Posted on 05/01/2008 10:47:42 AM PDT by Politicalmom
State authorities are investigating whether younger boys taken from a polygamist ranch in West Texas were sexually abused by older boys, not adults, a state official said today.
Documents taken from the Yearning for Zion Ranch near Eldorado indicate that younger boys were molested by older boys at the ranch, the official, who asked not to be identified, told the Houston Chronicle.
No other details about the abuse were available.
On Wednesday, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Commissioner Carey Cockerell revealed to a Senate panel that at least 41 of the 464 children in state custody had previously broken or fractured bones.
``Several of these fractures have been found in very young children and several had multiple fractures,'' he said.
Most of the information about the fractures was reported to DFPS' Texas Child Protective Services by the children or their mothers. Few X-rays have been done on the children, agency officials said.
But Cockerell also told the Senate Health and Human Services Committee that the agency is looking into the possible sexual abuse of some boys, based on interviews and journal entries.
In addition, he informed the panel of several hurdles CPS workers faced in trying to identify the children and determine their health status.
He said both women and children removed plastic identity bracelets issued to them or rubbed the wording off of them. CPS had tried to use the bracelets to help workers keep track of children.
Also, FLDS women initially refused to let the children undergo basic health screenings and many of the teen girls refused to take pregnancy tests. The women and older children often monitored younger children, telling them not to speak to CPS workers or coaching them on what to say, Cockerell said.
For the past month, child welfare investigators had focused nearly all of their attention on the alleged sexual abuse of young girls who once resided with their parents at the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' ranch.
Until now, officials have alluded only occasionally to suspected physical abuse. The breakaway Mormon sect practices polygamy and its spiritual leader, Warren Jeffs, is serving a prison sentence after being convicted of being an accomplice to rape of an underage girl.
No other details were available about the possible abuse of the boys or how many of the fractures, which affect less than 10 percent of the total child population from the sect, can be attributed to their life on a big ranch with a large amount of construction and farm equipment.
FLDS spokesman Rod Parker called Cockerell's testimony "a deliberate effort to mislead the public."
Parker said any broken bones would have been treated in medical facilities away from the ranch and that doctors are required to report suspected abuse.
It was not clear how many of the children might have been injured while playing or working on the 1,700-acre ranch they once called home.
Lloyd Barlow, the ranch's onsite physician, said he was caring for a number of FLDS children with broken or fractured bones at the time they were removed from the ranch.
"Probably over 90 percent of the injuries are forearm fractures from ground-level or low level falls," Barlow told the Associated Press. "I can also tell you that we don't live in a community where there is a pattern of abuse."
Dr. Emalee Flaherty, a pediatrician in Chicago who specializes in child abuse, cautioned against jumping to conclusions that the children's broken bones were caused by abuse.
There might be many variables, she said, such as a high incidence of bone disease or a special diet that causes a vitamin deficiency that predisposes the group's children to brittle bones.
"This is a pretty closed community," Flaherty said, adding that life on a ranch might also expose children to injuries.
Dr. Bruce Perry, a Houston child psychiatrist and child abuse expert, said the type of fracture also is important.
"There are certain characteristics of fractures that go with abuse," Perry said. "It would be really important to know what bone was fractured and the type of fracture."
The state's April 3 raid on the YFZ Ranch has been criticized by some who believe CPS overstepped its authority when it took all of the children and placed them in foster care after finding underage girls were "spiritually married" to much older men.
CPS officials counter that they found at least one underage girl who was pregnant or had children in each of the sect's 19 homes on the ranch when they first arrived on April 3.
The agency clarified that number on Monday, saying at least 31 of the 53 girls ages 14 to 17 are pregnant, have children or both. Another child was born to a teen mother on Tuesday.
All of the children have been placed in group homes and shelters around the state until the investigation is completed.
For CPS, determining ages has been one of the biggest challenges. The agency reached the 53 total after reclassifying 26 girls, who had said they were older than 18, as younger than 18.
Stephanie Goodman, spokeswoman for the state's Health and Human Services Department, said those girls had told officials they were younger than 18.
"For most of these children, we've been given different ages and different names," Goodman said. "We have teenagers who can't tell us their birthdates. Some have answered (that) they don't know. Others have said, 'I'm not supposed to tell you.' "
Under Texas law, children under age 17 generally cannot consent to sex with an adult. A girl can get married with parental permission at 16, but none of the sect's girls is believed to have had a legal marriage under state law. Also Wednesday, legal aid attorneys for some of the mothers filed an amended petition with the Third Court of Appeals in Austin, seeking the return of the children sent to residential foster care homes across the state.
