Child welfare worker who handled A.J. Freund case gets 6 months in jail

CHICAGO — A judge sentenced a former Illinois state child welfare worker to six months in jail Thursday in connection with the 2019 death of .Lake County Associate Judge George Strickland also ordered Carlos Acosta to contribute $1,000 to a local children’s advocacy center and perform 200 hours of public serviceStrickland acquitted Acosta of reckless conduct but of child endangerment in October in connection with the death of Andrew “A.J.” Freund of Crystal Lake. Acosta was accused of ignoring numerous warning signs that the boy was being abused prior to his death.In April of 2019, Andrew “AJ” Freund’s parents reported him missing, saying they had last seen him while putting him to bed. But after nearly a week of searching in and around Crystal Lake, the 5-year-old boy’s body was found, and an autopsy revealed he died from blows to his head.Associated PressThe boy died in April 2019 after his mother, JoAnn Cunningham, beat him. She is serving a 35-year sentence for his murder. The boy’s father, Andrew Freund Sr., was sentenced to 30 years in prison for covering up the killing by burying the boy’s body in a field.Police took A.J. into protective custody in December 2018 after an officer noticed a large bruise on the boy’s hip. The officer had visited the boy’s home after his mother called police to report her ex-boyfriend had stolen her cellphone and a drug used to treat heroin addiction.JoAnn Cunningham, left, is serving a 35-year sentence for murder, and her husband, Andrew Freud Sr., is serving 30 years in prison for covering up the killing by burying 5-year-old A.J. Freud’s body in a field. Associated PressA doctor recommended that the boy not be released to his mother, but Acosta ended protective custody and let the boy go home with his father. The judge found that Acosta’s reports repeatedly omitted potential signs of abuse, such as marks on the boy’s face and the family’s terrible living conditions.Defense attorneys Rebecca Lee and Jamie Wombacher argued prosecutors and witnesses were speculating and using hindsight of the child’s death to scapegoat Acosta, and the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services was violating a court order limiting investigators’ cases.