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Kidjacked | Jacked Up
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Federal foster care funding represents 65% of federal funds dedicated to child welfare purposes, and adoption assistance makes up another 22%. Tennessee CPS News Archive
The Tennessee news section is your source for the latest in family rights news items,
CPS reform efforts, open court demands, abolition of confidentiality laws that judges
hide behind, foster care deaths and issues, legal cases and more... Please
Email Kidjacked
with news and information from the state of Tennessee and I will include it here in our
coverage.
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Tennessee News Coverage
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Detective fights online child abuse
by David Melson
A Bedford County detective is receiving advanced training in fighting cyber crime against children. The Bedford County Sheriff's Office has been accepted as an affiliate member of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
"The sheriff's office really saw a need to do this type of thing," Host said. "My goal is to be proactive as opposed to reactive." The ICAC Program is described on its website as a national network of 61 coordinated task forces across the nation. Tennessee's headquarters is in Knoxville, Host says, and many departments still haven't joined up. "The program is totally federally funded," Host said. "No local funds are involved."
t-g.com
February 14, 2016
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DCS: Campbell judge took children from their homes without legal grounds
by Jamie Satterfield
JACKSBORO, Tenn. -- Two children were taken from their home this week and kept from their parents for four days after a judge ordered so without a hearing or legal cause, according to statements in court Friday.
As their parents wept, 8th Judicial Circuit Judge John McAfee ordered the children, ages 15 and 3, returned home, declared the actions of the judge who ordered them taken "improper" and removed her from the family's case.
knoxnews.com
January 31, 2016
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Former CPS investigator sentenced to two years of probation
by Nate Morabito
A former Child Protective Services investigator will now spend the next two years on probation after pleading guilty to forging records in a child death investigation, according to Sullivan County Assistant District Attorney Julie Canter.
During Cathy Agnew's sentencing hearing in Sullivan County today she received some support from a former Tennessee Department of Children's Services colleague. According to court records, one of DCS' assistant general counsels wrote a letter of support praising Agnew's past service; a document her attorney referenced today in court.
wjhl.com
January 28, 2016
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Kimberly McClendon, 26, Arrested On 4 Counts Of Child Neglect
East Ridge Police arrested Kimberly McClendon, 26, on four counts of child neglect on Thursday.
Police became involved in the incident at the request of Child Protective Services. Ms. McClendon is being held on a total bond of $27,500 and is scheduled to appear in East Ridge Court on Tuesday.
chattanoogan.com
June 19, 2015
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Mother faces child neglect, drug charges after substances found "within reach" of toddler
A Church Hill woman was arrested last week and charged with child neglect and a list of alleged drug violations after those illegal substances were found to be "within reach" of her 20-month old toddler.
Church Hill Police Detective Daniel Byington said that Sarah Leanne Epperson, 25, of 202 Fox Meadows Drive, was charged with Child Neglect, Possession of Schedule I substance, Possession of Schedule II substance, Possession of Schedule III substance (two counts), Possession of Schedule IV substance (three counts), Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, and Simple Possession of Marijuana.
therogersvillereview.com
March 25, 2015
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Pregnancy Crimes - Illegal birth defects
Starting in July, new mothers in Tennessee may be held criminally responsible for a baby's birth defects if the problems arise from drug use during pregnancy.
Specifically, the law says that a woman "may be prosecuted for assault for the illegal use of a narcotic drug while pregnant, if her child is born addicted to or harmed by the narcotic drug." Penalties include up to 15 years in prison. Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam (R) approved the law in April, calling it a "tool to address illicit drug use among pregnant women through treatment programs." The law does allow mothers to avoid criminal charges by signing up for and sticking with a state-run drug treatment program.
reason.com
August 19, 2014
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New drug screening law knocks 4 off benefits list
by Anita Wadhwani
A controversial new Tennessee law to drug-test applicants for public benefits has already resulted in the Department of Human Services disqualifying people seeking aid since the rules went into effect July 1.
Officials with the Department of Human Services say they are making contact with that applicant for further action - which could include referral to a drug treatment program as a condition of receiving benefits or disqualification if the person refuses. The 10 people affected by the new rules are a small fraction of the 812 people who applied for Tennessee Families First cash assistance program since the measure took effect. The vast majority - 802 - passed the initial written drug screening.
wbir.com
August 4, 2014
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Tennessee Arrests First Mother Under Its New Pregnancy Criminalization Law
by Tara Culp-Ressler
At the beginning of July, 26-year-old Mallory Loyola gave birth to a baby girl. Two days later, the state of Tennessee charged her with assault. Loyola is the first woman to be arrested under a new law in Tennessee.
