SAN ANTONIO - Tim Archuleta refused to talk about any of his children when leaving a courtroom.
Last week, Tim’s wife, Iliana, and nephew, Rogelio Archuleta were accused of abusing three of the children -- 10 year old twins and an eight year old boy whom the couple had adopted. A judge will decide temporary custody of five Archuleta children.
The twins, a boy and girl, are in a hospital. Investigators said the boy is not doing well and could lose a toe. According to investigators, the children were forced to bite each other or get a beating. We're told each child has permanent damage due to the biting.
Investigators said Tim and his wife had fostered children in the past. A woman told News 4 she believed her children were abused in the Archuleta home, years ago.
A spokesperson with the Department of Family and Protective Services told us the couple was cleared of wrongdoing and later adopted the alleged abuse victims.
“If we had made a finding of of abuse or neglect and sustained that finding when it was reviewed, then that person would not have been eligible to receive more children,” said Commissioner Howard Baldwin.
The head of DFPS joined state and community leaders at the Children’s Shelter to talk about funding for foster care and the need to help abused children.
Senator Carlos Uresti said all the agencies handling foster care need to do a better job of sharing files to efforts to protect children.
"It makes you scratch your head and makes your heart ache, wonder how can anyone hurt these precious little children."
Many people question the need for more social workers in the DFPS to investigate abuse. Mary Walker, of DFPS, insisted a simple phone call from anyone could provide additional help in a crisis.
"You need to keep calling. These are children we're talking about and they can't always speak for themselves. It's up to all of us to look out for these children."
