REMEMBERING CODY

 

Cody Wayne Wood was only 18 months old.

 

He was still a baby in so many ways, completely dependent upon the adults around him to feed him, comfort him, take him for medical care and keep him safe.

 

Long before Cody died, there were concerns about his wellbeing.

 

His family noticed.

 

Relatives reached out for help.

 

Medical professionals saw him.

 

The child welfare system knew his name.

 

But Cody was too young to understand any of that.

 

He could not tell a caseworker what happened inside his home.

 

He could not explain an injury to a doctor.

 

He could not pick up a telephone when he was frightened or hurting.

 

Cody needed the adults around him to recognize his danger and act for him.

 

In August 2001, at only 18 months old, Cody suffered a devastating abdominal injury while in the care of his mother’s boyfriend.

 

He did not survive.

 

CODY’S STORY

 

Concerns about Cody began months before his death.

 

When Cody was approximately six months old, he was diagnosed as failing to thrive.

 

That brought his family into contact with Larimer County child welfare authorities.

 

The concerns did not end there.

 

During the weeks before Cody died, members of his own family became increasingly worried about him.

 

His aunt, biological father and grandmother contacted the county child abuse agency with concerns about Cody.

 

Then, only four days before his death, Cody was taken to Poudre Valley Hospital.

 

He had suffered serious injuries.

 

According to later reporting on the case, Cody had two skull fractures.

 

Despite the seriousness and suspicious nature of those injuries, the case was not reported to child protective authorities.

 

Cody was sent home.

 

Four days later, he was dead.

 

On the day of the fatal assault, Cody’s mother, Melissa Wood, was working at a restaurant in Loveland.

 

Cody was left in the care of her boyfriend, Joshua Carr.

 

During that time, Cody suffered massive blunt force trauma to his abdomen.

 

Investigators determined that Carr had been physically handling Cody when the fatal injury occurred.

 

The force caused a severe laceration to Cody’s liver.

 

He began bleeding internally.

 

Cody was taken to McKee Medical Center in Loveland.

 

Doctors could not save him.

 

He died at only 18 months old.

 

The coroner determined that Cody suffered blunt force trauma to his abdomen that severely lacerated his liver and caused him to bleed to death.

 

The examination also documented a bruise on his back and a broken rib.

 

The injuries Cody suffered were not compatible with the safe care an 18 month old child should have received.

 

SYSTEM FAILURES

 

Cody’s death did not occur without warnings.

 

His involvement with Larimer County had begun when he was approximately six months old and was diagnosed as failing to thrive.

 

As Cody’s life continued, members of his own family became concerned enough to contact authorities.

 

In the weeks before Cody died, his aunt, biological father and grandmother reportedly contacted the county child abuse agency seeking help.

 

Then came an opportunity that should have brought Cody’s safety under intense scrutiny.

 

Four days before his death, Cody was treated at Poudre Valley Hospital with two skull fractures.

 

The suspicious injuries were not reported to child protective authorities.

 

Cody was discharged.

 

Four days later, while once again dependent upon the adults around him for his safety, Cody suffered the abdominal trauma that killed him.

 

His death raised painful questions about what might have happened if the concerns from his relatives had resulted in stronger intervention or if the hospital had reported his injuries.

 

Cody was 18 months old.

 

He could not make those reports himself.

 

The systems built to recognize danger in children too young to speak for themselves had opportunities to see that something was wrong.

 

Cody did not get another opportunity.

 

WARNING SIGNS

 

Cody’s case contained serious warning signs.

 

He had previously been diagnosed as failing to thrive.

 

Several relatives independently became concerned enough to contact child welfare authorities.

 

Only days before his death, he suffered skull fractures serious enough to require hospital care.

 

And after he died, additional injuries were documented, including a broken rib and bruising.

 

Injuries such as unexplained fractures in a very young child require careful investigation.

 

When several people independently express concern for the same child, those concerns deserve to be examined together rather than treated as isolated events.

 

Cody could not explain what was happening to him.

 

His injuries were speaking for him.

 

JUSTICE FOR CODY

 

Joshua Carr was prosecuted for Cody’s death.

 

The evidence established that Cody suffered the fatal abdominal trauma while Carr was caring for him.

 

Cody’s liver was severely lacerated, causing catastrophic internal bleeding.

 

Carr was ultimately convicted in connection with Cody’s killing and sentenced to life in prison.

 

Joshua Carr

 

Relationship to Cody: Mother’s boyfriend and caregiver

 

Outcome: Convicted

 

Sentence: Life imprisonment

 

FOREVER REMEMBERED

 

Cody Wayne Wood lived for only 18 months.

 

There are records of agencies.

 

There are hospital records.

 

There are reports of telephone calls from worried relatives.

 

There is a coroner’s report documenting what happened to his tiny body.

 

But Cody himself was not paperwork.

 

He was a little boy.

 

At 18 months old, his world should have consisted of discovering new things, learning new words, being held when he was frightened and trusting that the adults around him would keep him safe.

 

His family tried to raise concerns.

 

His injuries offered warnings of their own.

 

Four days before Cody died, he was still alive.

 

There was still time.

 

There was still an opportunity for his story to end differently.

 

Cody deserved for someone to recognize that opportunity and protect him.

 

He deserved to leave the hospital for a safe place.

 

He deserved a second birthday.

 

He deserved years in which 18 months became only the very beginning of his story.

 

Instead, 18 months became all the time Cody was given.

 

His life was short.

 

His life was not insignificant.

 

And his name deserves to be remembered for far longer than he was allowed to live.

 

Abuse Angels remembers Cody Wayne Wood.

 

Remembered. Honored. Never Forgotten.