The judge in the Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez child abuse case was replaced because the jurist helped edit the prosecutor's novel.

The supervising criminal judge decided Tuesday to follow the suggestions of the state Court of Appeal and remove Superior Court Judge George Eskin from the case. Superior Court Judge Frank Ochoa will now preside over the Vasquez case.

In asking for Eskin's removal, defense attorney Robert Sanger questioned whether the judge could be impartial after editing Senior Deputy District Attorney Joyce Dudley's self-published book, "Intoxicating Agent."

Last week, The 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled the case could no longer proceed under Judge Eskin and suggested transferring it to another judge.

"The court has ... taken to heart the suggestion made by the Court of Appeal. Therefore, this court will order the case transferred," Superior Court Judge Brian Hill said Tuesday.

Vasquez is awaiting trial on felony counts alleging she abused her four adopted children - ages 6, 9, 12 and 13. Some of them were allegedly locked up in cagelike enclosures or living in squalid conditions inside the former day care provider's Foothill Road home.

She is also accused of injecting the 12-year-old girl with the puberty-blocking drug Lupron and detectives allegedly found a digital camera in Vasquez's room with lewd photos of the girl, according to court documents.

Vasquez, who was arrested Jan. 6, is free on $1 million bail and no trial date has been set. Her children are in care of Santa Barbara County Child Welfare Services.

Child abuse defendant Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez pleaded not guilty to a variety of counts involving her four adopted children at the Foothill area home where she operated a day care center.

Vasquez, who is free on $1 million bail, was charged with abusing the children - ages 6, 9, 12 and 13 - at various times over a three-year period ending in January. The youngsters are now in the care of the Child Welfare Services Agency.

Two of the adopted children were locked up in small, cagelike quarters and a third was confined in a filthy room, Senior Deputy District Attorney Joyce Dudley said.

Vasquez, 50, is also accused of injecting the 12-year-old with a puberty-blocking drug, Lupron. During a Jan. 25 search of the woman's home, detectives also discovered a digital camera with "lewd" photographs of the girl, investigators said.

Defense lawyer Robert Sanger said after Friday's arraignment that his client never mistreated any of the children.

Child Cruelty Arrest



Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez

On January 5th, 2006, Santa Barbara Sheriff’s Deputies responded to 2839 Foothill Rd. to check the welfare of four children. An anonymous person reported that the children at that location were possible victims of cruelty. Deputies contacted the resident, 50 year old Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez (7-3-55). Vasquez is a licensed child care provider who runs a day care service out of her home. The four children suspected of being abused are her four adopted children. Deputies were allowed into the residence and discovered evidence of child cruelty.

The home is described as a two story single family home with several bedrooms upstairs and several downstairs. At the time the deputies checked the residence, all four of the children were upstairs. Vasquez’s adopted children are a 13 year old boy, a 9 year old girl, a 12 year old girl and a 6 year old girl.

Deputies checked the residence and discovered that the 13 year old boy stayed in a room downstairs. The room had a large bag of trash with rotting food items inside, a bed, toothbrush, bottle of water and a bucket containing urine and feces. An external window in the room was locked only allowing it to be opened one inch. The room had an external dead bolt allowing it to be locked from the outside.

The 9 year old girl allegedly stayed in another room downstairs. Evidence suggests that she actually stayed in another room built inside of a storage area. The room was a small plywood room approximately 5’x4’. There was a window in this room secured by wire mesh and a door with an external lock. It appeared that the door and window had been damaged as if someone had tried to escape this confined space. There was a folded cushion and a pair of child’s pajamas on the floor.

There was another room and hallway in the downstairs area that was littered with cat urine and feces. The downstairs bathroom was filthy and the toilet was stopped up with feces.

The 6 year old girl had a bedroom upstairs, at the opposite end of the house from where the master bedroom was located. There was a bed in the room, and a 3’x5’cage mounted on the wall above the bed. This cage contained a mattress. Inside the cage appeared to be drawings done by a child. The 6 year old told child welfare services that she slept in the cage.

The 12 year old girl also stayed in a room upstairs. This room was very different than the others. It appeared as if this girl was well cared for and given all of the necessary amenities.

Child Welfare Services (CWS) and Sheriff’s Detectives responded to the house. CWS took all four children into protective custody. Sheriff’s Detectives executed a search warrant at the residence.

The search warrant revealed evidence that the children were locked in their room’s or cages for extended periods of time. The children were fed minimal diets of bread, water and peanut butter. There was documentation from the children describing physical abuse. All of the doors in the residence had external locks, giving the ability to lock the children inside of the rooms.

