Court: Texas Had No Right Taking Sect Kids

"Insufficient" Grounds For Seizing Children From Polygamous Sect, Appeals Court Rules

(CBS/AP)  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 ranch 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.

It was not clear whether the children - now scattered in foster homes across the state - might soon be returned to their parents. The ruling gave a lower-court judge 10 days to release the youngsters from state custody, but the state could appeal to the Texas Supreme Court and block that from happening.

"Unless this ruling gets overturned on appeal, it looks like Texas authorities will be required to return most if not all of the children back to the compound and to their mothers sooner rather than later," said CBS News legal analyst Andrew Cohen. "And at that point I imagine there will be some sort of major investigation into how law enforcement officials could have blundered so massively, if indeed they have."

The decision in one of the biggest child-custody cases in U.S. history was a humiliating defeat for the state Child Protective Services agency. It was hailed as vindication by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who claimed they were being persecuted for their religious beliefs.

"It's a great day for Texas justice. This was the right decision," said Julie Balovich, a Legal Aid attorney for some of the parents. She was joined by several smiling mothers who declined to comment at a news conference outside the courthouse in San Angelo.

Some court-appointed attorneys for the children are in a holding pattern, reports CBS News correspondent Hari Sreenivasan. Susan Hayes, who represents a two-year-old, says she is not worried about abuse if the child is returned.

"I have not seen anything about my client, and there are a lot of ad litems that have seen nothing about their particular clients and their families," she said.

Every child at the Yearning For Zion Ranch in Eldorado was taken into state 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.

Child-protection officials argued that five girls at the ranch had become pregnant at 15 and 16 and that the sect pushed underage girls into marriage and sex with older men and groomed boys to enter into such unions when they reached adulthood.

"What the court didn't address is there are still, without any question, young girls out there who are pregnant, and that's part of the culture," Texas attorney Guy Choate told CBS News anchor Katie Couric.

But the appeals court said the state was not justified in sweeping up all the children and taking them away on an emergency basis without going to court first.

"Even if one views the FLDS belief system as creating a danger of sexual abuse by grooming boys to be perpetrators of sexual abuse and raising girls to be victims of sexual abuse ... there is no evidence that this danger is 'immediate' or 'urgent'," the court said.

"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."

The court said the state failed to show that any more than five of the teenage girls were being sexually abused, and offered no evidence of sexual or physical abuse against the other children. Half the youngsters taken from the ranch were under 5. Only a few dozen are teenage girls.

The court also said the state was wrong to consider the entire ranch as a single household and to seize all the children on the grounds that some parents in the home might be abusers.

CPS spokesman Patrick Crimmins said department attorneys had not decided whether to appeal. "We are trying to assess the impact that this may have on our case," he said.

CPS's umbrella agency, the Department of Family and Protective Services, issued a statement defending the raid, saying it removed the children "after finding a pervasive pattern of sexual abuse that puts every child at the ranch at risk."

"Child Protective Services has one duty - to protect children. When we see evidence that children have been sexually abused and remain at risk of further abuse, we will act," the department said.

FLDS spokesman Rod Parker said sect members feel vindicated. "They're very thrilled. They're looking forward to seeing the children returned," he said.

The decision technically applies to only 38 of the roughly 200 parents who challenged the seizure. But Balovich said she expected attorneys for all the other parents to seek to join the ruling.

Balovich said the court "has stood up for the legal rights of these families and given these mothers hope that their families will be brought back together."

Of the 31 people the state initially said were underage mothers, 15 have been reclassified as adults, and one is 27.

Five judges in San Angelo, about 40 miles north of Eldorado, have been holding hearings on what the parents must do to regain custody. Those hearings, which began Monday, were suspended after the ruling Thursday.

"The appeals court ruled that the state didn't prove that the children were in immediate danger when they were taken from the compound. But that's a different standard from the one the trial courts in San Angelo now are using to come up with individual custody plans for many of the children. So this is still a very fluid situation," Cohen said.

"The appellate court now has ordered the trial court to 'vacate' its order granting 'sole' conservatorship of children to the Child Welfare Department. So the ball is now in the hands of the judge or judges in San Angelo, who either can comply with the order or try to weasel around it," Cohen said. "There is a middle path here - the idea that the trial court could vacate the 'sole' part of the conservatorship but still allow the department to maintain some level of oversight over the welfare of the kids."

