MOSCOW, December 6 - RAPSI. The acquittal of U.S. citizens Brian Dykstra and Michael and Nanette Craver charged with murdering their adopted Russian-born children calls into question the objectivity of the U.S. judicial system, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on Monday.
Earlier, the press office of Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Pavel Astakhov reported that Iowa's Johnson County District Court acquitted on November 3 Brian Dale Dykstra, 35, who was charged with willfully murdering his 21-month-old Russian-born son Isaac Jonathan Dykstra. According to Astakhov, the boy died on August 14, 2005.
While the investigation was in progress, the U.S. authorities told nothing to Russian diplomats, the consulate or the Ministry of Education and Science, which is in charge of adoption issues. The U.S. authorities provided some information only after the acquittal has been passed.
Astakhov said that some 19 Russian-born children were killed by their foster parents since early 1990s.
According to the press-release Russia is deeply concerned with the recent negative trend toward infringing the rights of Russian children adopted by American families. It was also stressed that groundlessly lenient sentences to the Cravers charged with killing Ivan Skorobogatov, and the acquittal of Dykstra, who killed his adopted Russian-born child, arouse indignation and call into question the objectivity of the U.S. judicial system.
Nathaniel Craver (Ivan Skorobogatov) from the Chelyabinsk Region in Russia died on August 24, 2009 in a U.S. hospital from a head injury. The numerous other injuries on his body should be considered torture, the prosecution said during the trial. Doctors found over 80 injuries on the boy's body.
The Court of York County, Pennsylvania, sentenced the Cravers on November 18 to 16 months in prison and following five years on parole for involuntary manslaughter of their adopted son. However, they were released immediately after the trial as they had spent over 1.5 years in prison.
The jury has found the Cravers partially guilty, but acquitted them of premeditated murder charge. Prosecutor had sought death penalty. The boys death and the sentence incited a major uproar both in Russia and the United States.