CWS has taken custody of all four children. The 13, 9 and 6 year olds appeared to be undernourished, and had clothing that was soiled with urine and feces. The 12 year old appeared clean and healthy. The adopted mother, Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez was taken into custody by Sheriff’s deputies for 273a(a) PC, Child Cruelty and booked into Santa Barbara County Jail.

We are asking that anyone who currently uses or has used Vasquez as a child care provider contact the Sheriff’s Department. We are also asking that anyone with information that would assist this investigation call the Sheriff’s Department Detective Bureau at 681-4150, Detective Henebry or the We Tip line at 888-800-9100.

This is an ongoing investigation. More information will be released as it becomes available.

Daycare mom 'caged kids'

Santa Barbara - The owner of a daycare centre was arrested for allegedly caging three of her adopted children in locked rooms and forcing one to sleep in a small grilled cupboard in California, said authorities.

Sergeant Erik Raney said a 13-year-old boy and girls aged six and nine appeared malnourished and were wearing clothes soiled with urine and faeces after sheriff's deputies who acted on a tip and went to the home of Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez discovered them.

Raney said investigators determined the children were locked in their rooms for "extended" periods and were fed "minimal diets of bread, water and peanut butter". He said they rarely if ever ventured outside.

Raney said: "There was documentation from the children describing physical abuse. All of the doors in the residence had external locks, giving the ability to lock the children inside of the rooms."

All kids 'related'

Another adopted child, a 12-year-old girl, was clean and healthy.

Raney said: "The 12-year-old was definitely cared for differently than the other three, almost like she was preferred or pampered ... didn't seem to be subject to the same cruelties as the other three."

The sergeant said he didn't know if the children were related. All four were turned over to the county's Child Welfare Services.

Authorities said Vasquez, 50, was arrested for investigation of child cruelty and remained jailed on Tuesday. She had spoken to investigators, but they declined to comment on a possible motive.

Authorities said Vasquez was licensed to care for up to a dozen children.

Santa Barbara woman arrested for allegedly caging kids

The owner of a daycare center was arrested for allegedly caging three of her adopted children in locked rooms and forcing one to sleep in a small cupboard, authorities said Tuesday.

A 13-year-old boy and girls ages 6 and 9 appeared malnourished and were wearing clothes soiled with urine and feces when they were discovered Thursday by sheriff's deputies who acted on a tip and went to the home of Sylvia Jovanna Vasquez, said Sgt. Erik Raney.

Investigators determined the children were locked in their rooms for "extended" periods and were fed "minimal diets of bread, water and peanut butter," Raney said. They rarely if ever ventured outside, he said.

"There was documentation from the children describing physical abuse," Raney said. "All of the doors in the residence had external locks, giving the ability to lock the children inside of the rooms."

Another adopted child, a 12-year-old girl, was clean and healthy.

"The 12-year-old was definitely cared for differently than the other three, almost like she was preferred or pampered ... didn't seem to be subject to the same cruelties as the other three," said Raney.

The sergeant said he didn't know if the children were related. All four were turned over to the county's Child Welfare Services.

Vasquez, 50, was arrested Friday and pleaded not guilty Monday to three counts of child cruelty. She was charged under a legal code section that includes mental suffering, neglect or physical abuse, said Joyce Dudley, a Santa Barbara County senior deputy district attorney.

Vasquez, who was jailed pending a bail hearing scheduled for Wednesday, could face 10 to 12 years in state prison if convicted on all counts, Dudley said.

A call left at the home of her attorney, Daniel Murphy, was not immediately returned Tuesday night.

Authorities said there was no immediate evidence any other children were abused, but they added the investigation is continuing. They urged anyone who used Vasquez's daycare service to contact the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department.

The 6-year-old girl had an upstairs room in the home but told child welfare authorities she slept in a metal-mesh cabinet that measured 3 feet by 5 feet and could be secured by an outside lock mounted on a wall.

"This cage contained a mattress. Inside the cage appeared to be drawings done by a child" along with a blanket and teddy bear, Raney said.

Authorities said the boy stayed in a downstairs room that was found to contain a large bag of rotting food, a bed, toothbrush, bottle of water and a bucket he apparently used as a toilet, Raney said.

The 9-year-old girl apparently was held in a solidly built, 5-foot-by-4-foot plywood room built inside a downstairs storage area and containing a window covered with wire mesh and a lockable door.

"It appeared that the door and window had been damaged as if someone had tried to escape this confined space," Raney said. "There was a folded cushion and a pair of child's pajamas on the floor."

Authorities said Vasquez was licensed to care for up to a dozen children. Her business operated out of her home's upstairs area where investigators found cribs, diapers and drawing easels.

"It was cluttered ... but it seemed relatively normal, you know, nice kitchen, nice furniture and dining room, just like a regular house," Raney said.