Bill Diamond

On January 31, 2001, five-year-old Logan Marr (b. October 14, 1995) died of suffocation after being duct-taped in her foster home. Foster parent Sally Ann Schofield would later be found guilty of manslaughter receiving a twenty-eight-year prison sentence with all, but twenty years suspended. She was released after seventeen years. The judge at the time […]

WINDHAM, Maine — While Walk a Mile in Their Shoes hopes that outcomes will improve for abused and neglected children in Maine’s care and are concerned that appointing Ms. Johnson Permanent Director of the Office of Child and Family Services will fall short of creating the structural improvements necessary to protect Maine’s kids. “Very disappointed for

On Tuesday, December 12, 2023 Walk a Mile in Their Shoes released its report entitled “Unsupported: Key Lessons for Improving Maine’s Child Welfare System by Supporting All Stakeholders.” The report can be downloaded by visiting https://walkamilemaine.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/unsupported_wamits_report_121223.pdf Walk a Mile in Their Shoes founder Bill Diamond said, “This report is the result of 10 months of

Again, Mainers are faced with the all too familiar case of a child being killed in their home after DHHS had been notified by a mandated reporter of the suspected abuse of a minor. In October 2022 DHHS found no child abuse had occurred. Just two months later, on Christmas morning the girl was found

The Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS) has once again failed to appropriately monitor and oversee the safety of a child. One-month-old Sylus Melvin was killed by his father Reginald Melvin who plead guilty. It had been reported to OCFS that the child was in danger because his father was violent and unpredictable. Sylus

Former Senator Bill Diamond issues statement to the Government Oversight Committee (GOC) regarding the government watchdog report analyzing the Department of Health and Human Services’s (DHHS) handling of the Maddox Williams case. The Walk a Mile in Their Shoes founder puts into question the watchdog’s credibility in this instance considering the report’s conclusion that caseworkers

It’s time we take advantage of the experience of those working in child protection, the people who know and understand the system.

Walk a Mile in Their Shoes is pleased to announce upcoming April listening sessions in Augusta, Rockland, and Auburn during National Child Abuse Prevention Month. These informal meetings are an opportunity for people—foster care parents, childcare professionals, adopters, and others—involved in State mandated day-to-day care of children facing crisis to be heard anonymously and without

Senator Diamond expressed appreciation for justice in the sentencing of Jessica Trefethen who was sentenced to 47 years in prison after being found guilty of depraved indifference murder of her 3-year-old son, Maddox Williams. Diamond expressed frustration knowing Maddox’s death could have been prevented if DHHS had been more diligent and not placed him with

Sen. Diamond issues statement on Jessica Trefethen murder conviction. AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, a jury found Jessica Trefethen guilty of depraved indifference murder in the death of her son, 3-year-old Maddox Williams of Stockton Springs. Sen. Bill Diamond, D-Windham, who attended some of the trial, issued this statement after learning of the jury’s verdict: “The