European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 20, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday june 20, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 9mother, army differ on child a treatment from Page 1 army had Matthews statements later retracted by him that his Mother abused him. In addition he came to class one Day with a scratch and a slightly swollen lip. So the system responded quickly to protect the child. To place Matthew in a Foster Home the army went to the local West German guardianship court m bad Kissinger for authority to take the child. Since then Community officials involved in the Case have been instructed not to talk about it Ohl says. Thus it is unclear who decided that Matthew was being abused or that German authorities should be notified. The Rev. Timothy Clegg a civilian Catholic priest for Schweinfurt and bad Kissinger believes the Best interests of the child and the family have not been served. A i feel that things that have happened Here have been handled quite poorly a he said. For the time being an uneasy truce has settled in. Matthew was returned to the Kwarciany Home on june l. And a social worker from the Wurzburg school system who had been making regular trips to the Home does not now visit the Kwarciany. However Matthews status is temporary. He remains in the Legal custody of Schweinfurt social work services part of the army family advocacy program. The West German court has retained jurisdiction and mrs. Kwarciany still could face charges. She would like the right to Send Matthew to visit his grandparents and father in Texas but has been told she can to. Matthew says he is glad to be Back. A i done to want to leave my Mother anymore a he says. A this is where i  the roots of the Kwarciany Case go Back to 1981, when Karen gave birth to Matthew out of Wedlock in Texas. She married another Man two years later a relationship that she says deteriorated into beatings sexual abuse and other problems. A the actually thought that he was Matthews biological father a she says. She left the Man shortly after Matthews second birthday and moved in with her parents and two Brothers in Lynchburg Texas. It promised to be a More stable life. There were the grandparents the uncles a swimming Pool three acres of land and dogs and cats to play with. About two weeks later however the husband took off with the boy on a six month three state flight. When Matthew was finally returned he a did no to seem to remember anybody a says his grandmother Mary Anne Campisi. A the was just learning to talk when he was taken away from us and now he Wasny to talking at  after the return the boy remained in his Stepfather a custody until a bitter court Battle ended in his mothers favor. During the custody fight Campisi and Matthews Mother saw that he had cigarette bums on his arms and signs of redness and bleeding on his buttocks and genitals. Two years later Karen met Terry Kwarciany a Soldier in Killeen Texas. They married and moved to West Germany in May 1988. But there were signs of trouble with Matthew even before the move. Kindergarten teachers in Texas wrote that the boys a social attitude toward others is  one report card noted that he tends to a spout and becomes angry when  problems continued when Kwarciany was res amps John Millar in photo taken while Matthew Hebert the Center of Contention was in Foster care Are from left Karen Andrew Terry and Jonathan Kwarciany. Assigned to g troop 2nd so 11th army Cav regt in bad Kissinger. In the first Grade at bad Kissinger elementary Matthew began disrupting classes. He talked of returning to Texas and threatened suicide mrs. Kwarciany says. In december 1988, he began to see Elizabeth Neumann a clinical psychologist with Schweinfurt a exceptional family member service. She made her first report on Matthew on Jan. 8, 1989. She wrote that his a verbal Content was often unusual with much talk about his wish to marry a specific Little girl in Texas. Matthew often gets carried away with his stories and it was difficult to determine if he believed All or Only portions of his  mrs. Kwarciany provided a copy of the report to the stars and stripes. It was recommended that Matthew Transfer to Schweinfurt elementary school where a better program for emotionally disturbed children existed and he did so the following school year. He was placed in Schweinfurt a special education program for the psycho emotionally impaired. Yet things got worse mrs. Kwarciany says. By december 1989, Matthews parents were told that he had repeatedly stated in school a a in a not sure but i think in a being  in january Kwarciany left for fort Knox ky., for five months of training at master gunners school. His wife remained in West Germany. On april 14, everything fell apart she says. The couples first child Andrew had a fever and mrs. Kwarciany says she had been up with him for 48 hours. She was at her wits end with what she describes As a a smart mouthing Matthew. He got a spanking that consisted of a three smacks to the butt with my hand a she said. A a that a Why god made Butts a she said. A a that a the Only place you re allowed to hit a child. At least that a what i  she said he continued misbehaving and she accidentally scratched his face when she grabbed for his hand to Lead him into his bedroom. She says she walked away from him but he yelled at her. A when i turned around he was right there. There was no Way to Stop the movement of my turn and this is when