KIMBERLY EMELYANTSEV SENTENCED: HUSBAND PRESSURED HER TO ADOPT

Yesterday, Kimberly Emelyantsev, 34, was sentenced to up to 15 years in prison for the March 2008 beating death of her adopted son Kolya. In August she was convicted of second degree child abuse homicide. At the request of the prosecutor, Emelyantsev was ordered to undergo a pre-sentencing psychiatric evaluation. Kolya was a "special needs" adoptee, with Down Syndrome and had lived with Emelyantsev and her husband Fyodor, a Russian national, for less than a month. The couple was also rearing K. Emelyantsev's 10-year old DS daughter and two biological daughters without disabilities. Two months before Kolya's placement they adopted a DS Russian baby, Luka.

That such a situation might prove "stressful" to the Emelyantsevs, especially stay-at-home Kimberly, was apparently overlooked or dismissed by their adoption agency About A Child, Reece's Rainbow who listed him, and the home study hack, probably out of LDS Social Services, who passed the couple for adoption. (The Es are LDS). After all, Fyodor had a MA in genetics, was trained in handling disabled children, and worked as an RN. The couple took out a second mortgage to pay for Kolya. Who could say no to that package?

In August, the prosector promised that more details of the case, which has received little attention outside of Utah, would be revealed at sentencing. So far we have only a short article in the Salt Lake City Tribune to fill in some of the blanks:

[Defense attorney] Williams said Emelyantsev blamed the death of the boy on a stressful home environment and the "pressures of a husband [32-year-old Fyodor Emelyantsev] who would not participate in an extraordinary familial situation."

Williams added that Kimberly Emelyantsev never wanted to adopt this child from Russia, but was afraid to say no to her husband and afraid of how it would look to others if she did not go through with the adoption

and details of the beating:

Emelyantsev initially claimed that out of frustration she deliberately dropped the baby twice to the floor on March 6. But during a recent diagnostic evaluation at the Utah State Prison, Emelyantsev admitted grabbing the child by an arm and a leg, slamming him to the floor, and then repeating the action.

Kimberly Emelyantsev did the deed and is worthy of the greatest punishment available to the state, But what kind of a man coerces his wife to adopt special needs children who he then refuses to help her care for? Nobody knows what went on behind closed doors in that house but the family. Perhaps if court documents and investigation reports are forthcoming that information will give us some idea. But, Fyodor Emelyantsev is complicit in Kolya's death.

Unfortunately, Feodor Emelyantsev is off the hook. Though never charged in Koyla's death, he and Kimberly had also been charged with child neglect for allegedly starving Luka, charges never fully substantiated and later dropped. At the time of Kolya's beating, Fyodor claimed to be on his computer in a back bedroom and was unaware of any problem until his wife brought the baby, who police described as "unresponsive and breathing very slowly" to him. Now, I have a 10 room house, and I'm pretty sure, short of a motorcycle race running down my street, I'd hear a baby being thumped on my floor.

The SLT did not report the current whereabouts of Fyodor Emelyantsev or the other children who were last reported living with nearby relatives. Kimberly Emelyantsev has agreed to voluntarily terminate parental rights to her surviving children.

Most of the questions I brought up after Emelyantsev's conviction have not been answered and are still relevant. Since this is Utah, they probably never will be answered.

• What role (if any) did F. Emelyantsev play in the prosecution and plea bargain of his wife?

• Why did About a Child allow the placement of Koyla with the Emelyantsevs so soon after they had taken custody of another institutionalized non-related Russian DS child ?

• Did Adoption Ark who placed Luka, know that the Emelyantsevs planned to adopt a second institutionalized DS child from Russia immediately after Luka's placement? (Reece's Rainbow did.)
  

• Has any agency been investigated by their individual state's social services of attorney general?

and a couple more:

• Was Kimberly Emelyantsev and/or the other children the object of domestic violence?

• What is the current status of the surviving Emelantsiv children?

I have updated Forever Family--Forever Dead with this new information.

EMELYANTSEV UPDATE: SENTENCING DELAYED FOR MENTAL HEALTH CHECK; DETAILS OF CASE STILL NOT RELEASED!

Kimberly Emelyantsev caught a small break Friday, when 3rd District Judge Mark Kouris ordered a 60-day stay in sentencing while Emelyantsev undergoes a "diagnostic evaluation to determine appropriate punishment."

Emelyantsev, 34, faces 1-15 years in prison on a charge of second degree felony child abuse homicide in the March 7 death of 14 month old Russian Down Syndrome adoptee Nikoli Emelyantsev. She admitted dropping Kolya on his head "out of frustration" a day earlier. He died of a significant skull fracture caused by blunt force trauma to the head. Court documents indicate that Kolya also had bruising on his face, head, knee and anus. Emelyantsev was charged originally with 1st degree murder, but pled down in June.

