Former LA County Social Worker Reveals Corruption in Child “Protection” Services

Tammi Stefano of the National Safe Child Show interviewed Melinda Murphy regarding the abuses of the LA County Department of Children and Family Services. Melinda Murphy has worked in Child Welfare for over 20 years. She has a master's degree in counseling and educational psychology. She is co-author of the book A Culture of Fear: An Inside Look at Los Angeles County’s Department of Children & Family Services. She worked for DCFS (Department of Children and Family Services) in LA County for 10 years in various capacities, including: social worker, supervisor, investigator, and court officer. She was known for handling tough cases that other social workers could not handle, and when she left the agency, she left on good terms. So why did she leave after working there for nearly 10 years? "Because I had a conscience. I wanted to be able to sleep at night. I wanted to be able to look at myself in the mirror. When I went to work for them, I thought I'd be working for the children, I'd be working for the families, building on their strengths. I discovered no, what I am doing is I am working for the Department of Children and Family Services. I am a PR agent. I'm not protecting the children and the families. I am protecting the Department of Children and Family Services. And I couldn't live with that."

Family Fights for their 5 Children Medically Kidnapped in Missouri

Since we published the Wanosik family story earlier in June, we have some very exciting updates. The Wanosik family is getting local media attention. “You are guilty until proven innocent in this family court situation” said the mother, Rebecca Wanosik. They were able to share their story in their local newspaper. Now the Wanosik’s have been assigned a “child services specialist,” apparently because their case is considered a "high profile" case due to media coverage. But the battle is not over yet. Many families are enjoying their children this summer on family vacations and beautiful weather with picnics and family get-togethers. Rebecca and Anthony continue to fight for this nightmare to come to a close.

Medical Kidnapping in Maine: Child with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome & Sister Seized – Grandfather Commits Suicide

Brandon and Cynthia Ross became concerned after noticing their baby’s leg was swollen. Even though Ryder was not crying excessively, had no bruises, red marks, or any outward signs of injury other than the swelling, the couple took him to the doctor for an examination. After performing some x-rays and finding the infant with multiple fractures throughout his body, the doctors sent the family to the Maine Medical Center (MMC) for further evaluation. Before the couple understood the depths of the evaluation, they were deemed guilty of child abuse by officials at MMC. Six days after Ryder was admitted to the hospital, the state of Maine chose to remove both Ryder and his two-year-old sister Rosalynn from their parents’ care. On June 12, 2014 Brandon, a twenty-five year old father, was indicted on twelve counts of child abuse and was arrested by Bath, Maine police. After being transported to the local jail, he received death threats from other inmates. The threats were taken so seriously that the jail provided Brandon with private accommodations for his safety. On Father’s Day of 2014, just days after Brandon’s arrest, after telling the family he believed the state was out to get Brandon, Ryder’s seventy-four year old grandfather committed suicide, after writing a note falsely claiming responsibility for Ryder’s injuries. In October of 2014, the true cause of the baby’s fractures was finally discovered. The little guy suffered from Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS). He, his mother, and his grandmother were diagnosed by Dr. Michael Holick at the Boston University Medical Center.

California Mother Fights Corrupt System in LA to Get Daughter Back

Not being informed of court hearings. Falsified drug tests. Threats and accusations to intimidate and coerce. Social workers, her state representative and even the attorney assigned to her case ignoring emails, not returning calls. Her daughter ripped from a happy home and placed in a non-English speaking foster home without critical, life-saving medications. A system that seems to have already decided her family’s fate, without even the most cursory attempt at justice. Mayan Hewes describes these events and wonders what happened to her rights, and the rights of her six-year-old daughter Layla, in L.A. County, California.

Baby Found with Broken Bones – Parents Assumed Guilty of Abuse and Lose Custody

Keshia Turner understands why authorities wanted an investigation. She and her husband Chris want answers, too. They desperately want to know what is wrong with their baby boy Brayden, because something is clearly wrong. She believed that the investigation would lead to a medical explanation being found for her baby's medical and developmental issues, an explanation that would demonstrate that they are loving, dedicated parents, and would lead to proper treatment for their child. However, a Child Abuse doctor at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital accused Keshia of abuse instead. With no formal charges filed, and no trial or hearing conducted for over 9 months now, Keisha and her husband have lost custody of their baby who is no longer breastfed, and whom they can only visit 1 hour per week.

