Family of Toddler Who Died in Foster Care Files Claim Against Santa Clara County

Jaxon, a special needs child whose mother died last year from alcohol abuse and whose father faced chronic medical conditions, was placed by the county agency into the care of Bridget Michelle Martinez, a relative of his father’s, in late February.

Martinez was convicted in 2014 of felony child endangerment tied to a DUI when her own 1-year-old child was in the car with her. That conviction should have barred social workers from placing Jaxon in her care, even in an emergency.

However, a social worker, their supervisor, division manager and bureau manager all signed off on a report certifying that Martinez had not been convicted of such a disqualifying crime, according to internal documents released by the county in response to a records request from KQED.

The county is in the process of firing four workers from the agency in connection with the case.

Jaxon died in a hospital on April 9 after authorities said he was repeatedly sexually and physically assaulted by Martinez’s 17-year-old son. The son, who has since turned 18, is currently facing murder and assault charges in juvenile court but could ultimately be transferred to adult court.

The county and state “either failed to conduct the required background check of Martinez and others in the Martinez home, or did conduct the required background checks and, despite Martinez’s felony conviction for child endangerment and other known/knowable risks of abuse to Jaxon, elected to place Jaxon in the Martinez’s home nonetheless,” the claims said.

A spokesperson for CDSS said the department does not comment on litigation. The county said it is “reviewing the claim and will process it within the timelines provided by law.”

The claims seek unspecified monetary damages. Under California law, the county and state each have 45 days to review the claims and decide whether to try to settle or to reject them. If the claims are rejected, the family would have six months to file a lawsuit.

The claims also say the county failed to “investigate and intervene after alarming reports indicated that Jaxon was being abused,” including “suspicious redness on Jaxon’s bottom during a diaper change as well as a red line on his neck at a supervised visit,” which were flagged with a social worker.

In early April, just days before his hospitalization, a doctor at a clinic reported suspected abuse of Jaxon to the county’s Child Abuse Neglect Center hotline, prompting a doctor to request that Jaxon be seen for an evaluation as soon as possible, the claims said.

“Instead, an emergency response social worker, who was called out to assess signs of possible physical abuse, marked Jaxon as ‘safe’ despite his not being evaluated by the Child Advocacy Center,” the claims said.

The county’s Department of Family and Children’s Services was previously placed under the oversight of the California Department of Social Services, following the deaths of two other children in foster care in 2023, including the fentanyl poisoning of 3-month-old Phoenix Castro and the stabbing death of 6-year-old Jordan Walker.

The oversight included a corrective action plan and a series of improvements and policy changes that needed to be made and logged, with a goal of improving safety for children in the care of the foster system.

The state “failed to protect Jaxon from known risk of abuse and failed to adequately oversee DFCS with respect to its placement and supervision of Jaxon in the Martinez home,” the claims said.

The claims say the state “unquestionably failed to execute its mandatory regulatory oversight” and “effectively dismantled the systemic safeguards that were required to protect vulnerable youth, resulting in a failure to prevent the tragic loss of Jaxon.”