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Kidjacked | Jacked Up
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Foster children attend an average of six different schools in their kindergarten to 12th grade experience, and 60 to 70% do not graduate from high school. (Casey Family Programs Research)
California CPS News Archive
California News Coverage
Fisher: Ex-foster kids use experience to help system
by Patty Fisher
Lobbyists and "special interests" have a pretty bad reputation these days. But not all lobbyists are out to get tax breaks for bigwigs. And some special-interest groups really are special.
That's why I was delighted to learn that the California Youth Connection, an organization that has been banging on doors in Sacramento for 20 years, demanding reform for the foster care system, is receiving a prestigious award today from the James Irvine Foundation. The 2008 Leadership Award recognizes Californians who have successfully tackled some of the state's most critical challenges, from poverty to health care to the environment.
San Jose Mercury News
July 31, 2008
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CPS: Protocol Not Followed In Slain Boy's Case
A social worker did not follow protocol in the case of a boy who was allegedly killed at the hands of his mother's boyfriend, the Sacramento County Department of Health and Human Services says.
The department's director, Lynn Frank, said Jahmaurae Allen, 4, was the subject of a Child Protective Services case that was opened on June 16, 2008. Frank said the social worker affiliated with the case did not follow established department procedures and has been put on paid administrative leave pending further review of the circumstances.
KCRA Sacramento
July 24, 2008
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Judge dismisses juvenile case prompting homeschool ban
by Bob Unruh
A judge in California has ended juvenile court jurisdiction over two children in a family case that prompted an appeals court at one point to declare that parents had no right to homeschool their children in the state.
The court's effectual ban on homeschooling in California later was dropped when the same panel agreed to rehear the case, and oral arguments on those issues were held last month, with parties ranging from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the state's fire marshals and superintendent of public instruction supporting homeschooling parents.
World Net Daily (CA)
July 11, 2008
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High Turnover and Fragmented Focus Plague Foster Care
by Nick Welsh
Of the 38 children emancipated from foster care last year throughout Santa Barbara County, 12 wound up homeless within six months.
Given the dangerously disjointed state of the county's Child Welfare Service Department --as described by the Santa Barbara Grand Jury in a recent report- it's a wonder that number isn't higher. The Grand Jury found a department plagued by an astonishing rate of turnover that's worsened every year for the past five years.
The Santa Barbara Independent
July 3, 2008
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California and Homeschool Liberty:A Companion Post
On Monday, June 23, the Court of Appeal in Los Angeles held oral arguments for the rehearing in the In re Rachel L homeschooling/abuse case in California.
The arguments were long (two and a half hours in a hot courtroom) and thorough. The judges asked lots of questions, with some consistent themes. As soon as you thought you had one judge pegged as to how he or she was thinking, he or she would ask another question that made you wonder about your prior conclusion. They were reasonably generous about letting people finish their presentations or points even if they ran over a little on time.
The Full-Quiver Homeschool House
July 1, 2008
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O.C. mom spends '30 Days' in a different lifestyle
by Peter Larsen
It only takes Kati Blackledge a minute or two to make her stand perfectly clear on tonight's episode of "30 Days" on the FX network. "I believe that same-sex parenting just shouldn't be happening..."
Blackledge, herself an adopted child, as well as the mother to two adopted sons. And then to get the action going, she packs her bags to travel to Ann Arbor, Mich., where she'll live for 30 days with Dennis and Tom Patrick, a gay couple raising four adopted sons.
Orange County Register
June 23, 2008
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Toxic Fire Retardant Chemicals Found in Common Baby Products
by Russell Long and Sara Schedler
'Killer Cribs' study by Friends of the Earth finds babies and infants are at risk; group asks manufacturer Graco to halt use of toxic chemicals; Legislation advancing in California
Toxic fire retardant chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects, and neurological and other health problems are prevalent in common baby products, according to a study released today by national environmental group Friends of the Earth. "We're poisoning our children, one crib at a time," said Russell Long, Vice-President of Friends of the Earth.
