Arrest warrants have been issued against two Michigan couples accusing them of conspiring to adopt dozens of children that they then abused, “all for personal financial gain.”
Jerry and Tamal Flore and Joel and Tammy Brown have until Friday to surrender on the charges, brought by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, the Lansing State Journal reports.
“The allegations in this matter are heinous and egregious,” Nessel said. “In the area of child abuse, the harms caused to an individual’s mental health are often, unfortunately, overlooked. Abusive behavior by any parents — adoptive or biological — is unacceptable and will not and cannot be tolerated.”
All four of the suspects were previously charged, but the cases were dismissed by a local prosecutor and judge.
Nessel said the current charges relate to eight of nearly 30 children who have been placed in the couples’ care since 2007. Others her office believes were also abused are now past the statute of limitations for child abuse, she said.
Nessel said the couples subjected the children “to prolonged, routine and systemic mental and physical abuse under the guise of discipline.” She said the couples were “easily able to manipulate the system” to obtain more than a $1 that should have gone to care of for the children
Attorneys for Tamal Flore and Joel Brown scoffed at the new charges.
“It seems to me like they’re grasping at straws and trying to save themselves from a civil suit,” David Carter, Flore’s attorney, told the State Journal.
“We believe the same result will occur this time around,” Brown’s attorney, Mary Chartier, said, claiming that the previous charges were dismissed for lack of evidence. “We won in court once, and we’re confident that we’ll do so again.”
Charges filed against the parent in 2021 were dismissed earlier this year by Clinton County Prosecutor Tony Spagnuolo, who said he did so “because there was a continuing further investigation.”
The charges in that case accused the parents of beating the children with a boat oar, throwing them down stairs, locking them in bedrooms for days, forcing them to sleep in closets, and withholding meals.
A separate case against the Browns was dismissed in 2022 by Clinton County Judge Michael Clarizio, who said prosecutors had not presented enough evidence to go forward.
At least one adopted daughter of the Flores, who married an adopted son of the Browns, says that she was never abused.
“It’s really been crazy hearing the accusations just because, I mean, if I’m being totally frank, my mom is my best friend,” Shamber Brown told WILX.
As for the Browns, she said, “They were like the one safe family I feel like that, us kids, we got to be with. I mean, I married one of their sons.”
The attorney general’s office responded to comments from Brown and other children, saying they had interviewed 10 children and were confident about their case, WLNS reported.
According to the State Journal, Joel Brown, a 54-year-old former child advocate with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, faces five charges, including first degree child abuse, conspiracy to commit child abuse, and interfering with a crime report. He was put on unpaid leave from his state job in 2022 and subsequently fired.
Tammy Brown, 53, has been charged with three counts, including first degree child abuse and conspiracy to commit child abuse.
Jerry Flore, 58, faces 11 charges, including six counts of first degree child abuse, conspiracy to commit child abuse, and interfering with a crime report.
Tamal Flore, 56, has been charged with 17 counts, including six of first degree child abuse, six of third degree child abuse, and conspiracy to commit child abuse.
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[Featured image: Jerry and Tamal Flore and Joel and Tammy Brown/Facebook]
