Breaking News -Court Rules Texas Had No Right to Seize Children From Polygamous Sect

The topic is a copy of the banner on the NY times website -

No details yet - but I somehow find this an amazing conclusion or a very misleading banner on the Times' website.

Anyone know what's happening- I am at work and can't exactly turn on a televison.

from CNN

AUSTIN, Texas (KXAN) -- The Third Court of Appeals has ruled that Child Protective Services did not have the right to remove children from the Yearning for Zion ranch last month.

The ruling comes as a result of a document filed by Texas RioGrande Legal Aid last month. The TRLA is the largest provider of legal aid in Texas, on behalf of 48 FLDS mothers that TRLA is representing in their child custody cases.

'The way that the courts have ignored the legal rights of these mothers is ridiculous,' said TRLA attorney Julie Balovich. 'It was about time a court stood up and said that was has been happening to these families is wrong.'

In the decision, the Court ruled that CPS failed to provide any evidence that the children were in imminent danger and acted hastily in removing them from their families. According to the Court, 'The existence of the FLDS belief system as described by the Department's witnesses, by itself, does not put children of FLDS parents in physical danger.'

TRLA will be holding a press conference in front of the courthouse in San Angelo Thursday at 1:30 p.m. regarding this issue.

Court: Texas had no right to remove FLDS children

SAN ANGELO, Texas (CNN) -- The state of Texas should not have removed the more than 460 children it took from a polygamist sect's ranch, an appeals court ruled Thursday.

Photos from a Web site launched by the sect show scenes during and after the raid of their ranch.

1 of 2 In its ruling, the Texas 3rd District Court of Appeals decided in favor of 38 women who had appealed the removals, as well as a decision last month by a district judge that the children will remain in state custody.

'The legislature has required that there be evidence to support a finding that there is a danger to the physical health or safety of the children in question and that the need for protection is urgent and warrants immediate removal,' the ruling said.

It continued, '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 prior to full litigation of the issue.'

The children were removed last month from the Yearning for Zion (YFZ) Ranch in Eldorado, Texas, which is owned by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a Mormon offshoot that practices polygamy.

The sect is linked to the jailed 'prophet' Warren Steed Jeffs.

Authorities raided the ranch after they received reports of child abuse.

my entire issue with this thing is that it came out that half of all the teenage girls in this compound have been or currently are pregnant between the ages of 14-17. these sects have a specific rule concerning teenage boys & girls from being kept apart at ALL TIMES as girls are raised to believe that boys are poison. they are only permitted to have sex when they are 'married' to a man---who usually is older than them, but several years.

most of these girls are forced into marriage and raped, and forced to give birth....i don't understand how the government can't get involved with this aspect of the case!!!!

Wow - thanks for all of the speedy responses.

Edited to add - From what I can gather, the ruling appears to apply to only some of the children - not all of them. Hum, interesting.

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Posted by MJDoc12

my entire issue with this thing is that it came out that half of all the teenage girls in this compound have been or currently are pregnant between the ages of 14-17. these sects have a specific rule concerning teenage boys & girls from being kept apart at ALL TIMES as girls are raised to believe that boys are poison. they are only permitted to have sex when they are 'married' to a man---who usually is older than them, but several years.

most of these girls are forced into marriage and raped, and forced to give birth....i don't understand how the government can't get involved with this aspect of the case!!!!

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ITA!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am disgusted.

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Posted by Toots123

Wow - thanks for all of the speedy responses.

Edited to add - From what I can gather, the ruling appears to apply to only some of the children - not all of them. Hum, interesting.

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correct. msnbc reporting that it only involves about 40 of the kids. their mothers are being represented by the TX Legal Aid society. Other mothers who are represented by other legal groups, and their children, are not affected by this ruling.