<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1594490776368.png" alt="Kirkpatrick-photo Wyandotte Co." />
 <figcaption>Kirkpatrick-photo Wyandotte Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — A&nbsp;Kansas&nbsp;woman has been sentenced to more than 31 years in prison for killing a 3-year-old girl in a case that drew attention to the agency responsible for overseeing young children in the state.Jacqulyn Kirkpatrick was sentenced Monday, a little more than a month after pleading guilty to second-degree murder and interfering with a law enforcement investigation.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1594403105823.png" alt="Olivia Jansen-photo KBI" />
 <figcaption>Olivia Jansen-photo KBI</figcaption>
 </figure>Olivia Ann Jansen of Kansas City, Kansas, died in July 2020. Her body was found in a shallow grave, hours after her father reported her missing. A medical examiner's report later showed that she had signs of physical abuse and died of a brain bleed. Kirkpatrick and the child's father, Howard Jansen III, were arrested.Jansen is scheduled to go to trial May 2 on a charge of first-degree murder.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/7/1594468009097.png" alt="Jansen-photo Wyandotte Co." />
 <figcaption>Jansen-photo Wyandotte Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Olivia’s death led to calls for changes at the Kansas Department of Children and Families. Information previously released by the agency shows it received two reports of alleged physical abuse involving Olivia in February 2020. One report alleged Olivia’s father hit her on the leg, leaving a bruise and possibly breaking the limb. The other report alleged Kilpatrick hit the girl. Both were ruled unsubstantiated after a person who alleged the abuse recanted.The girl also was visited by a caseworker over a video call 11 days before she was found dead. That investigation stemmed from a hotline report from someone worried that her caregiver was unavailable or unable to care for her and may have been using drugs.Child welfare officials also have acknowledged that they received repeated reports about a 2-year-old Wichita boy before he was found dead in a motel of a methadone overdose in May 2019. A 3-year-old Wichita boy’s body was found encased in concrete in 2017 after relatives repeatedly reported abuse. In the Kansas City area, a 7-year-old boy was tortured, starved, killed and fed to pigs in 2015 despite extensive involvement with welfare officials.The state has taken several steps to address the issues, including creating an independent office to review complaints against the Kansas’ foster care system and recommend changes in child welfare policies, a longtime goal of advocates for abused and neglected children.

Kansas woman sentence in death of 3-year-old