‘Permanent’ custody of Justina Pelletier awarded to Mass.

A long-running child custody case took a dramatic turn Tuesday, when a Massachusetts juvenile court judge awarded “permanent” custody of teen-ager Justina Pelletier to the state Department of Children and Families.

The ruling by Judge Joseph Johnston leaves it up to the agency, not the court, to decide whether or when Pelletier should be returned to her West Hartford, Conn., home.

“It’s a huge ruling,” said a person who had been briefed on the decision. “It’s a setback for the parents.”

This person said the state, which has had temporary custody of Pelletier for more than a year, has no immediate plans to have the 15-year-old sent back home, or to a facility in her home state.

But a decision to award permanent custody can be revisited by the judge after six months, at the parents’ request. The judge made his order retroactive to late December, so a review could occur as soon as early summer.

Rev. Patrick Mahoney of the Washington D.C.-based Christian Defense Coalition, who has become the parents’ spokesman, said Tuesday that Lou and Linda Pelletier are “outraged” by the decision, though they have yet to get a written copy of it.

“There is no reason Justina should not be returned immediately back to the parents,” he said.

Mahoney said the parents continue to believe that their daughter is being “treated as a pawn and piece of property.”

Judge Johnston also denied a request by out-of-state lawyer Mathew Staver of Liberty Counsel in Florida to represent the girl’s parents.

The fact that the Tufts physician had not spoken out publicly so far means absolutely nothing.

He may be reluctant to confront other doctors in a case of differing opinions especially in the public limelight. He may not want to put himself at odds with a major hospital. He may prefer to be vindicated of his treatment after others had had their chance. And he definitely would not want to open his treatment records and expose himself to possible witch hunts like some of the things suggested in your post.

As people already pointed out, mitochondrial disease is not a simple disease that can be diagnosed with a simple test, otherwise BCH wouldn’t have created such a mess. I’m sure the Tufts physician will have no problem citing his reasons for the diagnosis. After all, the patient was doing well under his care so he had at least done no harm, how is he treading a fine line?

And what is the big deal about prescribing blood pressure drugs and a mix of other drugs? Do you know for sure her BP was never elevated? If the doctor had reason to believe the drugs could help her even when her BP was normal, are doctors not allowed to experiment with legal drugs to determine their effectiveness and dosage?

Was she doing well under his care? I see pictures of her very skinny with a feeding tube on her initial admission.. Her later pictures, including the wheelchair picture shows me she gained about 5-10 lbs. The wheelchair picture means nothing to me. Most hospitals use them to transport patients. No makeup, with your hair pulled back does not make a glamour shot. BCH also has a mito department. Mito is rare, if she truly had it BCH would be salivating to take care of her due to the rareness of the disease.
Let me tell you a little unknown fact people in the medical field see. We know who the incompetent doctors are. When their patients get admitted, we roll our eyes because we know there is going to be issues. I wonder if this Tufts doctor had that underground reputation, and that BCH had seen many misdiagnosed patients of his in the past. I have never seen a pediatric patient get BP meds unless they had diagnosed cardiac or renal problems.
Maybe I am cynical, but I have witnessed the horrors that bad parents, and even Munchhausen parents, have inflicted on their children. I have seen their attempts at manipulation, so call me skeptical of these parents.

I think you’re right, ic. This case seems to have reached the point of no return. Sad thing is, I believe we ALREADY know all the pertinent facts-—i don’t think there’s anything relevant that has been withheld that could could support the positions of the Hospital tht took her from her parents,or the Judge who won’t let her return to them.I’m going to read the Judge’s decision to see if there’s “anything I’m missing”. YES, a movement has got to form around this case, but it can only start with the parent’s approval, oversight and guidance. They would have to know what they’re getting into, and how their unfortunate hostage daughter is going to be affected.But this case SHOULD catch fire!!!!!

Well, she was having gastric problems when she went to Boston. But at least she could still walk and even skate at the time.

As for the wheelchair photo, the most striking thing is the contrast in vitality from just a year ago, not to mention the legs that don’t appear normal, possibly from atrophy because of lack of use. I don’t even want to guess whether she gained weight, which could simply be an abnormal fluid retention.

The father and his business dealings are not the issue here. As far as I’m concerned, he could be a jerk and a rat, and it would not change how I look at the case at all.

If you want to stem the tide of the overwhelmingly negative opinions here of the girl’s tormentors, you will need to try harder. Munchhausen and parental abuse have already been debunked using common sense alone. And slinging mud at the father or the Tufts doctor won’t cut it.

I think the skating picture was taken way before her “mito diagnosis”. How can you determine vitality on a person who is wearing long pants in a wheelchair?
Teenagers do not have abnormal fluid retention unless they have cardiac, renal problems or on steroids. She is not an elderly patient where fluid retention is a issue.
I do think the father is a jerk. Tufts and BCH recommended psych care, he refused. Foir all you know, he may be the main factor due to his being a jerk that is causing Justina’s problems.
My opinion does not matter, it is the judge who is looking at all the medical records who has made the decision- which I think is right. The parents are wacka doodles.
I also have no sympathy for someone who is a rat fink to the feds , from a postion in which he was given a great deal of trust by a company. It is a typical Obama voter mentality- rat out people to the feds.

Vitality? The pictures themselves convey the messages: her postures and how she appeared in general, etc. (not about hair and makeup), especially since we already know the pictures are of the same person a year apart.

The family had reported seeing her legs swollen.

