More to this than meets the eye according to this writer. Many times in my life I have been shown that those that haste to a judgement are often times found to be in error:
1. The affidavit, as I suspect most are in this type of situation, is based entirely on hearsay facts. This means that the facts alleged are not really facts the person who makes the affidavit has personally observed. In this case, Lynn McFadden, a woman over 18 years of age, and who is an Investigative Supervisor for the Department of Family and Protective Services (The Department) provided the sworn testimony which served as the basis for this affidavit.
2. Ms. McFadden claimed that she has personally reviewed the Department’s Original Petition For Protection of a Child in an Emergency and for Conservatorship in suit Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship (The Petition). This means, that the affidavit Texas Authorities relied upon to forcibly remove over 400 Children from the FLDS compound, is based on information that someone else apparently told Ms. McFadden. She is not the person to whom the original complaint was apparently made. Had she been, she could and should have so testified in her own sworn affidavit. It is also important to note that the allegations are not the actual allegations of the 16 year old minor child/mother. According to media reports, authorities can’t seem to find that person, as of yet. In fact, it is actually unclear from the affidavit whether Ms. McFadden was even present during any of this investigation. My sense is that she was not, or she would and should have so testified in the affidavit.
Now, I’m not suggesting that the McFadden affidavit would not be sufficient to remove perhaps the one pregnant minor child, who complained of sexual and child abuse, particularly if they actually found such a woman when they went in and initially searched the compound; however, I find it unbelievable that it would and could serve as the basis for a small armed invasion of an entire community, resulting in the the wholesale kidnapping under color of law hundreds of innocent children, with their mothers in tow.
3. Ms. McFadden’s allegations of the sexual and child abuse of the minor child, who herself is supposed to have an eight month old baby, and is currently several weeks pregnant with another child, chronicle a literal horror story of physical and sexual abuse. These allegations should absolutely be investigated, and if there is actual evidence to support such allegations, the abuser should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, and never let out of prison, in my humble opinion. The abused minor child should certainly be removed from the compound, along with her own child, and placed in state custody. Further, the minor’s own parents should be investiaged for child abuse as well. If McFadden’s allegations are true, then the minor’s own parents’ actions are implicated and possibly merit criminal prosecution.
4. The remainder of the affidavit gets a little soft on why over 400 other children were removed from the compound. McFadden relates about how Department investigators while searching for the subject 16 year old minor victim:
observed a number of teenaged girls who appeared to be minors and who appeared to be pregnant, as well as several teenaged girls who already had given and had their own infants. Investigators determined that there is a wide-spread pattern and practice among the residents of the YFZ Ranch in which young minor female residents are conditioned to to expect and accept sexual activity with adult men . . .
OK, well, how many teeaged girls did they observe, one, two, five, ten, a hundred, four hundred? They appeared to be minors? How old, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19? How did they determine their ages in this whirlwind investigation? The age of consent in Texas is 17. So, the upper limits of the teen aged years, would appear to be outside the jurisdiction of The Department. How many are “several” teen aged girls? Did it number in excess of 400?
Appeared to be pregnant? You mean we don’t know? Texas didn’t find out whether there in fact were other pregnant teen aged children before removing over 400 other children from the compound? Certainly a good number of those children could not possibly have been pregnant, either from age limitations or gender.
How did the investigators determine there was a wide spread pattern and practice of anything at the compound? What investigation and what facts had they determined prior to their raid? How many of these observations are actually conclusions of the investigators and law enforcement at the scene? Why not take the other potential cases on a case basis, investigating each? Certainly none of these people were going to go anywhere.
5. Ms. McFadden concludes that based on their investigation The Department concluded that every single minor child at the compound, whether they had actually made any complaints at all, was in fact in immediate danger. Every, single minor child’s health and safety were in immediate danger. Every single minor child was the victim of neglect and/or sexual abuse. These are startling conclusions, but, not exactly based on any facts, at least as far as the facts are alleged in the “affidavit.”
http://messengerandadvocate.wordpress.com/2008/04/09/texas-authorities-release-flds-raid-affidavit/
Great source:
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A child presented to the emergency room and had broken ribs. Radiology would have routinely asked if she were pregnant before that X-ray was taken.
A pregnant fifteen year old probably elicited some questions. Any licensed heath care professional, and they are listed by statute in Texas law, is bound if they think the injury is inconsistent with the story given — to report it. They are guaranteed anonymity, again by statute.
What she told someone in radiology would be 100% protected. With the same protection as an attorney client relationship. Who signed the permit for her care and what relationship they claimed would also be suspect.
The Texas authorities don't run out and have a press conference every ten minutes. No one knows what they have or what they know.