REMEMBERING KENNETH

Kenneth White, affectionately known as Kenny, was five years old. He was a kindergartner at Berne-Knox-Westerlo Elementary School and had a twin sister, Cheyanne, as well as a younger sister, Christine. Those who knew Kenny remembered a friendly, bubbly little boy whose smile stood out. He was the kind of child people noticed. After his death, approximately 900 people gathered outside his elementary school for a candlelight vigil. They stood together in the falling snow, holding candles and remembering the little boy whose life had ended only days before Christmas. Kenny had even been signed up to attend the Albany County Sheriff’s annual Christmas party on December 20, where children from the surrounding communities would receive donated Christmas presents. He never made it. Kenny was killed two days before the party.

KENNETH’S STORY

Kenneth and his two sisters had experienced instability before arriving at the home where he would ultimately die. Their parents, Jayson and Christine White, lost custody after authorities discovered the children living in deplorable conditions. In September 2014, legal custody of Kenneth, his twin sister and their younger sister was given to their aunt, Brenda VanAlstyne. The move was supposed to provide the children with a safer place to live. Instead, they entered another troubled home. Kenneth and his sisters lived in a small trailer on Thacher Park Road in Knox with Brenda, Brenda’s nineteen year old daughter Tiffany VanAlstyne and others. Tiffany regularly helped care for the children and was sometimes left alone with them. On December 18, 2014, Brenda left the home to run an errand. Tiffany remained behind with Kenneth and his sisters. At some point while caring for Kenny, Tiffany became frustrated with him. She struck the five year old and strangled him. Kenneth died inside the trailer. Tiffany then carried his body outside and placed him in a snowbank across the road from the home. But rather than tell authorities what had happened, Tiffany created a kidnapping story. She called 911 and claimed that two masked men dressed in black had entered the trailer, pinned her down and abducted Kenneth. The report triggered an enormous search. Police, sheriff’s deputies, search teams and members of the community began looking for a missing five year old boy they believed could still be alive. An Amber Alert was issued. But Kenneth had never been abducted. As investigators began questioning Tiffany’s account, the story unraveled. Later that day, a police K9 searching near the home found Kenneth’s body in the snow. The little boy everyone had been desperately searching for had been across the street from his home. Investigators determined that Kenneth had been strangled and struck. Tiffany eventually confessed. Kenneth’s sisters had been inside the trailer, only feet away, when their brother was killed.

SYSTEM FAILURES

Kenneth’s death exposed problems extending far beyond what happened during his final hours. Authorities already knew this family. Kenneth and his sisters had been removed from their parents because of neglect and deplorable living conditions. The children were then placed with their aunt Brenda VanAlstyne. But the home intended to protect them was not safe either. After Kenneth’s murder, Family Court proceedings revealed evidence that his sisters had suffered abuse and neglect while living there. One of Kenneth’s sisters had extensive bruising across her small body. She reported that Tiffany had struck her numerous times, including with a baseball bat. Testimony also established that Brenda knew Tiffany had hit children in her care. An Albany County Family Court judge ultimately determined that both surviving girls had been neglected while in Brenda’s custody and that one had been physically abused. The judge described an environment in which the children faced a serious risk of injury or death. There was another system failure on the very day Kenneth disappeared. When the Albany County Sheriff’s Office attempted to obtain Child Protective Services records during the search for Kenneth, officials were denied access because of restrictions surrounding confidential child welfare records. After Kenneth’s death, a review determined that those records should have been released. Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple later described Kenneth’s death as preventable and called what happened a systemic failure. Kenneth’s case ultimately helped drive a change in New York law. Legislation commonly known as Kenneth’s Law was passed to make it easier for law enforcement investigating a missing child to obtain relevant Child Protective Services records when a parent, guardian or other person legally responsible for the child has been the subject of an abuse or maltreatment report. The change could not save Kenneth. But his name became part of an effort to prevent another child from being lost inside the same gaps between agencies.

JUSTICE FOR KENNETH

Tiffany VanAlstyne was arrested and initially charged with second degree murder. She was later indicted on two counts of second degree murder and one count of manslaughter. The evidence against her included her own videotaped confession. In November 2015, Tiffany admitted in Albany County Court that she had killed Kenneth after becoming frustrated with him. She pleaded guilty to second degree murder under a depraved indifference theory. The plea agreement called for a sentence of 18 years to life in state prison. On January 14, 2016, a judge imposed that sentence. At sentencing, the judge said there had been warning signs surrounding Tiffany that had not been addressed and described her as a “time bomb waiting to go off.”

Tiffany VanAlstyne

Relationship to Kenneth: Cousin and caregiver
Conviction: Second degree murder
Outcome: Guilty plea
Sentence: 18 years to life in prison

FOREVER REMEMBERED

There are two images from December 2014 that stand in painful contrast. One is a five year old boy who was supposed to attend a Christmas party and receive a present. The other is a community standing outside his elementary school in the snow, holding candles because that little boy was already gone. Kenneth should have experienced that Christmas. He should have gone back to kindergarten after winter break. He should have continued growing beside his twin sister. He should have watched his younger sister grow up. Instead, the systems surrounding Kenneth repeatedly moved him from one unsafe situation into another. But what happened to Kenneth also brought people together in his name. His community remembered him. People organized to advocate for vulnerable children. And changes were made to New York law carrying Kenneth’s name. None of those things can replace the childhood he lost.

Kenneth was more than the five year old found in a snowbank. He was Kenny. A kindergartner. A twin. A big brother. A friendly, bubbly little boy remembered for his smile. That is the child who deserves to be remembered. Abuse Angels remembers Kenneth White. Remembered. Honored. Never Forgotten.