Koyla lived with his Forever Family less than a month when he was killed.

Kimberly and her husband, Russian national, Fyodor Emelyantsev, were also charged with third degree felony child abuse due to the alleged malnourishment and dehydration of 4-year-old, Luka, adopted by the couple from Russia two months earlier. Those charges were dropped in June due to insufficient evidence, and F. Emelyantsev was released from jail. K. Emelyantsev has remained in jail under a $500,000 cash-only bond.

Luka has Down Syndrome as does K. Emelyantsev’s 10 year old biological daughter from her first marriage. Luka was adopted via Adoption Ark; Kolya through About a Child. (Russian sources claimed they were independent adoptions) The agencies are now Hague accredited; About a Child was accredited just days before Kolya's death. Both children were part of Reece's Rainbow Down Syndrome Orphan Ministry that helps place DS children for adoption worldwide. The couple also has two biological children, 5 and 2. The Emelyantsev children were placed with a maternal uncle in nearby Dugway after the arrest of their parents.

Emelyantsev's family and friends gathered en masse in Judge Kouris' courtroom Friday t0 show support, but the judge warned they would not influence his sentencing decision. You can read earlier comments from friends (and the not so friendly) on this local ABC4 forum. Other friendly comments, are here.

The Emelyantsevs, in fact, seem to have gathered quite a bit of local sympathy as family and friends hit the Internet portraying Kimberly Emelyantsev as a blameless martyred babysaver persecuted and prosecuted by an overbearing and over-zealous legal system out to make some unrevealed "point." These sentiments are expressed nicely in a post by Rochelle Christley who describes herself as "close family of the Emelyantsev's" and has defended the couple on various web and news sites:

As we said in the beginning, this was an accident and Kim is innocent. Anybody who has dealt with our justice system, a prosecutor with a point to prove, or just has no money to defend themselves knows that sometimes people are put in a terrible position. Go to trial and risk spending most of your life in jail or take a plea because a child was hurt in your care and the law demands that some kind of restitution be paid.

The probable influence of LDS cannot be dismissed. Unfortunately it will also probably go unexplored. Though no Mormon population figures can be located for Tooele County, 21 of the county's 33 churches are LDS. Given those demographics and the fact that the Emelyantsevs are identified as Mormon and K. Emelyantsev reportedly was a paralegal in her church office (no church or ward listed) it is highly likely, then, that LDS Social Services was involved in the adoptions. Possibly a local affiliate conducted the home study. Since LDS holds a stranglehold on adoption in Utah, information on its involvement won't be forthcoming.

Deputy Tooele County Attorney Gary Searle initially took a hard line approach on Emelyantsev, charging her with first degree murder. Calling her a flight risk he asked for a $1,000,000 bond. Later his position softened. When Emelyantsev pled guilty to the lesser charge of second degree felony manslaughter, Searle said that although the death of Kolya "wasn't an accident, it wasn't intentional either." While amended charges may well have been in order, Searle, in my opinion, made an extraordinary move for a prosecutor last week. According to the Salt Lake City Tribune:
It was Deputy Tooele County Attorney Gary Searle who asked that Emelyantsev have the diagnostic evaluation before sentencing. He said both the Russian children, as well as one of the couple's three biological children, have Down syndrome and "demanded a lot of attention.

(1 ) Isn't such a request the job of the defense not the prosecutor? Did heat come down from LDS or Searle's boss--beholden to LDS votes-- to mitigate the initial prosecution? Did the prosecutor play public good guy in requesting the evaluation? (2) Shouldn't a mental evaluation have been made between the dates of the plea and sentencing hearings?

Unfortunately, the legal manoeuvring that followed the arrests of the Emelyantsevs, has gone unreported, and Searle's contradictory prosecution (go here for some Salt Lake City Tribune reader comments on it) has increased the difficulty to figure out what's going; thus, leaving us with many questions:

What led to K. Emelyantsev’s plea bargain?

Why were additional charges dropped against the couple?

What role (if any) did F. Emelyantsev play in the prosecution and plea bargain of his wife?

Why did About a Child allow the placement of Koyla with the Emelyantsevs so soon after they had taken custody of another institutionalized non-related Russian DS child ?

Did Adoption Ark know the Emelyantsevs planned to adopt a second institutionalized DC child from Russia immediate after Luka's placement?

Has any agency been investigated by their individual state's social services of attorney general?

Last June Gary Searle said more details regarding what actually happened to Nikolai would come out at sentencing. A odd denouement to be sure.

Emelyantsev, scheduled originally to be sentenced August 15, will return to court on October 10. Given the support the prosecution has offered Kimberlely Emelyantsev, I won't be surprised if she tales a walk in the park.

NOTE: Most news reports of the Emelyantsev have gone it paid archives I am using Pound Pup Legacy's permanent archive of articles when necessary.