The legislation, which officially took effect about a week ago, stipulates that "a woman may be prosecuted for assault for the illegal use of a narcotic drug while pregnant, if her child is born addicted to or harmed by the narcotic drug." However, this may not actually apply to Loyola's case. So far, there's no evidence the young woman either used a narcotic drug or caused harm to her newborn child.
thinkprogress.org
August 2, 2014
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See a Kid in a Car? Get Out Your Crowbar and Start Smashing, Says New Law
by Lenore Skenazy
Tennessee has just made it legal to break into a car if you see a child in there and have a "good faith belief" that he or she will suffer harm if not immediately removed.
In other words, feel free to get out the crowbar. This would make sense if we had a realistic sense of when kids are truly in danger. But we don't. We have been told by the media and the government that kids are in danger absolutely any time they are waiting in the car, even for a single minute. Look at this story, for instance: a mom found guilty of neglect for not hauling her sleeping kid into the store with her on a 10 minute errand. Or this one-a four-minute errand. Or this one, a mom berated by a "Good Samaritan" for a 20-second errand.
reason.com
July 14, 2014
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Parents upset over school district's handling of teacher complaints
by Nate Morabito
Almost nine months after the Washington County, Tennessee, Department of Education suspended a teacher, we're learning it wasn't the first time he faced accusations of unprofessional conduct.
Instead, a month and a half prior, a teacher's assistant reported questionable activity. Despite that report, the mother of the child who was the alleged victim is just now finding out about it and she didn't learn of it from the school district. "They didn't call me, didn't tell anything about it," Jeana Abueida said.
wjhl.com
July 9, 2014
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Pork, beef prices rising in the wake of disease and drought
by Alex Green
Bringing home the bacon may be a luxury during the next nine months. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its April food price numbers, and the report shows what a lot of consumers and meat distributors already know: that meat is going up.
An 8.4 percent jump in meat prices in April accounted for more than a third of last month's rise in producer prices. Earlier this year, USDA officials warned Americans about a disease called porcine epidemic diarreah virus, which carries a high morbidity rate among piglets. Also, porcine deltacoronavirus -- a similar virus causing sickness among pigs -- has been identified in 29 states.
timesfreepress.com
May 17, 2014
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Adventure Science Center offers labs
by Kristen Kindoll
Adventure Science Center has once again lived up to its moniker, offering another way for the whole family to get involved in the greatest adventure of all, learning. "Family Science Labs" have hands-on experiments for home-schooling families.
The labs are designated for children in grades 3-8. The running time is 55 minutes. This includes instruction and exploration time. The labs' main concept is centralized on children and parents being able to share in the learning experimentation. By having the parent teacher engaged in the process, it helps maintain the students' focus and even more their interest in the lesson.
tennessean.com
May 14, 2014
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Free produce served to food-stamp users at East Nashville grocery store
by Joey Garrison
Food-stamp users had their pick of fresh free produce from a market set up outside an East Nashville grocery store on Sunday.
Organic corn, red pepper and watermelon were some of the choices at the parking lot of Piggly Wiggly at 921 Dickerson Pike as part of a food-stamp matching program aimed at getting healthy foods in the hands of needy people. Under the program, known as Double SNAP, organizers from the social enterprise Good Food for Good People match up to $10 in free produce to participants of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Double SNAP is made possible thanks to a United Healthcare grant.
tennessean.com
August 19, 2013
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Tennessee Department of Children's Services Makes Major Department Changes
by Ardray Maxwell
There's a shake-up at the Tennessee Department of Children Services involving child safety.
Tennessee Department of Children Services announced Tuesday new changes to the department's organizational structure to elevate child safety, health and programming.
wreg.com
April 17, 2013
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The Sound of Tyranny for German Home School Family
by Robert Knight
In a remarkably short time, Germany recovered smartly from the wreckage of its defeat in World War II to become the economic strong man of Europe.
A courageous German Christian couple refused to hand over their children to the government schools and fled to America three years ago. Now, the Obama Administration is trying to send them back. A likely outcome would be the state seizing the children and imprisoning the parents.
global.christianpost.com
April 11, 2013
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Smokies 2012 visits highest in decade
by Morgan Simmons
Great Smoky Mountains National Park drew 9,685,829 visitors last year to maintain its title as the most visited national park in the U.S.
Grand Canyon National Park was second with 4,421,352 visits, and Yosemite National Park was third with 3,853,404 visits, according to a National Park Service report. The Blue Ridge Parkway - a unit of the national park system but not technically a national park - was the most visited of all places in the national park system with 15,205,059 visitors in 2012.
knoxnews.com
April 8, 2013
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Georgia Program Reopens Foster Care Cold Cases
by Maggie Lee
In far north Georgia, 17-year-old "Brandon" lives in a group home. He has been the ward of two states in his short life. Put up for adoption in Tennessee, adopted, then abandoned in Georgia. He's been in foster care for eight years.
