Utah Grandmother Takes Custody Case to Utah Supreme Court
“An American Fork woman who contends she was shut out of the opportunity to adopt her grandson from foster care took her fight to the Utah Supreme Court last week.
“I was never allowed even a hearing,” said Seana Collins. She tears up when she thinks about the boy, now 5, whom she hasn’t seen for more than a year after his adoption by another family. “My younger children feel like they’ve lost a sibling.”
Background
“Collins’ daughter was 14 when she became pregnant. Given her daughter’s age, Collins became something of a surrogate mother to the boy and five of her eight children still living at home thought of the baby as a sibling.
But, in June 2010, Collins’ daughter began getting into trouble with alcohol, drugs and stealing. Worried about her then 3-year-old grandson, Collins called police, and DCFS got involved.
Collins said she told social workers from the beginning that she wanted custody of her grandson, but they told her to focus on helping the daughter so she could keep the boy. The 18-year-old girl had nowhere else to go for help or a place to live, so Collins agreed.
But keeping her troubled daughter at home also meant the home wasn’t a safe place for the boy, according to the state. When a family placement fell through, the boy was put in foster care.”
“But the state says Collins didn’t prove in time she could safely take care of the boy. Allowing the boy’s troubled mother to stay in her home at first, which Collins says she did at a social worker’s urging, also hurt her claim.
“From the very beginning she did not qualify,” guardian ad-litem Martha Pierce, an attorney assigned by the state to look out for the boy’s interests, told the Utah Supreme Court. “She was reminded of [the deadlines] several times. She didn’t preserve her claim.”
Those deadlines are important because moving from family to family is traumatic for a child, according to the state. ‘
“I just remember my heart sinking,” Collins said during an interview at her home, “but I thought it would just be a short time, that [my daughter] would get better. At the time, I didn’t understand drug addiction. She’s the only one of my children who ever had this problem.”
Collins visited with her grandson as he was shifted to various foster homes, but her daughter continued on a downward spiral. In April 2011, the boy was placed with a family who wanted to adopt him. Within months, Collins’ visitation rights ended. ”
“Pierce said visitation was “terminated because she couldn’t behave herself. She had said [to the foster mother] in the presence of the child, ‘I don’t like how things are going. I’m going to fight this.’ The child reacted to this.”
Collins disputes Pierce’s account.
Collins had already filed paperwork in the case, but since her daughter was still trying to keep her maternal rights, she sought visitation, partial custody or adoption. When the papers were filed, a clerk didn’t ask for an extra $4 filing fee required for adoptions, said her attorney, Ron Wilkinson. That meant her petition wasn’t filed as an adoption request.”
“After discovering the error, Collins worked to complete a background check and home screening. With her daughter out of the house, she said a DCFS worker told her she had passed.
In November 2011, her daughter’s parental rights were terminated. But the worker who had screened Collins wasn’t at a hearing the following month. The foster parents’ adoption request went through.
Meanwhile, the adoptive family has grown to love the boy, said their attorney, Charisma Buck. “They love the child just as if he were their own.”
The Utah Supreme Court took the case under consideration. No immediate deadline was set for a decision.
“No matter how [this case] is resolved,” Pfrommer said, “there will be heartbreak.”
Woman fights to adopt grandson at Utah Supreme Court
[Salt Lake Tribune 10/8/12 by Lindsay Whitehurst]
REFORM Puzzle Piece
Let’s try again.
“Collins’ daughter was 14 when she became pregnant. [Fourteen and pregnant? What was – or was not – going on in her home? Where was her mother?] Given her daughter’s age, [ridiculous to be a mother!] Collins became something of a surrogate mother to the boy and five of her eight children still living at home [DID WE MISS THIS PART? Eight children, five at home, one of whom is getting pregnant at 14?? Is it not child collecting if they come from your uterus and not through adoption?]
But, in June 2010, Collins’ daughter began getting into trouble with alcohol, drugs and stealing. Worried about her then 3-year-old grandson, Collins called police, and DCFS got involved. [Why? Why not take custody? Why not throw her out of the house? You invited social services into your home, then complain about what happens?]
