Justice in Kentucky! Courts Deny “Qualified Immunity” for Social Workers Medically Kidnapping Children
It's nice to know the U.S. Judicial System still works sometimes. Two recent cases out of Kentucky ruled against social workers who misused their positions to illegally remove children from their families, denying the principle of "qualified immunity" for social workers. Senior Judge William Bertlesman of the U.S. District Court in Covington ruled that social workers are not entitled to qualified immunity in their case with Maureen ‘Nikkie’ Holliday versus the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services social workers imposed a restrictive “Prevention Plan” the single mom was coerced into signing. It required her to have strictly supervised contact with her four-year-old daughter. The threatened penalty was foster care for her child. Bertleman has ruled that Holliday’s due process claims and her emotional distress claims are legitimate and that the social workers are not entitled to qualified immunity. This is the second time that Judge Bertlesman has ruled against qualified immunity of social workers abusing parental rights and illegally removing children from their home. The other case involved Holly and David Schulkers, in Schulkers v. Kammer, and his judgment in that case denying qualified immunity to social workers was upheld by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in April this year, setting forth important legal precedence.