Legally Kidnapped

Shattering Your Child Welfare Delusions Since 2007


Wednesday, January 30, 2019

Big brother, big nurse: Why Oregon should not impose mandatory gov’t visits on newborns and parents

Maligning “big government” is popular, true, but it is not the size of government that actually causes the worst problems. The inefficiency of “big government” pales in comparison to the damage done by the personal corruption of politicians and bureaucrats. This is what really makes government power matter, because the more power government has, the worse abuse of that power will be. And while the effects of politicians’ corruption may diminish if they lose re-election, unelected bureaucrats are often virtually “unfireable.”

These are points to ponder as Oregon considers establishing home visits by nurses where newborns (or new adoptees) reside.

More >> Big brother, big nurse: Why Oregon should not impose mandatory gov’t visits on newborns and parents

The mother imprisoned for child abuse she didn't commit

Many women who are the breadwinners in their families face a choice: skip work, or face jail if anything happens to your child in someone else’s care

More >>  The mother imprisoned for child abuse she didn't commit

Federal judge dismisses child protection lawsuit



Dwight Mitchell filed suit after two of his three children were temporarily removed from his custody by Dakota County child protection workers in 2014, when he was living in Apple Valley. On Tuesday, a judge dismissed the suit.

Mitchell, who now lives in New Jersey, alleged, in part, that county workers discriminated against him because he is African-American. He later formed a racially diverse group of Minnesota parents who claimed county agencies illegally placed their children out of home. That group, called "Stop Child Protection Services from Legally Kidnapping," was added as a plaintiff.

More >>  Federal judge dismisses child protection lawsuit

Metro Detroit parents wrongly accused of child abuse by pediatrician have case dismissed

A family from Westland says when they noticed a mark on their newborn’s stomach, they took him to the doctor right away. But Allie and Jimmy Parker were stunned when a University of Michigan doctor accused them of abusing their baby.

More >> Metro Detroit parents wrongly accused of child abuse by pediatrician have case dismissed

Child Abuse Pediatricians: Are parents being wrongly accused?

They are called Child Abuse Pediatricians, and they say their mission is to protect children. However, local parents, attorneys and even some doctors say some of these specialists are tearing families apart.

The Parker family says they were emotionally and financially devastated after a false accusation of child abuse. Their lawyer says she’s had to fight against the same Child Abuse Pediatrician who accused the Parkers about 20 times, and they want to warn other families.

More >> Child Abuse Pediatricians: Are parents being wrongly accused?

Mother’s agonizing wait ends in SF: She’s reunited with baby taken from father by U.S. officials at border

A Honduran mother in San Francisco was reunited with her 17-month-old daughter on Tuesday night after spending a month desperately pleading with federal immigration authorities for the return of her baby who was separated from her father at the U.S.-Mexico border.

More >> Mother’s agonizing wait ends in SF: She’s reunited with baby taken from father by U.S. officials at border

North Dakota woman sentenced for adoption scam involving Oregon family

A Woodworth woman was sentenced to more than four years in prison Monday, Jan. 28, after entering Alford pleas under a plea agreement to charges related to what had been called an adoption scam.

Betty Jo Krenz, who is age 47 or 48, entered the pleas to charges of theft of property, a Class C felony, and theft of property, a Class B misdemeanor, in Southeast District Court in Jamestown. A charge of unauthorized use of identifying information was dropped.

More >> North Dakota woman sentenced for adoption scam involving Oregon family

Monday, January 28, 2019

Effort is necessary to keep families together

Should poor parents be allowed to keep their children? This is the question that comes to mind when “difficult economic conditions” and “poorer areas” are mentioned in the Watertown Daily Times editorial on Jan. 18: “A plague grows: Increased cases of child abuse and neglect require more staff.”

More >> Effort is necessary to keep families together

Hawaii settles lawsuit over sex abuse in foster care

Hawaii has agreed to pay $585,000 to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of two former foster children who were sexually abused by their Maui foster parent.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports the lawsuit filed in 2014 claimed state Department of Human Services officials were negligent and should have known that Florentino Rios was unfit to be a foster parent.

More >> Hawaii settles lawsuit over sex abuse in foster care

With Quebec opening up adoption records, one woman finds answers about her roots

A Quebec woman who was put up for adoption shortly after her birth in 1955 and spent decades seeking answers about her roots says she can finally rest easy.

Raymonde Thibeault is one of thousands of Quebecers who've benefited from the province last year lifting the confidentiality long attached to adoption records in Quebec.

More >> With Quebec opening up adoption records, one woman finds answers about her roots

Sunday, January 27, 2019

Children taken away from family caregiver, placed with foster parents



An Albuquerque woman and her family are working through the heartache of not having their niece and nephew around.

Caseworkers from CYFD took them from April Olivas last week. That came as a surprise for Olivas since she had been watching her young niece and nephew throughout the past year.

More >> Children taken away from family caregiver, placed with foster parents

Special prosecutor recommends five years in prison for woman who faked pregnancy, planned adoption

She may have gotten away with being cruel, if she hadn’t been on probation at the time.

Elizabeth Jones, the woman who faked being pregnant to deceive an Orange County couple trying to adopt, should receive five years in prison, according to a motion filed by the special prosecutor in charge of investigating the case in Virginia.

More >> Special prosecutor recommends five years in prison for woman who faked pregnancy, planned adoption

Saturday, January 26, 2019

Daycare responds after wrong child taken by social service agency

A Peoria daycare is commenting after a mother alleges her child was wrongly taken by a social service agency from their facility.

Fun n Fit said a “perfect storm of flawed processes and unfortunate events led to the wrong child being transported from our preschool by Lutheran Social Services earlier this week.”

More >> Daycare responds after wrong child taken by social service agency

Inside the Prison Where Babies Serve Time With Their Incarcerated Mothers

One by one, a line of women in state greens walk down the winding prison roads and up a stairwell, with their arms wrapped around their tiny newborns or cradling their pregnant bellies.

One-year-old Xaylen is one of 26 babies who call Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, a maximum security women’s prison in New York, home.

More >> Inside the Prison Where Babies Serve Time With Their Incarcerated Mothers

Friday, January 25, 2019

Mom says wrong child was taken from Peoria daycare by social service agency

It’s every parent’s worst nightmare, to think your child was taken by someone without your consent, to an unknown location. This nightmare became a reality for Terra Langfeldt when she says a daycare – social services mishap ensued.

Terra Langfeldt was walking out of work Tuesday afternoon when she said she got an alarming phone call from her husband concerning their three-year-old daughter.

More >> Mom says wrong child was taken from Peoria daycare by social service agency

District court judge arrested for DWI

District court judge arrested for DWI



A district court judge, Deborah Walker, was arrested Wednesday night for DWI.

More >> District court judge arrested for DWI

Lawsuit contends Oregon DHS failed to prevent Warrenton teen's death

Attorneys for a Warrenton boy killed in 2017 are suing Oregon's child welfare agency, alleging the state failed to prevent the 15-year-old's death.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the lawsuit filed Tuesday seeks $3.4 million for the surviving relatives of Trevor Secord.

