SAN ANGELO, Texas: The state of Texas should not have removed children from a polygamist sect's ranch because it didn't prove that they were in "imminent danger," an appeals court ruled Thursday, May 22.
In its ruling, the Texas 3rd District Court of Appeals decided in favor of 38 women who had appealed a lower court judge's decision that the children remain in state custody.
The Appeals Court Judges gave the lower court 10 days to vacate an order placing the children in state custody.
Although the ruling applies only to the children of the 38 mothers represented in this case, a lawyer for the women said the Court of Appeals' reasoning would apply to all of the children who were removed from their homes.
"The existence of the FLDS belief system as described by the department's witnesses, by itself, does not put children of FLDS parents in physical danger," the judges said.
More than 450 children were forcibly removed from their homes last month on the Yearning for Zion Ranch, which is owned by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Hooray, I said, when I saw this news on CNN last Thursday. I was right. The removing of those 450 children from their mothers and fathers was WRONG! The Appeals court 3-0 backed my opinion up.
In fact, this opinion by the Appeals court is so strong that some feel it would be stupid for the Texas authorities to appeal it the the State Supreme Court. I agree. That would be stupid. But who knows, removing 450 children from their mothers and then placing them, split up, all over the state of Texas was STUPID too.
It is a great day for families in the state of Texas!
The parents said they had spent the last few weeks zigzagging across the state to visit their children, who were taken from the sprawling 1,700-acre ranch on April 3.
"You can see it's a lot of stress on them," Edson Jessop said, referring to his three boys and girl. "Every time we leave, they go through that trauma again. It's enough to rip your heart out."
After the state took custody of the children, the mothers appealed the order on the grounds the department failed to establish that the need for protection was urgent.
Because no such proof was presented, the mothers argued that the district court, which backed the raid, abused its discretion and was obligated to return the children to their parents.
The Texas Appeals court agreed.
"Evidence that children raised in this particular environment may someday have their physical health and safety threatened is not evidence that the danger is imminent enough to warrant invoking the extreme measure of immediate removal prior to full litigation of the issue," the Appeals Court wrote.
Furthermore, the court said, CPS (Child and Protective Services) did not make any reasonable effort to determine if measures other than removal would have reduced the perceived risk to the children.
It was ridiculous how the courts had ignored the parents' rights.
It was about time a court stood up and said that what has been happening to these families is wrong.
This was the right decision. Thank God
Don't misunderstand me here. I do not agree with Polygamy. But that was NOT the issue here.
The issue was the precedent that could have been set; of State authorities being able to just bust in your community/home, round up your kids and separate them from their Parents, based on nothing more than a weak rumor/allegation.
This FLDS ranch is a Community of people working together, being self-sufficient. You don't just bust in there with guns drawn and Forcibly remove Children from their Parents with no real evidence of abuse.
If this could happen to the FLDS, it could happen to the Amish community next.
That is why this Appeals Court Decision is so right.
Now I pray that the Texas authorities will just admit they were wrong and do not appeal this any further.
Ahh, it feels good to be right from the beginning on this issue.
Jimbo
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