Judge dismisses bid to release teen from youth home
Parents' rights: The wishes of the girl's mother trump a friend's concerns
By Elizabeth Neff
The Salt Lake Tribune
"Citing parents' rights to decide what is best for their children, a federal judge this week dismissed an effort to get a California teenager out of a Utah youth treatment program against her mother's wishes.
Elisabeth Feldman, of the San Francisco Bay Area, says she is a close friend of a 17-year-old girl sent to the Draper-based Youth Care of Utah. Feldman, who claims to be acting in the girl's behalf, contends the teen was taken against her will to the wrong place to get the help she needs.
Attorney Thomas Burton on Monday asked U.S. District Judge Paul Cassell to order the girl brought to court to be heard, but the judge dismissed the case.
Cassell said Feldman, the mother of the teen's boyfriend, had not proved she had the right to bring the court action. The judge also ruled writs like the one Burton filed can be used to protect against actions taken by the government - not private programs like Youth Care.
"I find that parenting decisions should not be litigated in the federal courts," Cassell said.
The judge said his ruling "does not leave children unprotected" as any complaints of abuse should be reported to the state's Division of Children and Family Services.
But Burton said the ruling ignores larger constitutional questions about the liberty interests of minors, and whether they can object to being held against their will. He questioned whether such reasoning creates a "new kind of mafia."
"Because these people operate privately they are untouchable?" he asked.
The girl's mother, who attended Monday's hearing along with Youth Care officials, said Feldman has violated her family's privacy and that her daughter "is where she needs to be."
The mother said the teen attends school during most of the day and receives group and individual therapy in the program. The two had dinner Sunday night, and her daughter is doing well, she said.
"This was the most difficult decision I have made in my life," she said of enrolling her daughter.
The girl is not permitted to speak with anyone not on an approved list at the facility. But Feldman, a retired psychotherapist, has said the girl told her she wanted out during a conversation on a cell phone someone had smuggled into the facility.
Both sides referred to the teen as exceptionally bright. But while Feldman says she is depressed, the girl's mother says her daughter was "struggling emotionally across the board" before she was expelled from her high school.
A California judge has issued a restraining order against Feldman, which Cassell cited in his ruling Monday. Feldman says she never had notice of the proposed order or the chance to fight it in court before it was issued.
Burton and Feldman argue the program's secretiveness leads to questions about its treatment of teens. Youth Care attorney Dayle Jeffs said the program's restrictions on contact are necessary for treatment.
Burton and Feldman say they will appeal the decision, either taking the matter before a federal appeals court or a Utah state court judge. Earlier in the hearing, Burton had quickly disproved a claim by Jeffs that Burton was not admitted to practice in Utah's federal court."
Please read my post here:
http://fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?topic=7251&forum=9 for more on this.
[ This Message was edited by: hurleygurley on 2004-11-26 10:06 ]