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Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender 20 Years Ago

By Jeralyn, Section Crime Policy
Posted on Fri Oct 21, 2005 at 08:36:38 PM EST
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This is America? I realize that the 24/7 cable news industry has turned sex offenders into the latest pariahs, but this is over-the-top:

Child-welfare authorities seized a newborn from a hospital Friday and placed the baby in a foster home because his father is a convicted sex offender. A judge granted the mother supervised visitation rights but prohibited visits from the father.

The baby was born Tuesday and the agency obtained an emergency court order Wednesday authorizing it to take the infant after arguing that his safety is in jeopardy because the father pleaded guilty to rape and sodomy two decades ago in New York. The agency also cited concerns about the mother's alleged history of drug abuse, the mother's lawyer said.

The parents did not live together. Where is the evidence that he is a repeat offender or a risk to his child? How old was the victim in his first offense? What's next? A parent with a marijuana conviction stands to lose their kids because authorities think he or she might still be using in the home?

Don't laugh. There's a bill pending in Congress, being pushed by Rep. James Sensenbrenner (H.R. 1528), that would provide a mandatory minimum ten year sentence for a parent who distributes a drug with a kid in the house. Just another way to separate you from your children, only instead of taking the kid away they take you away. The result is the same.

Bush recently signed into law a bill that allows electronic monitoring of drug prescriptions.

Today sex offenders are the lowest on society's totem pole, no matter that too many of the laws fail to discriminate between the violent sexual predator and the kid who pleaded guilty to avoid a date rape trial; or the kid who had consensual sex with his underage girlfriend.

Tomorrow it could be you - for a minor drug offense you looked at as a nuisance back in your youth.

Back to the 53 year old father whose kid was snatched from the hospital room by authorities:

The 53-year-old father, DaiShin WolfHawk, did not attend the hearing but said he was "just shocked" by the judge's decision.

"I thought I was living in America," he said.

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    Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender 20 Years Ago | 9 comments (9 topical)
    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#1)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:15 PM EST
    olbermann covered this story friday, and i believe there are issues with the mother's fitness apart from the father's. nasty/sad story regardless.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#2)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:15 PM EST
    I saw it too. I was pretty shocked that he only had one guest on to spin it - uber-victim's rights advocate Wendy Murphy. Dont' trust a word. Gee, even Fox presents both sides. And when they don't, at least the anchor plays devil's advocate. Keith didn't even do that tonight, all he said was "Thank you, Wendy." Either the opposing guest cancelled at the last minute, or the producers made a big gaffe. Keith disappointed. But then, he's never been a supporter of the underdog when it comes to crime issues.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#3)
    by jen on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:15 PM EST
    Next is ten years from now they are going to sue for ten years of accumulated child support. Virginia does that, they forced parents to hand over custody of special needs children in order to help them now they are going back and suing.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#4)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    This is the biggest crock of hoo-hah that there is. I fight this nonsense almost EVERY day in family court. DSS personnel are the New Brownshirts. These little zealots USUALLY don't know a damned thing about the law and basically try to force their own twisted morality on the "offending" parties. It has also been my experience that the "offending" parties are almost uniformly lower class and indigent - easy prey, in other words; prey that doesn't often fight back. I would AGGRESIVELY defend this case to the hilt. Mom did NOTHING wrong; Dad did NOTHING wrong - and yet they are being victimized by virtue of an ANCIENT crime that Dad has already paid his debt to society for. And the crime has NOTHING to do with what the couple is now being victimized for.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#5)
    by Dadler on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    Disturbing, to say the least, and I shudder to think what kind of pathetic representation this mother and father received. That said, a greater problem with humanity and kids seems to be this: we reproduce almost exclusively for two reasons -- by accident or for sentimental reasons. Neither of these are any kind of reason to have a child or more children or any children.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    I believe the mother was represented by the ACLU.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#7)
    by Dadler on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    J, You're right about the ACLU. My bad. I think I intended a more general comment about the limited resources available to those further down the ladder fighting "the system". Wish the ACLU could rep everyone, but they can't. Again, my bad.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#8)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    In most DNN actions poor parents don't have representation. The child has a GAL. Often the family has been in counseling and the counselors impressions and observations pave the way to the child's removal. It's sad because it teaches parents to not be entirely forthcoming with the counselor. I have worked as or close to DCFS in three states. Lavocat is right. They are the new brownshirts. They have an amazing amount of power and a frightening capacity for abusing it.

    Re: Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender (none / 0) (#9)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Sat Dec 17, 2005 at 01:05:16 PM EST
    When dealing with the indigent, I find it best to point out one very important thing to them: when dealing with DSS, invoke your RIGHT to remain silent, do NOT cooperate, do NOT open the door, do NOT acknowledge. And then call an attorney right away. After representing the indigent on a semi-regular basis, I can safely say that the hardest thing in the world is to be poor WITHIN the legal system. You are routinely disrespected and treated as though you have ZERO rights AND, if and when you try to invoke the few rights you do have, you get abused. Or, as I like to say: how much justice can you afford? Fight the power!

    Authorities Seize New-Born: Dad a Sex Offender 20 Years Ago | 9 comments (9 topical)