A Cochise County couple who pleaded guilty to several felony counts of child abuse should be sent to prison for abusing their four former adoptive children “in a heinous, cruel, or depraved manner,” the prosecutor says.
Deputy County Attorney Michael Powell filed sentencing memorandums last week in the cases involving Brian Campbell, a former child welfare manager, and his wife Monica Campbell, a longtime employee of the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office. The couple will be sentenced Jan. 21 after pleading guilty earlier this month to four child abuse felonies each.
“In this case, the heinous, cruel, or depraved manner in which the Defendant committed these crimes in inseparable from the overall pattern of emotional and physical abuse,” wrote Powell of the Cochise County Attorney’s Office. “The Campbells stripped the children of humanity when imposing their punishments,” which he said was “designed to humiliate and cause suffering, not impose discipline.”
A plea deal negotiated between Powell and the Campbells’ attorneys spares the children from having to testify at trial, but Powell notes in his sentencing memo the guilty pleas “reflect a tiny fraction of the abuse” committed against the children over several years.
The plea agreement ensures the Campbells cannot be sentenced by Judge Timothy Dickerson to more than three years in state prison. Another provision gives Dickerson discretion to impose probation instead of prison, or to require a term of probation after a prison sentence.
The four counts the couple pleaded guilty involved the use of a Taser against one of the minor children and the use of a wooden object to strike the other three children. Powell points out in the memo that Arizona law permits parents to use corporal punishment “within reason,” but the Campbells repeatedly used the wooded paddle or board “in a manner that far exceeded justification” under state law.
“Although the children testified that both parents would strike them, they all identified Monica as the orchestrator of the abuse,” Powell noted. “She was described as the more manipulative of the two parents.”
The Campbells’ attorneys and an attorney serving as victim representative for the children are also expected to submit sentencing memos to Dickerson in the coming weeks. In the meantime, Powell’s memo argues against any mitigating factors which Brian and Monica Campbell may put forth in support of probation or less than three years in prison.
“Each child deserves justice in this case,” he wrote. “It is appropriate for the court to impose the [maximum 3-year] prison term on each count.” Powell also opposes placing the Campbells on probation after a prison stint, commonly referred to as a probation tail.
“The children have expressed a desire that this case come to a concrete end,” he wrote. “A probation tail imposed on one or more of the counts would ultimately not be in the best interests of the children at this time. It would simply prolong this case and result in the children receiving additional notifications from the Court, Adult Probation, and the County Attorney’s Office as they seek to put this chapter of their lives behind them.”
In addition, Powell’s memo points out the trauma the children have dealt with since being removed from the Campbells’ home.
“As a result of this case, the children were separated from one another,” he wrote. “For several months, they had little to no contact with one another and were unable to support each other during this case. While the children are unquestionably safer and happier removed from Brian and Monica’s care, the Campbells are still responsible for causing the lingering trauma associated with the complete implosion of the family dynamic.”
Powell also commented about “irregularities” with how multiple reports of abuse since 2012 were handled by the parents’ employees -the Arizona Department of Child Services and the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office.
“The mitigation in this case revolves around the Defendant’s lack of criminal history,” he notes. “Had the Campbells not been employed by the two agencies assigned to investigate child abuse it is possible that they would both have acquired criminal convictions much sooner.”
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