The Death of Rebecca Riley

When I was compiling my list of cases to look into I must have gotten into another list of murdered children and that is where I have found myself at the moment. I spend my evenings while I am watching television researching cases and then when I get the chance I sit down and put them together. I have a few other cases already researched and generally I would put them together in the order that I researched them so as I do not confuse myself with other cases or put more time between the research and writing than necessary. I do not always do the list one by one, especially if they have a common theme but I do generally look at each one. By the time I got to this case I was a little burnt out on these types of cases. There were a few that were interesting, such as the case of Candace Newmaker, who died in the middle of therapy, but I was not sure that I could give her case justice at the moment. Then I came across this case.

Murder cases that involve children tend to be the worse types of cases. They most often are a result of abuse. Case after case has forced states to re-examine their process of removing and returning children to their homes, as well as keeping better tabs on children in the system. The even sadder part of that is that there seems to be as many cases that involve parents as there are adoptive or foster parents where children had been removed from biological parents. However, when it comes to the case of Rebecca Riley, I only found allegations made about abuse after her death. I found nothing in my research that indicated that the Department of Family Services had been involved with the family or that there were allegations made of abuse prior to her death. One of the biggest contentions in the case was whether the right people, or all of the people who deserved to be punished actually were. I am a huge advocate for mental health reform and there have been more than a few cases in which I believe mental health professionals, or even simply doctors, should face charges. This is just such a case.

On December 13, 2006 in Hull Massachusetts a 911 call was made. Four year old Rebecca Riley was at least at that point unconscious on the floor of her parents' bedroom. Emergency workers could not save the little girl. Her cause of death was listed as “intoxication due to combined effects of prescription drugs.” It was said that the amount of Clonidine in the child's body was at a fatal level.

It was quickly discovered that the young girl was on medications for ADHD and bi-polar disorder. She was on a regiment of medications that included Depakote, Seroquel and the Clonidine. Her psychiatrist, Kayoke Kifuji had not only prescribed these medications to Rebecca but had also prescribed similar medications to Rebecca's two older siblings. Kifuji worked at Tufts-New England Medical Center and they were quick to release a statement to the media that the regiment given was appropriate. According to records Kifuji had first diagnosed the young girl with ADHD at the age of two and then at the age of three had diagnosed her with bi-polar disorder. Prosecutors, as well as medical professionals, argued that Kifuji made these diagnoses almost exclusively based on the word of Rebecca's mother, Carolyn. The medical examiner determined that Rebecca's heart and lungs had been damaged due to the prolonged use of the drugs and their combinations.

On February 6, 2007 Carolyn Riley and her husband Michael were arrested and charged with first degree murder in Rebecca's death. Their two other children were put into foster care. Prosecutors would allege that the couple had a history of being abusive and neglectful to their children but again I found nothing in my research that ever indicated that anything was reported to any official or that the Department of Family Services were involved in any way with the family. Prosecutors alleged that neither parent worked and that they conjured illnesses in their children in order to obtain Social Security benefits for them and used those funds to support themselves. Keep in mind that in most murder cases prosecutors do not have the full story and they are left with giving a jury, and the media a motive and means in order to obtain a conviction for the charges that they had filed. In December of 2007 a judge in the case reduced the charges to second degree murder saying that the evidence did not support premeditation. The prosecutors appealed this decision and it appears as if they won as both Michael and Carolyn still faced first degree murder charges.

For her part Kayoko Kifuji “voluntarily” agreed to not seen patients starting in February of 2007 while the state Board of Registration in Medicine reviewed the case. It also appears that prosecutors were looking to also charge Kifuji but a grand jury declined to indict her. This angered those in the community, including those who would later be asked to judge the guilt of Rebecca's parents. By September of 2009 the Board had finished their investigation, the grand jury had failed to indict her and Kifuji was back seeing patients. In the meantime Carolyn and Michael were preparing for trial. Now prosecutors needed Kifuji to testify for them but she refused to do so without the promise of immunity.