There are somewhere between 250 and 300 kids like Brandon in Georgia: foster youths whose lives are stuck in a slide toward aging out of the foster system and into potential homelessness or prison, and with no connection with any family. They also risk a plain lack of success.
youthtoday.org
April 8, 2013
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PHHI receives USDA grant to combat E. coli
by Holden Broyhil
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Organic Agriculture Research at N.C. State and the University of Tennessee's Institute of Agriculture a $2 million grant to fund a study to develop new organic compounds to treat crops.
The study is titled "Alternative Post-harvest Washing Solutions to Enhance the Microbial Safety and Quality of Organic Fresh Produce." The research will be aimed at the particular fruits and vegetables that have been at the center of the recent frequent E. coli outbreaks. The grant will fund an organic project looking for post-harvest applications that meet organic criteria. After harvest crops are treated to ensure that they ship well, look good in the store and also kill any contaminating micro-organisms, such as E. coli. Many fruits and vegetables are treated specifically to kill the E. coli bacteria on the outer surface.
technicianonline.com
April 1, 2013
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Should Family Seeking Asylum in U.S. to Home School Their Children Be Sent Home?
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has overturned a ruling by a U.S. judge that initially granted the Romeike family asylum after they fled Germany five years ago.
According to the Huffington Post, Uwe and Hannelor Romeike and their six children moved to the U.S. in 2008 when Germany refused to allow them to home school their children. The report says that under German law, the parents of children who don't attend a state-approved school face fines, jail time and possibly lose custody. The family was granted asylum by the U.S. in 2010, but the Department of Homeland Security then challenged the ruling and overturned it, saying the case did not rise to the level of religious persecution.
gwinnett.patch.com
March 24, 2013
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Reactions strong among local parents in homeschool battle
by Megan Bristow
DUNCAN - For three years now, the Romeike family from Germany has been residing in Tennessee fighting a battle to stay in America after being granted political asylum in Jan. 2010, a decision that was appealed by the Obama administration two months later.
The family is still awaiting yet another court date but the government's position on this has been causing concern with American homeschoolers including those in Stephens County. "It is sad to me that our country is going this direction, that our president chooses to do this," Lana Walker said. "If you have children, why would you not be able to raise them the way you choose?"
duncanbanner.com
March 18, 2013
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German family is denied asylum to homeschool their kids by Homeland Security
by Barbie Crafts
Uwe and Hannelore Romeikie, evangelical Christians from Germany who sought religious asylum in this country to homeschool their children, are facing deportation by the Obama Administration.
According to a March 5 report by Conservative Read.com, Homeland Security is attempting to force them to return to Germany although an immigration judge granted them asylum in 2010.
examiner.com
March 5, 2013
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Disputed Asylum for German Homeschoolers Heads to Sixth Circuit
by Melissa Steffan
In 2010, a Tennessee judge granted asylum to a German family who feared persecution from their government for their decision to homeschool their children.
Now, three years later, the Romeikes are still in the middle of a deportation battle. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the Romeikes's appeal of a May 2012 ruling by the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), which ruled that Germany's ban on home education is not a human rights violation-and that the Romeikes must return to Germany as a result.
blog.christianitytoday.com
February 27, 2013
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Tenn. Child Agency Head Quits as Deaths Questioned
by Travis Loller
The head of Tennessee's child welfare agency resigned Tuesday under scrutiny of how her agency handled the cases of children who were investigated as possible victims of abuse and neglect, then later died.
Gov. Bill Haslam announced Kate O'Day's resignation as Department of Children's Services commissioner in a news release, saying "She was concerned that she had become more of a focus than the children the department serves." Last week the Republican governor was defending O'Day's leadership, even after the agency told a federal judge it couldn't say with total certainty how many children died while in its custody.
abcnews.go.com
February 8, 2013
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Tenn. child agency head quits as deaths questioned
by Travis Loller
The head of Tennessee's child welfare agency resigned Tuesday under scrutiny of how her agency handled the cases of children who were investigated as possible victims of abuse and neglect, then later died.
Gov. Bill Haslam announced Kate O'Day's resignation as Department of Children's Services commissioner in a news release, saying "She was concerned that she had become more of a focus than the children the department serves."
knoxnews.com
February 5, 2013
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Home-school notes: Walk through history is a few steps away
by Kristen Kindoll
Franklin on Foot is an outside classroom, waiting to teach visitors all about the town's history and happenings. The breadth of tours available give families a chance to learn about the city of Franklin, while getting a little exercise.
