4 foster parents, including former state HHS child advocate, accused of adopting 'dozens of' kids to amass $1M in subsidies

Two Michigan couples have been accused of exploiting the adoption and foster care systems to funnel dozens of vulnerable children into their homes where they could abuse them while still bankrolling state subsidies.

The case relates to Joel and Tammy Brown and Jerry and Tamal Flore, all 50-somethings who live down the street from one another in DeWitt, Michigan, about 10 miles north of Lansing. Since 2007, the two couples have fostered and/or adopted a total of nearly 30 children, many of whom were then severely abused, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel claimed.

"The state believes that the Browns and Flores conspired together to adopt dozens of children who were removed from previously abusive biological homes and subjected them to prolonged, routine, and systemic mental and physical abuse under the guise of discipline," Nessel said at a press conference earlier this month.

Nessel indicated that the defendants were mainly motivated by "financial gain." Through adoption subsidies offered by the state, the Browns and Flores together amassed nearly $1 million, all tax-free, Nessel said.

Nessel also noted that, until last year, Joel Brown had been working as a child advocate in the Children’s Services Agency within the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Sometime in 2022, he was placed on unpaid administrative leave and subsequently fired.

The reason for his termination is unknown. However, Nessel argued that Joel Brown used his insider understanding of the system to "circumvent detection of the ongoing child abuse in his own home and that of the Flores."

Both the Browns and the Flores had previously been charged with child abuse in Clinton County. The four were arrested in 2021 after accusations surfaced that, among other things, they had beaten children with a boat oar, thrown them down the stairs, locked them in closets, and denied them food. The accusations date back to at least 2014.

At a preliminary hearing in 2022, Judge Michael Clarizio determined that the prosecutor had not presented sufficient evidence to proceed further with the case against the Browns. The charges against the Flores had been reduced and then dismissed once Nessel's office took over the investigation.

On December 4, Nessel's office announced that the couples had been charged once again. All four have been charged with felony first-degree child abuse, a crime which carries a potential life sentence, as well as other offenses. In all, the four were charged with 36 counts, most of which are felonies.

Some of the alleged victims are now adults, and the statute of limitations has since expired on the alleged abuse of others, so the case addresses alleged abuse against just eight children. Nessel argued that the case demonstrates the need for a longer statute of limitations for child abuse, for stronger charges against those who "coach" abuse victims to lie to investigators, and for better regulation of homeschooling so that the state can keep a closer eye on possible perpetrators.

Nessel claimed that all alleged victims have been removed from the Browns' and Flores' care.

"In the area of child abuse, the harms caused to an individual's mental health are often, unfortunately, overlooked," Nessel said. "Abusive behavior by any parents — adoptive or biological — is unacceptable and will not and cannot be tolerated."

However, not everyone believes the accusations against the Browns and Flores. Shamber Brown, an adult who was adopted by the Flores as a child, readily defended both couples in an interview with WILX. "It’s really been crazy hearing the accusations just because, I mean, if I’m being totally frank, my mom is my best friend," she said.

Brown claimed that the Flores and Browns are just close friends who participate in all kinds of activities together, "from church to school to vacations." The families are so close, she said, that she married one of the Browns' sons. She insisted that her husband never endured any abuse and that he agrees that both sets of parents have been "falsely accused."

David Carter, who is representing the Flores, called the latest charges a "witch hunt." "They're taking a second bite of the apple and trying to resurrect a case that never should've been brought," he said, referring to the previous charges against his clients that were later dropped.

Mary Chartier, who is representing Joel Brown, expressed similar confidence that her client would soon be exonerated. "We believe the same result will occur this time around," she said. "We won in court once, and we’re confident that we’ll do so again."

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to fix the spelling of the Flores' name in the photo caption.

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