Two parents are looking for answers after their son died while under the care of social services. Logan Dollison was taken into foster care shortly after his mother, 30-year-old Lindsey Householder, gave birth on December 19. But now Householder and Logan’s father, 32-year-old William Dollison, still have no idea why their son died.
Logan was born at home before being rushed away to O’Bleness Hospital in Athens, Ohio.
“I didn’t know I was pregnant with him,” Householder told WKBN. The mom only realized she was about to have a baby when she went to the bathroom and realized she was in labor.
“We went to the hospital. We got there by squad. Everything was fine with Logan,” Householder said. “They ran all kinds of tests, made sure everything was fine with both of us, and the next day CPS came in and took him.”
The dad said they’d had two other kids taken in by CPS and were hoping to get Logan back.
Logan’s mom said he went to the doctor on January 5 for a weight check and was fine. The mom said she wasn't aware of her son’s doctor's visits even though she and her husband wanted to be present. Householder and Dollison were supposed to have a visit with Logan the next day, on January 6, but was told it had to be canceled because Logan wasn’t eating and that his caregiver was taking him to the doctor.
"We asked if we could go to the doctor's appointment," Householder told WKBN.
The couple was told they had to wait for the approval of her son’s caregiver. They then were told that Logan was being transferred to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, but because of the snow, the parents weren’t able to drive to meet them.
Householder continued to text Logan’s foster mom, who was with him at the hospital, but by 11:50 p.m. that night, things weren’t looking good.
"At midnight, she finally texted me back and said that his heart had stopped and they couldn't get it back," Householder recalled.
Her son was officially declared dead on January 7, 2022, at just over two weeks old. Understandably, Householder and Dollison wanted to go up and see their son.
“I texted [the caseworker] because I figured we’d be going up to Columbus,” she told WKBN. But it was too late. She was told that Logan had already been released to a medical examiner.
No official cause of death has ever been released in Logan's case.
CrimeOnline reported that it took Householder two weeks before she was finally allowed to see her son and identify his body.
“We did not get to identify Logan. We didn’t get to see him or nothing until the day before his funeral,” she told WKBN.
In a statement, Otis Crockron, director of Athens County Children Services, disputed the claim that Householder was told of her son’s death via text.
“We take a situation where there’s a child fatality seriously,” he said. “We would reach out directly to the mother and we would never notify via text, but I cannot speak for the foster parent or what the mother shared. … That should never happen, to learn about it over text.”
“We would spend a lot of time to make sure that the mother had what she needed,” he added. “I can tell you that we’ve been open and available to the mother and would do anything we could to help in this situation.”
Capt. Bryan Cooper of the Athens Sheriff’s Department said the case is currently under investigation.
“This is an open investigation,” Cooper explained at a press conference, reported CrimeOnline. “It’s a thorough investigation. All resources that we can will be put forward to determine the death of Logan.”
But all Logan’s parents want are answers. Dollison told WKBN that he is furious at the way CPS treated his son and said that he was never included in any communications about his child, even though he’s the boy’s father and he and Householder are a couple.
“If it was me, I’d be behind bars right now until I could prove my innocence," he said. "I’d be behind bars. It wouldn’t matter what it is … if he was in our custody. That’s how it would have been. But for them, they still get to walk the street.”
According to his obituary, a funeral was held for Logan on January 21.