There are several tours to choose from, depending on your interest. Classic Franklin is a daytime overview of Franklin's history. Haunted Franklin is the most popular tour. It tells of spirits who have become too attached to their homes to leave. There are several other ghost tours, which range from the legends of the Civil War battlefields to a peek beneath the genteel veneer of Franklin into the darker side of the city. I Spy for Children is a fun scavenger hunt conducted throughout Main Street. Southern Style Food Tour takes a culinary walk into nearly 20 locally owned restaurants. Come hungry to sample delicious food at the six eateries (Next date is 2-5 p.m. Dec. 27). Finally, there are bike tours and rentals to pedal your way along the streets of downtown Franklin, including veering off the beaten paths to surprising locales (bikes and helmets are provided).
tennessean.com
December 19, 2012
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Alert Kidjacked to Tennessee CPS news!
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Tennessee Supreme Court Case In Re Adoption of A.M.H.
by Annette M. Hall
This case concerns the termination of parental rights. The appellants, who are the parents, seek reversal of the termination of their parental rights to the care and custody of their daughter, A.M.H. The trial court predicated the termination on the ground that the parents abandoned A.M.H. by willfully failing to visit her for four months.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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In Re Adoption of A. M. H.
by Annette M. Hall
Shelby County, TN: This case concerns the termination of parental rights.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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State v. T.L.C.
by Annette M. Hall
A Tennessee Court of Appeals vacated and remanded the trial court's termination of a father's parental rights and concluded that the trial court's finding that the child was in all reasonable probability subject to abuse or neglect by the father was against the great weight of the evidence.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Tennessee Jails Father
by Annette M. Hall
We are Paul and Donna Mickles from Rogersville, TN. The Court proceedings are being held in Knoxville, TN under the Chancery Court Judge John Weaver. Paul and I adopted a child four years ago and have raised him from three months old.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Anna Mae Case: A Test for the U.S. Judicial System
by Annette M. Hall
In Memphis, Tennessee, a wealthy family named Jerry and Louise Baker stole a child from a poor Chinese family four years ago. Ironically, the trial judge Alissandratos in Chancery Court shifts the burden of proof onto the He family (defendants). Before Judge Alissandratos, Mr. and Mrs. He have to carry the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that they are fit parents in order to defend their parental rights.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Chinese Immigrants Appeal to Get Daughter Back
by Annette M. Hall
Lawyers for a Chinese immigrant couple on Wednesday appealed a judge's ruling that last year stripped them of parental rights to their daughter, Anna Mae.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Complaint Against Judge Childers
by Annette M. Hall
Mr. and Mrs. He file an updated version of their 15-charge complaint against Judge Childers. In Memphis, Tennessee, a wealthy family named Jerry and Louise Baker stole a child from a poor Chinese family four years ago. Judge Childers is under investigation for his judicial conduct in handling this case.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Playing Legal Musical Chairs and Other Games
by Annette M. Hall
We went back to court in Tennessee on my appeal of the father's petition for custody. The referee ruled in November to give him temporary custody and I appealed that decision. The original hearing was set for February 4th, 2003.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Merced County Officials Involved in Murder Cover-Up
by Annette M. Hall
Our case involves C.P.S here in the County of Merced, California and how they have covered-up child abuses committed when C.P.S had placed my granddaughter in a household that had almost beaten her to death.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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High-Ranking Tennessee Officials Involved in Kidnapping Cover-Up
by Annette M. Hall
Tennessee Governor, Phil Bredesen attempted to deflect blame when he recently requested the resignation of Dept. of Children's Services Commissioner, Michael J. Miller, after contempt of court charges were levied against the state.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Tennessee Adoption Racket - Children for Dollars
by Annette M. Hall
After neighbors claim children are unsupervised caseworkers at DCS placed Mullenix's grandchildren in fostercare. DHS now refuses to keep the children together or even to place them with capable family members.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Losing Faith | Foster care adoption process
by Annette M. Hall
Our Parents as Tender Healers (PATH) classes began in early January and were to last sixteen weeks. Within these classes we were to learn the requirements of foster parents and informed that in order to adopt a child in the foster system that we had to become certified foster parents first.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Corruption in Indiana Courts
by Annette M. Hall
Roxanne Scarlett is fighting an uphill custody battle in an unfair nepotistic and unscrupulous judicial system.
Kidjacked
June 24, 2012
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Jacked Up: My Child Lives in Fear!
by Annette Hall
My name is Ashley H. and I have a son named Gary. Gary lives with his mom (Miranda) and step-father Chad and brother Joey in Kingsport, Tennessee.
Kidjacked
May 15, 2010
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Jacked Up: Shirley's Story
by Annette Hall
Rutherford County, Tennessee corrupt officials accused of withholding evidence, dereliction of duties, violating civil liberties...
Kidjacked
May 15, 2010
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Jacked Up: Cotton Conspiracy
by Annette Hall
For years now the He family has been splintered, forced to live a sort of half-life. Never really living, with one foot held in a suspended animation that couldn't possibly be real. The other foot going through the motions of life, working, sleeping, eating in a sort of funk that never goes away.
Kidjacked
May 15, 2010
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