More >> Lawsuit contends Oregon DHS failed to prevent Warrenton teen's death

Mother sues San Bernardino County for giving father custody of daughter he is charged with killing

While a Blythe man is being tried in Arizona for the alleged murder of his young daughter in 2017, the mother of the child has sued San Bernardino County Child and Family Services for the role they may have played in granting the father custody despite his history of violence.

Aaron Roman Freeman, 26, of Blythe, is facing first and second-degree murder charges in La Paz County Superior Court in Arizona for the murder of his three-year-old daughter, Autumn Shibley.

More >> Mother sues San Bernardino County for giving father custody of daughter he is charged with killing

State Improperly Shared Unsubstantiated Reports Of Child Abuse For Years

The state of Hawaii has been improperly using unconfirmed reports of child abuse or neglect when evaluating potential foster parents or licensing day care facilities, prompting the federal government to order it to stop.

Federal law allows states to retain unconfirmed child abuse reports to be used in case of subsequent abuse complaints about the same parents or caregivers. The idea is that such reports, though not initially proven, might later help investigators establish a pattern.

More >> State Improperly Shared Unsubstantiated Reports Of Child Abuse For Years

Thursday, January 24, 2019

Miracle Hill gets religious exemption to provide foster care in SC despite complaints

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday granted Greenville-based Miracle Hill Ministries an exemption to continue its faith-based foster care program that works only with Christians.

Miracle Hill has been operating its program for decades, but its recruiting policy came under scrutiny after the Obama administration implemented a new regulation for federal funding recipients shortly before the inauguration of President Donald Trump. The regulation prohibits groups receiving federal funding from discriminating on the basis of religion.


More >> Miracle Hill gets religious exemption to provide foster care in SC despite complaints

Maine’s still not making full use of its child welfare services watchdog amid ‘a bit of a crisis’

In the more than 10 months since 10-year-old Marissa Kennedy was abused to death allegedly at the hands of her mother and stepfather, the number of assessments state-contracted caseworkers conducted into potentially at-risk families nearly doubled.

The resulting sharp uptick — 909 assessments in 2018 compared with 545 in 2017 — occurred because, suddenly, “there were fears things were being missed,” Child Welfare Ombudsman Christine Alberi told the legislative Committee on Health and Human Services last week in Augusta.

More >> Maine’s still not making full use of its child welfare services watchdog amid ‘a bit of a crisis’

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

AP Exclusive: Adoptee deported by US sues S. Korea, agency

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Adam Crapser lives in limbo, a stranger in South Korea, the country of his birth.

Forcibly separated from his wife, children and friends in America, he is isolated by language and culture, left alone to navigate this sprawling city he's been expelled to four decades after being sent to adoptive parents in Michigan at age 3.


More >> AP Exclusive: Adoptee deported by US sues S. Korea, agency

Greenwich Council criticised by High Court judge for ‘basic’ social care failings in adoption case after ‘serious and significant data breach’

A High Court judge has slammed Greenwich Council’s social services at its staff failed to carry out “basic core social work” in an adoption case and forced an adopting family to move after their address was sent to the birth family.

Social services at the London council failed in their duty to make basic inquiries about the possibility of the children being cared for by a member of their wider family after a family court judge approved their adoption plans in 2016 when the parents could no longer look after them.

More >> Greenwich Council criticised by High Court judge for ‘basic’ social care failings in adoption case after ‘serious and significant data breach’

UK-Based Couple Could Be Extradited to India, Face Trial for Adopted Son's Murder

Arti Dhir, 54, a British citizen born in Kenya, and Kanwaljit Raizada, 30, who came to the UK as a student from India and soon started living with Dhir, adopted a 12-year-old boy, Gopal Anjani from Gujarat, in July 2015. A month later, they took out an insurance cover for the child that would pay them Rs 1.3 crore in the event of his death.

On February 18, 2017, the young boy – who was travelling with his brother-in-law Harshukh Karadani – was attacked by masked goons who killed them both on a road outside Rajkot. It is alleged that the contract killers were to be paid Rs 5 lakh to kill the boy.

More >> UK-Based Couple Could Be Extradited to India, Face Trial for Adopted Son's Murder

Woman denied document in bid to find dad

A young Victorian woman placed in foster care as an infant has been denied access to a government document she believes may contain the name of her birth father.

The woman was taken from her mother at three weeks and placed in permanent care. She only saw her twice and had limited letter correspondence with her before she died in 2017.

More >> Woman denied document in bid to find dad

Foster children’s data exposed by Franklin County Children Services error

Letters containing identifying information about Franklin County foster children, including their Social Security numbers, were mailed to the wrong foster parents and family caregivers, Franklin County Children Services said Tuesday.

The letters were intended to be tax-filing resources in case the families were able to count a foster child as a dependent.

More >> Foster children’s data exposed by Franklin County Children Services error

Tuesday, January 22, 2019

The Media Using Foster Families to Milk the Government Shutdown Propaganda

A family of nine is facing a difficult financial situation due to the effects of the government shutdown. Dawn Hunter and her seven children, three of them foster kids, were living a relatively comfortable life until the shutdown affected her husband's job. He works for the Coast Guard and is working unpaid, so the family has had to make some difficult financial decisions just to make ends meet.

More >> Family of 9 struggles to make ends meet during government shutdown

Former foster parent sentenced to prison on child sex charges



A former Henderson County foster parent is sentenced to more than two years in prison on child sex charges.

Investigators say John Forsberg Jr. sexually abused a foster child in his care.

More >> Former foster parent sentenced to prison on child sex charges

HHS chief refuses to testify on child separation policy

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is refusing to have secretary Alex Azar testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee about the administration’s child separation policy, according to the panel’s chairman.

“[Azar’s] denial to appear before the Committee in the coming weeks on the family separation policy is unacceptable, and we are going to get him here at some point one way or another,” Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) said in a statement.

More >> HHS chief refuses to testify on child separation policy

Tribes offer overwhelming support for Indian Child Welfare Act

On Jan. 16, 325 tribal nations, 57 Native organizations, 21 states, 31 child welfare organizations, Indian and constitutional law scholars, and seven members of Congress joined the United States and four intervenor tribes in filing briefs to urge the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to uphold the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), the long-standing federal law protecting the well-being of Native children by upholding family integrity and stability.

More >> Tribes offer overwhelming support for Indian Child Welfare Act

Greenwich social services criticised for handling of adoption case

Mrs Justice Theis said social services staff failed to carry out "basic core social work" and failed to make "basic inquiries" about the possibility of the children being cared for by a member of their wider family.

The judge said staff had also accidentally revealed detail of the people earmarked as adopters and that this "serious and significant data breach" had led to those prospective adopters having to move home.

More >> Greenwich social services criticised for handling of adoption case

Monday, January 21, 2019

$3M awarded to children molested by ‘psychopath’ foster child placed by state with Island County family

A federal judge has approved a $3 million settlement for three children who were molested after a state adoption caseworker placed a sexually aggressive 12-year-old boy diagnosed as a “psychopath” into their home without telling the family.

More >> $3M awarded to children molested by ‘psychopath’ foster child placed by state with Island County family

Couple who took in adopted children forced to move house after council blunder sees their address sent to birth family

A couple who adopted two children were forced to move house after a council blunder saw their address sent to the birth family.

