Gov't wins custody of sex offender's baby

AP ^ | 10/20/5 | MARK SCOLFORO

[SmithL]

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Child-welfare officials obtained an emergency court order to seize a baby just 24 hours after he was born, contending the infant would be unsafe because his father is a convicted sex offender.

The hospital, however, refused to hand over the infant so soon after birth, according to a lawyer representing the mother.

The child was born Tuesday, and Schuylkill County Children and Youth Services was granted the order Wednesday. The agency expressed concerns that the boy could be in danger because his 53-year-old father, DaiShin WolfHawk, was convicted of rape and sodomy more than two decades ago in New York.

"The county then tried to take the baby immediately, but the hospital then told them they weren't taking a newborn within 48 hours of birth," said Mary Catherine Roper, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer who represents 31-year-old mother Melissa WolfHawk.

A hospital administrator said Thursday he couldn't talk about the issue, citing patient privacy rules.

Roper said the agency also raised concerns about the mother's alleged history of drug abuse. A closed hearing on the petition was scheduled for Friday in Pottsville, 75 miles northwest of Philadelphia.

The WolfHawks had already gone to court because county officials were asking about the pregnancy. A federal judge placed a temporary restraining order on county officials to keep them from doing so.

DaiShin WolfHawk said he and his wife were "appalled" at the county's actions Wednesday.

"Here's a baby being breast-fed by its mother, and they're saying that the mother's a danger to the baby," DaiShin WolfHawk said by phone Thursday. "What were they doing? They were trying to grab the baby before it even had its shots, circumcised, anything."

The boy, whose name he declined to disclose, was born at Jennersville Regional Hospital in West Grove, about 60 miles south of Pottsville, where Melissa WolfHawk lives. Mother and child were still together at the hospital as of Thursday morning.

Karen Rismiller, attorney for the county agency, did not immediately return a phone message left at her office Thursday morning.

DaiShin WolfHawk pleaded guilty under the name John Joseph Lentini in 1983 to rape and sodomy in a case involving two teenage girls.

At Monday's hearing, the county produced a doctor's report that Melissa WolfHawk had acknowledged using cocaine and methamphetamine and working as a prostitute, and a New York parole document indicating DaiShin WolfHawk sexually abused his daughter. The WolfHawks have vigorously denied those allegations.

[SmithL]

Follow-up to this post: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1500580/posts

Good! Being married to a child-rapist, and making babies with him makes her guilty of being an unfit mother.

[NormsRevenge]

It's so nice to see the ACLU standing up for the parents in this case. Bastards!

It shows ya how much they care about the children.

That's what it's all about , after all.

[GovernmentShrinker]

However, we also have an unfit justice system, which allows a guy like this out of prison with his reproductive capacity intact.

[tfecw]

Cool, the government is seizing children now.

[alisasny]

Great news : ))

[CSM]

It's not as if this child will be any safer in state custody. In addition, if a person is to dangerous to society to have a child, then that person should not be out of prison. Would it have been better if the mother in this story killed the baby via an abortion.

If you support this confiscation of children based on a risk, be prepared for the left to use this power to remove children based on the hate speech contained in the bible.

[alisasny]

If you really feel this way regarding this particular case then let him babysit your kids and grandkids to make sure he is ready to take care of his own children without molesting them.

[va4me]

Silly question - but if this guy is such a threat, why is he free?

[An.American.Expatriate]

Being married to a child-rapist

I see nothing in the article which states that the father was a child-rapist. He ws convicted of rape and sodomy (bad enough) 20 years ago. Presumably, he has served his time and been released without further incident, since no further allegations have been made (in the article).

Any idea if there's more to this than is being reported??

[Melas]

The state is way off base here. If the guy is out he needs to be treated like any other citizen. If he's that much of a danger, he shouldn't be walking free. The notion that the state can still persecute you after you've served your time is despicable.

[tfecw]

"If you really feel this way regarding this particular case then let him babysit your kids and grandkids to make sure he is ready to take care of his own children without molesting them."

This guy is perfectly able to go to Chickie cheese, the mall, little league games, and a myriad of other things that free men get to do. Except have a kid of course. Something that wasn't a provision of his parole or sentencing.

If we want to talk about putting sex offenders in jail for life, or even better, executing them. I'm sure you'll find me highly agreeable on that subject. But when men are marked as "free" then punished for a 23 year old crime, well i have a problem with that. Lemme know in 20 years how you feel when they decide that anyone who has ever gotten a speeding ticket can no longer drive.

[wideawake]

It's not as if this child will be any safer in state custody.

?

One thing's for sure - the child has a 100% chance of being raised in the presence of a rapist if the state does not take custody.

If you support this confiscation of children based on a risk, be prepared for the left to use this power to remove children based on the hate speech contained in the bible.

Non sequitur. The parental rights are being terminated not because of the rapist in question's personal religious beliefs but because of his record as a convicted rapist.

[wideawake]

I see nothing in the article which states that the father was a child-rapist.

The article points out that he raped and sodomized two teenage girls.

[alisasny]

What a stretch to compare an abuser of children to speeding.

[CSM]

I notice you conveniently declined to provide an answer to my other inquiry. I'll ask again.....Would you have been fine if the woman aborted the child?

[fredhead]

I refer you to this statement near the end of the article:

DaiShin WolfHawk pleaded guilty under the name John Joseph Lentini in 1983 to rape and sodomy in a case involving two teenage girls.

If they were under 18 they were considered children.

[wideawake]

Would you have been fine if the woman aborted the child?

I didn't answer because it's sick to even ask such a ridiculous question.

If I am worried about the child's wellbeing, why would I want the child murdered?

Use your head.

[newzjunkey]

I'd like more detail. His conviction is decades old and his predilection was for females, not males. Since it isn't indicated at all, I assume he's not been in trouble since serving his time and finishing parole.

I'm not sure calling him a "child-rapist" is accurate since the article only talks about teenage girls and knowing how the press works you can been described in a bias manner. They could've been 18, 19 or other legal age when he raped and sodomized them. Thus his offense would not be about children at all but about sexual violence. A parole report indicates he allegedly abused his own daughter which would cause me to move in the direction of supporting removing his custody but it isn't conclusive.

I'm not ready to give the State a pass on taking a newborn away on an article with scant detailing and heavy on innuendo.

While it's critical that children be seized and evacuated to safety when appropriate, I'm not ready to sign off on the State grabbing kids at birth when no danger is clearly evident. It's another thing if the child had been born addicted, for example, and the parents were drug abusers themselves. We don't have that here. We need to be skeptical of government, or has this image already been forgotten:

[An.American.Expatriate]

The article points out that he raped and sodomized two teenage girls.

18 and 19 are also "teenage"

[An.American.Expatriate]

If they were under 18 they were considered children.

EightTEEN and NineTEEN are also "TEENage".