Mom Ignores Doctor When Her Sick 2-Year-Old Starts Feeling Better, Child Services Sends A SWAT Team
BY Herschel Smith
5 years, 9 months ago
Chandler, Arizona, cops broke through the door of a family’s home in the middle of the night, stormed in, pointed their guns, handcuffed the father, and watched as the state’s Department of Child Safety (DCS) took custody of the parents’ three kids—all because mom had decided her toddler’s fever was not serious enough to merit a trip to the hospital.
It was dinnertime on February 25 when the pregnant mother took her 2-year-old to the doctor with a fever of over 100. The doctor told her to take him to the emergency room, fearing that because the boy was unvaccinated, perhaps he had meningitis—a life-threatening disease.
The doctor called the hospital to alert them. But by the time the mother and child left his office, the boy was “laughing and playing with his siblings,” according to this excellent piece by Dianna M. Nanez in The Arizona Republic. Mom took his temperature again, and it was almost normal. So instead of going to the emergency room, the family went home. The mom called the doctor to say her boy’s fever had broken and she wasn’t going to the emergency room. The doctor told her she should go anyway, so she agreed she would—but then she didn’t.
That’s when the madness began.
The hospital called the doctor to tell him the toddler hadn’t arrived. The doctor called DCS. And DCS requested the cops check on the family as a caseworker headed over.
And then, according to The Arizona Republic:
It was after 1 a.m. when officers kicked down the family’s door. One officer carried a shield, while another was described as having “lethal coverage.” Officers pointing guns yelled, “Chandler Police Department,” and entered the house.
The rest of the story is equally nuts. The kids were all placed in separate foster homes.
As I’ve said before:
I can discern where you stand by asking you two questions: [1] Who owns children, and [2] To whom have they been given for governance and training?
My answers are simple: [1] God, and [2] Parents. If you believe that parents own children, you believe in slavery and you deny God’s ownership of all of His creatures. You own your dog, not your children. If you believe that anyone but the parents have been given responsibility for governance and oversight, teaching, training, love, discipline, correction and rebuke, you are a communist.
Thus, the state is run by communists. They think that rather the parents being granted sole responsibility for the moral and physical well-being of their children, the state owns them.
That’s wicked. Busting into this home was wicked. Pointing guns at people in a home is wicked. Separating those children and putting them into a foster home was wicked.
There is no excuse.
On March 27, 2019 at 8:43 pm, Ned said:
As usual, “law and order” Republicans do squat about these abuses.
Protecting and serving the shit outta children and their parents in AZ.
On March 28, 2019 at 4:26 am, Jack said:
Names of ALL Adults involved should be in print!
This hiding of Gestapo is Pure Evil, and i lay that at the Judges Feet and The Press.
The Gestapo are proud of there actions, NAME THEM.
On March 28, 2019 at 7:31 am, June J said:
Never agree with doctors when you don’t agree. Too many of them are government reporting agents. Social services and law enforcement who participated in this raid should have their freedom taken away until they learn a lesson.
I’ve learned to tell my doctors exactly what I think. If they want to prescribe a medicine that I don’t want to take I tell them I won’t take it. If they want to run a test/procedure I don’t want to take or can’t afford to pay for, I tell them I won’t do it. So far, no doctor has refused to continue being my physician.
Also, so far, no doctor has ever asked me whether I own firearms, so I haven’t had to tell them it’s none of their business.
On March 28, 2019 at 8:07 am, Fred said:
June J, same here. In fact, most doctors and my family doctor included are just fine with me not taking flu vaccines and refusing meds. I simply say; I don’t like medicine and don’t take it. Never had a problem. I’m not a total nut, the LORD has blessed us with antibiotics that have saved my life. You have to know your own body and that of your loved ones.
The doctor here is an idiot. Children that are coherent and have a mild fever aren’t sick. Children are constantly getting a fever because their immune system is immature. The kid probably licked a handrail or something and felt better 12 to 24 hours later. Of course the vaccination Red Flag team has saved the day.