Social services staff at Greenwich Council, London, also failed to carry out "basic core social work" about the possibility of the children being cared for by a member of their wider family, as it emerged that an Aunt wanted to take them in.

More >> Couple who took in adopted children forced to move house after council blunder sees their address sent to birth family

Police officer jailed for attempting sexual relationship with teen in foster care

A policeman has been sentenced to 10 months' jail for attempting to have a sexual relationship with a teenager who was a ward of the state and who had sought his help.

Key points:
Gopinath met the girl when she asked him for a ride home from the police station
He sent 146 messages to the girl over the course of a month
After the girl told another officer about Gopinath's behaviour, he claimed she was trying to blackmail him

Vikram Gopinath, 29, from Mildura, pleaded guilty to attempting to procure a child of 16 or 17 for sex and one charge of misconduct in public office.

More >> Police officer jailed for attempting sexual relationship with teen in foster care

Fears of sexual abuse led to two young boys being removed from foster care

A pre-school boy and his younger sibling were removed from their foster carer by the child and family agency amid fears he may have been sexually abused in their care.

Details of the matter were outlined in a District Court in a rural town where the judge was informed of an emergency change in the foster placement. Tusla acted to remove the children amid evidence the boy had sustained a non-accidental injury.

More >> Fears of sexual abuse led to two young boys being removed from foster care

Shutdown puts CASA organization at risk

As the longest partial federal government shutdown in the nation’s history approaches one month, the impact extends far beyond government employees to the country’s most vulnerable, the thousands of abused and neglected children in the foster care system.

Note: At least something good came out of the shutdown.  CASA is a scam.

More >> Shutdown puts CASA organization at risk

Sunday, January 20, 2019

Child protection services STILL failing vulnerable kids 10 years after Baby P death




But we examined Ofsted inspection ­results and found 100 of the 152 local authorities in England with child protection duties are still ­“inadequate” or “requiring improvement”.

More >> Child protection services STILL failing vulnerable kids 10 years after Baby P death

Missouri sued over rules for foster parents who have guns

A Kansas City couple claims in a federal lawsuit that state requirements for foster parents who own guns violate their constitutional rights.

Foster parents in Missouri are not prohibited from possessing firearms if they are otherwise legally allowed to do so. But the Missouri Department of Social Services imposes several restrictions on them, The Kansas City Star reports . The rules include storing firearms and ammunition separately, keeping firearms locked in areas inaccessible to children, and keeping firearms in a locked area in any vehicle transporting a foster child.

More >> Missouri sued over rules for foster parents who have guns

Most Rappahannock foster youth sent to other counties, cities to live and attend school

The availability of foster care homes in Rappahannock has reached crisis proportions, and as county children are being sent to more urban areas to live it puts the county’s federal reimbursement funding in jeopardy.

“And the reason is because we have very few, and at times no approved available foster homes within Rappahannock County,” reveals Rappahannock Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Melissa Cupp.

More >> Most Rappahannock foster youth sent to other counties, cities to live and attend school

Saturday, January 19, 2019

House panel demands answers from Trump administration on 'zero tolerance' family separation policy

A House panel sent a letter Friday to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar requesting he turn over documents related to the administration's "zero-tolerance" policy that led to the separation of families apprehended along the southern border.

The letter from the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations comes less than a day after a 2017 draft memo released by Oregon Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley detailing plans to deter migrants, including the "zero-tolerance" policy. The memo details plans to separate families months before the "zero-tolerance" policy was announced by the administration.

More >> House panel demands answers from Trump administration on 'zero tolerance' family separation policy

Pinellas child protective investigator posted case details on Reddit

A Pinellas child protective investigator was given a five-day suspension Thursday after an internal sheriff’s investigation found he posted confidential information about a case on the social media website Reddit.

While off-duty, Taylor Pittman, 25, responded in May 2017 to a discussion thread titled "CPS workers of Reddit, what was the worst case you have seen?"

More >> Pinellas child protective investigator posted case details on Reddit

Oklahoma Fathers' Rights Movement Holds First Meeting

A new movement in Oklahoma is trying to give fathers a better shot at custody of their kids.

The Oklahoma Fathers' Rights Movement says fathers lose 87-percent of the time when it comes to child custody.

More >> Oklahoma Fathers' Rights Movement Holds First Meeting

Parents Vs. The State On Education

School: a blessing and a curse for children everywhere. Education is well established to hugely benefit the quality of life of those privileged enough to attain it. On the other hand, kids are routinely placed in the perfect environment to be bombarded with mind-closing dogma day after day, during the very time their brains and worldviews are still developing. What better setting in which to mentally engineer the next generations than state-run schools? Do today’s educational institutions offer the perfect place to build social skills and learn, or are they merely factories churning out millions of drones? Some parents think they have the answer, but governments may not always agree.

More >> Parents Vs. The State On Education

Friday, January 18, 2019

Audit: DCF did not always follow up with timely inspections after daycare violations found

A new audit reveals that when the Florida Department of Children and Families found violations at daycares, it didn’t always follow up in a timely manner, to make sure those problems were fixed.         
It says the department did not conduct timely re-inspections following 115 violations over an 18-month period.

More >> Audit: DCF did not always follow up with timely inspections after daycare violations found

Two 'lazy' detectives 'deliberately sabotaged child abuse investigations by destroying evidence and forging documents due to a 'cynical disdain' for alleged victims'

Two police officers sabotaged a string of child sex abuse investigations out of a combination of 'cynical disdain' for accusers and laziness, a court has heard.

Detective constables Sharon Patterson, 49, and Lee Pollard, 47, forged documents and concealed evidence over a three-year period, the Old Bailey heard today.


More >> Two 'lazy' detectives 'deliberately sabotaged child abuse investigations by destroying evidence and forging documents due to a 'cynical disdain' for alleged victims'

Former DCS worker accused of neglect, failure to report child abuse



A former Indiana Department of Child Services worker and a former Indiana Department of Correction employee are behind bars accused of neglect and failure to report child abuse.

Jennifer Elaine Hoover, 58, and her husband, Jimmy Joe Hoover, 63, are being detained at the Madison County Jail.

Magistrate Judge Jason Childers granted a 72-hour continuance for formal charges to be filed after the couple was arrested on suspicion of Level 6 felony child neglect of a dependent, Level 6 felony failure to report child abuse and Level 6 felony obstruction of justice.

More >> Former DCS worker accused of neglect, failure to report child abuse

Video of baby being taken by child services will follow the girl her whole life: expert

After a video of a newborn baby being taken away from a mother went viral this week, one expert has a warning about the images we choose to share online.

"This story's going to be out there on social media for this child's entire life," said Cindy Blackstock, executive director of the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society.

More >> Video of baby being taken by child services will follow the girl her whole life: expert

Ex-New Jersey Child Welfare Worker Who Extorted Sex From Female Clients Sentenced



A former New Jersey assistant family services worker who last year admitted to extorting sex from two women he was responsible for supervising during court-ordered child visits was sentenced to three years in prison, the state’s attorney general announced Friday.

Lamont King, 42 and of Trenton, pleaded guilty on July 30, 2018 to a second-degree charge of conspiracy to commit a pattern of official misconduct.