Friends of the Earth
May 20, 2008
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School district under fire regarding molestation case
by Laura Tate
School district officials scramble to find answers to parents' questions regarding the arrest of Lincoln Middle School teacher Thomas Arthur Beltran.
As upset parents demand answers regarding a Lincoln Middle School teacher who was arrested for allegedly molesting possibly as many as 10 students-and who was investigated for sexual abuse two years ago-school officials are scrambling to come up with new policies to address such cases.
Malibu Times
May 14, 2008
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Do county payments to judges amount to bribes?
by Charlene Muhammad
Two activists want Attorney General Michael Mukasey to launch a Justice Department investigation into what they call courtroom corruption fueled by "unwarranted" payments from Los Angeles County to Los Angeles Superior Court judges.
Two activists want Attorney General Michael Mukasey to launch a Justice Department investigation into what they call courtroom corruption fueled by "unwarranted" payments from Los Angeles County to Los Angeles Superior Court judges.
Final Call News
April 22, 2008
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Assemblywoman Reintroduces Law to Ban Spanking
by Karen England
Assemblywoman Sally Lieber has introduced a bill that will effectively ban spanking in California. Identical to last year's highly publicized AB 755, this new AB 2943 will make it a crime to spank a child.
According to AB 2943, a parent who spanks their child would be placed on probation for a minimum of 4 years, and would be forced to attend a "nonviolent parental education class" and the child would receive a criminal court protective order "protecting the victim from further acts of violence or threats" and "residence exclusion or stay-away conditions."
Christian Newswire (CA)
April 9, 2008
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Eli Lilly Zyprexa RICO Lawsuit
by Daniel Haszard
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal sues Eli Lilly and Company, Inc. for illegally marketing its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa for unapproved uses, and concealing the drug's serious side effects, for more than a decade.
Eli Lilly allegedly corrupted physicians, pharmacies and administrators at nursing homes and youth detention centers as part of a massive illegal marketing campaign to promote Zyprexa for unapproved off-label uses, including for the treatment of children.
PR USA
April 9, 2008
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Recall Judge Peter McBrien Petition
Judge McBrien is a disgrace to the American judiciary system and an extreme danger to children, petitioners and respondents.
McBrien has broken at least two California Code of Judicial Ethics canons: A Judge Shall Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in All of the Judge's activities and a Judge Shall Perform the Duties of Judicial Office Impartially and Diligently. Please help remove him from office.
iPetitions
April 5, 2008
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Group Seeks Recall of Tree-Cutting Judge for 'Evil Terrorism' from the Bench
by Debra Cassens Weiss
A recall petition against a California judge claims he inflicts "evil terrorism" from the bench and poses an "extreme danger to children and parents."
The petition was filed by about two dozen Sacramento residents. They must gather the signatures of 20 percent of the voters to be successful.
ABA Journal
April 5, 2008
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Undermining a parent's rights
by Shirlee Smith
SOME happenings in our society are just too stupid to comment on. Then again, there may be some folks who fail to see the stupidity there.
And there may be some people who sense it ain't quite right, but haven't been able to justify their questioning of the circumstance. For these members of the reading public, here goes my take on the California state appellate court's ruling that parents who homeschool their children must have a teaching credential.
Pasadena Star-News (CA)
March 14, 2008
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Home is not where the school is
While the ruling will be appealed, parents who homeschool their children are reacting to their uncertain future.
Even though I'm the daughter of a stellar public school teacher, I can't be alone in thinking that last line deserves a worthy retort. How many of the world's worst teachers have been credentialed by governing bodies? If credentials are all that matters, why do so many students in public schools fare so poorly?
Get Religion
March 7, 2008
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Sacramento judge denies 'disgracing the American Judiciary System'
by R.V. Scheide
In 2006, Ulf Carlsson entered divorce proceedings hoping to make the best of a bad situation. Instead, he lost custody of his teenage daughter, got fired from a 20-year career with the state of California and is about to lose his home.
Last week, Carlsson and more than a dozen other self-proclaimed victims of McBrien's alleged legal abuse officially notified the Sacramento Elections Office of their intent to recall the judge. They didn't waste any time getting to the point.
