Foster Kids try to reunite with parents: "Being in foster care isnot that fun."

Kids try to reunite with parents

By Maureen O'Hagan

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...rights07m.html

KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Timothy Wolcott hugs his father, Robert Wolcott, after both appeared in
Kitsap County Juvenile Court on Monday. Timothy and his twin brother,
Jesse, are believed to be the first youths in Washington to test a law
allowing adolescents to ask a court to reinstate their mother's and
father's parental rights.



Timothy Wolcott, 15, appears in juvenile court in Kitsap County with his
parents in the background.

When Timothy Wolcott was 10, the state took him away from his parents,
alleging he and two siblings were neglected. Now 15, he's trying to get
his mom and dad back.

Wolcott and his twin brother, Jesse, are believed to be the first youths
in Washington to test a new law allowing adolescents to ask a court to
reinstate their mother's and father's parental rights.

So far, the boys have filed a petition and had a hearing in Kitsap
County Juvenile Court, where a commissioner appointed them lawyers. The
law is so new that rules for it still haven't been written, so no one is
exactly sure what will happen next.

Nonetheless, the boys' story illustrates the difficulties of keeping
kids in foster care, and the tremendous pull that family can have over a
child. It also shows the dilemmas faced by courts when parents transform
themselves after they've lost rights to their children.

Timothy and his parents maintain that the family never should have been
broken apart. But in any case, Elaine Wolcott-Ehrhardt and Robert
Wolcott are completely different from when they lost the three children,
Timothy said.

"My mom's done 180 degrees," he said. "My dad's done a 540."

Jesse, meanwhile, was in juvenile detention Monday on a drug-related
burglary charge, his mother said. Her 11-year-old daughter, who was also
removed from home, has since been adopted.

Timothy, a thin boy whose teenage getup belies a surprising level of
maturity, said he'd do anything to get back home.

"I want to be with my family that I know loves me, regardless," he said.

Parents divorced in '01

Last year, about 1,400 children in Washington state became "legally
free," as their parents' rights were taken away due to abuse or neglect.
Sometimes parents relinquish their children voluntarily. Other times, as
with the Wolcotts, a court terminates a parent's rights after a legal
battle.

Timothy and Jesse's parents were divorced in 2001, when the state took
their children. Shortly before that, Wolcott-Ehrhardt had gotten in an
alcohol-related accident with children in the car. And before that, she
said she was found by Child Protective Services to have neglected her
kids' dental care. She said she got a deferred prosecution for driving
under the influence, completed treatment and complied with all requirements.



Meanwhile, Wolcott said he was trying to kick a drug habit in 2001,
adding that he's been clean since then.

It was impossible to verify much of the family's information Monday
evening because neither the juvenile court nor CPS records could be
inspected. Monday, Wolcott-Ehrhardt, who manages two convenience stores,
presented a clean-cut image, dressed in a suit with her hair pinned up.
Wolcott, a ponytailed roofer wearing jeans and a T-shirt, spoke as
clearly as his ex-wife.

The two lost their parental rights in 2003. Wolcott-Ehrhardt said she
kept filing motions asking the court to return the children. But since
her rights were terminated, she had no standing to do so.

Meanwhile, her boys weren't doing well. Timothy said he left school in
seventh grade, got addicted to drugs and did several stints in juvenile
detention.

"I did drugs because I hated reality," he said. "Being in foster care is
not that fun."

He spent much of his time on the run, panhandling and living on the streets.

Over and over again, he and Jesse ran away to their mother's or
father's. Family made him feel good, he said. While in foster care, he
said, "I have a cold, sinking feeling in my heart."

Authorities soon figured out where they could find the boys, and a cycle
began.

"They would put them back in foster care," Wolcott-Ehrhardt said. "Then
they'd run, and I'd pick them up again."

On occasion, Timothy said, he was sent to juvenile detention for running
away.

Finally, Timothy just ran away without going back home. He missed
birthdays and Christmases as he saw no further than his next hit of
meth. He said he's been clean for five months.

Lawmakers get involved

Wolcott-Ehrhardt was scared for her boys and felt she could get them
back on track, if only the state would let her. She heard about a
California law that allowed parents to win back their rights, and
approached several state legislators trying to get one passed here.

Sen. Phil Rockefeller and Rep. Ruth Kagi both agreed to sponsor
legislation. The resulting bill was signed by the governor in May and
took effect last month.

Now her boys are the first to use it, supporters of the law say.

At a preliminary hearing Monday, the lawyer representing the state said
there are no plans to oppose the boys' petition. In order to reinstate
parental rights, the commissioner must find that it is in the best
interests of the children and that there is no other permanent plan for
them.

Another hearing is scheduled for Sept. 17.

News researcher Gene Balk contributed to this report.

Maureen O'Hagan: 206-464-2562

or

Copyright © 2007 The Seattle Times Company




CURRENTLY CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES VIOLATES MORE CIVIL RIGHTS ON A
DAILY BASIS THEN ALL OTHER AGENCIES COMBINED INCLUDING THE NSA / CIA
WIRETAPPING PROGRAM....

CPS Does not protect children...
It is sickening how many children are subject to abuse, neglect and even
killed at the hands of Child Protective Services.

every parent should read this .pdf from
connecticut dcf watch...

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8x11.pdf

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com

Number of Cases per 100,000 children in the US
These numbers come from The National Center on
Child Abuse and Neglect in Washington. (NCCAN)
Recent numbers have increased significantly for CPS

*Perpetrators of Maltreatment*

Physical Abuse CPS 160, Parents 59
Sexual Abuse CPS 112, Parents 13
Neglect CPS 410, Parents 241
Medical Neglect CPS 14 Parents 12
Fatalities CPS 6.4, Parents 1.5

CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES, HAPPILY DESTROYING HUNDREDS OF INNOCENT
FAMILIES YEARLY NATIONWIDE AND COMING TO YOU'RE HOME SOON...


BE SURE TO FIND OUT WHERE YOUR CANDIDATES STANDS ON THE ISSUE OF
REFORMING OR ABOLISHING CHILD PROTECTIVE SERVICES ("MAKE YOUR CANDIDATES
TAKE A STAND ON THIS ISSUE.") THEN REMEMBER TO VOTE ACCORDINGLY IF THEY
ARE "FAMILY UNFRIENDLY" IN THE NEXT ELECTION...