Collins said she told social workers from the beginning that she wanted custody of her grandson, but they told her to focus on helping the daughter so she could keep the boy. The 18-year-old girl had nowhere else to go for help or a place to live, so Collins agreed [even though her daughter was now a legal adult and could have easily been removed from the home so that the grandchild would be protected from this unfit and unstable parent. Oh, but we didn’t do that!]
But keeping her troubled daughter at home also meant the home wasn’t a safe place for the boy, according to [EVERYONE]
“But the state says Collins didn’t prove in time she could safely take care of the boy. Allowing the boy’s troubled mother to stay in her home at first, which Collins says she did at a social worker’s urging, also hurt her claim. [Because that child was exposed to a legal adult who was harmful, and this grandmother allowed it. Because a social worker told her to? Really? Clearly not smart enough to raise a child safely.]
“I just remember my heart sinking,” Collins said during an interview at her home, “but I thought it would just be a short time, [based on WHAT?] that [my daughter] would get better. At the time, I didn’t understand drug addiction [because I was obviously raised in a closet and have never watched television, seen the internet, or read a newspaper]. She’s the only one of my children [in the world??] who ever had this problem.”
Collins visited with her grandson as he was shifted to various foster homes, [which happened because the true mother did not terminate her rights and was still legally permitted to rehabilitate in order to parent] but her daughter continued on a downward spiral. In April 2011, the boy was placed with a family who wanted to adopt him. Within months, Collins’ visitation rights ended. ”
“Pierce said visitation was “terminated because she couldn’t behave herself. She had said [to the foster mother] in the presence of the child, ‘I don’t like how things are going. I’m going to fight this.’ The child reacted to this.” [About as smart as having eight children and not understanding the first thing about drug addiction, and then allowing this precious grandchild of yours access to his mother, who was an unfit person].
Collins disputes Pierce’s account.
Collins had already filed paperwork in the case, but since her daughter was still trying to keep her maternal rights, she sought visitation, partial custody or adoption. When the papers were filed, a clerk didn’t ask for an extra $4 filing fee required for adoptions, said her attorney, Ron Wilkinson. That meant her petition wasn’t filed as an adoption request.” [Where was your attorney when you were filing all of this? I’ll bet you didn’t have him THEN.]
“After discovering the error, Collins worked to complete a background check and home screening. With her daughter out of the house, she said a DCFS worker told her she had passed. [Did she get it in writing? Is that even accurate? Someone “told” you you passed? Right. That exactly how stuff like that works.]
In November 2011, her daughter’s parental rights were terminated [which should have happened long before].
Meanwhile, the adoptive family has grown to love the boy, said their attorney, Charisma Buck. “They love the child just as if he were their own.” [Probably because they aren’t raising five more children under the same roof.]
Yup. Accountability. Let’s make family members accountable for what happens to them in the social services system. Let’s make those who pursue custody of children accountable for the mechanics of what needs to happen. And let’s make drug addicts accountable for their behavior. Finally, let’s look real carefully at someone with eight children (five at home) who wants to take custody of another child.
Good points and that is why it is labeled Accountability.I don’t think she had an attorney yet when she was filing the papers. A couple questions: How does a grandparent take “custody” of a grandchild against the will of the mother without involving DCFS? You had asked why didn’t she take custody prior to all of this happening. The shifting of the child to various foster homes–how is that connected to termination of rights? Shouldn’t DCFS have kept the child in one place during that time? I don’t think anyone in this whole situation did right by this child.
The concept of a grandparent taking custody of their grandchild is a pretty common thing so I wouldn’t label this as a child collector as I assume her plan was not to have her 14 year old give birth so *she* could raise another child. My advice to this woman would have been to lawyer up immediately before calling DCFS. Each year a higher percentage of children in foster care are there due to parental drug abuse.
So what you are saying is that parents that have more than 2-3 kids are incapable of taking care of children. Until you have all the facts you have no right to judge me. You have no clue. The system decieved me. My only mistake was trusting them. I am a good parent who has raised my kids to be law abiding responsible people. And just because 1 out of my 8 children went down a wrong path DOES NOT make me a bad parent. So when you have all the facts then you can say something!