memphismason

SAN ANGELO, Texas - A state appellate court ruled Thursday that child welfare officials had no right to seize hundreds of children from a polygamist sect's ranch on April 3. It was unclear how many children were affected by the ruling. The state took 464 children into custody, but Thursday's ruling directly applied to the children of 48 sect mothers represented by the Texas Rio Grande Legal Aide, said Cynthia Martinez of the agency. The Third Court of Appeals in Austin ruled that the grounds for removing the children were "legally and factually insufficient" under Texas law. The ruling did not immediately order the return of the children. Child welfare officials removed the children on the grounds that the sect pushed underage girls into marriage and sex and trained boys to become future perpetrators. The appellate court ruled that a chaotic hearing held last month did not demonstrate the children were in any immediate danger, the only measure of taking children from their homes without court proceedings. This week, the state began holding individual custody hearings across five courtrooms to determine whether the children would remain in custody, be returned to their parents or be subject to other arrangements. Earlier Thursday, attorneys for Child Protective Services said 15 of the 31 mothers authorities had put in foster care as children have now been declared adults, including one who is 27. Another girl listed as an underage mother is 14, but the state has conceded she is not pregnant and does not have a child. The underage mothers had been cited as evidence that the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints committed widespread sexual abuse of girls. In Texas, girls who are younger than 17 generally cannot consent to sex with adult men. No one has been arrested or charged in the case. The FLDS, which teaches polygamy brings glorification in heaven, broke away from the mainline Mormon church, which disavowed polygamy more than a century ago. Sect leader Warren Jeffs, who is revered as a prophet, has been sentenced to prison in Utah for being an accomplice to rape in arranging a marriage of a 14-year-old follower to her 19-year-old cousin. He is awaiting trial in Arizona, where he is charged as an accomplice with four counts each of incest and sexual conduct. Jeffs' lawyers want the incest counts dropped, arguing that prosecutors in Mohave County cannot pursue those charges along with the sexual conduct counts. A judge is considering the request. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

I agree

Awesome

I wished I had a boat.

beat me too it

I know I wasn't supposed to.....but I laughed out loud at the image of the dog.

+1 The City of Memphis has started putting up cameras as a "Crime tracker and Terrorist Prevention". They are programmed to turn on and adjust to the sound of a gun shot. This is done without consent of the people, in the name of "terror defense". What a bunch of BS!

I hope you enjoy the Bersa as much as I do mine

Now that the LCP is out, I would invest my money into one of those. I have only got to hold the LCP, but it "seems" to be a better built gun. You just can't get on right now.

The joke was funny. It shows how impressionable a child's mind is.

I think they are a little "snappy". I think it is due to their size. That is why I like the Bersa thunder .380. The Kel-tec .380 is very reliable in my experiences, they feed, shoot, and eject. Great bug!!!

I vote .300 magnum. Stupid dogs.

What is wrong is wrong, regardless of what everyone's opinion is. Some righhts were God given, and some things are just wrong....Period Homosexuality is a choice, not a birth defect. I wasn't going to jump in on this thread, but hell, here I am. I really don't want to debate it, because my mind is closed on this subject. I have had 3 good friends become gay, during highschool and afterwards. I still love them, just not there choices.

What is wrong is wrong, regardless of what everyone's opinion is. Some righhts were God given, and some things are just wrong....Period Homosexuality is a choice, not a birth defect. I wasn't going to jump in on this thread, but hell, here I am. I really don't want to debate it, because my mind is closed on this subject. I have had 3 good friends become gay, during highschool and afterwards. I still love them, just not there choices.

It now say the video is no longer available. I always miss the good stuff.

The cheapest I can find. Usually Magtech. My wife's Bersa hates Wolf. Sometimes PMC when Guns & Ammo has it cheaper.

I am glad this got seperated.....I will feeling bad for starting the hijacking.

Exactly

I disagree...they went with a purpose

I agree with what you stated. But I also don't believe in violating rights.

Right, I hate to see it, but it is true.

+1

Investigating is one thing, removing children from their homes is another, especially a whole community. Only one news report I read, stated this fact. " A woman was arrested in Colorado the same day for making phony phone calls as an abused 16 year old at various religious camps." Also One phone call reporting an abuse of a child that does not exist does not give the gooberment the right to remove 400+ children from their homes. Now having said that, I want to make it clear I do not condone abusing children in anyway, but I also do not condone 4th amendment rights being violated, and yes they were violated. Who is to say that someone who is mad at the church my family goes to, makes a similar phone call, and I get a knock on my door or even have it busted in, and someone tries to take my child. I say try, because I believe in "From my Cold Dead Hands" for my guns, and that level is increased when my little girl is involved. Granted we don't all live together on a "ranch". But that was just a stepping stone to removing the rights of others. The gooberment will continue to chip away at our individual rights, until we have no more left. We can not legally carry our firearms in a National Park for crying out loud, or certain resturants, and that is a violation of my Second Amendment right, but all I can do is sit back and get mad. Ok so look at it this way, maybe one of those families were doing things they shouldn't be doing, but why did every child get removed? Our First Amendment gives us a freedom of religion. But I guess that only matters, if the gooberment doesn't think your religion is "goofy". Who is to say they won't think mine is "goofy".