I’m sure glad Trump and the Republicans got rid of Obama care during that recent 2 full years of uninterrupted full federal control.
On March 28, 2019 at 9:40 am, Michael (from Utah) said:
The doctor here is nothing more than an agent of the state. It’s just another reason I’m more cautious these days with whom I see in the medical profession.
On March 28, 2019 at 12:45 pm, ExpatNJ said:
Chandler Police Department deserves a lawsuit; too bad it will be Chandler Taxpayers who will pay the legal fees. That ‘doctor’ also deserves a lawsuit against him and his practice. Else, someone should inform him that he will forever be in a ‘Hospital Zone’: if he does anything like that again, he’ll need one.
On March 28, 2019 at 4:18 pm, scott s. said:
It’s the whole goal of Obamacare and single payer — take away doctor autonomy. They create a bunch of less-educated “helpers” advanced practice nurse, nurse practitioner, physician asst, etc who only have the training necessary to provide the govt mandated “standard of care”. Instead of having a doctor they want you to have a “medical home”. That way, even if the doctor was inclined to tell the govt to stuff it, there’s plenty of hirelings with access to your mandated “electronic medical record” to tattle to the state.
The whole vaccination thing shows exactly where we are going. (I’m no anti-vaxer, but I’ll be darned if I let the govt tell me what to do, isn’t the phrase “my body my choice”? )
On March 28, 2019 at 8:55 pm, DAN III said:
ALCON,
Until the government tyrants of these assaults upon citizens are made to suffer with their blood, Freedom will be extinguished in what remains of this once, great nation.
In all my life I have never seen the rampant assault against citizens by the scum we call “government”. The time is drawing ever nearer where local/state/fedgov actors are going to be held accountable for their abuse of the citizenry. It will not be pretty.
Time is running out….
On March 29, 2019 at 8:02 am, Ron W said:
I’m sure most of the “pro-choice” crowd was “all-in” with the SWAT team kicking in the door for not “choosing” the doctor’s directive. They would’ve gone nuts if this was ICE going after an illegal alien criminal!
On March 30, 2019 at 9:56 am, Ben338 said:
Taken as a whole, this situation is outrageous. We need to understand, however, that there is a logic to every part of it, and until we address that, nothing will change. The logic is that most people professionally involved in a situation like this are risk averse.
In Arizona, doctors are required by law to report suspected child abuse. Was there child abuse here? Maybe, maybe not. If there is child abuse here and the doctor doesn’t report it, she risks being criminally prosecuted and losing her license. As a doctor, are YOU going to risk criminal prosecution and losing your license over a “maybe”? Not many people are.
DCS workers face similar incentives. Once a report of potential child abuse is made, they must look into it. At every step of the way, they are going to have in the back of their minds that if they find no abuse and the child is hurt, they will, at a minimum, face disciplinary action at work, including possible termination. Don’t expect them to take any risks.
The police are presented with a report of potential child abuse and parents who are not cooperating with DCS. If the police do not back DCS and the child is harmed by a risk they ignore, they will, at best, come out of the situation with everyone blaming them for what happens to the child. Don’t expect them to take any risks either.
The judge has in front of her a report of potential abuse. The witnesses who are testifying are doctors, DCS workers and police who are all testifying in a way designed to protect themselves from potential liability for any bad result, which means they are testifying against the parents, and the parents who are saying they did nothing wrong. Either side may be correct, but if she sides with the parents and they are lying and one or more of the children is harmed as a result, the judge comes out of the situation with everyone blaming her. She won’t take any risks either.
Thus, we have a situation that is tragic, if entirely predictable. This type of situation will continue to happen until the underlying incentives are changed.
On March 31, 2019 at 12:03 am, Hudson H Luce said:
“Shortly after 6:30 p.m., the mother called the doctor and told her that her toddler no longer had a fever so she wasn’t taking him to the emergency room.
The mother also said she was worried about getting in trouble with DCS because her child did not have vaccinations.
The doctor said the mother would not get in trouble. The mother again agreed to take her child to the hospital, according to police records.
