Ponca City Mom Says DHS Worker Struck Son With Car

Wednesday, March 30th 2011, 3:13 pm
By: News 9

Adrianna Iwasinski, News 9

PONCA CITY, Oklahoma -- A Ponca City woman said she became the target of a Department of Human Services investigation after a DHS worker struck her toddler with a car.

Amanda Boyd's 23-month-old son has a lot of cuts and bruises, a tire mark across his right thigh, and seizures. She blames them all on an accident that happened a week ago.

Boyd said she was in the shower when her son somehow opened the front door, wandered out into the street, and was struck by a car.

"This is the first time he had ever done it and my heart just dropped when I noticed he was outside," said Boyd.

Deanna Westerman was driving by and saw little Dylan toddle off the curb and into the street where he was hit by a car.

"I screamed ‘Don't do it!' And sure enough he stepped off and the car struck him on his right side," said Westerman.

But Boyd said she's not just upset about the accident; she's angry about what happened after her toddler was hit. She said the woman behind the wheel was a DHS worker who not only showed little compassion for hitting her child, but threatened Boyd.

"This lady came over and made a statement ‘That once this mom finds out who I work for she's not going to want to come after me,'" Westerman said.

"She's made several statements that if we go after her then she's gonna cause problems for us and we're not going to like what happens," said Boyd. "I'm not concerned about where you work. I'm concerned about my child's life, why he's not of any importance to you."

Boyd said what makes her even angrier is the fact that DHS is now investigating her. She said she is contemplating filing a lawsuit as a result.

"Accidents happen. I could forgive that. But to not show any remorse and now this?" Boyd said.

But DHS spokesperson Sheree Powell said the investigation is standard protocol.

"Any time a young child wanders into the street and gets hit by a car, regardless of whether or not the child is hurt, it should generate a referral to the child abuse hotline. This could be a case of lack of supervision by the parent or possible parental neglect. OKDHS takes these allegations seriously and would take appropriate action to ensure the safety of the child," said Powell in a statement.

Witnesses claim the driver may have been using a cell phone at the time of the accident, but the police report does not make any mention of it and did not find anyone at fault for the accident.

The woman who hit Boyd's son told News 9 she could not comment about the incident at this time.