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#Post#: 39--------------------------------------------------
Child-abuse allegations against dad shatter life of luxury
By: Montraviatommygun Date: March 10, 2011, 6:45 am
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Child-abuse allegations against dad shatter life of luxury
The father is arrested after a nanny provides video to Orlando
cops.
Walter Pacheco and Bianca Prieto | Sentinel Staff Writers
May 9, 2008
The new neighbors in one of Orlando's toniest areas appeared to
have an ideal life.
Brian Kloosterman and his wife, Stephanie Schreiner, had
invested millions in real estate. They also shared their luxury
with five children, including four they adopted from
poverty-stricken Guatemala.
But now Kloosterman is under investigation and the children are
in protective custody. A nanny told police Monday that one of
the couple's adopted daughters had a suspicious bruise, and that
Kloosterman -- a stay-at-home-father in the brick mansion on
Cherokee Drive -- had beaten one of his adopted sons.
Police say the nanny showed them a video recording that captured
Kloosterman whipping his adopted son with underwear and crushing
the child under his weight on a bed. Kloosterman was arrested on
charges of child abuse early Tuesday and was released a day
later from the Orange County Jail after posting $1,000 bail.
This is the second time Kloosterman, 33, has come under scrutiny
following allegations of child abuse. The Orange-Osceola State
Attorney's Office investigated an aggravated child-abuse
complaint in 2007, but no charges were filed.
In that case, it's alleged that Kloosterman, a former EMT, shook
and injured the couple's 9-month-old adopted baby girl, state
attorney's spokeswoman Danielle Tavernier said.Details of that
case have not been released, but the child's X-rays were
reviewed by Orange-Osceola Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jan
Garavaglia, of the popular TV show Dr. G. Medical Examiner.
Garavaglia told reporters Thursday that she reviewed the
infant's records as a "professional courtesy" to Schreiner, a
pathologist at Orlando Regional Medical Center whom she had met
only once three years ago.
Garavaglia remembered that the baby in that case "appeared to
have suffered non-accidental injuries, but no clear-cut evidence
on the time frame." She urged prosecutors to conduct additional
tests, which might determine when the infant was injured.
After realizing the injuries would be the focus of a child-abuse
investigation, Garavaglia said, she severed communication with
Schreiner. "I didn't want any more to do with it," she said. The
case remains open.
Neither Schreiner nor Kloosterman could be reached for comment.
Investigators "did everything they could to make sure the
children were safe, but there was insufficient evidence to go
any further," Department of Children and Families spokeswoman
Carrie Hoeppner said of the 2007 case.
As a result of the new case, the couple's five children were
placed in protective custody.
"Potential caregivers have been identified, and they may not
need to enter foster care," Hoeppner said. A judge ruled that
Kloosterman is not allowed to see his children and Schreiner can
have only supervised contact.
On Monday, the family's most recent nanny, Cynthia Velez,
contacted police after videotaping Kloosterman. That's the
videotape, according to police, that shows Kloosterman flicking
the child in the face with underwear and pressing him down on a
bed with his body.
Some neighbors were shocked by the allegations.
Maggie Rogers described Kloosterman as a loving and attentive
father.
"They seemed perfectly normal," Rogers said. "They seemed like
responsible, normal, devoted parents."
But Velez told police that Schreiner fired her after she
confronted her about Kloosterman this week. The previous nanny,
Alice Martin, also was fired after complaining to the mother
about similar behavior, Velez told police.
Adoption experts said it's curious that the couple could
continue to adopt children -- their most recent adoption was
three weeks ago -- after a previous allegation of child abuse.
"Even if the accused is cleared of any wrongdoing, the standard
practice is to suspend any pending adoptions or deny placement
outright," said Chuck Johnson, vice president of the National
Council for Adoption.
(HTM) http://www.orlandosentinel.com/orl-baddad0908may09,0,5237842.story
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