AJ Investigators No Longer With DCFS: Reports

MCHENRY COUNTY, IL — The Department of Children and Family Service employee and his supervisor who were tasked with investigating reports of abuse and unsanitary living conditions within AJ Freund’s home prior to his death in April are no longer working for the state, a DCFS spokesman told media outlets on Friday. Carlos Acosta, the DCFS investigator, and Andrew Polovin, his supervisor, are no longer employed by DCFS following a lengthy internal investigation.

Jassen Strokosch, the spokesman for DCFS, would not say if the two were fired or voluntarily quit. The Chicago Tribune reports the decision stemmed from the handling of a hotline investigation into AJ Freund four months before he was initially reported missing on April 18.

The 5-year-old Crystal Lake boy, who would've started kindergarten this past fall, was later located dead in a shallow grave near Woodstock after his father, Andrew Freund Sr., led investigators to his body, authorities said. His mother, JoAnn Cunningham, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in connection with his death earlier this month. She is awaiting sentencing. His father's case is still pending in McHenry County Court.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Acosta was the caseworker assigned to investigating a Dec. 8, 2018, hotline report regarding environmental neglect for both AJ and his younger brother who, at the time, lived with Freund and Cunningham at 94 Dole Avenue in Crystal Lake.

According to the report, Andrew had bruises, welts and cuts. Police were called to the home and saw a large bruise on Andrew's hip. Police also reported the ceiling was falling down, the floor was torn up and that they noticed a smell of urine in the children's bedroom.

Cunningham was arrested for driving on a suspended driver's license and both children were taken into protective custody. A DCFS investigator interviewed both boys at the police department. AJ's younger brother would not talk with police. He appeared to be healthy and well-cared for, according to DCFS. Andrew was interviewed and reported he received the bruise when the family's dog pawed him.

A DCFS investigator spoke with Cunningham and she said they were remodeling the home and admitted the residence did smell like dog feces and urine. Andrew Freund Sr. posted bond for Cunningham on the driving while license suspended charge and she was released from custody.
That same day, a physician at the emergency room examined AJ and could not determine how his bruise was caused. The doctor reported the injury could have been caused by a dog, belt or a football, according to DCFS.

During the examination, Andrew told the doctor, "Maybe someone hit me with a belt. Maybe mommy didn't mean to hurt me."

A DCFS investigator contacted Andrew Freund Sr. to pick the children up from hospital until the home environment could be assessed and he was asked to remain in the home as a safety precaution, according to the report. The next day, a DCFS investigator conducted an unannounced home visit.

The living room and dining room were cluttered with clothes and toys. The kitchen was clean and the floor was missing tile. The ceiling was not falling and investigator noticed a slight odor of dog urine but no feces or urine was observed on the floor. Andrew Freund Sr. reported to the investigator that he did pick the children up from the hospital last night. He also denied any corporal punishment and he denied Cunningham was using drugs.

On Dec. 20, 2018, the DCFS investigator spoke to a past investigator for the family regarding her case and findings. A couple weeks later, DCFS determined the report was unfounded due to lack of evidence regarding the original allegations of cuts, welts and bruises on AJ.

Earlier in the week, Acosta, who also serves on the McHenry County Board, told the Northwest Herald he had not been into the DCFS office in Woodstock all week. He said he hadn’t been fired but wouldn’t comment further.

His supervisor, Andrew Polovin, is also on leave, Rep. Allen Skillicorn reported in a statement on his Facebook page.

A third employee tied to the case, Kathleen Gold, retired earlier this year, according to Skillicorn.

“After receiving several calls from concerned citizens informing Rep. Skillicorn that Carlos Acosta and Andrew Polivin have been allegedly dismissed, a source at DCFS confirmed that the two are on leave,” according to the statement.

Jassen Strokosch, spokesman for DCFS, could not confirm the employment status of any the employees on Thursday and would not comment on "personnel matters." He did explain the typical procedures in place following the death of a child.

If a child who dies has DCFS contact in the year prior to his or her death, the Office of the Inspector General and the Child Death Review Team investigates the case, Strokosch told Patch. The OIG is responsible for investigating any misconduct, violations of rules, procedures or laws by Department of Children and Family Services employees, foster parents, service providers and contractors with the department.

The office is independent of DCFS and is located in a separate building and its team reports to the governor, Strokosch said. The Child Death Review Team is made up of physicians, psychologists, hospital partners, private agencies and team members that are not involved in DCFS.

DCFS typically waits on the OIG's reports before making any recommendations regarding employee discipline or a firing as well as policy or procedure changes. That final report has not yet come back, Strokosch said Thursday.

AJ Freund, 5, was first reported missing on April 18 and his body was found about a week later after his father, Andrew Freund Sr., lead investigators to it.

In the months following AJ’s death, Patch.com has detailed the encounters AJ's parents had with DCFS during his short life. AJ was placed in foster care with a relative after he was born with opiates and benzodiazepines in his system. After 18 months, AJ was returned to his parents care and the Department of Children and Family Services made 26 visits to the home, where they reported no signs of abuse or neglect.

The family went almost two years without any contact with DCFS until calls started coming in again in March 2018 regarding "odd bruising" on AJ's face and dog feces on the floor at the home and then the December 2018 hotline investigation.

Related Content:

• Police Reports Provide Glimpse Into Missing Boy's Home Life
• ‘Maybe Mommy Didn’t Mean to Hurt Me:’ DCFS Timeline Released

In October, AJ’s family filed a federal lawsuit that accuses the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services investigator Carlos Acosta and his supervisor Andrew R. Polovin of reckless conduct, violation of investigative protocol and callous disregard in the months leading up to the boy's death.

The lawsuit filed by the State Bank of Geneva claims Acosta and Polovin ignored DCFS procedures and the prime directive of the Illinois Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act after Crystal Lake police department took AJ from his parents, who were accused of abusing him, and placed him in protective custody.

The lawsuit claims Crystal Lake police officers, medical personnel and AJ's neighbors made numerous calls to DCFS' Child Abuse Hotline in 2017 and 2018, describing AJ's injuries and the "appalling" condition of the home at 94 Dole Ave. in Crystal Lake that he shared with his parents and younger brother."

Inexplicably and contrary to DCFS procedures," only two of the calls made to the hotline in those two years were investigated — one from March 18, 2018, and the other from Dec. 18, 2018, the lawsuit says. Acosta and Polovin then "conducted sham investigations and filed reports which included falsified findings intended to justify their determinations that the allegations of abuse were 'unfounded.'"

Related:

• Court Records Show History Of Neglect, Drugs For Freund's Parents
• Cunningham Beat, Berated AJ After He Wet The Bed: Warrant
• Details Released Following Cunningham’s Guilty Plea
• Workers In AJ Freund Case Expected To Be Fired
• Prosecutor Wrote Letter To DCFS A Year Before AJ Freund's Death
• DCFS Woes in McHenry Co. 'Getting Worse,' State's Attorney Says
• State Rep Urges Gov To Cancel Holiday Gala, Focus on DCFS Woes