watkins was found dead in her family’s Virginia home on May 18, 2018, her mother, Latoya Smith, and the woman’s live-in boyfriend, Demont Harris, told neighbors the little girl with autism and cerebral palsy had died from natural causes. In truth, Heaven’s death was anything but natural, and Latoya and Demont were charged with murder, accused of beating Heaven so severely that her small intestine ruptured.This is the story of a little girl well known to the child protection system in her home state of Minnesota who completely fell off the radar when her family moved to Virginia. It’s also the story of a child whose completely preventable death has paved the way for more vigorous child protection laws in Virginia, and, with any luck, nationwide in the near future.In my next episode, you’ll hear my conversation with Heaven’s aunt and kinship caregiver, Dr. Sheronda Orridge, an incredibly accomplished woman who has never stopped fighting for her special niece. This is part one of the tragic story of Heaven Watkins.Links discussed in today’s episode:Kimberly Flower on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/KimberlyFlower0111Tammy Risen’s book, In the Best Interest of a Child: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Interest-Child-Chronological-Perspective-ebook/dp/B08F7K12QW H.R.485 - Stronger Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act: https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/485/textHeaven’s Law (Virginia): https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?191+sum+HB1671Photos related to today's episode can be viewed on Facebook and Instagram:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sufferthelittlechildrenpodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/sufferthelittlechildrenpodYou can also follow the podcast on: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/sufferthelittlechildrenpodcast Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/STLCpodTumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/sufferthelittlechildrenpodPinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/sufferthelittlechildrenpodTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@STLCpod My Linktree is available here: https://linktr.ee/stlcpod Visit the podcast's web page at https://www.sufferthelittlechildrenpod.com. Please help make the show my full-time gig to keep the weekly episodes coming! By supporting me on Patreon, you'll also access rewards, including a shout-out by name on the podcast and exclusive gifts. Pledges of $5 or more per month access ad-free versions of my regular Wednesday episodes. Pledges of $10 or more per month access a small but growing collection of Patreon-exclusive bonus minisodes! Visit www.patreon.com/STLCpod. (www.patreon.com/STLCpod) This podcast is researched, written, hosted, edited, and produced by Laine. For more stories like this one, visit https://sufferthelittlechildrenblog.com.Music for this episode is from https://audiojungle.net. Subscribe to Suffer the Little Children:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/suffer-the-little-children/id1499010711Google Podcasts: https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=com.google.PlayMusic&isi=691797987&ius=googleplaymusic&apn=com.google.android.music&link=https://play.google.com/music/m/I5mx3lacxpdkhssmk2n22csf32u?t%3DSuffer_the_Little_Children%26pcampaignid%3DMKT-na-all-co-pr-mu-pod-16Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/suffer-the-little-childrenSpreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/show/suffer-the-little-children Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/suffer-the-little-children/PC:61848?part=PC:61848&corr=podcast_organic_external_site&TID=Brand:POC:PC61848:podcast_organic_external_siteSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0w98Tpd3710BZ0u036T1KEiHeartRadio: https://iheart.com/podcast/77891101/ ...or on your favorite podcast listening platform.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/suffer-the-little-children--4232884/support.If you see something, say something. https://childhelp.org