Good parents only in AZ (part 2)
I'll also comment that eleven years ago, I worked as a cashier at a hardware store. I had been told a story of a woman who was shopping with her child. The woman lost her temper and physically hit the child on the arm in front of the cashier. Then paid with a check and left. The cashier was so disturbed that she called CPS and was told that nothing would be done because it's an unsubstantiated claim. That store now has video cameras, so such a scene will be on record (videos - not for catching shoplifters anymore).
Here's another sad tale of the father trying to protect his children. Again, thanks to the Arizona Republic:
Phoenix father risks jail to prove CPS wrong, safeguard daughter
Karina Bland
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 22, 2003 12:00 AM
Bill Warren doesn't trust Child Protective Services to protect his daughter and went to jail to do it himself.
In January, he made a report to CPS after his 6-year-old said she was abused by her mother and stepfather in Show Low.
Warren worried she wasn't safe because a CPS caseworker asked the girl about the allegation while her mother and stepfather were there and then left her with them. The girl's mother and stepfather denied any abuse, and CPS later closed the case as unsubstantiated.
But the Phoenix man believed his daughter, and the next time she came to visit, he kept her with him for six weeks in violation of a custody agreement.
"I have absolutely no confidence in the department's ability to protect my daughter," he said.
Warren, 37, said he has read too many horror stories about abused children and about CPS and how a dozen state committees are studying how to reform the agency charged with protecting abused and neglected children. Gov. Janet Napolitano has ordered a review of the department.
So Warren kept his daughter close to him and started his own investigation, talking to the girl's teacher and neighbors in Show Low.
He uncovered court, CPS and police records that show the household where his daughter lives has been rocked by violence. The girl's stepfather lost custody of his two sons in 2000 after abuse allegations were raised.
On Jan. 29, Warren took his little girl to the Childhelp Children's Center in Phoenix, where the state's worst child-abuse cases are handled. She told a forensic interviewer about the alleged abuse. A doctor there examined her but found no signs of trauma.
Custodial interference
Two days later Warren was arrested for custodial interference and taken away in handcuffs. He was released on bail and must appear on March 26 in Navajo County Superior Court.
"If you can't trust the system to do it," said Warren's wife, Kori, 30, "you have to do it yourself."
But that kind of vigilante child welfare work didn't set well with Judge Robert Oberbillig of Maricopa County Superior Court. On Thursday, he ordered the Warrens to return the girl to her mother and stepfather.
While they were in the courtroom, Kori disappeared with the girl overnight.
On Friday, Oberbillig ordered Bill to return his daughter by 1:30 p.m. or go to jail again. He didn't want to give her back but said he couldn't risk losing her forever.
So his little girl went back to Show Low with her mother on Friday afternoon. He will see her next Friday for his regular visitation.
And, on Monday, he says he will file an emergency petition for a new custody hearing.
"I tried the CPS thing. I feel they let my daughter down. I tried the court thing, and I feel Judge Oberbillig let her down," Warren said. "I don't want her to think I'm letting her down, too. I'm her dad."
Kris Mayes, spokeswoman for Gov. Janet Napolitano, said the governor has asked to be kept apprised of this case.
Bill and Kori Warren live with their five children in a north Phoenix home with a basketball hoop atop the garage. The 6-year-old is from Bill's first marriage. She lives with them most weekends.
She knows the difference between the truth and a fib, Kori said, and they believe what she says about being abused. On Jan. 12, Bill decided he couldn't send his daughter back, saying, "It's my job to keep her safe."
By then, he had met with his daughter's teacher, who told him she often came to school with dirty clothes and hair. She had few friends and was behind in her schoolwork. She sometimes wet her pants.
'String of complaints'
According to a Maricopa County Superior Court report on Dec. 13, 2000, this is not the first time abuse allegations have been made against the girl's mother and stepfather. The stepfather lost custody of his two sons, then ages 10 and 8, in 2000.
"There is a consistent string of complaints made by the children regarding physical abuse in father's home," Cathi Culek, a court family evaluator, wrote in that case.
"There is also some question as to the timing of father's relocation to Show Low, given the reports to the police and Child Protective Services involving abuse in the family."
