SILENCE CAN BE DEADLY; SYSTEM MAY FAIL MANY BATTERED KIDS.

Byline: Orith Goldberg Staff Writer

Aprill Starr's little boy might be alive today if she had reported his repeated abuse, those investigating the toddler's beating death said.

If Sheila Sue Jackman of Canyon Country had reported previous child abuse in the household to authorities, her 3-week-old son Justin Kyle Oliveri might not have suffered permanent brain damage after being burned, choked and shaken by her husband.

While both women were ultimately charged with crimes against their sons, the question of how to monitor potential abusers invariably arises.

Law enforcement officials said laws now on the books may not be enough to ensure children's safety, especially in cases in which the Department of Children and Family Services seeks to keep children in homes where they are in danger of abuse.

Officials from the Department of Children and Family Services did not return numerous calls seeking comment.

Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Marlene Sanchez said she has seen child abuse cases fall through the cracks in the legal system.

``Sometimes we have been at extreme odds with what the Department of Children and Family Services has done,'' she said, drawing a line between the right to privacy and the need to monitor potential child abusers.

``We have had district attorneys who could not figure out how a child was placed back with an abusive family,'' she said. ``It doesn't happen all the time, but it happens.''

Michael Shires, convicted in 1995 of abusing another of Starr's children, and Starr moved from Apple Valley in San Bernardino County to Newhall. The couple and their 2-year-old son Kyle lived in a home on Arch Street. There, Shires is accused of fatally beating Kyle on June 6. Investigators said he admitted punching his son because the toddler was staring at him while he watched television. Kyle died later that day.

An autopsy revealed that Kyle died from blunt-force trauma and had been repeatedly battered. Soon after Shires was charged with murder and child abuse, so was Starr on grounds she also was to blame for the death by failing to report the abuse.

Both have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting a preliminary hearing in Municipal Court to determine if they will be held for trial in Superior Court.

Detective Mike Wilson of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said officials can report alleged child abuse to the U.S. Department of Justice, providing a way for law enforcement personnel to learn about a suspect's background. Notifying the department, however, does not mean that even a convicted abuser's behavior will be monitored when the person is not in custody and moves, Wilson said.

Wilson suggested the state Legislature take up the issue of tracking convicted child abusers.

``Perhaps when you have a case that has potential for turning into something like the Shires case,'' he said, the Legislature should consider requiring a former offender to notify authorities of his or her address.

Jackman, 33, was convicted of child abuse after failing to report her husband Carl John Oliveri to authorities for choking, shaking, scratching and burning their 3-week-old son Justin.

The Canyon Country couple were arrested Sept. 11, 1997, after doctors found bruises and burns on the baby's buttocks. Oliveri admitted to elbowing Justin in the eye, holding him too tightly and squeezing him by the neck, according court records. Jackman testified in court that she did not report the abuse to police because she did not want to ``get him into trouble.''

At the time, five children were living with Jackman and Oliveri: their daughter Lisa Lynn, then 2, baby Justin and three children Jackman had before her relationship with Oliveri.

Even before Justin was born, Oliveri began to abuse Lisa Lynn and two of Jackman's other children, according to court records.

Her son Michael, then 5, testified that Oliveri hit him with a belt. Joshua, then 8, also showed signs of abuse, and Lisa Lynn's ankles showed that they repeatedly had been restrained by handcuffs. Oliveri cuffed her to keep her still, authorities said.

Jackman pleaded guilty to charges of child abuse and causing great bodily injury. Oliveri pleaded guilty to aggravated mayhem.

Jackman was sentenced to two years in state prison on Oct. 16 but was released about a month later after getting credit for the time she was jailed while awaiting trial.

Oliveri was sentenced on Sept. 22 to life in prison for permanently disabling his son. Justin, never expected to walk or even sit up on his own, was placed into foster care. The four other children went to live with relatives other than their mother, prosecutors said.

Jacquelyn Lacey, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted Oliveri and Jackman, said that in reality convicted child abusers are poorly monitored when not in custody, and neighbors as well as other relatives of the children often fail to notify authorities of danger from parents, their spouses or lovers.

``In Jackman's case, there were plenty of grandparents and neighbors around to watch the kids,'' she said. ``Unfortunately, we live in a community where people mind their own business.''