In the best interests of the patient, the doctor at Boston CH should at least have called the original doctor at Tufts to discuss the case before rendering his new diagnosis which basically says Tufts had made a big mistake. This shows BCH’s arrogance and total lack of respect for Tufts’. And now people are wondering why doctors at Tufts have nothing to say?!

In absence of clear personally observed evidence on EITHER side of this case... You choose to side with the state over parents you might be on the wrong forum. This is the forum for those that give the PARENTS benefit of the doubt over the STATE every time.

I have said, repeatedly, that I have no confidence in ANY judgements made by Mass DCYF, which you would know if you read my posts.

I think most of the theories about the actions and motivations of both CH and the Floating Hospital, and their medical staffs, are absurd.

Yes as the Dr. Phil show from 10 days ago linked also on this thread indicates, this MD has written 4 papers on somataform illness. So that makes her an “expert” eager to push her agenda.Clear-cut case of vested interests trumping both objectivity and/or doing the right thing.I don’t think I’d be able to take it if this was done to my kid.We all suffer sooner or later in small and large ways from the culture of intrusive “experts” who exist completely independently from us and are continually finding destructive new ways to assert their autonomy over us, leaving a mark on huge numbers of us:like a branding iron on cattle, it will never go away and is designed NOT to ever go away.

The psychologist assigned to the case has a research program somatoform disorder and written four papers on somatoform disorder. In one paper she postulates that as much as 50% pediatric illness is somatoform disorder, in other words they are faked symptoms/disorders.

This is just another iteration of a common reaction of doctors: whenever a female goes to a doctor with vague complaints, the doctor immediately prescribes mental-illness meds. I don't know how many friends of mine were first prescribed antidepressants when they actually had an organic illness that caused exhaustion: cancer, herniated disc, vitamin D deficiency, thyroid disorder, diabetes, endometriosis, etc. That anxiety/depression diagnosis remains on their "permanent record" and keeps showing up in any other hospital procedure or government snooping down the line.

This is a serious question that nobody has answered that I asked up thread.

If the parents are being kept away, for over a year (only 1 hr/wk supervised visits) because of expected child abuse, why have there been no arrests made? And if it isn't the parents but the child with a psychiatric illness, why are the parents being kept away at all? If they are refusing treatment for their daughter, for whatever reason, why does that have to be a huge secret? We hear about these types (refusing treatment) of cases all of the time, no citing of HIPPA.

If I were to slap my child (I don't) and leave a red mark, NY would arrest me, I'd have a court date and the information would be public news. If this is the parents fault for whatever reason, where's their arrest and court date for serious child abuse that has amazingly left their child in this condition after a year without contact? THAT (keeping a child away from their parents when no criminal charges have been filed) is the real child abuse here!

As a nurse who has seen numerous child abuse cases, the majority of parents do not get arrested. A lot of times it is neglect, munchausen, etc.and the child gets taken away. They usually try to place the child with another family member.The cases that create an arrest are the physical violence cases ( almost always moms boyfriend). But, in most cases of child abuse, there is no arrest.

I forgot to add, Tufts also called child protection services on this family . They recommended psych care, the family refused. The pediatrician also had concerns about this family, stated they were doctor shopping if they did not like the diagnosis a physician made. There is a lot of smoke in this case, which usually means fire.

They have taken the child away for a year and nothing was serious enough to make an arrest? Not how it works where I live. The sisters say the parents are great and Alan Dershowitz was on Judge Jeanine saying even if the hospital is right, placing the gag order was highly unconstitutional. He also pointed to other actions taken by the state that he disagrees with, and offered to help with legal representation. My husband has been a witness for the prosecution in many child abuse cases because of his line of work. He thinks something is really wrong in the state of Massachusetts.

I do not agree with the gag order, I think they are unconstitutional. However, the medical providers are under a gag order called HIPAA.That is why we dont know the whole story. The reason why this child was taken away from her parents is because they refused psych treatment ( medical neglect), in which the pediatricians, Tufts, and BCH recommended. This is not the basis for an arrest. Or, they may have some other concerns that is not the basis for an arrest. It seems to me (most likely) is the abuse cases that your husband is involved involves physical abuse, not medical neglect. .It is pretty easy to tell if someone has a true neurological condition based on a neuro exam. Justina did not. Let me tell you another secret : when you see a doctor for ( lets say) low back pain, he will do a neuro exam on you. He will also throw in a few tricks to see if you are faking it for the pain meds. It is done all the time. If you fail the fake test, then the doc knows that you are a scammer. The docs know the true neuro problems vs the psych issues from a simple neuro exam. I think these parents cannot face up to the fact that Justina has a psych problem, and that lack of realization has caused the state to step in. Personally, If I were her parents I would employ all treatments in the hopes that one will work. Why are the parents refusing a treatment that Tufts, the pediatricians, and BCH has recommended? Seems fishy to me.

The state, having custody of Justina, can allow the hospital to release information and bypass HIPPA, just like you or I could let our medical records be released.

In most cited stories Tufts has never agreed with Children's on a diagnosis.

And I can't imagine why Justina would have to be in a locked psych ward just because her parents couldn't accept a psych diagnosis. That makes no sense. Even the diagnosis Justina has received at Children’s is usually treated on an out patient basis. Why can't friends or any other relatives visit her? What about Foster care if you think it's the parents? Justina was skating, got the flu with visible vomiting and then all of a sudden needed 24 hour a day in patient mental health treatment? As a child nothing can damage mental health much more then spending the last 13 months basically isolated from all the friends and family you've ever known! 1hr/wk supervised is not adequate.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.