Health Impact News Editor Comments:

A 15-year old girl has been held for 9 months at Boston Children’s Hospital against her wish, and against the wishes of her parents. Here is yet another case where a child “protection” government agency has abducted a child from loving parents all in the name of proper “medical treatment.” She is being held hostage because of a controversial diagnosis of mental illness.

by Beau Berman
FoxCT

Excerpts:

After a long history of medical problems, a West Hartford teenager is now “trapped” inside a hospital with seemingly no way out.

Fox CT spent the past few months investigating the emotional case.

It has been a bitter custody battle, and nine months after it started, it’s still going on.

In December 2012, Justina Pelletier was an active 15-year-old girl who would go ice skating, laughed and spent time with her family.

But just two months later, her family says their nightmare began.
“[Exhales] It’s beyond any wildest nightmare that you could think of,” says Justina’s father, Lou Pelletier.

Her longtime West Hartford psychologist has also been following the case.

“It’s the most bizarre situation … I’ve ever been involved with,” says Dean Hokanson, the clinical psychologist who has worked with Justina the past five years.

Justina was diagnosed with mitochondrial disease a few years ago. It’s a genetic disorder that can cause loss of muscle coordination and weakness.

Despite that diagnosis she lived a normal life.

But last February, she also got the flu and was admitted to Boston Children’s Hospital to see her specialist.

Almost immediately, a different team of doctors delivered a different diagnosis, questioning the original diagnosis of mitochondrial disease.

“They came in, and they said we cannot take Justina out of the hospital. They called DCF,” says Linda Pelletier, Justina’s mother.

They said Justina had “somatoform disorder.”

In short, they were saying she suffered from a mental illness, not mitochondrial disease.

Her parents, Lou and Linda Pelletier, were escorted out of the hospital by security, and within four days, they lost custody of Justina.

In addition to working with Justina, Dean Hokanson also testified at one of the court proceedings.

“They were actually being accused of being too active in pursuing healthcare matters for their child,” says Hokanson.

“It is kidnapping,” says Lou Pelletier.

by Attorney Jonathan Emord
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