either my Elbow or hand hit his face a she says. With a scratch and slightly swollen lip Matthew was sent to school. A if 1 really Felt like i did something wrong i  have sent him to school a mrs. Kwarciany says. When her social worker arrived at 9 . For a regular visit Kwarciany told her what had happened. At 1 p.m., school officials arrived accompanied by people she believes were agents of the criminal investigation come and social work services. Several Days later Matthew told mrs. Kwarciany that he did no to have to do the things she told him to do. A the said a who the hell do you think you Are you can to hit me anymore a ill Send you to jail a a mrs. Kwarciany says. On april 18, . And German authorities arrived at the Kwarciak Nyss door with a German court order allowing them to take Matthew a by Force if  the document asserted that Matthew suffered repeated and unwarranted physical abuse. Mrs. Kwarciany has her supporters. The Day after Matthew was taken bad Kissinger sub Community commander it. Col. Michael j. Of Rourke signed a certificate honouring mrs. Kwarciany for a outstanding Volunteer service and support of daily Barracks chapels Mission of ministering to the needs of people within this  of Rourke wrote a character reference for her on april 24, stating a Karen has always impressed me As a very Loving and caring Mother. She has the inner strength and Good judgment to discipline her children and Tell them a not when being permissive would be easier and More  Matthew he wrote was a a Bright articulate Little boy who a can be  the two documents signed by of Rourke also were provided to the newspaper by mrs. Kwarciany. Clegg the Catholic priest says mrs. Kwarciany has Servidas a Lector eucharistic minister and sunday school teacher. Clegg believes that authorities acted inappropriately. The Kwarciany also have support from friends among them Colleen Bowers. She and her husband have been Foster parents for nine years and arc parents of an emotionally handicapped child Robin. A Karen baby sits for me quite often a Bowers says. A a she a one of the few people i Trust to keep  the Kwarciak Nyss lawyer Wolfgang Seufert of bad Kissinger is appealing the custody Case to a higher court in Schweinfurt. In his Appeal he says medical reports showed inconclusive evidence that Matthew had been abused. Yet the Kwarciany done to know whether  have full custody Over Matthew again. Matthew at least for now is Back with his Mother and making his wishes Clear. A i Hope i stay Here a he says.44-Page regulation guides family workers by Rosemary Sawyer staff writer with a 44-Page regulation As their guide army family advocacy workers must decide daily when family matters Cross the line to become military matters. In the Case of 8-year-old Matthew Hebert advocacy professionals apparently determined the need to protect the boy overrode the need to keep the family together. However they refused to Tell Matthews Mother Karen Kwarciany exactly who made the decision or what factors they considered when choosing to remove the boy from his Home. The army a family advocacy regulation basically commissions each military Community member to be his neighbors keeper. Every Soldier employee and member of the military Community is expected to report suspected cases of child abuse. Every Community has a phone number that people can Call to report spouse or child abuse. In most cases its the military police number. Credible child abuse reports received by doctors Counselor social workers and other professionals also must be channelled to military police authorities. Military commanders must be notified of All abuse reports involving soldiers or their families. Next an investigation is begun into whether evidence exists to substantiate the report. An abuse review team called a family advocacy Case management team reviews evidence gathered by social workers Law enforcement officers and medical officials. It determines whether a report is substantiated unsubstantiated or suspect. A report is considered suspect when further investigation is needed to Label it As substantiated or unsubstantiated. The review team normally includes a paediatrician nurse chaplain dentist police official military lawyer psychiatrist psychologist child care coordinator and drug and alcohol program official. When the abuse review team determines a Case is substantiated it recommends a treatment program to the soldiers commander. The commander then decides whether to allow the Soldier to go through treatment and whether any punitive action will be taken. The family advocacy Case management team also intervenes to protect the victim from further injury. It categorizes each child abuse Case As a threat to life a a Foster care or  arrangements Are then made to place the child in a Foster Home in medical protective custody or have the suspected abuser removed from the Home. A doctor treating an abused child on a military installation can take a child into protective custody without parental consent if the child a continued presence with the parents would endanger the child a life or health. In cases where threat to life is not involved and the parents will not consent to the child a being placed in a Foster Home the appropriate state or foreign court must authorize removal of the child from the Home. Installation commanders can authorize emergency Foster care when judicial authorization or parental consent cannot be obtained in a manner timely enough to protect the child