The stuff that happens in today's nanny state never ceases to amaze me. In San Francisco, a devoted mother lost her 6 year old son because her pit bull bit another dog on the ear:
Valerie Louie's nightmare started the day her young son accidentally left their front door ajar last year.
Two of her dogs -- pit bull mixes -- ran out, and one bit a small dog on the ear. San Francisco's animal control department deemed the animals "vicious and dangerous,'' and eventually they were banned from Louie's Richmond District home.
But in a bizarre snowballing of events, Louie's son, Andrew, then 6, was removed from his home and placed in foster care where, allegedly, an older child engaged him in sexual behavior. Andrew eventually was permitted to move in with his aunt, but he has not returned to his home full time in eight months even though the dogs have been gone the whole time.
The boy had never been bitten, harmed or even threatened by the family pets, although Louie admits she could have done more to supervise Andrew around the animals. Child Protective Services officials told Louie that they were taking the boy to a foster home because of the threat that Andrew could be hurt by the dogs.
"My family was torn apart for purely speculative reasons,'' said Louie, 45, a registered nurse. "It is terrifying that city agencies can have so much power against a law-abiding, hardworking family. But the worst part of it all has been the time between my son and me that is forever lost.''
Louie, who has filed a legal claim against the city, goes back to court today to argue that Andrew should be allowed to return home full time.
It's a long story, but it seems quite clear that the child was never in any danger from the dog:
Buoying her case is a court-appointed dog trainer who said he believes the dogs pose no untoward danger. A court-appointed psychologist has also strongly recommended that Andrew "be returned to his mother's care immediately. There is no threat to him at this point, and keeping these two separated can only be punitive.''
The whole thing strikes me as pit bull hysteria compounded by bureaucracy run amok.
Here's a picture of the killer dog and the boy who had to be "saved."
I'm glad I don't have kids.
If I did, and Coco was seen chasing a squirrel, why, they'd just have to drag the kids away to foster "care."
Big Brother Sister knows best!
posted by Eric on 08.08.06 at 04:25 PM
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Comments
My wife and I have had a plan ever since we had our first child, that if CPS ever shows up to take our kids away, she will have the kids in the car and on the way to the next state while I hold the CPS workers at bay. It's sad that we feel that this is necessary, but we are Pagan, and we homeschool. The combination of the two makes us really feel like targets of the overzealous government.
Anonymous · August 8, 2006 08:44 PM
Sounds like a good plan to me. (Homeschooling is bad enough, but breaking the stereotype? That's a dire threat!)
The Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler
Don?t bang your head!
My wife and I have had a plan ever since we had our first child, that if CPS ever shows up to take our kids away, she will have the kids in the car and on the way to the next state while I hold the CPS workers at bay. It's sad that we feel that this is necessary, but we are Pagan, and we homeschool. The combination of the two makes us really feel like targets of the overzealous government.