More >> Ex-New Jersey Child Welfare Worker Who Extorted Sex From Female Clients Sentenced

Men Speak Out About Child Custody Battles

In a recent report by CNN, several men came forward to share their personal experiences with child custody and child support. After losing his job, one man spent time in jail for not paying child support. Another man described how he was unfairly banned from seeing his children, and yet another father was only awarded four days a month for visitation because he was not listed on the birth certificate. In fact, fathers often find themselves granted only visitation of their own children accompanied by what may seem like insurmountable child support payments.

Does Mom Always Get Custody?

More >> Men Speak Out About Child Custody Battles

State suspends Dallas child placing agency after infant dies in Forney foster home

The state has suspended a Dallas agency from accepting new foster children after an infant died last month at the home of a foster mother verified by the contractor. 

The Dallas agency that vetted the home where an infant in the care of a woman who was arrested after the baby's death has been suspended from finding foster homes for other children.

More >> State suspends Dallas child placing agency after infant dies in Forney foster home

Detroit police, FBI save teen girls from sex traffickers, youth shelter blamed

A disturbing story of sex traffickers targeting teenage girls in Detroit as a family found out their loved one is one of the victims.

Police are still investigating but right now two men, a 21- and an 18-year-old, are under arrest for what allegedly happened to that young lady and another teenage girl. They are said to have been runaways from a state licensed shelter on Detroit's east side.

More >> Detroit police, FBI save teen girls from sex traffickers, youth shelter blamed

Thursday, January 17, 2019

Watchdog: Government Separated 'Thousands' More Children at Border Than Reported

A Health and Human Services Department watchdog concluded that “thousands” more immigrant children were separated from a parent or guardian at the U.S.-Mexico border than the government had previously reported, and that the total number of family separations is “unknown.”

The HHS Office of Inspector General published a report Thursday finding that the current tally—2,737 children—applies only to children in the department’s custody as of a June 2018 federal court order requiring the data’s release. But the statistic does not include thousands of children who were separated from their parents and detained beginning in the summer of 2017 and released before the ruling was issued.

More >> Watchdog: Government Separated 'Thousands' More Children at Border Than Reported

Protecting parents from the child protection system

The parents I represented as a longtime legal services and civil rights lawyer never expected to find themselves on the wrong side of a child-abuse hotline call. Erroneous judgments, finding both guilt and innocence, issue at alarming rates, often without any court review.

The system has become a behemoth, with 7.4 million hotline calls in 2016 alone. Only a tiny fraction involves serious physical or sexual abuse — that's the good news in these staggering numbers. With nearly 74 million children in America, hotline investigations affect huge numbers of children — and not in a good way. One study found that 53 percent of African-American children experienced a child abuse or neglect investigation at some point in their lives. Child abuse registers list millions of perpetrators, most of whom never had a day in court before their names were listed.

More >> Protecting parents from the child protection system

Indigenous mother whose newborn was apprehended by Manitoba officials in hospital hopes for a reunion

A mother seen crying in social media videos as her newborn baby was taken from her in hospital says she is hopeful the child will be reunited with family soon.

The mother says she had made private arrangements before the baby’s birth to transfer guardianship to her aunt.

More >> Indigenous mother whose newborn was apprehended by Manitoba officials in hospital hopes for a reunion

Fire that killed four foster children in West Virginia deemed accidental

The West Virginia fire marshal's office says investigators believe a fire that killed four children was probably accidental.


The fire marshal's office said in a news release there were smoke alarms in the house, located in Clay.

More >> Fire that killed four foster children in West Virginia deemed accidental

Elderly man who allegedly sexually abused foster daughter turned in by his partner

An elderly man who was charged this week with sexually assaulting his 10-year-old foster daughter was reported to the police by his de-facto partner.

Police allege that the 79-year-old sexually assaulted the 10-year-old girl he and his partner had been caring for over a period of months.

More >> Elderly man who allegedly sexually abused foster daughter turned in by his partner

Former foster parent charged with raping six girls

A man is facing charges for allegedly sexually abusing girls in foster care.

Back in August, KRQE News 13 reported on claims that Clarence Garcia's foster daughters, some as young as 6, came forward through the years to report him, but nothing was done.

More >> Former foster parent charged with raping six girls

Mom infuriated after social worker seen on camera hitting her teenage son

No matter how many times Quishandra Walker watches the video, she cannot believe it.

"I'd just like to see justice, cause it's wrong. There's ways you can go around talking to a child without cursing them out. Calling them all kinds of names," Walker said.

More >> Mom infuriated after social worker seen on camera hitting her teenage son

Secrecy in Phila. Family Court Protects Bureaucrats and Lawyers More Than Children, Experts Say

Instead of protecting children as intended, closed-door proceedings in the Philadelphia Family Court do more to shield from the public eye those lawyers, social workers and judges who do their jobs poorly, court-watchers said.

More >> Secrecy in Phila. Family Court Protects Bureaucrats and Lawyers More Than Children, Experts Say

Norway's child protection services accused of abducting children

A controversial practice by Barnevernet, the Norwegian Child Welfare Service, keeps drawing the ire of human rights activists. The agency was accused earlier of forcibly taking away children from their parents under the pretext of mistreatment of children.

Now, a Barnevernet official has been accused of helping the abduction of two Turkish children who were on vacation in Turkey with their foster parents, according to Norwegian media outlets.

More >> Norway's child protection services accused of abducting children

Report: Incarcerated kids improperly held in isolation

Children confined or incarcerated in Connecticut's criminal justice system are not getting the services they need and some are being illegally held in isolation, according to a report released Wednesday by the state's Office of the Child Advocate.

The report, which comes following an 18-month investigation, found numerous problems inside facilities operated by the state Department of Correction, the Judicial Branch's Court Support Services Division and a now-closed facility that was operated by the state Department of Children and Families.

More >> Report: Incarcerated kids improperly held in isolation

Four DCYF workers sidelined after death of girl, 9

Four workers at Rhode Island’s Department for Children, Youth and families have been sidelined pending a review, following the death of an adopted, nine-year old girl with cerebral palsy who once was in care of the child welfare agency, and was one of eight children found in squalid conditions January 3 in a home on Oakland Beach Avenue in Warwick.

“At this time we have one person on administrative leave and three others on restricted responsibilities, said DCYF Director Trista Piccola, in a news conference convened Wednesday to offer the agency’s first comments in the nearly two weeks since the death of Zah-Nae Rothgeb.

More >> Four DCYF workers sidelined after death of girl, 9

Oregon Could Become the First State to Require In-Home Surveillance of Newborn Babies

If Oregon Governor Kate Brown has her way, the Beaver State will become the first to require universal home visits for newborn children in the care of their own parents.

Senate Bill 526, introduced this month in the Oregon Legislative Assembly as part of Brown's budget, orders the Oregon Health Authority to "study home visiting by licensed health care providers." Lawmakers went so far as to declare that SB 526 is an "emergency" measure — one that requires a resolution by the end of the year. The intro to the bill, the language of which has not yet been crafted, reads:

The Oregon Health Authority shall study home visiting by licensed health care providers in this state. The authority shall submit findings and recommendations for legislation to an interim committee of the Legislative Assembly related to health care not later than December 31, 2019.

