Settlement Reached In Suit Over Eli Creekmore Death

Eli Creekmore's grandmother has agreed to settle the lawsuit she filed against the state of Washington over her grandson's death, the state's attorney said yesterday.

Assistant Attorney General Paul Doumit said the state and Myrna Struchen Johnson reached an agreement yesterday after about two weeks of talks.

Doumit declined to discuss the terms of the agreement, saying he wants to wait until it receives court approval. He would not say whether the settlement includes any admission of wrongdoing by the state.

If approved by a Snohomish County Superior Court judge, the proposed settlement could be the final legal chapter in the story of a small boy whose death generated a statewide outcry for new child-abuse laws and policies.

Darren Creekmore, Eli's father, received a 60-year sentence for kicking his 3-year-old son to death in 1986. But Child Protective Services' (CPS) involvement in the case is a major reason it made headlines.

CPS had removed Eli from his Everett home three times in two years, but returned him each time despite evidence his father continued to abuse him.

The state Department of Social and Health Services, of which CPS is a part, concluded Eli's caseworkers made no major errors in handling his case.

Instead, DSHS officials said the ``system'' failed Eli, and recommended changes in law and policy.

The civil lawsuit filed by Johnson in 1987 challenged that conclusion.

Johnson, Eli's maternal grandmother, alleged the state and two of its employees negligently handled Eli's case and failed or refused to adequately investigate reports that he was abused.

In court papers, Johnson, the personal representative of Eli's estate, said the defendants should be found guilty of wrongful death and intentionally causing her emotional distress.

She also alleged that the state recklessly, carelessly and negligently trained its employees, including Cheryl Daudt, the caseworker assigned to Eli's case, and Carol Landaas, Daudt's supervisor.

Landaas, when told about the settlement, said she'd told herself she'd be happy whether the case settled or went to trial.

On one hand, Landaas, who now supervises caseworkers in CPS's Lynnwood office, said she would like the public to know the state's side of the story, which would have come out in trial.

On the other hand, she said she knew the process would be painful for everyone involved. ``Perhaps it's better unaired,'' she said.

Daudt, who works for CPS in Walla Walla, couldn't be reached for comment.

Johnson and her attorney did not return phone calls.

Doumit said settlement talks didn't start until about two weeks ago because a number of pre-trial issues hadn't been settled, including whether Eli's mother could receive any potential proceeds from the suit.

A Snohomish County pro-tem judge last month barred Mary Creekmore from getting any of the money.

What brought both sides to the table, Doumit said, was the knowledge that the emotional nature of the case made it risky to take it to trial.

Eli, who now would be 7 years old, was born in July 1983, one week before his father went to prison for an aggravated assault at a Kansas tavern. Two years later, Darren Creekmore returned home to Eli and Eli's mother, Mary, who had moved to Everett.

After Eli's death, internal and external reviews of Child Protective Services concluded the agency was overburdened.

The DSHS responded by changing CPS policies, asking for (and getting) more money and placing a higher priority on protecting a child than preserving a family.