Blogs by Deborah K. Frontiera
Fighting CPS
9/9/2012 11:23:29 AM
The purpose of this blog is to provide updates on some of the cases I reported in my book (Fighting CPS: Guilty Until Proven Innocent of Child Protective Services Charges ISBN 9-780-9800061-6-2) that had not been resolved when the book went to press, and to report other cases where CPS is not working up to par. I’d also like to hear about cases in which Child Protective Services did the right thing so those cases can serve as examples of what should be done. Occasionally, I will report helpful tips and web sites with advice on fighting CPS.
To comment on this blog, or to tell your story, email Deborah Frontiera at frontiera.fightingcps.deborah.gmail.com
The next post on this site will be Sep. 24, 2012.
Michigan Mom Says CPS Doesn’t Listen
I’ve been in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula since the beginning of June doing research on a book. I’ve also (as I do every summer) been autographing all my books at various summer festivals in the area. At one of those—Pasty Fest in Calumet at the end of June—I met a young woman named April Snyder who was in the middle of her own battle with Child Protective Services in Houghton County. I’m happy to say that April was fine with me using her name.
April’s ordeal began when her daughter Emily was about 18 months old. Emily had been born with a hernia, but her doctor had recommended waiting until the baby was about 10 months old to do surgery. While the surgery successfully corrected Emily’s hernia, she had “learned” that eating was painful. So she often refused to eat. No matter what tempting healthy foods were placed before her, Emily ate little or nothing. The natural result of this was that she was underweight and not as healthy as she should have been. April was working with her doctor and with some special programs in her area to try to find a successful diet, so it wasn’t as though Emily was neglected, and she certainly wasn’t abused.
April had finally set up an appointment with yet another specialist when both she and Emily got sick. (April had been ill herself three times that winter.) Somehow, Emily inhaled a tiny bit of water while “swimming” in her bath—supervised of course. Emily’s doctor must have been tired because the recommendation was that it was simply an “ear infection” and Mom should stop worrying and bringing her in. Things got worse. Emily had a terribly high fever and a fever seizure!
April called 911 and was told NOT to take her daughter to the hospital yet! April took her anyway. There it was discovered that Emily had pneumonia. April stayed at the hospital with her daughter. That was when CPS became involved. The caseworker, Kelly, seemed to have a problem with “heavy set people.” (My daughter has a problem with her weight, too, but that doesn’t make anyone an unfit parent.) April was told they were taking her daughter away from her and putting her in foster care. She felt CPS never listened to her side and never put any “positive stuff” into her file.
April did have regular supervised visits with her daughter at first, twice a week for two to four hours. Emily always cried when her mom had to leave. The “experts” twisted this to say that Emily didn’t want to see her mother! Common sense dictates that if a child cried at the beginning of a visit and was happy at the end that this might be the case. But children who cry when parents leave do so because they don’t want parents to go! CPS cut back on April’s visits with her daughter.
Around this time, April became engaged to another man (not Emily’s father, who can’t get CPS to grant him custody either) and unintentionally became pregnant again. CPS used this to say that Emily “would probably not do well with another baby around.” (What child doesn’t have times of jealousy?) They would say that Emily was “depressed” or “emotionally disturbed” to continue to keep Emily away from her mother. When the new baby, a boy, was born, they used the still open case to have jurisdiction over the new baby, too. At seven months when I interviewed April for the first time, he was doing so well that he’s ahead of average in some areas of his development. CPS has had no excuses to remove him from April’s custody although they keep trying. “Every time they visit, I’m afraid they’re going to take him,” she said.
April felt pressured to give up her parental rights “voluntarily”. “It was as if they were saying that if I didn’t give up Emily, they would take my son, too!” she said. So April relinquished parental rights to Emily in order to keep her son. “There is not a day that goes by that I don’t miss her. Now I have to wait until she is 18 to see her again. Her foster family wants to adopt her and probably will.” During the summer, April had seen Emily, who is now four years old, with her foster family at a public beach. Emily looked happy and healthy—not at all the depressed or emotionally disturbed child CPS had told her about. “I was glad that Emily didn’t recognize me, but it tore me apart. We had to leave.”
April feels strongly that the State of Michigan pressures people to give up children—especially healthy children without “issues” because they benefit from the adoption fees paid to the state. While April had no idea what these fees were, she suspected it might be as high as $10,000. (This theory that states profit from adoption is one I have heard several times from other people, but I have not actual proof for it.)
“It’s like I’m living in a cage,” April told me. “I can’t do anything without permission. I can’t even get cable TV because I’m ‘not supposed to be able to afford’ it.” (In that area, if a person doesn’t have cable or a dish, only one or two TV stations are available.)
April would like to move “down state” (to Michigan’s Lower Peninsula) because her brother is fighting cancer. She and another sister would like to get a house together so they can all help and support each other. Her lawyer would also like for her to be able to do this. If he can get her case moved to a county he feels would better listen to April’s side, he feels she might be “set free”.
The case went back to court Aug. 16, 2012. While the judge didn’t dismiss the case, April was given “permission” to move to Michigan’s Lower Peninsula where the case will be continued. April felt this was good news, as she will deal with people who may be less biased against her. (Her caseworker, after agreeing to this before court, “switched” her story and tried to prevent April’s move in front of the judge. April will also be working with the Infant Mental Health agency in her new location. This mental health facility is an Easter Seal agency, not connected with any government, so they will be less biased as well. The mental health agency April has been working with is simply an “arm” of child protective services. The judge also gave her a “compliment” in the form of “accusing her of trying too hard” (with a smile) because many of the parents he works with make little or no effort on behalf of their children. All in all, things are looking good for April to be “free” of “the system” in the months to come. She promised to keep in touch with me after her move, so look for more updates to come.
That was
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