It's clear that government "safety nets" failed to catch Kristen Tatar in her descent into hell. But allegations of a government cover-up represent something darker.
Kristen, 4, died of starvation in 2003 after a torturous home life. Police found her emaciated body stuffed in a cooler, put out with the trash. Her parents, James Tatar and Janet Crawford, are serving life terms for her murder.
Now from a wrongful death lawsuit emerge shocking allegations involving three social service agencies -- Kristen's only lifeline -- as her parents attempted to dodge scrutiny by moving from Westmoreland to Armstrong County.
Among the more troubling accusations -- Westmoreland County Children's Bureau faked dates and signatures on paperwork, Armstrong County caseworkers added entries to Kristen's file postmortem and the Penn State Cooperative Extension Office in Greensburg burned case notes.
For four years the horrific fate of an abused little girl took a back seat to damage control and finger-pointing. If allegations of a cover-up are true, it's unconscionable; criminal charges should be lodged.
Come April in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, the question of any agency's disregard, willful or otherwise, will be addressed and judgment rendered. For those long denied closure in the case of Kristen Tatar, the truth can't come soon enough.
