Jonathan Lamar Perry was arraigned on murder and child endangerment charges Friday as a leading children's advocate called for a grand jury investigation into Sacramento County's Child Protective Services and its handling of four recent cases that ended in children's deaths.

"We have to have somebody who's going to take a top-to-bottom look at this and find out what the problems are," said Robert Wilson, executive director of Sacramento Child Advocates, whose attorneys represent children in dependency court. "These people (CPS workers) are protecting the most vulnerable victims of our society."

Wilson's staff of attorneys represents children in court who have been removed by CPS from homes believed to be unsafe. Wilson said he is angry that four of the five children who have died of abuse and neglect so far this year "never saw the court" or benefited from its protection because social workers failed to recognize the risks and pull them from their homes.

This was the case with the county's most recent death, 4-year-old Jahmaurae Allen, the son of Perry's live-in girlfriend. CPS had opened a suspected abuse case on the boy five weeks before the fatal beating.

A medical provider contacted the agency about suspicious bruising, according to sources, and an emergency response worker was assigned to investigate in June. The boy and his two siblings were not removed from the home.

Perry appeared briefly in court Friday, a day after the former security guard missed his arraignment because he was under psychiatric observation at the county jail. Perry did not enter a plea and spoke only to confirm his identity for the court.

Dressed in an orange jail jumpsuit and purple T-shirt, the 26-year-old Perry appeared inside a cell in the courtroom with a female deputy during the brief appearance. He was appointed a public defender and ordered to return to court Aug. 5.

Afterward, his mother told The Bee that her son was a quiet, gentle man who loved basketball and must have "snapped" to have done what he is accused of. "It doesn't make sense at all," Ernetta Hunter said.

Meanwhile, the case continued to generate criticism of CPS, the subject of a five-month investigation published last month in The Bee. The newspaper found that numerous problems persist at CPS a dozen years after the death of Adrian Conway, 3, whose case forced numerous policy changes within the agency. But ongoing questions over training and supervision – and the quality of the agency's investigations – were underscored again with the death of Jahmaurae.

CPS officials have conceded they could have done more to save the child, and announced a series of reviews Thursday that includes a fresh look at all 921 current investigations involving children ages 5 and under. The agency also suspended the social worker in the case with pay pending an investigation, a move that outraged a union leader who represents such workers.

"This is just shifting blame," said Ted Somera, executive director of United Public Employees Local 1. The local represents about 400 social workers.

"They are not the ones who caused trauma to this child," Somera said. "CPS should accept responsibility as a department and not shift the blame onto someone who is probably doing the work of two social workers."

CPS officials repeatedly have said their work is impeded by high caseloads and heavy turnover, despite an influx of money and staff in recent years.

Past grand juries that have examined CPS have not been sympathetic to staffing complaints. "The grand jury believes that regardless of the reasons stated, CPS is ultimately responsible for properly staffing its department to ensure the safety of children," the 1998-99 grand jury concluded.

Wilson said the grand jury is the right body to examine whether the agency is hampered by funding problems, or needs restructuring.

But Sacramento County Supervisor Jimmie Yee told The Bee on Friday that he does not support such an inquiry.

"I don't think there was anything done that was in violation of any legal process," Yee said. "I have to believe our CPS department is working as hard as they can."

Early Monday, Jahmaurae was found unresponsive in his mother's Foothill Farms apartment, where he was home with Perry. He was rushed to Mercy San Juan Medical Center and died that night of massive head and internal injuries.

Jahmaurae's siblings, a 3-year-old boy and 18-month-old girl, have been taken into protective custody.

In an interview following Perry's arraignment, his mother recalled her accused son – now 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds – as being "cuddly." One of her fondest memories was taking him to an Oakland A's game when he was 12 and having him cuddle in her lap.

"He was giving me hugs and kisses," Hunter recalled. "He's not a monster, but this is a monstrous act."

Hunter expressed deep sympathy for the dead child and the families affected by his death. "It's horrendous," Hunter said. "My heart bleeds for the family."

Hunter said her son had lived with her in Antioch until he moved in with the boy's mother, Tiffany Lacy, two months ago. He was looking for a job, she said, hoping to get on as an X-ray technician at Kaiser, and had been on disability because of an ankle injury. She said Lacy worked at an area home improvement store and was going to pharmacy school.

Hunter said she had met Lacy and the children only once and that she had no inkling there might be trouble brewing. She said she knew nothing about the fact that CPS had opened a case involving the children. "If I could turn back the hands of time, freeze that moment, I would," Hunter said. "I cry for the baby. I cry for Tiffany."

Call The Bee's Marjie Lundstrom, (916) 321-1055.