Father and grandparents of three-year-old girl who was tortured to death by her mother and put in the freezer win $5 MILLION settlement after accusing city of ignoring their reports of abuse
- Kayleigh Slusher's body was found frozen in a duffel bag in January 2014
- She had been murdered by mother Sarah Krueger, 28, and Krueger's boyfriend
- Krueger and Ryan Scott Warner, 30, were sentenced to life in prison in 2017
- Kayleigh's father Ryan Slusher and her grandparents sued city of Napa in 2015
- Claimed police and Child Welfare Services ignored their concerns for Kayleigh
- Police visited Kayleigh's home three times in the two weeks before her death
Napa has reached a $5million settlement with the father and grandparents of a three-year-old girl who was murdered by her mother and mother's boyfriend.
The city and county will split the settlement in the death of Kayleigh Slusher, whose frozen body was found in a suitcase on a bed in her mother's apartment.
Sara Lynn Krueger, 28, and her boyfriend Ryan Scott Warner, 30, were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the horrific January 2014 murder.
Kayleigh's father Jason Slusher and her grandparents Robin and Benny Slusher sued the city and county in May 2015.
Napa has reached a $5million settlement with the father and grandparents of three-year-old Kayleigh Slusher, who was murdered by her mother and mother's boyfriend
Sara Lynn Krueger, 28, and her boyfriend Ryan Scott Warner, 30, are facing life sentences without the possibility of parole for the horrific February 2014 murder
They claimed Child Welfare Services and the Napa Police Department ignored their repeated allegations that Kayleigh was being abused and neglected.
US District Judge Saundra Brown Armstrong agreed.
'The horrific murder of Kayleigh likely could have been prevented had the police officers and social workers involved in this case performed their jobs with any semblance of competence,' she wrote in an early opinion of the case.
Police officers were called to Krueger's apartment five times in the months before Kayleigh's death, according to the Napa Valley Register.
Three of those visits came in the two weeks before her murder.
Napa officer Garrett Wade visited Krueger's apartment in January 2014 after receiving reports from the family that Warner had an outstanding warrant for his arrest and that Kayleigh was in danger.
He did not investigate further, serve a warrant, or report suspected child abuse, according to the lawsuit.
Kayleigh's body frozen body was found in a suitcase on a bed in her mother's apartment
Krueger and Warner had already fled the Napa apartment (pictured) when police found Kayleigh's body. They were arrested a day later
Wade visited the apartment again that same month after Robin Slusher reported that Kayleigh was being denied food, in the presence of illegal drug use, and was possibly being abused.
The lawsuit states that Wade and fellow officer Dominic DeGuilio saw that Kayleigh's face was bruised and that she appeared 'sick, malnourished, and distressed'.
But Krueger told the officers that Kayleigh had the flu, took her into the bathroom, and told them to leave.
Wade told Robin that he would 'keep an eye on the apartment' but did not return before Kayleigh's horrific murder, the lawsuit states.
Before her granddaughter's death, Robin also called county Child Welfare Services and reported that Kreuger and Warner were using drugs.
She said that the couple was also intentionally depriving Kayleigh of food and that there was a warrant out for Warner's arrest.
Robin was told that Child Welfare Services could not do anything about the situation.
Kayleigh's father Jason Slusher (pictured together) and her grandparents Robin and Benny Slusher sued the city and county in May 2015
They claimed Child Welfare Services and the Napa Police Department ignored their repeated allegations that Kayleigh was being abused by Krueger (right) and Warner (left)
'If police and social workers had done their jobs, Kayleigh would still be there,' Robin said on Wednesday.
Prosecutors said the couple had been high on methamphetamine for days when they beat Kayleigh to death on January 30, 2014, and then stuffed her body in a freezer.
The couple later pulled the girl's body out of the freezer and stuffed it in a duffel bag that they tucked into a bed in the apartment before fleeing Napa.
Police found Kayleigh's body on February 1 after receiving a call to conduct a welfare check at the house.
An autopsy showed she had died of multiple blunt force injuries to the head and torso.
Krueger and her boyfriend were arrested the next day at a BART station 30 miles away in El Cerrito after witnesses spotted the fugitives.
Warner and Krueger were both found guilty of first-degree murder in June 2017 and sentenced to life in prison.
Warner and Krueger (pictured in court in May 2017) were both found guilty of first-degree murder in June 2017 and sentenced to life in prison
Both Warner and Krueger's defense attorneys claimed the other partner killed Kayleigh. Warner is pictured here in court in May 2017
The multi-million dollar settlement in Kayleigh's death was reached in early December but announced by Napa on Wednesday.
It is the largest wrongful death suit in the history of the city and county.
Both Napa County and the Napa Police Department maintained that officers and Child Welfare Services followed state law in the weeks before Kayleigh's death.
But Napa police said it has since updated its policies for responding to child abuse, such as requiring officers' to complete written reports before the end of their shift.
Officers have received additional training in 'prevention, investigation and reporting of child abuse and neglect', according to the department.
They have also been trained to recognize risk factors indicating child abuse, such as living conditions, histories of domestic violence in the family, and previous events at the child's address.
The multi-million dollar settlement in Kayleigh's death was reached in early December but announced by Napa on Wednesday
Both Napa County and the Napa Police Department maintained that officers and Child Welfare Services followed state law in the weeks before Kayleigh's death
'Kayleigh Slusher's death was a terrible tragedy,' Police Chief Robert Plummer said in a statement on Wednesday.
'The City and County of Napa have committed to doing everything in their power to prevent and protect other children from suffering child abuse and neglect.'
Jason Slusher revealed on Wednesday that he still cries every time he tries to talk about his daughter's death.
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'I feel like Kayleigh was the only right thing that happened in my life. Her death is the worst thing I can imagine ever happening,' he said in a statement.
'I don't have words to describe the pain and agony I have experienced since Kayleigh's death. It never goes away.'
'But I want to make sure no child ever suffers the way Kayleigh did.'
