But the broad sweep - from nursing infants to teenagers - is raising constitutional questions, even in a state where authorities have wide latitude for taking a family’s children.
The move has the appearance of “a class-action child removal,” said Jessica Dixon, director of the child advocacy center at Southern Methodist University’s law school in Dallas.
“I’ve never heard of anything like that,” she said.
(AP) Texas State Troopers provide escort and security as buses leave the San Angelo Coliseum grounds…
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Rod Parker, a spokesman for the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, contends that the state has essentially said, “If you’re a member of this religious group, then you’re not allowed to have children.”
Attorneys for the families and civil-liberties groups also are crying foul. They say the state should not have taken children away from all church members living at the Yearning For Zion Ranch in Eldorado.
Church members said that not all of them practice polygamy, and some form traditional nuclear families. One sect member whose teenage son is now in foster care testified that she is a divorced single mother.
State police have removed four children from an apocalyptic church whose leader claims to be the Messiah and acknowledges having sex with some of his followers.
The three girls and one boy—all under the age of 18—were taken from the northeastern New Mexico compound following an April 22 investigation, Romaine Serna, spokeswoman for the state Children, Youth and Families Department spokeswoman, said Wednesday.
The children were taken into state custody because of allegations of inappropriate contact between minors and the adult leader of The Lord Our Righteousness Church, Serna said.
“I understand that it was very calm and they (state police) did not meet with any resistance,” she said. Serna said she wasn’t aware of any other youths at the compound.
There seems to be more evidence of wrongdoing in this case; however, it is another case of the state saying, “Your children belong to me and I have the right to take them from you at any time.”
Now they are pulling children out of a completely different type of church’s compound.
Notice that when it’s cheating, gossiping housewives, it’s called a “gated community” but when it’s a church it’s called a “compound”. How easily public opinion is swayed by a simple choice of words.
The old children’s saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names can never hurt me,” is patently untrue. How many of us live in fear of being called a “racist?”
Words, and the way they are slanted, have great power, for good or ill.
It’s sickening that all those children were cruelly separated from their polygamist parents because one of Obama’s delegates made prank calls saying the children were taught to be “frightened of black people.” So now you can have your children taken away from you if you teach them to be sensible but you have weird religious ideas. And Christians are too stupid to realize that they all fall into this category, in the eyes of Christ-haters. You can take one thing to the bank: The satanic government of this country would never have raided a camp of Muslim polygamists. There would be hell to pay. But Whites are afraid to organize because they are afraid of being called “racist.” The government also has no problem with sodomites and pornographers. There is absolutely no chance of the Army invading San Francisco.
ELDORADO, Texas—Child Protective Services workers returned to the west Texas ranch of a polygamist sect Wednesday in search of children they believe might have arrived since more than 460 others were seized in a raid last month.
Guy Jessop, standing guard at the main gate of the ranch run by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, said two CPS workers accompanied by a sheriff’s deputy asked whether they could enter the ranch to look for more children. Jessop said he denied them access without a search warrant.
SAN ANGELO, Texas - In a ruling that could torpedo the case against the West Texas polygamist sect, a state appeals court Thursday said authorities had no right to seize more than 440 children in a raid on the splinter group’s compound last month.
The Third Court of Appeals in Austin said the state failed to show the youngsters were in any immediate danger, the only grounds in Texas law for taking children from their parents without court action.
We shall see if the state does the right thing. Every once in a great while they manage to pull off something good.
The photos I see of the FLDS ladies after the ruling in their favor show their humanity and emotion for the first time that I’ve seen those items portrayed in news photos.
Up until now the photos strove to make them look like robots.
SAN ANGELO, Texas—State child welfare authorities have agreed to reunite 12 children from a west Texas polygamist sect with their parents until the state Supreme Court rules on their custody case.
SAN ANGELO, Texas (AP) - Texas child welfare authorities plan Friday to appeal a stinging ruling that found they had no right to seize more than 440 children from a polygamist sect’s ranch, a court spokesman said.
Yes Sigh… The state is still fighting and note the article states: “authorities are investigating whether the calls were a hoax.” They already arrested hoaxer! And one of the “child mothers” held in foster care was 27…
SAN ANGELO, Texas - State child welfare authorities on Friday appealed a stinging court ruling that said their seizure of more than 440 children from a polygamist sect’s ranch was unjustified, but they also agreed to reunite 12 children with their parents while the case moves on…
CPS’s case for removing all children from the ranch was thrown into doubt Thursday when the Third Court of Appeals ordered a lower-court judge to rescind her decision giving the state custody of more than 100 of the children. The ruling was broad enough to cover nearly every child swept up in the April raid on the ranch run by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints…
The children were taken into custody more than six weeks ago after someone called a hot line claiming to be a pregnant, abused teenage wife. The girl has not been found and authorities are investigating whether the calls were a hoax…
The state conceded this week that at least 15 of the 31 mothers being held in foster care as minors were actually adults; one is 27…
