GREENVILLE COUNTY, S.C. (FOX Carolina) – The South Carolina Department of Social Services investigated the guardians of a 4-year-old girl multiple times before her death, according to records obtained by FOX Carolina Investigates. The child was never removed from the home despite multiple reports of alleged abuse and a criminal conviction.
Bradley Craig and Nancy West were charged in June with homicide by child abuse, roughly six weeks after investigators say Cassie Owens died. They remain in jail on no bond. Investigators say Craig and West were Cassie’s legal guardians.
FOX Carolina filed a records request with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office after learning of the arrests. The reports obtained through that request detail a timeline of prior DSS investigations into the couple.
Kinship care placement
Cassie was placed with Craig and West through the DSS kinship care program, according to the records from the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office. Kinship care places children with relatives or family friends. It is not known exactly how the couple knew Cassie’s biological parents.
DSS case file summary
A Greenville County investigator reviewed DSS case files while looking into Cassie’s death, and a summary of the files was available in the records FOX Carolina obtained…