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Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 12:54 pm
by Bill
SAN ANGELO — A state appellate court ruled today that child welfare officials had no right to seize more than 400 children living at a polygamist sect's ranch. The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled that the grounds for removing the children were "legally and factually insufficient" under Texas law.



Let's see, 460 kids times $1,000,000 equals about a half billion dollar case against Texas.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 1:17 pm
by Darthwing Teorist
This sucks.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 2:22 pm
by Bär
What sucks is a pretty much illegal cult that routinely impregnates barely fertile girls *a lot* and kicks out preteen & teenage boys onto the street because there aren't enough barely fertile girls to go around in a polygamist cult.

The fuzz might not have followed the letter of the law, but we all know exactly what's going on in that cult. The DNA tests will show some lopsided & non-branching family trees.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 2:43 pm
by Darthwing Teorist
Exactomundo.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 3:05 pm
by Bill
Bär wrote: but we all know exactly what's going on in that cult.


Sorry, but we do not, in fact know what was going on. Rumors are no substitute for legal evidence.

The state never provided evidence that the children were in any immediate danger, the only grounds in Texas law for taking children from their parents without court approval, the appeals court said.

It also failed to show evidence that more than five of the teenage girls were being sexually abused, and never alleged any sexual or physical abuse against the other children, the court said.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 4:56 pm
by Michael
And didn't the original complainant turn out to be a a habitual liar who had done the same in another state?

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Thu May 22, 2008 6:52 pm
by Darth Rock&Roll
This is what one would call "religious persecution" and it's not the first time the US government has done it and it won't be the last.

the US government seems to act as if it is a separate entity from teh society it serves. And therein lies the problem.
Your government is there to serve you. ask not what you can do for your country, but what the fuck is your country doing for you for those tax dollars it takes whether you want to give em or not?

fuckers.

I don't presume much about the "cult" as they are being called because frankly I don't know that everything I've heard isn't just a bunch of bull;shit propaganda with a built up narrative by teh media who spend more time dwelling on the FBI than interviewing the actual people here.

If these people amount to polygamists, well, I don't have that much of a problem with it. If they contain their closed society and live within rule of law, then it's all good. But when all there is is rumours and false accusations, then I say the the enforcement and the media are fucked and thankfully the judiciary did the right thing here.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 9:25 am
by Michael
Some of the media headlines are reminiscent of Waco '93. Cult leaders, polygamy, sex with underage girls, etc., but none of it was based in fact or when it was close to facts, it was still legal.

I don't think child protective services in Texas has to get convictions to justify its actions, but I still wonder what might be illegal going on in this situation. AFAIK, you can marry in Texas at 14 with parental consent, and then sex with your spouse is not statuatory rape as it would otherwise be if he were more than 2 years older and you were less than 18.

Now why are they really so interested in the bloodlines of these 400 children? Could any of it prove some illegality? FDR married his 1st cousin.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 10:03 am
by Walter Joyce
Michael wrote: FDR married his 1st cousin.


I watched a PBS special on Roosevelt about a week ago and when I read what you wrote it didn't jibe with my memory.

From the FDR library at Marist College in upstate New york:

"she (Eleanor) married her fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, ..."

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 10:07 am
by Darth Rock&Roll
Well, I for one haven't seen any downs syndrome, outright mental retardation, or polydactylism in any of those kids shown.

So, that would scrub a lot of talk of in breeding which more often than not leads to cases of severe mental retardation at alarming percentages even in first gen offspring. Just look at what a pack of fuckin mongoloids the royal family is. :D

also worthy of note. With parental consent a person may marry at 14 in Canada as well. Similar to Texas law.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 11:19 am
by Kevin_Wallbridge
I live not far from Bountiful. Cult, big time cult. Lets just say if the women converted to Islam they would have more freedom. Without the cover of religious freedom the actions of the men in this group would probably amount to "unlawful confinement." While the Texas govenment may have acted on too litle evidence, this group is beyond the pale in my opinion.

Who says brainwashing is a myth?

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 4:50 pm
by Michael
Brainwashing is for real, but on this and other topics, it would be nice to get some reliable info. The initial reports always seem so biased. Damn 90% of the mass media owned by 6 corporations.

Walter, thanks for the correction.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Fri May 23, 2008 4:59 pm
by Darth Rock&Roll
Kevin.

have you been in bountiful? Have you spent a few days there?
Have you been to an amish farm or a hutterite farm?

these are patriarchies in a small scope. I can see how an outsider like you or me might fuind it restrictive, but I think we have to respect the religious freedom of these people and deal only in facts and not rumours or supposition as has been done.

If there is a crime at hand, then yes, lets investigate and prosecute, but if their only crime is being different, then the problem is with our own optics and not with their ways of living.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Sat May 24, 2008 1:01 am
by Kevin_Wallbridge
Yes I've been around Hutterites and interacted very closely with strict Mennonites. I've been in the valley for some time, but of course a long hair like me is not welcome in the community. These guys are something else. I'm all for religious freedom (lets face it my "Liberal" leanings got me onto a well known ignore list on another incarnation of this board), but I don't believe in turning a blind eye to medieval attitudes. If these guys were justifying the molestation of pubescent boys there would be no calls for "be reasonable." I don't see middle aged guys having serial marriages to teenage (very young teenage) girls as alright under any religious cloak. Blackmoor, Blackwood, whatever his name is may not be as heinous as Warren Jeffs, but he is still a lecherous bastard using young girls to satisfy his perversion and colouring in the cloak of religious freedom. I don't care how many wives they have, big deal. Its the age of the brides that troubles me.

Not everyone is jerking their knees on this Darth.

Re: Texas sect kids illegaly seized

PostPosted: Sat May 24, 2008 2:24 pm
by TaoJoannes
Bär wrote:The fuzz might not have followed the letter of the law, but we all know exactly what's going on in that cult.


Yeah, the law is meaningless when you have right on your side. ::)