More >> Oregon Could Become the First State to Require In-Home Surveillance of Newborn Babies

Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Foster care failures identified in state report on the death of 2-year-old Largo boy

The Florida Department of Children and Families will conduct a comprehensive review of the the foster care system in Pinellas County after a damning report into the death of a 2-year-old Largo boy identified failures by case managers and child protective investigators that could have protected the child.

Police say Charisse Stinson murdered her son Jordan Belliveau in 2018 and then reported him missing. At the time, Jordan was under court-ordered supervision. He had spent almost two years in foster care because of concerns about violence and gang activity around his home. A new investigation into domestic violence inside his home was ongoing.

More >> Foster care failures identified in state report on the death of 2-year-old Largo boy

Mother of 8 adopted children with special needs arrested after 9-year-old found dead in tub

A Rhode Island woman was arrested after her 9-year-old adopted daughter with special needs died and seven more of her adoptive children were found living in filthy conditions in the same home.

Michelle Rothgeb was arrested Sunday on charges of cruelty to, or neglect of a child, according to the Warwick Police Department.

More >> Mother of 8 adopted children with special needs arrested after 9-year-old found dead in tub

Live stream of baby taken by child services challenges privacy laws — but family feels empowered

Video of a newborn baby being seized by child welfare officials that streamed on Facebook spread quickly across social media after it was posted on Thursday, displaying one family's trauma to everyone's eyes.

But a woman who advocates for families involved with Winnipeg Child and Family Services worries sharing the video online risks exposing the family to harsh judgment from people who don't know the full story.

More >> Live stream of baby taken by child services challenges privacy laws — but family feels empowered

Incarcerated Parents: Why Many Nonviolent Offenders Lose Their Parental Rights



We’ve all heard the stories of family separation at the border, but there’s a different kind of family separation going on that fewer people know about, and it’s playing out all over the country.

Some parents in prison are being completely stripped of their parental rights, even if they are imprisoned on short sentences for non-violent, low-level crimes. Lori Lynn Adams is one of them.

More >> Incarcerated Parents: Why Many Nonviolent Offenders Lose Their Parental Rights

It took this separated family 246 days to reunite

The 12-year-old wore a pink Disney princess backpack that said, "We Can Do ANYTHING," as she hugged her mom for the first time in eight months.

It was a moment Vilma Carrillo feared would never come.
"I held her so tight," Carrillo said, describing the recent reunion in a phone interview with CNN on Tuesday. "We stayed there a while, crying."

More >> It took this separated family 246 days to reunite

Tuesday, January 15, 2019

Watchdog report over points to lingering problems at DCYF

Two years after a critical audit called for an overhaul of the state’s Division for Children, Youth and Families, the agency is still beset by staffing and resource problems, a state watchdog has concluded after a nine-month review.

In its first annual report, the Office of the Child Advocate warned that staff shortages and inefficient policies are preventing the state from quickly opening and completing assessments, leaving many of the state’s children vulnerable to harm.

More >> Watchdog report over points to lingering problems at DCYF

Police officer 'threatened to take dad's kids into care' as '40 to 50 cops' turned up at family home

A dad told a court he was threatened by a policeman that he would be arrested and have his children taken into care when officers turned up at his door looking for another family member.

Mohammed Yusaf Khan, 37, claimed a male and female officer came to his Cambuslang family home to speak to his brother Omar.

More >> Police officer 'threatened to take dad's kids into care' as '40 to 50 cops' turned up at family home

Broken child welfare system rooted in broken family ties

After viewing the apprehension of a First Nations newborn on Facebook, my emotions flared up as I remembered my own experiences in dealing with similar instances.

I am a former child welfare worker.  I am an intergenerational residential school survivor and overcomer. l am a mother who raised her own children, has 12 grandchildren and now is a great-grandmother.  I do not smoke or drink and I am a person of prayer.

More >> Broken child welfare system rooted in broken family ties

Monday, January 14, 2019

Ex-foster parent, Big Brother gets 90 years for sexual exploitation of teens

A man who acted as a Big Brother and foster parent was sentenced in federal court Monday to 90 years in prison for convincing teenage boys to produce child pornography.

William John Easterling Jr., 53, was sentenced to three consecutive, 30-year prison terms by U.S. District Court Judge Paul L. Maloney Monday, Jan. 14, in Kalamazoo.

More >> Ex-foster parent, Big Brother gets 90 years for sexual exploitation of teens

The German Government Forcibly Removed These Children From Their Parents Over Homeschooling

The Wunderlich family wanted to do what thousands of families in America do with no questions asked: educate their children at home.

But homeschooling is not allowed in Germany, and the state has relentlessly pursued the Wunderlichs and even seized their children. One morning in August 2013, 33 police officers and seven social workers showed up at their front door, threatening to open it with a battering ram. The parents cried as their children were carried screaming out of their home.

More >> The German Government Forcibly Removed These Children From Their Parents Over Homeschooling

Viral video of Manitoba newborn being apprehended by CFS prompts family to speak out


Two social media videos show a newborn baby girl being taken from the arms of her Indigenous mother by Manitoba social workers and police – an apprehension that First Nations leaders say is all too common in a child-welfare system biased against Aboriginals.

The videos, broadcast live Thursday on Facebook by the woman’s uncle, show her sitting in a hospital bed, cradling her baby and rocking back and forth as social workers and police explain that the baby is being taken into care.

More >> Viral video of Manitoba newborn being apprehended by CFS prompts family to speak out

Alberta family separated by adoption for seven decades is finally reunited

A family of five has finally been brought back together after 70 years of being apart, meeting for the first time in Olds this weekend.

Bob Elfstedt, who lives in Sherwood Park, was placed for adoption as a baby when he was born out of wedlock in 1939.

More >> Alberta family separated by adoption for seven decades is finally reunited

A chance DNA test reunited a daughter with her biological mother after 52 years apart

It's one of Karen Leslie's most painful memories, putting her daughter up for adoption 52 years ago.

Leslie was young and unmarried at the time, with few resources. So she turned the baby over to a Catholic adoption agency, and prayed ever since she would get to see her daughter again.

More >> A chance DNA test reunited a daughter with her biological mother after 52 years apart

Sunday, January 13, 2019

Officials continue to investigate fire that killed four foster children in Clay County

Officials are continuing to investigate a house fire that took the lives of four foster children in Clay County.

More >> Officials continue to investigate fire that killed four foster children in Clay County

Independent investigators to review case of foster dad police say filmed kids in bathroom



The case of a foster dad allegedly filming kids in his bathroom will be reviewed by a third party investigative team, Utah officials said Tuesday.

John Kimble, 57, was arrested over the weekend and police say he could face more than 100 felony charges, many related to child pornography. He and his wife had four boys in their care, two of them adopted and two of them foster children. Police believe Kimble's wife was unaware of her husband's alleged crimes.

More >> Independent investigators to review case of foster dad police say filmed kids in bathroom

New Kansas governor disputes with DCF over research

Kansas Gov.-elect Laura Kelly is up in arms with the state's troubled child welfare agency for spending public funds to undercut research linking welfare restrictions with a rise in the number of abused children in foster care.

