Carolyn Warren has taken care of her grandson, Jason, since his mother died in a car accident in 1990, when he was 9 months old. Over the years, the Fresno woman has fed him, bathed him, bought him clothes and toys, and sent him to school. 
She also has spanked him when he misbehaved.

          But Warren's life changed earlier this month when officials from Child Protective Services took Jason, now 7, away and placed him in a foster home after Warren spanked him with a belt.

          Now she must fight two court battles: one involving a criminal charge of willful cruelty to a child; the other involving custody.

          "Some days I just want to cry," Warren, 44, said in an interview. "But I know I can't cry because [the system] will crush me." Officials at Child Protective Services, a Fresno County agency charged with protecting abused children, declined to comment on the case, citing confidentiality laws.

          But the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Jason's second-grade teacher, Barbara Belcher, are in Warren's corner, trying to help bring the child home again.

          Warren, who is single and works as a billing clerk for a Fresno truck company, said she spanks the child when necessary, but not to the point of abuse.

          "I love my baby," she said. "I would never hurt him."

          Warren said she obtained legal custody of Jason when her daughter, Tammie Dixon, died in a car accident in Los Angeles in 1990. The boy's father, Jonie Chapel, has never been a part of his son's life, Warren said, and CPS officials apparently cannot find him. 

          Jason, like many children, has his own room, a television, and dozens of videos and video games to keep him entertained. He has an attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity, Warren said, and has been taking the medication Ritalin since November. Because Warren works, he also spends time with a day-care provider after school.

          On the morning of May 14, Warren said, she spanked Jason because the day-care provider said the boy had been misbehaving. Afterward, she fed him breakfast and took him to school, dressing him in shorts that day. 

          Considering the disciplinary action minor, she even mentioned it to Belcher, Jason's teacher. "I said he's probably going to be a good boy today because I just spanked him," she said.

          Belcher confirms that conversation and also said she examined Jason and found no broken skin. But the spanking left marks and bruises on Jason's leg and arms, and an imprint of the buckle was discovered on the boy's thigh, according to a court document filed later. Warren believes the marks came when Jason wriggled to get away from the belt; she denies hitting him with the buckle.

          Belcher said another staffer reported the alleged abuse to Fresno police and CPS, who came to the school and took the child away. Warren learned about their actions in a phone call at work. She also learned, from a court document, that Jason was placed in a foster home because he "is at substantial risk of further physical abuse, in that Warren has a history of hitting Jason with a belt and Jason is fearful of Warren."

          She said she is shocked to hear that Jason fears her, but she can understand his thinking. "I know he thinks I'm mean because I'm the one who makes sure he takes a bath, goes to school and does his homework," she said.

          According to CPS, she cannot see the boy unless he wants her to visit, and so far he has not asked to see her.

          Belcher says Warren is a "wonderful mother to a challenging kid." She also said school officials have been to Warren's home and found it to be a good environment for the child. (Warren said CPS officials have never visited her home.) Belcher said the school has called CPS officials twice, since Jason hasn't returned to school, but the calls have not been returned.

          "I have a lot of respect for CPS, but I don't understand why they haven't contacted [school officials] for our input," she said.

          The Warren case has largely gone unnoticed by the public, but resembles an incident involving a local leader that drew headlines last year. Johnny Nelum, head of the local NAACP office, was arrested in May 1996 for spanking his 8-year-old nephew.

          In that case, the spanking left welts on the boy's back and arm. When charges were ultimately dismissed, Nelum said he would spank the child again if necessary, and would form a group to help other parents who might face the same dilemma.

          It cannot be determined how many spankings are reported to authorities; Fresno police, Fresno County prosecutors and Fresno Unified school officials all say they do not track such incidents. In general, state law does not prohibit parents or guardians from spanking a child with a belt, said Fresno Sgt. Tim McFadden.

          But the spanker faces a citation or arrest if great bodily injury or death results, or if there is "unjustifiable physical pain or mental suffering," he said. "There's a thin line between discipline and abuse," McFadden said. "Where you cross it - that's something the courts have to decide."

          When Jason was taken away, Warren said she initially thumbed through the Yellow Pages, looking for free legal advice in getting the boy back. Then she turned to the NAACP, where she found Nelum. Nelum says Warren, who is African-American, is being unfairly punished because she hasn't the money or clout to fight the tangled legal system. He said the system hurts parents and guardians like Warren who believe tough discipline is the only way to keep children from gangs and drugs. "It's either give them the belt or visit them in the morgue," he said.  "Parents have to give their children tough love, because that's the only way to make them mind." 

          Bob Freed, an assistant district attorney, declined to comment on the Warren matter, saying office policy prohibits talking about pending cases. 

          Warren, who has no prior criminal record, will be arraigned in Fresno Municipal Court on June 30 and has been ordered to appear in Fresno Juvenile Justice Court on July 8 to see whether she can get Jason back. But she hopes the NAACP can help her bring the child home earlier - before his eighth birthday on June 3.

          "I know [CPS officials] are just trying to do their job, but how can they destroy my family?" she said.

All content © 1997 Fresno Bee, The (CA) and may not be republished without permission.