The custody case has been chaotic from the beginning. During the first round of hearings, held two weeks after the April 3 raid, hundreds of lawyers crammed into a courtroom and nearby auditorium, queuing up to voice objections or ask questions on behalf of the mothers who were there in their trademark prairie dresses and braided hair.

CPS has struggled for weeks to establish the identities of the children and sort out their tangled family relationships. The youngsters are in foster homes all over the sprawling state, with some brothers or sisters separated by as much as 600 miles.

[gopsoccermom]

Bring those children back you liberals! And I hope they can get back to their normal lives after this horrific ordeal. Also liberals should be made to pay restitution.

[rudy654-2009]

Oh my goodness. The constitution being upheld against prejudice. What will Rowdy and the rest do?

[bhrater-2009]

I didn''t know child protective services was a liberal organization. So the GOP don''t care about children? Shame on you!

[markcfl1]

This is not a victory for polygamy or child abuse. It is a victory for all Americans- our Constitution was upheld.

Now, individual cases of child abuse can move forward without the pall of this illegal act.

On the other hand, look out citizens of Texas. The bill for this and any subsequent lawsuits is coming due and my heart is with you.

[jack3213]

Polygamy is legal in Texas?

[jack3213]

UHM, didn''t a child call and complain that she was being abused??!!

[rafterman1]

No right to seize? And I suppose a place that had 23 underage mothers is all completely legal, no crimes committed there, huh?

[perceptions5]

This whole case is more than a little strange, but I always thought that the children that were 10 years old or younger should "never" have been taken away from their mother.

Let''s make sure we never do this again............................

[sevenveils]

If nothing else the US is now more aware of the backward thinking FLDS cult and its similarities with the LDS church. The scary part is how similar in thought processes ans rational they are to fundamentalist Muslims, like the Taliban, especially in how the view the place of a female in society.

By denying themselves a higher education they have more latitude to believe in their own fallacies. Somehow it gives these simple minded people comfort believing that the world is 40,000 years old, and the gates of the secret garden of Eden still stand in a forgotten corner of the world.

[antoniof123]

First of all wacko wing nuts the ones you call liberal are really middle of the road and you are really the Reactionary facist nut cases. People in this country liberals, conservatives alike do not agree with child abuse. However, there are laws and you wing nuts try to go around them that poisons things.

So please sit down and shut up so we can move forward and keep the kids safe but of course you morons can''t behave so I guess it will work out for you to have a new sound bite because you don''t care about the kids you only care about your stupid game you play with politics.

[rev_hellhorn]

Oh good, now the children can go back to that collection of sicko kiddie phnhckers hiding behind a made up religion.

[blazercoach1]

No matter how they were conceived, it doesn''t matter to the child.....who was forcibly removed from his or her mother.....with NO evidence of a crime being committed.

As for all of you who are shocked at underage mothers and think this is somehow illegal.....I''m waiting for Jamie Lynn Spears to be arrested along with her mate and for that child to be taken into custody as well.... Shame on people for celebrating her situation while condemning this one.

By the way....I thought liberals didn''t want anyone telling you or anyone else what you can and can''t do in the bedroom? So let me get this straight...a guy can marry a guy, a girl can marry a girl, but it''s somehow immoral for a guy to marry two girls?!? Now don''t you lefties go imposing your morals on everyone else........

[macusweil]

"Bring those children back you liberals! And I hope they can get back to their normal lives after this horrific ordeal. Also liberals should be made to pay restitution. "

Yeah, someone should pay all right but isn''t Texas govt anymore run by a bunch a GOP redenecks?

[papabc]

How come Liberals hate those that practice their religion and have been for over 150 years.

This group does not hurt you and your family. All they want is to be left alone in peace.

Out siders like you are the terrorist.

[merlgrey]

how about that. the courts upholding the rights of individuals, esp the mothers and thier children, for once.

the reality is that all went down based on a perception of child abuse. so far, no real facts have been provided to the public to support this perception. this ruling smells of a huge blunder and shows the typical ineptitude CPS, another agency with too much power that shouldnt exist at all. expect thier spokespeople to be out in full force supporting thier actions to cover up this mess. as stated previously, if the kids werent already messed up, they will be by the time CPS is done churning them thru thier system.

