'AJ Belonged To All Of Us': Answers Sought After Boy's Death

CRYSTAL LAKE, IL — This week, the Crystal Lake community came together to help a little boy who needed them. The day AJ Freund was reported missing, area residents started looking. Looking in their backyards, looking in window wells, looking in play houses and asking: Where would a 5-year-old boy go or hide? How can we help get him back home? This was before we all knew home was the last place this little boy should've been.

When I went out to the neighborhood where AJ lived that first day of the search, authorities were not sure if he walked away from his home, was abducted or if someone he knew was responsible for his disappearance. People could be seen walking the neighborhood. Police officers went door-to-door. Helicopters hovered overhead, and K9 officers went in and out of 94 Dole Avenue — AJ's home. People wanted to know if there were any search parties being organized. They didn't just want to sit and wait; they wanted to help.

Everyone wanted to see AJ Freund found alive and safe. But as the week wore on, and the search turned to Crystal Lake, Veterans Acres Park and then to Woodstock, police began bringing his parents in for more and more questioning. Authorities turned their focus to “inside the residence,” and we all knew deep down things were not going to end well.

And on Wednesday, when the news broke that his body had been found, my stomach sank and I’m sure I was not alone. It was a horrible, helpless feeling to think this 5-year-old boy, who was born with opiates in his system and spent much of his first years in foster care, didn’t seem to have a chance. This little boy, who is being remembered for his beautiful smile, was put in a cold shower and beaten until he died, according to authorities. How could his parents, who court documents show have a long history of drug abuse and left their young children to run around in squalor, be so seemingly selfish, irresponsible and heartless? And why, despite several instances of what appears to be extremely neglectful behavior, were AJ and his younger brother allowed to stay with Joann Cunningham and Andrew Freund at 94 Dole Avenue?

• Police Reports Provide Glimpse Into Missing Boy's Home Life

In addition, Cunningham has a teenage son who was living in a similar situation at 94 Dole Avenue back in 2012 until he went to stay with his grandma in McHenry. Cunningham, who along with Freund is being held on $5 million bail at the McHenry County Jail, is seven months pregnant. Once the baby is born, DCFS will determine who will take custody of the child, sheriff's office officials told Patch.

• Court Records Show History Of Neglect, Drugs For Freund's Parents

Meanwhile, the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services is now in the hot seat. In a statement Wednesday, McHenry County Board Chairman Jack Franks said “AJ belonged to all of us,” as he called on a thorough review of the Illinois child welfare system “to ensure that no child ever falls through the safety net.”

“We owe it to AJ and to every other at-risk child,” Franks said.

We know welfare workers made many trips to the Freund house in recent years. We’ve reached out to the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services to find out just how many times, but have not heard back. On Friday, Mark D. Smith, the new director of DCFS, is expected to appear before lawmakers, the Associated Press is reporting.

“This agency, there is no direction, no mission and it certainly has not been protecting children,” state Rep. Sara Feigenholtz told the Associated Press. A Chicago Democrat who chairs the House Adoption and Child Welfare Committee,she said the agency has gone through 13 directors since 2003.

In addition, funding is an issue.

“We have huge budgetary problems and this is a byproduct of not taking care of the real issues,” Rep. Blaine Wilhour, a Beecher City Republican, told the Associated Press. “These are the core services that are being hollowed out (and) the most vulnerable people are the ones that end up getting hurt.”

Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently ordered an independent review of DCFS after two other horrifying cases — the death of a toddler in Decatur after her mother allegedly starved and deprived her and the death of a 2-year-old Chicago boy who had bruises and old rib fractures, according to the AP. DCFS had been to the Chicago boy’s home but never reported the injuries, and the Decatur girl had been placed in foster care but returned to her mom last August.

Pritzer said Chaplain Hall at the University of Chicago, a research center, is expected to release “actionable recommendations” on how the DCFS's Intact Family Services Unit functions, according to the article.

For the time being, Crystal Lake and the Chicago area is doing what it can to remember AJ. On Friday, you may notice many more people wearing blue around town — the “Wear Blue for AJ” day is meant to remember AJ and recognize the law enforcement officers, firefighters and volunteers that looked for him. Funds are also being raised for his funeral, and this past week a vigil was held outside his home.

• Wear Blue for AJ: Funds Pour In For Boy's Funeral
• AJ's Case Solved, Sema'j's Unsolved 2 Years Later: Ferak Column

These are some first steps to healing for the community. But answers are needed. What happened? And what can be done to prevent another child from falling through the cracks?

If you know of a case of child abuse or neglect, call 1-800-25-ABUSE (252-2873).