Tell Congress to End Federal Funding for Child Welfare – Let Local Communities Take Over

Our nation's Child Welfare system is corrupt, and there are few now who do not recognize the problems. American children in foster care are being abused. And that abuse is far greater than if the children had been left with their families in troubled homes. (See: Foster Care Children are Worse Off than Children in Troubled Homes.) Where there is disagreement is in how to fix the Child Welfare problem. The current Child Welfare system is rife with corruption, as billions of dollars in federal aid cannot be collected by states unless they put children into the Child Welfare system. Senator Ron Wyden from Oregon understands there is a problem, but his solution is to spend more federal taxpayer money, not less. Responding to a BuzzFeed investigative report that found "deaths, sex abuse, and blunders in screening, training, and overseeing foster parents at the nation’s largest for-profit foster care company," Senator Wyden sent a letter to all 50 governors in the United States addressing the issue. As a result, Senator Wyden is now proposing to spend more federal money on foster care in a supposed attempt to protect foster children. Is this really the correct solution? Will more government oversight and spending solve the current problems in the foster care system? If you were to put that question before the many tens of thousands of parents in this country who have had their children taken away from them by social services like CPS, they would give you a resounding "NO!" as a reply. If lawmakers are truly concerned about the incredible abuse of children in today's foster care system, perhaps they should start interviewing the parents of these children who are taken out of homes, in many cases homes where they are loved by their parents, and are then put into abusive foster care centers or homes. More government and more federal funding is NOT the answer: it is the problem.

Former Foster Parent Speaks Out on Corruption: Falsified Information & Failure To Protect Children from Abuse

Every day children in foster homes are abused and neglected. Many of those children are over-medicated and some even have seizures or fall into bouts of depression as a result of the unnecessary pills they are prescribed. How does this happen? It happens because there are so many children stolen by Child Protective Services, that there aren’t enough employees to handle supervising the children’s placements.

Arizona Continues Record Pace of Taking Children out of Homes into State Custody – Now 1 of every 100 Children in Foster Care

Ever since the inception of MedicalKidnap.com in the fall of 2014, we have been reporting that the State of Arizona has the highest percentage of any other state in the U.S. in taking children out of their homes and putting them into foster care. Are we to believe that there are more criminal, abusive parents in Arizona than anywhere else? Reports show that these state-sponsored kidnappings are only getting worse in 2015. Local media reports that the numbers are still rising. Arizona State democrats have also criticized Republican Governor Doug Ducey in a recent blog post, noting that 1 in every 100 Arizona children is now in foster care.

Vermont Teen Forcibly Drugged and Incarcerated By DCF Wants to Come Home for 18th Birthday

A judge has ruled that Vermont teen Elissa Maple be returned home on her 18th birthday, which is July 1, but DCF is fighting the ruling, even allegedly attempting bribery of the teenager to get her to voluntarily sign over her rights on her birthday. If she does so, they can keep her in the system for an additional 3 years. Elissa has spent the last year and a half being held against her will in a Massachusetts mental health facility, and has been forced to consume a cocktail of unwanted drugs. With her release date just one month away, Elissa has reported to her mother, Karen, that the people at the hospital have promised her photography classes, money, and a number of free services if she will voluntarily sign herself in to their system, programs that Karen says she would be able to get anyway, even out from under their care. Karen reports that the hospital staff has begun taking Elissa out to eat dinner on most nights, and has taken her to the zoo and the mall, all while on a cocktail of psychiatric drugs, in an apparent attempt to bribe her to sign away her rights. If she does so, Karen says that they will have complete control over her daughter.

From Bubby’s Best Birthday to Parent’s Worst Nightmare: Medical Kidnapping in Washington

Since last week, Brandi and Thomas Everson have been fighting to regain custody of their son Bubby in Washington State. CPS made allegations of medical abuse against the Eversons and removed their medically fragile child after he gained national media attention for a special birthday wish. The Eversons have a court hearing at 1:30 p.m. today (June 1, 2015) in their fight to get their son back.