Sacramento News & Reviews
March 6, 2008
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Follow Up -- Bad Decision by Second Appellate District of California
As many of you know, the Second Appellate District Court of Los Angeles handed down a very bad decision regarding a case involving a homeschool family.
California is now on the path to being the only state to deny the vast majority of homeschooling parents their fundamental right to teach their own children at home.
HSLDA
March 5, 2008
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Court: No Constitutional Right to Educate Children at Home
by Steven M. Ellis
Parents do not have a right to home-school their children under the California Constitution, and must comply with the state's compulsory education law even if they profess religious objections, this district's Court of Appeal has ruled.
Holding that a couple who had "enrolled" their children in name only in a private school while keeping them at home to be instructed by a parent who was not a credentialed teacher had violated the compulsory education law.
Metropolitan News-Enterprise
March 5, 2008
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Judges Want to Terminate Family's Homeschooling Rights
by Jim Kouri
Phillip Long told NewsWithViews that he and his wife will probably appeal the decision to California's Supreme Court, since they've homeschooled all of their children, the oldest now 29, because of various anti-Christian influences in California's public
This latest court decision granted a petition brought by attorneys retained by so-called "child advocates" to represent the two youngest Long children after the family's homeschooling was brought to their attention. However, the Long's children did not have any say in their representation by these attorneys. While the lawyers claimed to be representing the interests of the children, they actually were representing the California education establishment.
News With Views
March 5, 2008
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Judge orders homeschoolers into government education
by Bob Unruh
A California court has ruled that several children in one homeschool family must be enrolled in a public school or legally qualified private school, and must attend.
The judges ruled in the case involving the Longs the family failed to demonstrate "that mother has a teaching credential such that the children can be said to be receiving an education from a credentialed tutor."
World Net Daily (CA)
February 29, 2008
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In re Rachel L.
Video -- Case Summary: Parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children.
The ruse of "Enrollment" in a private school that functions by allowing children to stay at home and be taught by non-credentialed parents does not constitute instruction in a private full-time day school within the exception to California's compulsory public school education law.
The Daily Case Report
February 28, 2008
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California Irony: Cathedral City Calls Church Message a "Nuisance"
A small church has found itself facing the wrath of local government for a simple yet profound message painted on its roof.
Local officials cited the church for violation of a municipal sign ordinance and have ordered the church to abate the "nuisance." Pacific Justice Institute represents the church and has appealed the city's actions.
Pacific Justice Institute
February 13, 2008
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Part III: Big stakes, but little voice for kids
by Karen de Sa'
The day an Alameda County Superior Court judge became his stand-in parent, 14-year-old Zairon Frazier felt more like a criminal than a survivor of child abuse.
His mother had whacked him with a belt. But inside Juvenile Dependency Court, it seemed like a different sort of punishment. A bank of attorneys argued his fate at a rapid clip. "Obviously, whatever they were saying wasn't for my benefit," Zairon said. "I knew they were talking about me, but I didn't think anything I said or cared about mattered. If it was about me, why didn't they ask me?"
The Mercury News (CA)
February 12, 2008
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Part II: A timid advocate for parents' rights
by Karen de Sa'
Parents of children under 3 years old have just six months from the time a child is taken into foster care to prove they can safely parent. Parents of older children have one year.
As a result, Proctor said, the most effective thing lawyers can do for parents is to persuade them to admit to the problems and work on solving them. "You could litigate every piece of the (social worker's) report, but what is that going to accomplish?" Proctor asked. "My feeling is you've got a better chance getting them out of denial."
The Mercury News (CA)
February 11, 2008
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Part I: How rushed justice fails our kids
by Karen de Sa'
A yearlong Mercury News examination found widespread evidence of a system riddled with problems that open the door to poor judgment:
Judges and lawyers representing children and parents juggle caseloads in some counties that at any given time are far higher than even the maximum recommended standards. On a recent weekday, a San Joaquin County judge ruled on 135 families in a single day. Dependency lawyers in San Bernardino County represent 464 children each - almost five times what many experts recommend.
The Mercury News (CA)
February 11, 2008
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