"The wholesale removal of (the children) from their mothers was not justified," the petition read in part.
The department may have introduced evidence that some girls were being physically abused, but such evidence did not "pertain to the overwhelming majority of the children ... nor did it establish that each child was at risk of physical danger."
I already re thought as soon as I posted for the exact reason you mention.
Better to keep the “VILE” posts up for all to see.
So now the direct quotes of your leaderships’ own teaching are lies?... Typical mormon reaction. How far up in the mormon priesthood are you, anyway?
Then instead of your typical little remark, why don’t you produce the teaching?
We are all waiting.
And don’t forget:
Other churches are led by men who can only speak as men. We, however, are led by Prophets of God who only speak as men!
(channeling Elsie’s MormonDude)
Since I have been called by the Admin Moderator, I will only remind you that you claim to not be a member so there is obviously NO value to your little statements.
Pardon me, but due to your historic histrionics, I have absolutely NOTHING further to say to you.
“Are the people who are Bishops in our Church perfect?”
You said just the right words.
Is the problem Mormons? No.
Is the problem LDS(aren’t they the same thing?)? No.
Is the problem RLDS? No.
Is the problem Catholics? No.
The problem is people. People who turn to evil to attain power.
Warren Jeffs didn’t go on a search for a religion to support his ‘needs’, he was born into it.
So is everyone else, according to their rules, and pattern of strict inbreeding.
The Mormons/LDS/RLDS had gotten together and asked JEFFS and his group of FLDS members to quit their illegal practices, even if they were derived from the words of the founders.
The MORMONS/LDS/RLDS were doing the right thing.
Warren Jeffs and his LOYAL BAND said “NO”, and continued to do the WRONG THING.
It’s not about religion, it’s about the choices of men to commit evil acts.
Happens everywhere, every religion, every state, every city, every neighborhood, and in many homes.
If we are going to blame someone for allowing this alleged child abuse to go on, for so long, then it is US that is to blame.
We let it go, as a public, the first time the children were taken at the SHORT CREEK RAID. Because the public and church community rallied to support the FLDS, and against the LE, thinking they were picking on a religion.
Here, Fifty some years later, we are now arguing about the same thing, and it isn’t any truer now, than it was then.
Whew. What a relief!
Thank you for reminding me.
“I have absolutely NOTHING further to say to you.”
Now, what do the rest of us have to do to get the same guarantee?
“So, obviously there will be medical records at those OUTSIDE medical facilities matching each case of broken bones.”
Well, I haven’t seen proof their are any records on file at outside facilities, but until they can establish the name that was used at the time, it may be hopeless to try and prove it. IMO.
“Parker said any broken bones would have been treated in medical facilities away from the ranch and that doctors are required to report suspected abuse.”
“Lloyd Barlow, the ranch’s onsite physician, said he was caring for a number of FLDS children with broken or fractured bones at the time they were removed from the ranch.”
“Maybe ‘very young children’ shouldn’t be operating large construction and farm equipment. “
Good point, UCAN!
Are children running the equipment? Is this child labor?
Or are the MEN just letting the kids fall off the equipment?
How are these kids getting injured? Is there a reasonable explanation, or not.
I heard the ratio in the general population was one out of one hundred (or 1%)
At the FLDS compound, it is 10%. Is that way above the norm?
If so, why?
“YOUR HONOR, we have already argued this point on FR, come to a conclusion, and set a precedent.”
yeah, that’s what YOU PEOPLE do, and think. You think you are God almighty, sitting on the throne, judging these innocent people. What gives you the right to judge others, you puscillanimous prurient pretenders of political passion!!!
First of all, I didn't write the post. Second of all, there were citations in the post.
I'm still waiting for an actual refutation of the quotes posted.
OK. Now you are calling me names, you.....you.... NAME CALLER!
Please feel free to hold your breath.
Ok, sorry, let’s get back to the subject.
Now, what was this thread about?
Everybody plays the fool, sometime
Theres no exception to the rule, listen baby
It may be factual, it may be cruel, I aint lying
Everybody plays the fool
How can you help it, when the music starts to play
And your ability to reason, is swept away
Oh, heaven on earth is all you see, youre out of touch with reality
And now you cry, but when you do, next time around someone cries for you
Hey, everybody plays the fool, sometime
Use your heart just like a tool, listen baby
They never tell you so in school, I wanna say it again,
Everybody plays the fool
Were you the youngest child in the family?
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