Born and Raised to Murder: A Failure of Foster Care

by Irene Sullivan

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Pub Date Jun 18 2024 | Archive Date Jul 03 2024

Atmosphere Press

Nonfiction (Adult) | True Crime

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Description

When Florida juvenile judge Irene Sullivan read about the arrest of the young man who killed two college kids camping in the Ocala National Forest, she took action—in a surprising way. She began writing to Leo Boatman, 19, determined to understand what led him to commit such a random, violent act. She shares their correspondence, and examines many other cases of delinquency and its destructive trajectory, in her first book, Raised by the Courts: One Judge's Insight into Juvenile Justice.

Here, in Born and Raised to Murder, Sullivan continues her exploration into a foster care system that abuses, neglects, and incarcerates children, like Boatman, who seem unable to break free from a cycle of crime. Through her singular relationship with Boatman, she offers a rare insider’s view into his background, not as an excuse for his crimes, but as a way to understand how a bright bookworm of a child ended up a killer on death row.

You’ll read about Sullivan’s role as a defense witness in Boatman’s trial, enlightening perspectives from juvenile delinquency experts Kenneth Wooden, Dewey Caruthers, and Dr. Adele Solazzo, as well as Boatman himself.

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"I want my story to be told so what happened to me never happens to another foster kid. If you want to create a pit bull, put a kid in solitary confinement in a juvenile prison, without books to read and taunted by prison guards." —Leo Boatman

When Florida juvenile judge Irene Sullivan read about the arrest of the young man who killed two college kids camping in the Ocala National Forest, she took action—in a surprising way. She began...

A Note From the Publisher

Irene Sullivan, a retired Florida Circuit Judge, served twelve
years as a family and juvenile judge, presiding over cases
involving child abuse, domestic violence, family conflict and
juvenile crimes. She is now appointed as a Guardian ad Litem
to be the voice of the child and make recommendations that
are in the child’s best interest in divorce and paternity cases.
Irene is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and worked for a few years as a newspaper reporter and magazine editor before attending law school—Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida, near St. Petersburg. For 22 years she practiced law with a large St. Petersburg firm. In 1998, Irene was elected as a Circuit Judge and served for 12 years before retiring and becoming an adjunct professor of juvenile law at Stetson University College of Law until 2022.

Irene is the author of Raised by the Courts: One Judge’s
Insight into Juvenile Justice, real stories about the children
in her court. She is the co-author of You Can’t Raise Children
by Text: Better Co-parenting in a Digital World, written with child psychologist Dr. Lisa Negrini, a guide to improve coparenting in divorce and paternity situations.

Irene is very active in her community, sitting on the boards of many nonprofit organizations and has received many awards for her judicial service and community involvement.

Irene Sullivan, a retired Florida Circuit Judge, served twelve
years as a family and juvenile judge, presiding over cases
involving child abuse, domestic violence, family conflict and
juvenile...

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A Note From the Publisher

Irene Sullivan, a retired Florida Circuit Judge, served twelve
years as a family and juvenile judge, presiding over cases
involving child abuse, domestic violence, family conflict and
juvenile crimes. She is now appointed as a Guardian ad Litem
to be the voice of the child and make recommendations that
are in the child’s best interest in divorce and paternity cases.
Irene is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and worked for a few years as a newspaper reporter and magazine editor before attending law school—Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida, near St. Petersburg. For 22 years she practiced law with a large St. Petersburg firm. In 1998, Irene was elected as a Circuit Judge and served for 12 years before retiring and becoming an adjunct professor of juvenile law at Stetson University College of Law until 2022.

Irene is the author of Raised by the Courts: One Judge’s
Insight into Juvenile Justice, real stories about the children
in her court. She is the co-author of You Can’t Raise Children
by Text: Better Co-parenting in a Digital World, written with child psychologist Dr. Lisa Negrini, a guide to improve coparenting in divorce and paternity situations.

Irene is very active in her community, sitting on the boards of many nonprofit organizations and has received many awards for her judicial service and community involvement.

Advance Praise

"In this book, Judge Sullivan skillfully 'pulls back the curtain' to illuminate the circumstances that led Leo Boatman to kill two college students within a few seconds of exchanging pleasantries with them along a park trail. This book is as compelling as it is disturbing; it is a masterful account that helps the reader to understand the murderer without excusing his behavior."

-- Kathleen M. Heide, Ph.D., Distinguished University Professor, University of South Florida; Editor of The Routledge International Handbook of Juvenile Homicide

"In this book, Judge Sullivan skillfully 'pulls back the curtain' to illuminate the circumstances that led Leo Boatman to kill two college students within a few seconds of exchanging pleasantries...