Child Protective Services Relents

As the result of the legal challenge by a Texas home school family, CPS has changed its policy of removing children from their parents' homes without a court order.

The Gary Gates family has 13 children, eleven of whom are adopted. Eight years ago CPS removed them without a court order on the basis of a call from a public school employee regarding a plastic bag pinned to the shirt of one of the children. The CPS practice has been to remove children from their home based solely on the decision of a CPS caseworker and later to go to court. In a highly unusual move, the judge in the Gate's case ordered CPS to give the children back to the parents in only a few days. However, CPS refused to remove the Gates from a CPS registry of child abusers, and the parents continued their suit against the state on that issue.

The federal court established new legal standards for child abuse investigations in Texas, and in response Carey Cockerell, commissioner of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, sent an "urgent legal advisory" to all Child Protective Services personnel, which says that the new policy must be followed to prevent CPS workers from being sued for monetary damages if children are removed in violation of this policy.

While some prosecutors argue this is a bad policy decision, parental advocates and even some children's advocates say it is only common sense to require a judge to rule before taking such drastic action that often results in harm to children. I couldn't agree more.

The Real Obama

In recent days pro-life groups have exposed a radical pr0-choice position of Barak Obama when he was in the Ill. State Senate. He not only opposed a measure to insure that babies that survived a botched abortion would receive medical care, he was the only senator to speak against the bill. Obama went on the attack and called those who brought this issue to the public's attention "liars." In the Saddleback Church interview with Pastor Rick Warren, Obama says that he can not define when a baby has human rights. That decision was "above my pay grade." So Obama has taken the position that babies who survive a botched abortion should not be required by law to receive medical attention, and he supports partial-birth abortion which amounts to infanticide. This is no "moderate" Democrat.

The Battle for Home Schooling Freedom

In a stunning reversal of its own recent decision the California Second Court of Appeals said that home school families in California may teach their children at home without being state accredited teachers. The court relied on not only briefs from many home school defenders but also looked at the case law from other states which have allowed home school families the same freedom. The California Court acknowledged that the state had refused to enforce 50 year-old court decisions rejecting parents right to home school unless they were certified teachers. In fact, over the last twenty five years the state has allowed home school families to teach their children virtually free from state oversight. The court decision is not only a great victory for home school families in California but it solidifies that right in law and removes the uncertainty between the actions of the state and the former case law. However, it also makes clear that home school families must be involved in the political process of choosing our government leaders to prevent an erosion of our freedom through legislation.

While this has been going on Germany has increased its efforts to eradicate the fledgling home school movement in that country. A report today by CBN highlighted the issue. US attorney Joel Thornton of the International Human Rights Group (IHRG) has contacted THSC and asked us to come to Germany and testify as an expert witness on home schooling in a criminal case against one of the few hundred remaining home school families in the country. We plan to do so and seek the prayers and support of Texas and US home schoolers as we attempt to help these families gain the freedom to direct the education and upbringing of their children. Germany uses a Nazi era law adopted by Hitler to prosecute these families because they do not want these families to convey a world view that is different from the states.