Volume 6, Issue 64
October 14, 2008
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The Child Protection eNewsletter Destination: Nebraska...A Michigan mother drove roughly 12 hours to Omaha, so she could abandon her 13-year-old son at a hospital under the state's unique safe-haven law, Nebraska officials said. Fox News story here  The boy from the Detroit area is the second teenager from outside Nebraska and 18th child overall abandoned in the state since the law took effect in July. "I certainly recognize and can commiserate and empathize with families across our state and across the country who are obviously struggling with parenting issues, but this is not the appropriate way of dealing with them, whether you're in Nebraska or whether you're in another state," said Todd Landry, who heads the state's Department of Health and Human Services' division of children and family services. There was no sign the boy was in immediate danger before he was abandoned, but an investigation into the boy's situation was still continuing, Landry said. The boy has been placed in an emergency shelter. Landry said the family doesn't appear to have ties to Nebraska and he wasn't sure if the family had sought help in Michigan first. Creighton University Medical Center spokeswoman Lisa Stites said she did not know any additional details about the boy abandoned at her hospital. Nebraska's safe-haven law is unlike similar laws in that it allows anyone, not just a parent, to drop off a child, of any age, at any state-licensed hospital without fear of prosecution for abandonment. The law doesn't absolve anyone of other charges like abuse or neglect. Last week, a 14-year-old girl from Iowa was left at an Omaha hospital by her grandparents. The girl has since been returned to her family. CNN News story here Nebraska's safe haven page is Safe Haven page here. Caylee Anthony case to Grand Jury... The grand jury set to meet Tuesday and hear evidence regarding possible murder charges against Casey Anthony in the death of her daughter Caylee will hear from her father, George Anthony. My Fox Orlando story here  He has been subpoenaed to testify at the grand jury. He is expected to testify about the smell coming from their white Pontiac and how Casey told him to stay away from the car. So far neither Casey's mother, Cindy Anthony, nor her brother, Lee Anthony, has been subpoenaed. Texas Equusearch, a non-profit group that is helping to organize searches for the missing 3-year-old Orlando toddler may be pulling out of Orlando for good. "We gotta think about what's good for Equusearch in these tough economic times, because people who donate money may not donate again if all our money goes to one person when there are more (missing persons) out there," Equusearch founder Tim Miller told FOX 35 reporter Tracy Jacim in an exclusive interview on Sunday. The fact that Miller says Equusearch has already spent $44,000 on the search for Caylee, only having recouped $5,000 from the Orange County Sheriff's Office and another $7,000 from private donations, and the fact that the Anthonys are not cooperating, is forcing Miller to reconsider continuing the search. Meanwhile, this morning at 8:45 a.m., Casey Anthony was scheduled to be arraigned on theft and fraud charges. My Fox Orlando story here Judge Stan Strickland will hear the 13 total charges filed against Casey, including three counts of fraudulent use of personal identification, two counts of petit theft, two counts of grand theft, three counts of forgery of a check and three counts of uttering a forged check. Learning disabled teen missing after MySpace rendezvous... The mother of a missing Colorado teen says she had no idea her daughter had struck up a friendship with a soldier she met through MySpace, and now police have interviewed the man in connection with the girl's disappearance. ABC News story here  Police are in the front range of the Rocky Mountains today looking for 19-year-old Judilianna Lawrence, who was last seen Friday morning. Known as "Judi" to her friends and family, the Colorado Springs teen was supposed to get on a bus to school Friday morning to meet up with classmates for a bowling trip. Instead, police believe she took off with a man who drives a yellow 2000 Jeep Cherokee and had posted threatening remarks on his MySpace page claiming to be a "cold-blooded killer," according to the girl's family. Police do not know for sure whether Lawrence was in the area, but "it's close to her house and he's been known to frequent this area," he said. El Paso County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Robert Jaworski declined to comment on what led police to the man or what the man said about his connection with Lawrence during his questioning with police, citing the ongoing investigation. The man is stationed out of nearby Fort Carson, Jaworski said, and the military is aiding in the investigation. Desperate to figure out what had happened to her sister, Evia Lawrence broke into Lawrence's MySpace page and discovered that her sister had been using the social networking site to communicate with the 20-something man. For safety tips on MySpace see childprotectionguide/vol1_iss25. In other news...  Texas authorities are asking parents from a polygamous sect to send daughters ages 10 to 17 to counseling sessions designed to teach them about sexual abuse and marriage laws. Salt Lake Tribune story here The individual "therapeutic education" sessions are being offered to 63 girls who were among 439 children at the Yearning For Zion Ranch in Eldorado when it was raided in April. The ranch is home to members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Counselors, who also conducted parenting classes for FLDS mothers, are providing information on how to identify, prevent and report sexual abuse, said Patrick Crimmins, spokesman for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. "The goal of the sessions is to educate girls who are at risk, who may already have been sexual abuse victims, and to deal with any emotional issues related to the topic," he said in an e-mail. The material is age-appropriate, he added. It takes four hours to cover the material, though it can be divided into shorter sessions, Crimmins said. Some children have already completed the counseling, but he would not say how many. For more on this story see vol6_iss52, vol6_iss40 , and vol6_iss27. Hoping to combat the "snitch" label that often leads to silent suffering, six Utah schools have introduced a Web site that allows students to anonymously report bullies. Yahoo.com news story here A Brigham Young University student, Justin Bergener, created the site, which also lets students post information about thefts, drugs and harassment. Bergener said he hopes students who might otherwise be too scared or shy to speak up will be willing to post on the site. "There really is this culture and code of silence that's particularly prevalent in middle schools and high schools," Bergener said. Many students may not want to be seen in the office talking to an authority figure, said Rosanna Ungerman, principal of Provo's Dixon Middle School. Nearly 50 schools in other states are also using the Web site. For more information on bullying see childprotectionguide/vol1_iss29.  DrPhil.com reports that twenty-seven million people worldwide are the victims of modern-day slavery: They are forced into sex or back-breaking labor against their will. Most of the victims lured into this criminal world are innocent children–maybe even your own. Dr. Phil show link here A new documentary, Call + Response, call and response link here explores the injustices that are taking place in this underground society. These atrocities are not only happening in other parts of the world. Women who were trapped as sex slaves in America share their stories. Seattle movie reviewer Jeff Shannon says of this film "How much impact "Call + Response" will have is anyone's guess. But when you see a 4-year-old sex slave, ignoring this crisis is no longer an option." Seattle Times review here For more on this documentary visit: CNN video interviews at CNN News video interviews here UN Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking at UNGIFT story here Christianity Today interview with filmmaker at Christianity Today interview here For more information on trafficking see vol6_iss63 and the 2008 US Trafficking in Persons report at vol6_iss43.  Federal prosecutors say they plan to proceed soon with charges against a man accused of kidnapping Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart in 2002. CNN News story here The Utah state case stalled when a judge denied a request to forcibly medicate Brian David Mitchell. He has a rare delusional disorder and has twice been found incompetent for trial. The judge said she is not convinced anti-psychotic medication will help. Smart was abducted from her Salt Lake City home at age 14 and found with Mitchell and his wife in a suburb. Authorities say he took Smart as another wife to fulfill a religious prophecy. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in March on suspicion of taking Smart from Utah to a homeless camp in California.
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