The stepfather was the subject of a domestic violence report filed in 1995 with Mesa police. In 1998, a Gilbert police report outlined charges of abuse by the mother and stepfather against her son, then 10. Three children, all belonging to the mother, live with the Show Low couple: two boys and Warren's daughter.
Another Gilbert police report in 1999 alleges the mother slapped her older daughter, then 14, 15 times and that the stepfather pushed her head into a wall and slapped her. The daughter has since run away and lives in another state.
'History of violence'
Court records also reveal two prior CPS reports, including one in 1998 that the mother's son, then 6, was hit with a belt and had bruises on his legs. Again, in 1999, three boys, two belonging to the mother and one to the stepfather, said they were beaten with a belt. Neither CPS report was substantiated.
The mother also told the family evaluator that her husband had choked her.
"Joint custody cannot be recommended in this case due to the family history of violence," the report said.
The court ordered the stepfather to go to anger-management and parenting classes.
Bill Warren says quietly, "This is the house where my daughter lives."
Investigating reports
Karin Kline of CPS says she can't comment on any CPS investigation. However, she did say that when CPS workers investigate a report of abuse, they look for proof that abuse took place, such as bruises, admissions from the victim or perpetrator.
Without that kind of information, a report cannot be substantiated, though families with unsubstantiated reports still can receive state services such as counseling and parenting classes.
And CPS cannot remove a child unless the child is in "imminent danger."
CPS is called into custody cases when abuse allegations are made. And, though it is not common, Kline said, some parents do ask the courts to intervene when CPS cannot.
On Friday morning, Bill jumped every time the phone rang. It was his wife's sister, calling to see if there was any word from Kori.
Child in counseling
On Thursday, she had left court before the judge issued his order, taking her stepdaughter with her. Bill was supposed to take his little girl to her mother by 6:30 p.m., but he could not reach his wife.
Police searched his house.
Since Bill's daughter has lived with him, she sings and skips more, her dad said.
Kori has taught her to write her full name and use scissors, things her teacher reported the girl couldn't do. The child is in counseling, and she hasn't wet her pants once.
Kori pulled into the driveway at 11:30 a.m. She said she ran into traffic and then out of gas. Upset and scared, she decided to stay in a hotel.
'Like camping out'
"It was fun!" the girl said. "It's just like camping out."
Bill dropped to one knee to hug her.
"Hi, Pumpkin," he said.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. This is where she wants to stay, she said, here with her dad.
"He's nice to me," she said. "I really love him."
Here's another sad tale of the father trying to protect his children. Again, thanks to the Arizona Republic:
Phoenix father risks jail to prove CPS wrong, safeguard daughter
Karina Bland
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 22, 2003 12:00 AM
Bill Warren doesn't trust Child Protective Services to protect his daughter and went to jail to do it himself.
In January, he made a report to CPS after his 6-year-old said she was abused by her mother and stepfather in Show Low.
Warren worried she wasn't safe because a CPS caseworker asked the girl about the allegation while her mother and stepfather were there and then left her with them. The girl's mother and stepfather denied any abuse, and CPS later closed the case as unsubstantiated.
But the Phoenix man believed his daughter, and the next time she came to visit, he kept her with him for six weeks in violation of a custody agreement.
"I have absolutely no confidence in the department's ability to protect my daughter," he said.
Warren, 37, said he has read too many horror stories about abused children and about CPS and how a dozen state committees are studying how to reform the agency charged with protecting abused and neglected children. Gov. Janet Napolitano has ordered a review of the department.
So Warren kept his daughter close to him and started his own investigation, talking to the girl's teacher and neighbors in Show Low.
He uncovered court, CPS and police records that show the household where his daughter lives has been rocked by violence. The girl's stepfather lost custody of his two sons in 2000 after abuse allegations were raised.
On Jan. 29, Warren took his little girl to the Childhelp Children's Center in Phoenix, where the state's worst child-abuse cases are handled. She told a forensic interviewer about the alleged abuse. A doctor there examined her but found no signs of trauma.
Custodial interference
Two days later Warren was arrested for custodial interference and taken away in handcuffs. He was released on bail and must appear on March 26 in Navajo County Superior Court.
"If you can't trust the system to do it," said Warren's wife, Kori, 30, "you have to do it yourself."
But that kind of vigilante child welfare work didn't set well with Judge Robert Oberbillig of Maricopa County Superior Court. On Thursday, he ordered the Warrens to return the girl to her mother and stepfather.