In Arizona, a parent may decline vaccinations for their child based on personal, religious or medical exemptions.
About three hours later, the hospital contacted the doctor to advise her that the child had not shown up and the mother wasn’t answering her phone, according to police records. The doctor contacted DCS.
A DCS caseworker called Chandler Police and “requested officers to check the welfare of a two year old infant,” according to police records. A caseworker said he was on his way to the house.
It was about 10:30 p.m. when two police officers knocked on the family’s door. The officers heard someone coughing.
Officer Tyler Cascio wrote in a police report that he knocked on the door several times but no one answered.
A neighbor approached the officers and police explained the situation. The woman said she knew her neighbor and that “she was a good mother.” At the request of officers, the neighbor called the mother and said police wanted to speak with her.
The DCS caseworker arrived and updated police on the toddler’s fever and the mother choosing not to take her child to the hospital. The officer called the family’s doctor, who repeated her recommendation that the mother take the child to the hospital.
Police dispatch told the officers that a man at the home had called requesting that they call him. They called, and the man identified himself as the sick boy’s father.
The officer said they told the father they needed to enter the home for DCS to check on the child. The father refused, explaining that his son’s “fever broke and he was fine,” according to police records.
Officers tried to call the parents again, but no one answered. They told the caseworker the parents refused to open their door.
At about 11:30 p.m., the caseworker informed officers that DCS planned to obtain a “temporary custody notice” from a judge to remove the child for emergency medical aid.
The caseworker “advised they obtained a court order for temporary custody in order to take (redacted) to the hospital.” The order was signed at 12:04 a.m. by Judge Tracy Nadzieja, according to police records.
Cascio wrote that officers consulted with the police criminal investigations bureau and SWAT.
“Based upon the court order, the intent of DCS to serve the order, and exigency to ensure the health and welfare of the child, the decision was made to force entry to the home if the parents refused to respond to verbal requests,” according to police records. Police knocked, saying they had a court order and would force entry if needed, according to police records.
The Republic has requested the police-worn body-camera footage.
It was after 1 a.m. when officers kicked down the family’s door. One officer carried a shield, while another was described as having “lethal coverage.” Officers pointing guns yelled, “Chandler Police Department,” and entered the house.
The father came to the door. Officers placed him in handcuffs and took him and the mother outside. Inside, they found a juvenile who said she was sick and had thrown up in her bed.”
Social workers don’t practice medicine. Nurses practice medicine, and so do doctors. They’re qualified to do medical welfare checks, and if needed, they can also testify as expert witnesses. Social workers can’t, period. So the reasonable response would have been to send a doctor or public health nurse over to the house to check on the child. The child could have had a communicable disease, which is a public health concern, and the police power to protect the public health could have come into play. DCS should never have been involved in this situation, they had neither qualifications nor training to evaluate the situation. In fact, this and a lot of other cases – I’ve seen plenty in Kansas with our equivalent state agency – are good, solid arguments for the abolition of such agencies outright. Once children are taken into state foster care, there is little or no accountability for abuse or neglect, partially owing to state sovereign immunity, and numerous deaths of foster children have occurred from caregiver abuse or neglect – 20 in a two year period, with 70 children missing in that same time period: https://www.cjonline.com/news/20180303/former-kansas-dcf-official-agency-intentionally-underreported-child-deaths
On March 31, 2019 at 5:28 am, Ben338 said:
I agree that DCS and agencies like it are a problem. They do a considerable amount of harm, and putting children in foster care often ends badly. There are situations when their intervention is helpful, however. I don’t know whether eliminating these sorts of agencies while be better or worse, on balance. I do suspect that making them more community based would make them better. Social welfare is best handled as locally as possible, preferably with private, instead of government agencies.
On March 31, 2019 at 4:34 pm, ExpatNJ said:
Fortify and reinforce your doorways to resist/repel any possible forced-entry. After all, you never know when a home-invasion might find you. Be advised that some areas frown upon this sort of engineering.