Carolyn went on trial in January of 2010 and Michael went on trial later that year. As I stated earlier, the prosecutors alleged that Rebecca's parents had all but manufactured illnesses in their children in order to obtain Social Security benefits. But, to add to this Carolyn's brother was apparently living with the family at the time of Rebecca's death. It is not clear whether he testified at the trial or if he simply told investigators that Rebecca had been sick for several days leading up to her death and that he had “begged” Carolyn and Michael to take her to the hospital but they had refused. Both Carolyn and Michael's defense attorney's would argue that that Rebecca had died due to what they called a “severe, fast moving” case of pneumonia. Now, in essence this may have been true and it still could have been caused by the drugs she was taking, seeing as it was reported that they had damaged her heart and lungs in the process. And, of course if what Carolyn's brother stated is true about Rebecca being sick and her parents refusing to take her to the hospital then they were neglectful. However, this in a way seems to contradict somewhat the theory based by the prosecution. It was unclear if the family had indeed received Social Security benefits for the children, including Rebecca, or if prosecutors just believed that to be the goal of the parents. I mention this because with the benefits she would have also received Medicare, or Medicaid which would have covered any visits to the hospital. Obviously failing to do so to the point in which it caused her death meant the family no longer received those benefits for one, but for two having another “ailment” would have ensured keeping them. Even still, failing to take her to the hospital while she suffered from pneumonia, as I said would have been neglectful but not likely risen to the charge of first degree murder which required premeditation.

With her immunity in hand Kayoke Kifuji testified against both parents although it is unclear exactly what she had to offer in Michael's trial to be fair. On the stand she did admit that most of her diagnosis came from information given to her by Carolyn. She also testified that in October of 2005, Carolyn had told her that she had gradually increased Rebecca's night time dose of Clonidine to help her slept. Kifuji claimed that she warned Carolyn not to do this and that it could be fatal. In Michael's trial Kifuji stated she had no regrets, nor had she changed her mind on the diagnosis and treatment. I find this extremely odd, but I will be going more into Kifuji later.

On February 9, 2010 Carolyn's jury found her guilty of second degree murder after nineteen hours of deliberations. They had also been given the choice of first degree murder or the charge of manslaughter. Jurors would later say that they had compromised with the second degree charge. She was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole after fifteen years.

Michael's defense was much like Carolyn's when it came to the issue of what Rebecca's died from, but was different in the issue of culpability. They claimed that not only had Michael moved out of the home for a period of time (although to be fair they did not say when or for how long) and had only moved back in a week or two prior to Rebecca dying. They also alleged that Carolyn was the one who took the children to the doctors and administered the medication. While there are reports that Michael did not work so he would have had the time and ability to go to the doctor appointments also, I tend to believe these statements. In fact, even though the prosecutors disputed the defense theory that Carolyn had upped the dose of Clonidine while Michael was gone, even their theory seemed to be that Carolyn administered the medication. They would argue that it was upped when Michael returned because he complained about the kids and wanted them to go to sleep so Carolyn began giving them more of the Clonidine and earlier in the day.

Even still, on September 27, 2010 the jury found Michael guilty of first degree murder. He was given an automatic life without parole sentence. Both he and Carolyn have appealed their cases and their convictions and sentences have been upheld. The state of Massachusetts uses a website called VineLink to track inmates but it tells little more than if the inmate is currently being held. Of course both Carolyn and Michael are still within the state prison system but aside from where they are housed I can tell you nothing more.