The Kansas Department for Children and Families recently released a $24,000 report calling into question University of Kansas research that Kelly has cited, less than two weeks before she takes office, the Kansas City Star reported. The research backed by Kelly found that certain cash assistance restrictions in recent years have fueled abuse and foster care placements.

More >> New Kansas governor disputes with DCF over research

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Baby’s death leads to foster mother’s arrest and more scrutiny for Texas care system

A Dallas-area foster mother has been charged with child endangerment in the death of an infant in her care, a case that raises questions as to whether state officials have done enough to improve the safety of foster children.

More >> Baby’s death leads to foster mother’s arrest and more scrutiny for Texas care system

Mom Seeks Answers in Death of 2-Year-Old Son Who Died While in Foster Care

The family of a 2-year-old Queens boy who died while in foster care Monday night is seeking answers in his mysterious death as conflicting documentation about his condition have been obtained.

Phillip Payne died at a Jamaica foster home where he'd been placed just two weeks before, along with his older sister, on Dec. 26, and was pronounced dead at Jamaica Hospital Monday night. His mother, 32-year-old Tawana Burns, left the hospital again on Friday no closer to understanding how or why the toddler died.

More >> Mom Seeks Answers in Death of 2-Year-Old Son Who Died While in Foster Care

Agency in adoption scandal enters voluntary liquidation

St Patrick’s Guild (Incorporated) gave notice of its intention to be wound up via a voluntary liquidation on December 17 last. Anthony Weldon of KR Professional Advisors has been appointed as liquidator. As of October 31, the firm had total assets of €265,847 and total liabilities of €26,876.

News of the liquidation comes just seven months after the Department of Children and Youth Affairs revealed in May that Tusla had discovered 126 cases in which births were illegally registered between 1946 and 1969 in the records of St Patrick’s Guild. The records were transferred to Tusla in 2016 after the agency ceased offering an information and tracing service at the end of 2014.

More >> Agency in adoption scandal enters voluntary liquidation

Alex Jones, Infowars Must Hand Over Documents to Sandy Hook Families Suing Conspiracy-Minded Host

Image result for alex jones



Alex Jones and Infowars must provide a wide array of documents to plaintiffs in a Connecticut defamation lawsuit. The suit was brought by six families of victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and an FBI agent swept up in conspiracy theories that the shooting was staged.

Judge Barbara Bellis responded Jan. 10 to objections by Jones and several affiliated companies about the types of documents they needed to turn over during the discovery phase of the trial. The judge ordered Jones to hand over everything the plaintiffs requested except tax returns and information gathered in an attempt to have the lawsuit dismissed. Jones’s lead attorney didn’t respond to a request for comment from Fortune.

More >> Alex Jones, Infowars Must Hand Over Documents to Sandy Hook Families Suing Conspiracy-Minded Host

Trump administration removes all migrant teens from giant Tornillo tent camp

The Trump administration has removed all teenagers from a massive tent camp in Texas for unaccompanied migrant teens caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, weeks after a federal watchdog warned about “serious safety and health” concerns at the facility.

Officials said about 5,500 of the 6,200 Central American teens who cycled through the Tornillo camp since June have been released to a parent or guardian inside the United States to await a decision in their immigration cases. About 700 were transferred to other facilities overseen by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

More >> Trump administration removes all migrant teens from giant Tornillo tent camp

US approved thousands of child bride requests in the last decade; ‘My passport ruined my life’

Thousands of requests by men to bring in child and adolescent brides to live in the United States were approved over the past decade, according to government data obtained by The Associated Press. In one case, a 49-year-old man applied for admission for a 15-year-old girl.

More >> US approved thousands of child bride requests in the last decade; ‘My passport ruined my life’

Trump signs law to pump $430 million into anti-human trafficking efforts

Nationwide efforts to confront human trafficking received a boost in the new year as President Donald Trump signed a bill reauthorizing federal expenditures for prevention and assistance programs across the federal government.

The Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act allows $430 million in federal funds for trafficking prevention and education, victim protection and stronger government prosecution of traffickers through 2022.

More >> Trump signs law to pump $430 million into anti-human trafficking efforts

FYI: This does not interfere with CPS Child Trafficking.

FBI busts woman who ran fake adoption services for YEARS and scammed desperate prospective parents out of tens of thousands of dollars

A Michigan woman is charged with wire fraud following an investigation into claims that she conned hopeful adoptive parents out of tens of thousands of dollars in fees, but never produced any babies for them.

Tara Lynn Lee, 37, of New Haven, Michigan, was arraigned in federal court Friday on wire fraud charges after turning herself over to the FBI.

More >> FBI busts woman who ran fake adoption services for YEARS and scammed desperate prospective parents out of tens of thousands of dollars

Friday, January 11, 2019

January 11th is national human trafficking awareness day

Virginia is the fifteenth worst state in the United States for human trafficking according to the Safe House Project, a local group fighting to end trafficking.

Human trafficking made national headlines this week after human trafficking victim Cyntoia Brown was granted clemency by the Tennessee Governor's office.

More >> January 11th is national human trafficking awareness day

Westside foster home director pleads not guilty to failure to report neglect



Director of i.K.A.R.E. Youth and Family Services Torrance D. Gary, 48, was arrested after the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said he tried to cover up a suspected act of molestation.

More >> Westside foster home director pleads not guilty to failure to report neglect

Indigenous mother speaks out after newborn seized by CFS

An Indigenous mother from Winnipeg is speaking out about the apprehension of her newborn baby by Child and Family Services.

The woman, 38, and her family members held a media conference Friday morning with First Nations leaders and advocates to address the situation.

More >> Indigenous mother speaks out after newborn seized by CFS

Report: U.S. birth rate too low to replace population

Americans are having fewer children.

One report says the number of births was so low in 2017 that it wasn't enough to keep the population levels steady.

More >> Report: U.S. birth rate too low to replace population

Bill would require DCF contractors to record how they spend state money

The first proposal to fix the state's foster care program is now in the books.  Reforming DCF is one of the top items lawmakers on both sides of the aisle say they want to work on this year.

"Some children will show up at a foster family's home, they don't have decent shoes on.  Then the foster family has to go and purchase shoes," said Sen. Oletha Faust Goudeau, (D) Wichita.

More >> Bill would require DCF contractors to record how they spend state money

Sherin Mathews death: Trial date of mother Sini Mathews postponed



The trial of Sini Mathews, the Indian-American adoptive mother of Sherin Mathews, the three-year-old who was found dead in a culvert in Dallas in October 2017, was postponed by a court in Dallas, USA, according to news organisation NBC DFW.

According to the report, the date of the trial is being pushed as new prosecutors are being assigned to the case. A new date has not been set yet. The bail amount for Sini may be reduced at a hearing to be held on Friday morning, reported Dallas News. Arrested in November 2017, Sini’s bail at the time was set for $250,000.

More >> Sherin Mathews death: Trial date of mother Sini Mathews postponed

Iowa woman gets 2 years for having sex with ward of the state

An Iowa woman accused of having sex with a teenage boy staying at the Child Saving Institute shelter in Omaha has been sent to prison.

Douglas County District Court records say 24-year-old Hanna Dickerson was sentenced Tuesday to two years. She'd pleaded guilty to attempted sexual abuse of a protected person. Prosecutors lowered the charge in exchange for her plea.