While they were in the courtroom, Kori disappeared with the girl overnight.
On Friday, Oberbillig ordered Bill to return his daughter by 1:30 p.m. or go to jail again. He didn't want to give her back but said he couldn't risk losing her forever.
So his little girl went back to Show Low with her mother on Friday afternoon. He will see her next Friday for his regular visitation.
And, on Monday, he says he will file an emergency petition for a new custody hearing.
"I tried the CPS thing. I feel they let my daughter down. I tried the court thing, and I feel Judge Oberbillig let her down," Warren said. "I don't want her to think I'm letting her down, too. I'm her dad."
Kris Mayes, spokeswoman for Gov. Janet Napolitano, said the governor has asked to be kept apprised of this case.
Bill and Kori Warren live with their five children in a north Phoenix home with a basketball hoop atop the garage. The 6-year-old is from Bill's first marriage. She lives with them most weekends.
She knows the difference between the truth and a fib, Kori said, and they believe what she says about being abused. On Jan. 12, Bill decided he couldn't send his daughter back, saying, "It's my job to keep her safe."
By then, he had met with his daughter's teacher, who told him she often came to school with dirty clothes and hair. She had few friends and was behind in her schoolwork. She sometimes wet her pants.
'String of complaints'
According to a Maricopa County Superior Court report on Dec. 13, 2000, this is not the first time abuse allegations have been made against the girl's mother and stepfather. The stepfather lost custody of his two sons, then ages 10 and 8, in 2000.
"There is a consistent string of complaints made by the children regarding physical abuse in father's home," Cathi Culek, a court family evaluator, wrote in that case.
"There is also some question as to the timing of father's relocation to Show Low, given the reports to the police and Child Protective Services involving abuse in the family."
The stepfather was the subject of a domestic violence report filed in 1995 with Mesa police. In 1998, a Gilbert police report outlined charges of abuse by the mother and stepfather against her son, then 10. Three children, all belonging to the mother, live with the Show Low couple: two boys and Warren's daughter.
Another Gilbert police report in 1999 alleges the mother slapped her older daughter, then 14, 15 times and that the stepfather pushed her head into a wall and slapped her. The daughter has since run away and lives in another state.
'History of violence'
Court records also reveal two prior CPS reports, including one in 1998 that the mother's son, then 6, was hit with a belt and had bruises on his legs. Again, in 1999, three boys, two belonging to the mother and one to the stepfather, said they were beaten with a belt. Neither CPS report was substantiated.
The mother also told the family evaluator that her husband had choked her.
"Joint custody cannot be recommended in this case due to the family history of violence," the report said.
The court ordered the stepfather to go to anger-management and parenting classes.
Bill Warren says quietly, "This is the house where my daughter lives."
Investigating reports
Karin Kline of CPS says she can't comment on any CPS investigation. However, she did say that when CPS workers investigate a report of abuse, they look for proof that abuse took place, such as bruises, admissions from the victim or perpetrator.
Without that kind of information, a report cannot be substantiated, though families with unsubstantiated reports still can receive state services such as counseling and parenting classes.
And CPS cannot remove a child unless the child is in "imminent danger."
CPS is called into custody cases when abuse allegations are made. And, though it is not common, Kline said, some parents do ask the courts to intervene when CPS cannot.
On Friday morning, Bill jumped every time the phone rang. It was his wife's sister, calling to see if there was any word from Kori.
Child in counseling
On Thursday, she had left court before the judge issued his order, taking her stepdaughter with her. Bill was supposed to take his little girl to her mother by 6:30 p.m., but he could not reach his wife.
Police searched his house.
Since Bill's daughter has lived with him, she sings and skips more, her dad said.
Kori has taught her to write her full name and use scissors, things her teacher reported the girl couldn't do. The child is in counseling, and she hasn't wet her pants once.
Kori pulled into the driveway at 11:30 a.m. She said she ran into traffic and then out of gas. Upset and scared, she decided to stay in a hotel.
'Like camping out'
"It was fun!" the girl said. "It's just like camping out."
Bill dropped to one knee to hug her.
"Hi, Pumpkin," he said.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. This is where she wants to stay, she said, here with her dad.
"He's nice to me," she said. "I really love him."
posted by Jenn @ 09:18
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home