This is a bit of an oldie but very interesting and I hope it will help another person.
Several years ago my husband, John, at the time was removed from our home because he was abusive.
(I will discuss this at another time (August of 2016?)
As our divorce started he was regularly more neglectful and abusive towards our 3 children. At the time, I became ill with what they thought was a cancer mass in my uterus. I had to have an emergency hysterectomy before I was 40 years old. I was a single mom of 5 kids, 4 were still at home, and 3 were 5 and under.
One afternoon John (Ex-husband now) dropped the kids off after his visitation. The kids and I had several orders of protection against him and a criminal case that was still in court against him. He walked up to the door, I had been home only a day from my surgery. He wanted to come in and I kept the door closed except for a crack. He shoved his way into the house and proceeded to keep us there for hours verbally abusing us and holding us hostage in the living room. Our children were screaming, and crying and my older son was yelling at him. All of the children were telling him that he needed to leave. This was not his house and he needed to leave. You are hurting our mommy you need to leave! After he finally left I worked hard at getting the kids to feel safe and secure.
(I was not allowed to walk up the stairs at this point because of the major surgery I had just come home from.)
My older son, 17 (I think), at the time, was helping me with the kids because there were things I could not do. That night he did the bedtime ritual with the three kids and everything was quiet. He checked on them for me a few times and then he proceeded to his own room to play Xbox.
It wasn’t until almost an hour later that we heard a blood-curdling screech from out of nowhere.
I heard my son Roo running and then he was screaming at me. Call 911! Mom, call 911! Roo, ran down the stairs with my youngest daughter in his hands while I saw blood pouring out of her face and what looked like her choking!
Her brother, her twin, had cut her nose off her face!
(At this time I didn’t know exactly what happened but I would later find out that she was struggling emotionally after the afternoon. She wanted to be more like her twin. They snuck to get a pair of scissors and she asked him to cut her hair for her to look like his. In the dark at 10 pm he was cutting her hair and accidentally cut her nose, nostrils, and tip off of her face in one snip.)
I was holding her nose skin to her face and applying pressure. There was blood all over the house. Blood was covering her bed upstairs, the hallways, the staircase, the living room, and all of us. We were rushed to the hospital where it was touch and go for a while. She had swallowed a lot of blood and lost a considerable amount of blood leading them to think she would need a transfusion.
I have always tried to be a good mom, a good wife, good ex-wife, good person. I messaged my ex John and explained to him that we were in the hospital. She had surgery and was recovering.
John then called his cousin, who was in management at CPS. Next thing I know there were multiple CPS workers at my home as I pulled into the driveway with my daughter. At first, I didn’t think anything of it because I had nothing to hide.
Ummmmm, seriously… so many kids cut each other’s hair all the time. Mine just happened to be that rare version that cut something other than hair! I found our really fast that it was going to be a BIG problem. CPS demanded to remove my kids at that moment. They were going to give the kids to my ex John. (He had supervised visitation, and OPs, and wasn’t allowed to be alone with them! WHAT?!?
After several attorneys were involved, a pile of officers were involved, my kids spent the night at my daughters’ house and came back the next morning allowing me to clean up all the bloody mess.
CPS didn’t stop there. The lady did everything she could to take my kids and give them to my ex John. She told people I was trying to kill them. They were purposely trying to kill each other. I was abusive, neglectful, racist, and anything that was evil!
Several times she called me racist in front of the kids and guests. I had to call the police on her once because she was screaming at me and it was counterproductive to argue so I called and asked for an officer to assist us. They asked if she was White, Black, or Hispanic. I answered black. She started screaming and threatening me in front of my children. She was screaming that she is black but I am racist and ignorant to say that!
This battle with CPS lasted almost a full 20 months. John went into court and said out loud to the judge that I was a bad mom and he was supporting CPS to remove the kids from my home. The judge looked at him and said “you understand they will go into foster care not with you.” John was furious. Several agencies, attorneys, police officers, and other valued members of the community showed up constantly to support the kids staying with me. Most people who know me see that I am a good mom.
John’s phone call that night went something like this:
Christina, I am so sorry. I made a huge mistake. What do you need John?
I lied because I wanted the kids! I thought they would give the kids to me!
Yeah John I know you were lying.
Well I don’t know what to do now! You are a good mom! My attorney said I should tell the truth before things get worse!
John, once and avelanch starts down hill you can’t unslide it. After it starts rolling down the hill you have to let it flow the course.
John started to get upset and verbally nasty towards me. Telling me he really wanted to win or he wouln’t have lied.
John it doesn’t matter!
A few weeks later when we were back in court he actually sat behind me and his attorney as well as he spoke to the judge explaining his error in judgment and trying to “win” even though it was bad for our kids.
The CPS attorney called me and my attorney into a private conference.
We have spent a lot of money, time, and other resources on this case. <-CPS attorney
Christina doesn’t care, she will not take a guilty plea to something she didn’t do.
Our office is prepared to offer her 8 months probation and the it will drop off her record.
Christina is still refusing to accept any deal. She is prepared to continue to fight this out.
We can offer her 6 months and then it will drop off.
My friends and attorneys all told me to accept it. Doesn’t matter if I did anything wrong or not because they will out finance me. I will never be able to fight as long as they will and they were clear they will not walk away without a guilty plea because of how much they had already invested! The CPS attorney even discussed how the workers had gotten in trouble because of documented behaviors during my case.
Nothing mattered!
CPS is supposed to be protecting children!
CPS should NOT be used as a weapon to hurt exes or snatch children!
CPS uses its name, status, power, and money, to overreach and make false/abusive/bad claims!