Correction...the hearing is not about the landlord, but about the situation with her children. I hope all went well as it is now almost Tuesday. It is all in the Lord's hands, I suppose, but sometimes that is more comforting than others. Is that not a very Christian thing to say? I don't know, but I know from dealing with families in crisis, there are a host of verses and sayings that can evoke rather angered responses...one of them being that one and another being the constant quoting of Romans 8:28. It isn't that those things aren't true...but somehow they seem to work better in preparation and in hindsight. Not so well in the crisis, at least for some.
For those of you who do not already know her, Jodi blogs over at The Opinions and Legalish Ramblings of an Attorney-At-Heart. She has had ongoing difficulty with her landlord who continually (and illegally) turns off her utilities. That isn't just her take. The judge has ruled in her favor and Jodi believes her landlord will be held in contempt of court for ignoring the judge's injunction. A formal hearing is set for tomorrow (Monday).
As if that weren't bad enough, CPS has now gotten involved. I won't get into the details without knowing for sure how much she wishes to divulge, but the case is heartbreaking. She could really use your prayers.
CPS is a strange monster. We hear continually of false reports (some research indicates that only about 2% of all reports are knowingly false, intended to harass the accused, but this still accounts for tens of thousands of false allegations). And then there are those that aren't intended as harassment but people don't take the time to knock on their neighbors door and get to know the family. I think this is where a lot of the harassment of homeschooling families comes from...ignorance rather than belligerence.
Here in Nebraska, we have had a recent increase in child-abuse related deaths. From 1998 - 2003, 21 children died at the hands of abusers...with 10 cases occurring in 2003. CPS had received prior reports on nine of these cases, and had received multiple reports on some. In fact, in about 39% of child murder cases, CPS had received prior reports and failed to protect the child.
And yet they have time to intervene in the case of a family that is already in the courts trying to solve the problem that CPS is concerned with, namely the lack of utilities, which is not due to parental neglect. There are all sorts of alternative measures...I'm not big into social programs, but they exist. And really....who is guilty of child endangerment? I'd say the landlord who is guilty of illegally turning off the utilities, in direct defiance of a court order.
Related Tags: homeschooling, home school, parenting, CPS, social services
For those of you who do not already know her, Jodi blogs over at The Opinions and Legalish Ramblings of an Attorney-At-Heart. She has had ongoing difficulty with her landlord who continually (and illegally) turns off her utilities. That isn't just her take. The judge has ruled in her favor and Jodi believes her landlord will be held in contempt of court for ignoring the judge's injunction. A formal hearing is set for tomorrow (Monday).
As if that weren't bad enough, CPS has now gotten involved. I won't get into the details without knowing for sure how much she wishes to divulge, but the case is heartbreaking. She could really use your prayers.
CPS is a strange monster. We hear continually of false reports (some research indicates that only about 2% of all reports are knowingly false, intended to harass the accused, but this still accounts for tens of thousands of false allegations). And then there are those that aren't intended as harassment but people don't take the time to knock on their neighbors door and get to know the family. I think this is where a lot of the harassment of homeschooling families comes from...ignorance rather than belligerence.
Here in Nebraska, we have had a recent increase in child-abuse related deaths. From 1998 - 2003, 21 children died at the hands of abusers...with 10 cases occurring in 2003. CPS had received prior reports on nine of these cases, and had received multiple reports on some. In fact, in about 39% of child murder cases, CPS had received prior reports and failed to protect the child.
And yet they have time to intervene in the case of a family that is already in the courts trying to solve the problem that CPS is concerned with, namely the lack of utilities, which is not due to parental neglect. There are all sorts of alternative measures...I'm not big into social programs, but they exist. And really....who is guilty of child endangerment? I'd say the landlord who is guilty of illegally turning off the utilities, in direct defiance of a court order.
Related Tags: homeschooling, home school, parenting, CPS, social services