I have to say that I disagree with the verdicts in both Carolyn and Michael's cases. It is not that I do not believe that they did not or do not deserve punishment but I do feel that especially in Michael's case he was overcharged and that the jury got it wrong on that charge. But, I agree with many of the jurors that were later interviewed in the fact that Kayoke Kifuji should have been punished too. It was revealed that six weeks before Rebecca died a nurse at her preschool suspected she was being over medicated and called Kifuji. According to the nurse Rebecca was lethargic and she was described as appearing like a “floppy doll.” Kifuji saw Rebecca after this phone call and did not seemingly question anything or adjust any medications. In April of 2008 the Rebecca's “estate” sued Tufts-New England Medical Center and Kifuji on behalf of her siblings. In January 2011 the case was settled for $2.5 million. This was the maximum paid out through a malpractice policy in which the Medical Center held on Kifuji. Attorney's stated that they could have received more, but that the remaining monies would come from Kifuji herself and they claimed she had little to offer.

My youngest son was diagnosed at the age of three with ADHD and later with Aspberger's Syndrome. This was in 1996, long before the Internet was a near necessity in life. He was given Clonidine then and upon research I had quickly learned that it was not FDA approved for use in children and that it was considered to be a blood pressure medication for adults. I questioned the prescription and after a few months without results I informed the doctor I was not comfortable with the medication and it was stopped. Then again I only gave it as it had been prescribed. While my son was two I knew that there was no reason he should be diagnosed with ADHD as toddlers are notorious for imagination and curiosity. Regardless of what any doctor would say I personally believe the diagnosis of ADHD before the age of three, and before any other things are tried, is irresponsible. And yet Kifuji apparently did not seem to think so. To add to this by the age of three she had diagnosed the child with bi-polar disorder. If you are looking to diagnose a child of this age with this disorder then you are going to find it because symptoms of bi-polar are “symptoms” nearly every toddler has. Expert disagree on whether a child should be diagnosed with bi-polar disorder at all and even more disagree with the diagnosis at such a young age. However, that obviously does not seem to be the case with Kifuji as it was said that all three of Carolyn's children had similar diagnoses. At the time of Rebecca's death her brother was thirteen and her sister was seven. Now, it is true that bi-polar disorder is most often inherited traits that are passed down through genes and as a child gets older there can be more and more signs. Bi-polar is most often diagnosed as mood swings that including very high “highs” (aka manic behavior) and very low “lows” (aka depression). Irrational anger can be a symptom. Take a toy away from a toddler and you will see irrational anger. Let a toddler miss a nap or simply get tired and you will see irrational anger and any other mood swing you can likely come up with. It does not appear that Kifuji properly examined any of the children and simply went with the behaviors she was being told by Carolyn that they exhibited. To add to this Kifuji already knew that Carolyn had admitted to giving more medication than was prescribed and she was notified by a school nurse about Rebecca. And yet, still she did not do a re-evaluation and adjust medication. To add to this she then, after being assured she would not be prosecuted for her actions, testified that she had no regrets about her diagnosis nor her treatment of Rebecca. In my opinion this is in direct contradiction to the prosecution theory that Carolyn and Michael, made up the diagnosis to ensure Social Security payments. The bottom line is that either Rebecca had ADHD and bi-polar, as diagnosed by a professional, or she did not. I can say from experience with my own son that when first placed on medications (and we did several relating to ADHD especially) I was told that I could gradually raise the doses in between visits up to a particular amount and then it would be discussed. I cannot say that Kifuji did not tell Carolyn the same and then possibly lied later to lessen her own culpability. I cannot say for sure that Carolyn was not neglectful but in the same respect I cannot say that she was not simply an overwhelmed mother with three children who had a doctor willing to pass out medications to the child that would make her life easier.

By everything that I could gather it appears that Kayoke Kifuji continues to treat and diagnose children today. And, quite honestly, I believe aside from Rebecca's death this is the thing that angers me most about this case. The state Board simply allowed her to resume seeing and treating patients without any sort of repercussions. Sure Rebecca's estate got a 2.5 million dollar payout but those monies came from the malpractice insurance that the medical center carried on their doctors. And yet, the two people who were found guilty of her death, while culpable on their own, were given sentences that in my opinion were more than their actions deserved. Again, do not take this as me saying that her parents were not responsible in some way, because they were. But, at the very least Kayoke Kifuji should have had her license revoked, if not criminally charged.