[gopsoccermom]

macusweil, all the more reason to blame liberal democrats!

[papabc]

jmcgilvray :
A lot of my buddie are conservatives and do not like "Liberal" ways. All of them also served in the US military during WW2, Korea, Vietnam and Golf War 1.

They feel that
1. Every American "Citizen" should have minimal Government and low taxes.
2. If you didn''t pay in you should get out.
3. Will give a hand UP but not a life long handout.

Guess they are UN-American by your standards

[fibonacci_gr]

I stand with jmcgilvray - religious people are out of their minds. Dress like Norman Bates if you want and believe in talking snakes, but don''t force your views on children. And for this sect''s men - don''t force yourself on young girls.

[inventagod2]

Yet another pre-emptive strike by the Bu$h Justice Department?

[papabc]

I stand with jmcgilvray - religious people are out of their minds. Dress like Norman Bates if you want and believe in talking snakes, but don''''t force your views on children. And for this sect''''s men - don''''t force yourself on young girls.

Posted by fibonacci_gr

====================

So it is OK for you to FORCE your ways on everyone else and make fun of what they believe?

[tl4christ]

Polygamy is legal when it is spiritual marriages only. As long as a state license is not involved they can do as they wish if of age.
I have an employee who has for years roamed the town and managed to father eight kids by eight different women. Is he a polygamist? No, just a jerk!

[fibonacci_gr]

papabc, I have explained it so many times I am sick of it. I will never tell my children I know what is right or true. Just that it is my opinion. And yes I will make fun of something I think is ridiculous and harmful for the world.

[nolalou]

Bring those children back you liberals! And I hope they can get back to their normal lives after this horrific ordeal. Also liberals should be made to pay restitution.
Posted by gopsoccermom

In what way do you consider this a liberal issue? This is in Texas, the most un-liberal state in the Union! This has nothing to do with liberal vs conservative, so STOP BLAMING LIBERALS for all the countries problems!

[beader59]

WHAT! I thought rape of a minor was illegal. The adults in this situation put these children in harm''s way and I thought it was in the right of the justice system to place these children in a safe environment. This will open the door for all sorts of illegal activity. This decision will allow these sects groups to get away with whatever they want now. Give me a break. Also, this has nothing to do with being a liberal as someone pointed out. It has to do with the law.

[rev_hellhorn]

Hey, this is exactly what we all need - NOT.

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/2005-12-29/news/forbidden-fruit

[jrdevo]

The heavy hand of government intruders will not easily give up. I don''t like this group of folks (FLDS) but i don''t know that much about ''em either.

But anybody with the intelligence of a worm can see the government conspired to destroy these people and trampled all over the U.S. Constitution to do it.

We should ALL be calling our elected reps to DEMAND that REAL due process be done and these children returned to their families.

[aldon61]

I don''t know what is sicker, the situation here in Texas, or some of the posts on this site today. These kids need protection, but the good state of Texas really did not think this through. Reminds me of a certain war we''re fighting....we didn''t have an exit strategy there either.

[cpaide]

Posted by Rev_Hellhorn

get a real job, you inbred ***. is this really how you spend your time? moron.

[rillifane]

Just exactly the result that I predicted over and over.

Once the facts are removed from the hysteria of the mob (such as the posters here) it is obvious that the State vastly overstepped their authority.

A single phoney phone call from a crank and over 400 children were taken from their mothers at gun point.

[fibonacci_gr]

Victory for cpaide. LOL.

[cpaide]

"YEEE-HAW!"
Posted by dragonwagon5

so have you thought about what i asked you yesterday, sweetie? ;^)

[cpaide]

"Victory for cpaide. LOL."
Posted by fibonacci_gr

you''re supposedly the big guardian of truth here, so it''s really a victory for you, my friend.

[jrdevo]

Funny how it''s okay to have teen mothers running around suburban neighborhoods and low-rent projects, providing them with government support and welfare, allowing them to attend school with other kids who''ve managed to avoid becoming pregnant, AND WE PROTECT THEM....!!!

