Scott and Nicole Gilmer* were looking forward to a nice dinner with their pastor and friends at a local restaurant. They left their two oldest children at home with their babysitter but decided to take their seven-month-old daughter, Sofia, with them to dinner. The evening began cheerfully, and time passed quickly. Sofia’s head began to […]
Tag: member story
Member Story: Midnight scare
Jeffrey and Angela Fisher* were roused from their sleep close to midnight by a knock at the door. It was a CPS investigator accompanied by a law enforcement officer. The investigator said there had been a report of an incident among the children from 5 years ago that had never been previously reported. But the […]
Member Story: From home birth to hospital to CPS report
Ryan and Kelly Kingston* were expecting their newest baby boy and Kelly wanted to have a home birth. Everything with the labor and delivery went smoothly. Baby John made his arrival on schedule, healthy and doing great. However, when Kelly’s bleeding did not stop, they immediately went to the ER. When the three of them […]
Member Story: CPS came, then the police.
One evening, Eric and Ashley Mackenzie* were getting ready to put their three children to bed when they unexpectedly heard a knock on the door. Eric answered the door, and was shocked at what he heard. “I’m from the Department of Social Services, and we’ve received a report of neglect of your children.” The CPS […]
Member Story: We ended up in court
After the Lavons’ church preached a sermon about child training, some embittered ex-members of the church heard about it. They then twisted it out of context and accused the Lavons and numerous other families in the church of excessive corporal discipline. To defend the Lavons, Heritage Defense fought the system all the way to court. […]
Child “blows up” Santa. CPS investigates.
“Santa is dead,” 6-year-old Noah Kemp* announced grimly. The other young children at tumbling class looked at him in surprise. This was not a very merry sentiment. “No, he’s not!” someone piped up. “Yes, he is!” Noah shot back, “He came down the chimney, so I blew him up.” A few little boys seemed impressed, […]
Member Story: Medical neglect for transferring to a new hospital?
“Should you feed her that? We don’t think her body can handle it.” Jason and Amy Hawkins* watched helplessly as the pediatric hospital staff started the feeding tube. Their 16-year-old daughter Alyssa had cystic fibrosis and standard hospital protocol did not meet her dietary needs. But the hospital would not listen. “How much are you […]
Member Story: “Their dog bit my child, then they reported us to CPS.”
At times, relationships with neighbors can be complicated. Relationships with the neighbors’ pet can sometimes be even more so, like it was for Amanda Fairfield.* When the neighbor’s dog harassed and eventually bit one of her children, Amanda called the police. Afterwards, the family moved on with life, little anticipating that the issue would resurface […]
Member Story: Church children’s ministry calls CPS on parents
One bright Friday morning, Courtney Caddo* took her two daughters, two-year-old Mia and five-year-old Ella, to a park day with lots of other parents and children from their church. While Ella played on the playground, Courtney was at a picnic table visiting with five other parents while Mia played next to her. At one point, […]
Member Story: Hasty reporting leads to visits by CPS and police
This member story was originally published by Heritage Defense in 2018. Mrs. Aaron* was at home with her children one afternoon when she heard a knock at the door. When she opened the door, she was met by two social workers from child protective services (CPS) and one law enforcement officer. When Mrs. Aaron asked […]