More >> Iowa woman gets 2 years for having sex with ward of the state

Thursday, January 10, 2019

Child custody assessments under review after complaints about former psychologist's methods

A former Vancouver psychologist who has served as an expert witness in hundreds of court cases has agreed to review his assessments in a series of child custody cases in response to complaints about his methods.

Dr. Allan Posthuma signed an undertaking with the College of Psychologists of B.C. on New Year's Day, consenting to consult with a colleague in a review of his reports in five cases concerning parenting and custody disputes. He's also agreed to accept feedback on how to improve his practice.

More >> Child custody assessments under review after complaints about former psychologist's methods

Reducing Delinquency Among African American Youth In Foster Care

In my recent study entitled, “Reducing delinquency among African American youth in foster care: Does gender make a difference in crossover prevention,” published in the journal Children and Youth Services Review, I use an interdisciplinary lens to address an issue of timely importance. I discuss how resilience theory can be applied to the foster care system to identify promotive factors that may later reduce the likelihood of youth engaging in delinquent acts. This issue is important as intervention development may be informed and policy changes made to improve the developmental outcomes of this at-risk group to reduce their likelihood of engaging in delinquency.

This issue is important as children and youth in the foster care system are more likely to go on to commit delinquent acts and be involved in the juvenile justice system. This is especially the case for African American youth who are overrepresented at every level of the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. In thinking about what works to aid African American youth in the foster care system to stop their trajectory into delinquency, it is important to contextualize their experiences – meaning identifying what factors may have contributed to these youth becoming involved in the foster care system in the first place. Later, I will review the findings of my study which identifies factors that may aid African American youth in discontinuing their trajectory into delinquency.

More >> Reducing Delinquency Among African American Youth In Foster Care 

Judge rules little girls must be adopted despite their big sister's pleas

The 17-year-old said she was "completely committed" to the girls, who are four and nearly two, and could meet their care needs.

Family members gave their backing and said they would provide support.

But a judge has ruled against the teenager after social workers and a psychologist said she would not be able to meet the girls' "emotional needs".


More >> Judge rules little girls must be adopted despite their big sister's pleas

PENNSYLVANIA FAMILY ACCUSED OF STARVING, BEATING FOSTER KIDS SO BADLY THEY WERE LEFT WITH SEVERE SCARRING




A Pennsylvania foster family is accused of keeping three children in deplorable conditions, beating and starving them so frequently they were left with severe scarring, police said.

Brenda Parise, 60, and her daughter Amy Parise, 33, are each facing six felony counts of endangering the welfare of a child, three misdemeanor counts of simple assault and three harassment offenses stemming from the alleged abuse, according to a release from Hazleton Chief of Police Jerry Speziale obtained by Oxygen.com.

More >> PENNSYLVANIA FAMILY ACCUSED OF STARVING, BEATING FOSTER KIDS SO BADLY THEY WERE LEFT WITH SEVERE SCARRING

Foster Mom-of-5 Charged in Baby’s Death — as Son Gets Arrested for Child Porn During Investigation

More than a week after the death of a baby she was caring for, a Texas foster mother faces charges.

A press release from the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office confirms Natalie Parker — a 37-year-old Forney woman who had been fostering five children on Dec. 29, 2018, when the baby was declared dead — was arrested on Monday.

More >> Foster Mom-of-5 Charged in Baby’s Death — as Son Gets Arrested for Child Porn During Investigation

New Push to Provide Legal Advice to Parents Facing Abuse and Neglect Investigations

The Child Welfare Organizing Project sits in a corner of the Clinton Houses between 109th and 110th Streets in East Harlem, a place where parents can get advice from other parents when they are under investigation for abusing or neglecting their children. It’s one of the few places such parents can go because during an investigation, which can last up to two months, they have no right to a lawyer, nor are they typically told what rights they do have. In a dimly lit backroom with a few toys and a child’s drawing of a valentine on the wall, I speak with a handful of mothers with recent child welfare involvement. They ask that I not use their names for fear that doing so could lead to more trouble.

One mother, who wishes to go by Stella B., says she never had the opportunity to be properly investigated because her children, 8 and 17, were removed on an emergency basis and placed with a relative after she was kidnapped by her ex-boyfriend and held for eleven days—a fact confirmed by a letter from the Manhattan district attorney’s office—while child protective services “indicated” a case of neglect against her.

More >> New Push to Provide Legal Advice to Parents Facing Abuse and Neglect Investigations

‘The Mexico Guru’ helps kids find their families

Confronted with heart-wrenching images of children snatched from parents at the U.S.-Mexico border, good people will feel as if there is nothing one person can do to make their sliver of the world a kinder and gentler place.

More >> ‘The Mexico Guru’ helps kids find their families

Wednesday, January 09, 2019

Human remains found near Hart family crash site in California confirmed to be teen girl

Human remains found near the deadly California crash site involving the Hart family from Woodland have been confirmed through DNA testing to be 16-year-old Hannah Hart.

Hannah was one of two missing Hart children who had not been accounted for following the crash on the California coastline in Mendocino County in March 2018.

More >> Human remains found near Hart family crash site in California confirmed to be teen girl

Minnesota appeals court upholds family rights in foster care cases

In a victory for relatives of children placed in foster care, a Minnesota appeals court has ruled that child welfare agencies in Minnesota must go through a formal court proceeding before ruling out family members as adoptive parents for neglected children.

A three-judge panel of the Minnesota Court of Appeals decided last month that Anoka County Social Services violated state law when it denied a woman's petition to be the adoptive parent of her three grandchildren without first obtaining a court order expressly excluding her.

More >> Minnesota appeals court upholds family rights in foster care cases

U.S. couple’s adoption dreams crushed after birth mom fakes pregnancy

In December 2018, California-based couple Matt and Laura Trayte posted a heartbreaking story on Facebook, claiming the woman who agreed to be the birth mother during their adoption journey faked her pregnancy.

“We’ve been trying to complete our family for the past 10 years,” Laura Trayte told Global News. “Family is everything to us and in our minds there is nothing more worth fighting for… and fight we have.”

More >> U.S. couple’s adoption dreams crushed after birth mom fakes pregnancy

Trump officials seek dismissal of separated families’ suit

The federal government is urging a judge to throw out a lawsuit seeking monetary damages on behalf of children who were separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border.

U.S. Department of Justice attorneys said in a brief filed Tuesday that Supreme Court precedent bars such a lawsuit for damages on challenges to government policy. They also argue Trump administration officials named in the case are shielded by qualified immunity, among other things.

More >> Trump officials seek dismissal of separated families’ suit

Foster family charged with abusing, starving 3 young kids

A Pennsylvania foster family beat and starved three young children over a period of six years, even staging a videotaped fight between two of the children in an effort to cover their tracks, police said.

Brenda Parise, 60, and her daughter, Amy Parise, who is turning 33 on Wednesday, were arrested Monday on felony child endangerment charges and other offenses.

More >> Foster family charged with abusing, starving 3 young kids

Mother threatened by social services over trans concerns

A mother has spoken out after she was told her daughter could be taken into care when she complained her child was being “encouraged” to change sex.