But OOOHHHhh NOOOoooo - when it involves a RELIGION - what a different story !!!! And how does ANYONE know if young girls were "forced" to do anything? Because of something "someone said"....and WHO said it? (hint - the GOVERNMENT)

Texas LIED and planned the entire INVASION from day one. Now they are eventually going to be forced to return these kids and the FLDS will probably sue them and win MILLIONS...way to go, Texas....serving your taxpayers well.....

[fibonacci_gr]

cpaide, I am the guardian of truth? Interesting I was not aware of that.

[gopsoccermom]

JRDevo, also we know how much liberals hate nuclear families and fathers in the home! They work hard at destroying all that is good and moral.

[cpaide]

"Interesting I was not aware of that."
Posted by fibonacci_gr

you''re kidding, right? something YOU are not aware of? i''m really getting disillusioned. next thing you know, you''ll be admitting you haven''t a clue about anything you''ve posted about the mormans.

[abigail70]

Once again, if you allow your children to be raped or abused, or stand by while someone else''s child is raped or abused, then you don''t deserve children. No sympathy. These people are sick, and I don''t blame their perversion on a loving God. My heart goes out to these kids.

[fibonacci_gr]

cpaide, I know a lot about lesbians. But not as much as you.

[cpaide]

"How can you even think of such a thing when there''s baby rapin'' to be done?"
Posted by dragonwagon5

i''m not into that. seems that you are. now you can either turn yourself in to the authorities and try to get some better meds, or just wait for that knock on the door. your choice.

[cpaide]

"cpaide, I know a lot about lesbians. But not as much as you."
Posted by fibonacci_gr

so now the mormans are lesbians? brilliant, and typical of you.

[cpaide]

"state authorities seem to be having trouble proving many of the child abuse allegations that were made against sect members"

maybe the state should recruit some more "consultants" from among the toothless retards posting here. they seem to have no trouble at all "proving" their allegations--at least to each other.

[dowell100]

Everyone seems to be howling for "seperation of Church & State" but no one cares about seperation of State & Church"... the State is poking it''s nose where it doesn''t belong.

I don''t Mormons at all, the FLDS or the liberals in Salt Lake City, but I hope they suit the state of Texas silly for illegal acts by "law enforcement."

The State needs to stay out of religious matters, even odd ones.

[tmn]

These children should be returned to their parents, where they can then be used as human sacrifices on FLDS altars nationwide :-)

[cpaide]

"How can you even think of such a thing when there''s baby rapin'' to be done?"
Posted by dragonwagon5

you''re sick and twisted. you can''t backpedal on this one.

funny how the truth seems to just slip out without the pervs even noticing it.

[dowell100]

Corrections...

Everyone seems to be howling for "separation of Church & State" but no one cares about "separation of STATE & Church"... the State is poking it''s nose where it doesn''t belong.

I don''''t like Mormons at all, the FLDS or the liberals in Salt Lake City, but I hope they sue the state of Texas silly for illegal acts by "law enforcement."

The State needs to stay out of religious matters, even odd ones.

[cpaide]

Posted by tmn123
Posted by DaVicar2

the toothless rednecks can whine all they want, but they''re WRONG and have been all along.

throw up all the accusations you want; none of them will ever stick.

time to admit that you are clueless about the mormans in texas.

[maedean]

The state appellate court must be a bunch of pedophile loosers just like the FLDS members.Anyone who thinks kids should grow up in incest and feel that being prayed up on by pedophiles in the name of religon are wacked...If these women were mothers like they claim to be to these kids they would not let this happen !!!! The kids need a chance at a normal life not a sick wacked out life of pedophile churches...I hope they keep the kids away from these freeks....

[joecoolswat]

Now....the court says that Texas had no right to take the kids away from the parents?...Some of who never had been in the mainstream population, and were probably traumatized being taken from their families?...I thought they had all this evidence of child abuse, and the 16 year old girl, who called, but that has yet to be found...Something isn''t right here..

[irliberal]

Posted by ttinsly at 03:11 PM

HUH? You used English words but it didn''t make very much sense.

[irliberal]

Something isn''''t right here..

Posted by JoeCoolSwat at 03:13 PM

Honey, go back to your pork rinds. Hillary Clinton isn''t involved, nor are any "*** liberuls" so you don''t have much to contribute.