Doctor Involved in Arizona Medical Kidnapping Case to Face Charges Before Arizona Medical Board

On Wednesday June 3, 2015 at 8:00 a.m. the Arizona Medical Board will review the complaint against the State of Arizona’s expert witness on child abuse cases, Kathryn Coffman, M.D. The meeting will take place at 9535 E. Doubletree Ranch Road, in Scottsdale, Arizona. Dr. Coffman is named a defendant in a federal lawsuit currently pending in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court by Leanna Smith, who has sued the State of Arizona, CPS, and doctors in the medical kidnapping of her two daughters. Leanna Smith had her daughters removed from her custody based on the testimony of doctors who accused her of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy, but what Leanna Smith claims was an attempt to cover up medical malpractice. Dr. Coffman was the lead doctor and expert on "child abuse" involved in the case. The public will apparently have 3 minutes to make comments in the case against Dr. Kathryn Coffman in her hearing before the Arizona Medical Board. Parent advocates are encouraging any other parents who may have become victims to medical kidnappings in Arizona due to the testimony of Dr. Coffman to attend the hearings.

Success with Troubled Youth Using No Drugs or Mental Health Therapy – A Threat to the Medical Kidnapping System

In 2015, Health Impact News published an article from Nehemiah Flynt, a former foster parent who left the foster care system after seeing how corrupt it was. Nehemiah exposed how CPS often takes children away from loving parents. He noticed that almost all of the foster children were drugged. Nehemiah left the foster care system, and became part of a ministry that worked with troubled youth without using drugs or mental health services. It was a highly successful program, but soon CPS came knocking on his door, and effectively shut down the program, since it was not using "approved" drugs and mental health services. Is this the state of "Child Protection Services" in the United States today? Have we as a society allowed the government and their social services programs to redefine "abuse" and "health"? Is "abuse" and "mental health" now defined as the absence of psychiatric drugs? Who are the true abusers of today's troubled youth? I asked Nehemiah Flynt to describe the former program he worked in that was so successful, that it became a threat to CPS and the psychiatric drug industry.

5 Children Kidnapped from Family in Missouri When Baby with Low Vitamin D Found with Broken Bones

December 21st, 2014 Rebecca Wanosik was blessed with her 5th child. A beautiful baby girl was born in her home in Lebanon, Missouri. It was an uncomplicated home birth, and she was assisted by her midwife. But soon their family was completely torn apart when CPS came in and took all 5 of their children away, after the baby was found with fractured bones. Being now listed as "child abusers," Rebecca would later learn that she had Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, with low vitamin D levels for both her and her baby. The quiet house is hard to deal with, and Rebecca talks about the memories she holds onto. The quiet house is hard to deal with, and Rebecca talks about the memories she holds onto. From the screams of excitement when she picked her children up from school, to the snuggles and wet kisses, and all the joys and hardship of motherhood, she is now left with a broken heart. Now as their visits are supervised in an unnatural setting, she talks about medical kidnapping. “Many people think that medical kidnapping is made up and think it doesn’t happen, the truth is that it is very real.” Rebecca wants people to know this has been a life altering, traumatic experience. She wants people to know this is a long road that no parent should have to travel.

Destroying Families in Kentucky via State-sponsored Child Trafficking: United We Stand, Divided We Fall

It is ironic that the State Flag of the Commonwealth of Kentucky reads, “United We Stand, Divided We Fall.” Families are being divided. Kentucky is falling apart. It’s time for families in Kentucky (and all across America) to wake up and demand that the corruption of CPS be investigated and criminal social workers be prosecuted. It’s time to stop CPS from stealing our children and selling them to foster families for federal funds. It’s time to demand that our local sheriffs and law enforcement stop being the strong arm of CPS. It’s time to require that law enforcement follow the Constitution regarding criminal allegations of abuse and neglect, and that Due Process be followed, and to stop treating allegations made against parents as “guilty until proven innocent.” The following stories reveal corruption, scandals, lies, and money that even Hollywood couldn’t make up.

Former Foster Parent Exposes How CPS Kidnaps Kids Away from Good Homes – Puts them on Drugs

I became a foster parent with the intentions of putting a roof over the heads of orphaned children. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. By the time I completed the training process, I understood that the majority of the children that would be entering my home were not orphans. I was brainwashed into believing the children had come from abusive and neglectful homes. I was told the state had rescued them from horrible living environments and that I was somewhat of a hero for taking them in. They were all lies. It took several years for me to truly see what I had become a part of.

