SILVER CITY, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s hard to say which is worse: the death of a five-year-old near Silver City, the horrific conditions in which she died, or the fact that family, teachers, and police all tried to help her with calls to the New Mexico Children, Youth, and Families Department. There were five different investigations into the family over the course of two years. But, another lawsuit filed on Monday against the state accuses workers of lying on reports, ignoring abuse and neglect claims, and just taking the word of two drug-addicted parents.
An autopsy revealed that five-year-old Xaquie Bynum died of carbon monoxide poisoning on the floor of a filthy shack with no running water or heat near Silver City in March 2024. It was a result of coal burned inside the tiny home for heat. She tested positive for meth. Her seven-year-old brother survived and also tested positive for meth.
Attorney Sara Crecca has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against CYFD and its workers in this case. It alleges that Xaquie died as a direct result of CYFD’s incompetence. “Well, she deserved much better. And the way she died is so horrific. I can’t imagine what she went through,” said Crecca.
The First Investigation Fails to Recognize Warning Signs
Two years before the death, in 2022, CYFD’s first investigation went nowhere. A Grant County Sheriff’s Deputy found Xaquie’s brother, who was five at the time, lying in the back of a truck in a store parking lot with no supervision. A CYFD caseworker was called in and tracked down his parents, Adame and Matthew Bynum. First, at a motel, where the general manager told her, they left the room filled with ankle-high trash, and the company had to deep-clean the room several times.
Despite knowing that, according to the lawsuit, the case worker didn’t check inside the trailer the family was now staying in, to make sure it was safe. Instead, attorneys said the case worker just took the word of the parents, who also lied about no longer having drug or domestic violence issues.
It stated that the case worker knew the boy wasn’t enrolled in school, but attorneys said CYFD told Adame to just rely on “family or friends” if she needed help with the children. The investigation was closed.
A Second Failed Investigation
According to the lawsuit, a second investigation in August 2023 was also a failure. This time, Silver City police called CYFD, saying Adame had the two young kids in the car with no seatbelts or car seats. He reported that the kids hadn’t bathed in a while, and the car smelled horrific.
Another CYFD case worker was called in, and a report said he had a face-to-face meeting with Adame at her mother’s home. Attorneys said that is just not true. Adame later told CYFD she was living with her mother, and the case worker believed her lie, and once again, no one checked to see how the kids were living. Investigation closed.
“The integrity of each and every investigation is so critical because when there’s no integrity in the first investigation, then by the fourth, you’re relying on three other investigations where facts were left out. Nobody laid eyes on the home.
A Third and Fourth Failed Investigation
The allegations against CYFD go on and on. In November 2023, the lawsuit laid out a third and fourth failed investigations, including a family member reporting the kids didn’t have a toilet and couldn’t bathe. The lawsuit states CYFD didn’t check. School staff reports to CYFD were made on serious abuse and neglect concerns, saying the kids were coming to school so dirty, they had to clean them up. They claimed the mother showed up with bruises, again the state didn’t visit the home.
A CYFD supervisor stated in a report that there are no drug or domestic violence issues with the family, and the parents provided a safe and stable home in the past year. A month later, another school employee called CYFD again, saying the boy showed up with a black eye, and kids made fun of him because of his poor hygiene. Attorneys said CYFD finally visited the home. The case worker would tell the family to clean their home, but never checked if they did. Two more investigations closed, declaring the abuse and neglect allegations were unsubstantiated.
“The one worker that actually bothered to step foot in the home identified issues with the heater and no running water. And that by itself is not a reason to take a child in. It’s together with the bruises on the child. The concerns from the school, the parents having different stories that don’t match each other,” said Crecca.
Fifth Investigation: More of the Same
In January 2024, a fifth investigation was launched after a person from the kids’ school called CYFD, saying they’re worried about the kids not having running water. Adame had told her that Byunum beat her, and Xaquie had more than 19 absences during the past four months.
It would take a month before CYFD did anything. The case worker wrote that the parents wouldn’t talk to her, so they declared the allegations unsubstantiated, and the case was closed. That case worker never went to the home and checked on the family.
Xaquie’s Death
Two weeks later, deputies found Xaquie dead. Her death would come just 23 days after Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham promised change within CYFD. “The number one priority of that department is protecting children and improving their well-being. That is not what is occurring in the State of New Mexico,” said Gov. Lujan Grisham.
Crecca said that all of this was handled in violation of New Mexico law and CYFD policy. “We need something dramatically different, not just some tweaks here and there. We need something dramatically different from CFYD in order to rely on them to protect our children when we call them as a community. I want to know when I call and I witness something, that it’s being taken seriously. We should all be able to do that,” said Crecca.
The lawsuit states the entire staff at CYFD in Silver City was fired. But it’s not known if it was because of this case. CYFD and the governor would not answer KRQE News 13’s questions, saying, “Due to pending litigation on this case, it would be premature to comment.”
The children’s biggest advocate is their grandmother, who also begged for help from the state. After the death, CYFD placed Xaquie’s brother in her care. But, CYFD was making plans to place the boy back with his parents, who are charged with intentional abuse of a child resulting in death. When the grandmother raised concerns, the state sent her this letter saying they were taking him away from her because she spoke out. That alleged retaliation is also part of the lawsuit.
