Parents Fight for Due Process Rights
Donation protected
“Bam! You’re dead!” We’ve all seen kids playing with toy guns. But in reality, children are just not ready to handle the responsibility of firearms. So reasonably, in the state of Ohio, it’s illegal for an adult to sell or furnish a gun to anyone less than 18 years old.
Just the same, you might think that it’s too restrictive to prohibit a person over 18 but less than 21 from buying alcohol. Even so, you can’t go to a bar and buy a drink for someone else’s kid who is less than 21.
But what about hospital employees and non-judicial county employees? Should those persons be able to hold a child away from parents for nearly a month, without a court order and without the parents' consent?
That’s what my brother and sister-in-law, Joe and Missy Siefert, are fighting in court right now.
Most of us agree that parents in today’s society have the right, and duty, to protect their children from the child’s own impulses and from the influences of other adults.
When it comes to rights under the law, the United States Constitution says that people acting with the state can’t take a child from the parents, even on a temporary basis, without the due process of law.
In the case of my brother and his wife, these parental right issues came up in 2016. That’s when their child developed suicidal ideas. For help, Joe and Missy voluntarily took their child to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
At first, that seemed like a good idea, because after about a week, an independent psychiatrist determined that the child had no acute symptoms that required 24-hour care. The child was not a danger to themselves or others. The child was not aggressive and not manic. The child was medically stable.
Grateful, my brother and his wife then requested that the child be returned to their custody.
The child, however, also had transgender thoughts, and Children's Hospital has a very active transgender clinic.
There had also been a report, which had not been adjudicated, that the child was a victim of abuse and neglect. The truth is that my brother and sister-in-law love their child. Their goal has always been to give the child a safe, happy, and healthy life.
But instead of allowing the child to leave, the Sieferts allege that Children’s Hospital and Hamilton County Job and Family Services (HCJFS) held the child for nearly a month without the parents’ consent.
In a situation like this, if any outside person thinks that a child is in danger, the case can be immediately turned over to the court system. The courts provide judges and magistrates who are available to give immediate due-process hearings. In the hearings, all sides get a chance to tell their side of the story. The judge or magistrate, then, makes a decision about the situation, taking all the facts into consideration.
In my brother’s case however, he alleges that HCJFS and the hospital held the child for nearly a month – despite the parents requesting the child be returned.
There was no trial, no hearing, no magistrate, no judge.
During that time, the transgender issues and the allegations grew and festered. As a result, their family and their integrity suffered.
Because of that, my brother and sister-in-law filed a lawsuit against Children’s Hospital and HCJFS. In 2019, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the allegations in the lawsuit set out a valid federal due-process claim against HCJFS and Children's.
HCJFS and Children’s then tried – unsuccessfully – to get the United States Supreme Court to take up the case
Now the lawsuit is back at the federal district court in Cincinnati. Unfortunately, at this stage of the litigation, my brother and sister-in-law face considerable expenses. The cost of court fees, witness depositions, and experts could eat up a middle-class income in no time. It looks like those types of costs will amount to around $65,000. That does not even include attorney’s fees.
Without some assistance, my brother and his wife will probably never be able to cover the financial obligations of the lawsuit.
I am asking for you to join me in helping them by supporting their cause for parental due-process rights by donating and sharing their story.
Joe and Missy have given their consent to this project. Every dollar donated will be used solely for litigation costs and fees. As for donors, no person will receive any confidential information or obtain a stake in the litigation. The attorney for the parents will always maintain his professional independence and he will not represent any interest other than my brother and his wife.
Organizer
John Siefert
Organizer
Sparta, IN