Task force looks into child's death

GRESHAM -- State child welfare workers convened a special meeting Wednesday with police and prosecutors to discuss Monday's death of a 2-year-old girl in foster care.

Police released little new information Wednesday. Sgt. Jeff Hansen of the Gresham Police Department called the homicide investigation into the death of Keyana Bravo "incredibly complicated."

"There are times when a resolution is cut and dry, but this is not one of those cases," said Hansen, the lead investigator. "We need to keep all the information close to the vest so that we don't jeopardize the investigation. We want to make sure we do as thorough and complete a job as possible. This investigation is our No. 1 priority."

Police were called to Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center on Monday afternoon after the girl was pronounced dead at the hospital. She had been brought there for treatment.

Police determined Keyana's death was suspicious, and the case was assigned to the East Multnomah County Major Crimes Team and the Multnomah County Child Abuse Team. The Multnomah County medical examiner's office on Tuesday said the girl died of internal injuries.

Patricia Feeny, a spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Human Services, confirmed that Keyana was in foster care but would not say how long the girl had lived at the neat, yellow duplex on Southeast Vista Avenue.

Feeny said that all foster families go through criminal and background checks and that a caseworker is required to have a face-to-face visit with foster children at least once a month. She couldn't say when the last visit occurred for Keyana.

State officials said 18 Oregon children died last year from abuse or neglect by a family member or caregiver.

The Oregon Department of Human Services convened the critical-incident response team meeting in reaction to the death. The team, which is scheduled to meet again Friday, includes state workers, police investigators and representatives of the Multnomah County district attorney's office.

"These meetings are set aside for those cases that require a lot of scrutiny," Feeny said. The team is expected to release a report in 30 days.

Karen Rodriguez, a friend of the foster parents who lives in the adjacent unit of the duplex, said the foster mom, Dunia S. Moreno, 29, has two girls of her own, ages 6 and 21/2, and a 3-year-old foster girl. They, and Moreno's husband, Armando Moreno, 38, live in the unit.

Public records show that as recently as February 2005, the couple lived in Oxnard, Calif. A van with California license plates was parked in the couple's yard Wednesday. The same van was photographed and searched by Gresham police evidence technicians at the hospital Monday.

"She's a good person who always took good care of the kids," Rodriguez said, as she bounced her 5-month-old son, Justin, on her hip. "I trusted her to watch my son while I worked."

Rodriguez said that the Moreno family moved into the duplex about a year ago and that Keyana moved into the house two to three months ago. About two weeks ago, Rodriguez said, the little girl went on vacation with another set of foster parents.

"It's very confusing -- there are two sets of foster parents," Rodriguez said. "The girl went away with them and came back last week. About five days later, she died."

The Morenos declined to comment Wednesday, saying they were instructed by police not to discuss the investigation.

Oregonian staff writer Michelle Cole and news researcher Margie Gultry contributed to this report. Stuart Tomlinson: 503-294-5940; stuarttomlinson@news.oregonian.com