New York parents who just learned that Administration of Children Services (ACS) planned to pursue adoption of their eight children made a bold move. During a supervised visit, they loaded the children in a van and made a run for it. After a nationwide search, the parents and the children were found a week later in Pennsylvania.
Given that the children were in foster care for nearly 3 years it is not surprising that ACS was seeking to terminate parental rights and have the children adopted. In Connecticut, DCF ordinarily files a petition to Terminate Parental Rights (TPR) if a child has been in foster care for 15 consecutive months or at least 15 months during the last 22 months before the filing of the TPR.
Will the parent’s actions hurt or help the adoption case? One could argue that abducting their children shows complete disregard for the Court’s orders and for the safety and well-being of their children. On the other hand, perhaps the desperate actions of the parents and favorable public sentiment sway the court to allow more time for the parents to work toward reunification with their children.
I do not know why the children are in foster care. The parents claim the children were removed from their case because one child went to school with a blood shot eye. However, I suspect there are additional claims of abuse or neglect to warrant continued removal of all children for almost three years. In fact, the youngest child, who is only 11 months old, would have been placed in foster care after the original investigation.
In Connecticut, DCF can apply for an Order of Temporary Custody and remove children if “the children are in immediate danger from their physical surroundings or suffering from serious physical injury or illness.”
Here is the article from the NY Times:
Parents Who Abducted Their 8 Children Say They Feared Adoption Plans – NYTimes.com