Alabama Autistic Boys Kidnapped from Native American Ambassador Mother and Abused in Foster Care

Just three hours after a Native American mother got home from the hospital after a suspected heart attack, Child Protective Services (known in Alabama as DHR, Department of Human Resources) showed up on her doorstep and took away her two autistic sons. Now, her two sons are living in a foster home in Mobile, almost 250 miles away from their Sylacauga home, and their mother says that they are being abused in foster care and that their culture is being trampled by the social workers and foster parents. Dawn "Adaleha" ("my sunshine" in Cherokee) Cullins was appointed as the Alabama Ambassador for the Sokoki tribe, and in 2003, was recognized for "acts of compassion and kindness" and awarded the Civic Recognition Award in her community. She holds a degree in Paralegal studies and is very active in tribal activities. Her record is squeaky clean, without so much as a traffic ticket. DHR got involved with her family after one of her autistic sons wandered away from home and was reported to DHR by neighbors. The charges against her were "a messy house and dirty children." Today, Dawn claims her children are beaten in foster care, and are given multiple drugs to keep them compliant without her approval. She calls it "genocidal kidnapping," and reports that when she told DHR that her children were Native American, the social workers told her that she would never get her kids back.

Medical Kidnapping in the U.S. – Kidnapping Children for Drug Trials

The U.S. federal government has mandated drug research with children. The need for children to participate in drug company research is high, and the temptation to overstep parental rights to force children to participate is great. Researchers publicly admit using money and other rewards to obtain participation of children in their drug trials. Organizations that advocate for the rights of parents to make decisions regarding their children’s healthcare, are finding that foster children in CPS custody are being enrolled in drug experiments without parental approval. State Child Protective Services are enrolling children in drug experiments without parental approval or court orders. In a letter written by Sharon Schuldt to the House committee that examined clinical drug testing on foster children, she gave us a serious warning. She wrote: "There was horrific disregard for humanity that took place in World War II Germany, some of which started out being directed toward the weak and vulnerable, in orphanages and hospitals, but then was directed to millions who lost their lives in the concentration camps. A society does not just lose their regard for human life overnight. It is a step at a time downward and soon that society slips further and faster downward. Many vowed, 'Never Again.' We in the U.S. cannot and should not be allowing access to our children for medical research. There is no argument that justifies it!"

Stanley Family Gets Custody Back of 4 Youngest Children – 3 Older Children Still in State Custody

A review hearing in Garland County Juvenile Court in Arkansas yesterday resulted in the case being closed for the four younger Stanley children. Their parents now have full custody back of these four children. The three older Stanley children, however, remain in State custody. They are allowed to live at home with 20 hours a week DHS supervision in the home. Hal Stanley, the father, expressed his disappointment that the State was to maintain custody of their 3 older children. "I am really disappointed. I was expecting all the children to be returned to our custody. There's still no charges against us, there's still no reason for the children to be in their custody. We feel as parents we can make decisions (about our children) better than DHS can." Nancy Emmons, a citizen from Arkansas who has been following the Stanley case, stated: "The people of Arkansas, we really need to wake up and listen to what has happened to the Stanleys. Never in our wildest dreams would we have figured that somebody could come in the night and take your children away from you. I want Arkansas to understand – everyone of you need to listen: It could happen to you."

Foster Care Children are Worse Off than Children in Troubled Homes – The Child Trafficking Business

Children whose families are investigated for abuse or neglect are likely to do better in life if they stay with their families than if they go into foster care. Studies show that children from troubled homes who stayed with their families were less likely to become juvenile delinquents or teen mothers and more likely to hold jobs as young adults. Children placed in foster care have arrest, conviction, and imprisonment rates as adults that are three times higher than those of children who remained in troubled homes. These facts are not even in dispute. So why does the current foster care system still exist, when it is clearly destroying the lives of so many children?

6-month-old Baby Taken Away from Mother by Force Dies in CPS Custody

She says a CPS caseworker called her on Monday and told her to come to Texas Children's Hospital. “All they told me was there was a little accident,” Hernandez said. “I get here and they told me my daughter had head trauma and severe brain damage.” Hernandez says CPS entered her life after the police were called to her home in 2014. Her youngest son who was one at the time had marks on him. He and his older brother were taken into protective custody by CPS. The youngest boy's father CPS says was convicted of abusing the boy. Hernandez was not suspected of harming the child. Still after her baby girl was born CPS swooped in. “She was removed from my arms at only 3 days old and put into foster care with the same home,” said Hernandez. Hernandez says she begged CPS to place her children with family members. If that would have happened the grieving mother says her baby daughter would be alive today.