The anonymous mum, known as Lisa, told the Mail on Sunday that she was accused of ‘conversion therapy’ and deemed a risk to her daughter.

More >> Mother threatened by social services over trans concerns

Kansas City police discipline 17 officers from troubled unit handling child abuse, neglect cases

Seventeen Kansas City police officers who formerly worked in a unit that failed to properly investigate crimes against children have been disciplined, with seven of the officers no longer working in the department, Police Chief Rick Smith announced Tuesday.

More >> Kansas City police discipline 17 officers from troubled unit handling child abuse, neglect cases

Does anybody want a kid?




More >> Wednesday’s Child: 15-Year-Old Patrick

San Mateo CPS ignores father and covers up child abuse

The little girl in the photograph is happy. The little girl sitting on Daddy’s lap knows she is loved, knows she is wanted. The same little girl is on the telephone four years later – desperate, terrified, traumatized, begging for help. The little girl is Sophia Grace Hope Merrill, Barry White’s daughter. When Sophia fell into San Mateo County’s child welfare system, Barry thought that maybe everything would be OK because she was placed under the care and supervision of his sister, Ka’misha Crittendon.

Barry White was wrong.

More >> San Mateo CPS ignores father and covers up child abuse

Babysitter pleads not guilty in connection to foster home death of 3-year-old

Zayden Ace Larson



A woman charged in connection to the death of a 3-year-old she was babysitting pleaded not guilty in court Monday.

According to court documents, Laronna Bourne pleaded not guilty in Hennepin County to third-degree assault and malicious punishment of a child.

More >> Babysitter pleads not guilty in connection to foster home death of 3-year-old

High Court: Foster mother who was not chosen as adoptive parent has application for judicial review dismissed

A woman who was the foster mother of a baby with serious health issues has had her application for judicial review dismissed in the High Court.

The child, who weighed only 720gms at birth, was in the care of the foster mother for over a year when the decision was made to place the child with the couple preferred by the birth mother.

More >> High Court: Foster mother who was not chosen as adoptive parent has application for judicial review dismissed

Tuesday, January 08, 2019

Kansas child welfare agency trying to undercut research cited by incoming governor

In the final days before Kansas Gov.-elect Laura Kelly takes office, the state’s child welfare agency is attempting to undercut research she’s cited in opposing welfare restrictions championed by former Gov. Sam Brownback.


Kelly’s team criticized the agency’s leadership, appointed by outgoing Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer, for commissioning a report with public funds that raises doubts about research linking welfare restrictions with child maltreatment. Republican lawmakers may use the report as the basis for a possible fight over welfare policies.

More >> Kansas child welfare agency trying to undercut research cited by incoming governor

Foster mother arrested in death of Forney 5-month-old girl


Kaufman County Sheriff's deputies arrested a foster mother in connection with the death of a 5-month-old girl in her care.

Natalie Parker, 35, surrendered to authorities on Monday. She’s charged with abandoning or endangering a child, injury to a child and tampering with a witness.

More >> Foster mother arrested in death of Forney 5-month-old girl

Children forced to stay in police cells, damning child social care report reveals

Some of the most vulnerable children in Nottingham are being forced to stay overnight in police cells because there are not enough places to deal with their complex needs, a damning report has revealed.


Ofsted inspectors also said there are not enough social workers in the city to cope with social care needs.

More >> Children forced to stay in police cells, damning child social care report reveals

More >> Couple who sold child for Rs 50k ordered to return money, keep kid.

Kay Warren 'weeping' at 'horrible suffering' as adoptive parents forced to relinquish custody

Saddleback Church co-founder Kay Warren is weeping over a story of Illinois foster parents being forced to give back their child in order to get him mental health help.

“Weeping. Horrible suffering for some of our nation’s most vulnerable children,” Warren wrote on Twitter last week.

More >> Kay Warren 'weeping' at 'horrible suffering' as adoptive parents forced to relinquish custody

Global Report on Trafficking in Persons - 2018

Globally countries are detecting and reporting more victims, and are convicting more traffickers. This can be the result of increased capacity to identify victims and/or an increased number of trafficked victims Countries have reported increased numbers of detected trafficking victims over the last few years. While the number of reporting countries did not significantly increase, the total number of victims per country did. The trend for the average number of detected and reported victims per country had previously fluctuated during the earlier years for which UNODC has collected this data, but it has been increasing steadily over the last few years.

More >> Global Report on Trafficking in Persons - 2018

Police searching for mother, two children reported missing in late December

Kenyah Randall Edwards and children



Police are currently searching for a woman and her two children who haven't been seen since late December.

Kenyah Randall-Edwards, 16, and her two children, 2 year-old Kensharri and 1 year-old Shariah, were last seen on December 22 in Monroe.

More >> Police searching for mother, two children reported missing in late December

Teenage girl 'given £4 by social worker and dumped at filthy B&B for 19 weeks'

Daisy, who was 16 at the time, says the B&B was full of young men, including one who grabbed her buttocks, leaving her terrified to go to the toilet at night

More >> Teenage girl 'given £4 by social worker and dumped at filthy B&B for 19 weeks'

Saskatchewan '60s Scoop survivors hope government apology brings change

Survivors of the ’60s Scoop in Saskatchewan are hoping an apology from the provincial government comes with action to reduce the number of children in care.

Premier Scott Moe is to apologize on Monday morning at the legislature.

More >> Saskatchewan '60s Scoop survivors hope government apology brings change

Parents left wondering after children sexually abused in Utah County foster home

The biological parents of children police say were abused in their Pleasant Grove foster home are venting their frustration this weekend, wondering whether the abuse could’ve been prevented.

Darrell Hussey, of American Fork, said his teenage son called him Friday, upset and confused.

More >> Parents left wondering after children sexually abused in Utah County foster home

Monday, January 07, 2019

Tent City Housing Migrant Children To Close As Kids Are Released To Sponsors

A controversial, government-contracted shelter for migrant children in the West Texas desert will shut down later this month, a result of sweeping changes to the rules that govern the custody of youngsters. Nationwide, the number of children in the government's care has stopped growing and begun to fall. In the last two weeks, some 2,200 child migrants — mostly teenage boys from Central America — have been discharged from shelters and allowed to join family already in the U.S.

More >> Tent City Housing Migrant Children To Close As Kids Are Released To Sponsors

Home! Little girl separated from her brother calls to say 'wish you were here'

Bouncing happily on her bed in a thatched cottage, surrounded by dolls, soft toys and pictures of her father and brother, little Alice Simpson giggled in delight as she played with her young relatives on the first day of her new life in England.

The six-year-old’s infectious laughter marked the end of an extraordinary 5,000-mile journey from a grim and backward city in north-west China to a picture-postcard village in Suffolk, where she will tomorrow enrol in a Church of England school.

But as The Mail on Sunday revealed last week, behind the smiles lies a secret heartache. Alice flew to Britain from China on Friday with her grandparents Ian and Linda – but the pair were forced to take the agonising decision to leave behind her eight-year-old brother Jack.

More >> Home! Little girl separated from her brother calls to say 'wish you were here' after their grandparents won the right to bring her back from China but had to leave him behind with the family of the jailed woman who murdered his father

Guess what

It Could Happen To You