The investigation of Wanda Larson, the former lead child-protection supervisor in a suburban Charlotte county, may have taken a grotesque turn. Officials now fear that as many as 36 foster kids may have been abused by Larson and her longtime boyfriend, Dorian Harper.
Last month, Superior Court Judge Chris Bragg ordered the state Division of Social Services and Union and Gaston counties to provide investigators with records for the 36 children placed in Larson and Harper’s home between 1998 and 2010.
Union County prosecutors had filed a motion seeking those records.
In his order, Bragg agreed with prosecutors that “based on the allegations of child abuse already disclosed, it is not unreasonable to believe” any or all of the 36 children may have been victims of abuse or witnessed abuse of other children.
This is the first time the total number of children the couple had fostered has been disclosed.
Larson was fired from her post at Union County DSS shortly after her arrest. She had been licensed as a foster parent by Union County from 1998 to 2003, and then by Gaston County from 2003 to 2010. Neither county reported any disciplinary action had been taken against Larson and Harper during that time. The boy found chained to the patio was under Larson's legal guardianship, while she'd adopted four other kids living in the home at the time. All five were removed after sheriff's deputies alerted to finding the boy chained up outside found disgusting conditions--including feces on the floor and no running water. The stench was so strong that it was still there 48 hours later, even though no one had been in the house during that time.
Union County sheriff Burke Cathey says that he and others investigating the case have interviewed 10 to 15 of Larson's former foster kids so far, but is mum on what they said so far.
This latest revelation comes as no surprise. Larson and Harper are charged with subjecting the 11-year-old to ghastly abuse for much of last summer and fall. While Harper is suspected of being the primary abuser, Larson is accused of knowing about it and doing nothing. But you just don't flip the switch and turn into a child abuser out of nowhere. Still, the prospect that as many as 36 kids could have been victimized is nauseating.