An independent clinical psychologist was brought in to gauge her ability to transition from the foster home to her relatives. LOS ANGELES -- A California family appealed Tuesday to the state's highest court in their fight to keep a 6-year-old foster child who was removed from their home after a lower court said her 1/64th Native American bloodline requires that she live with relatives. These relatives have been a part of Lexi's life for almost five years. Kastelic also said there was a misconception that Native American families were unfit or too poor to care for their children. Previously, Leslie Heimov of the Children's Law Center of California said: 'The law is very clear that siblings should be kept together whenever they can be, and they should be placed together even if they were not initially together. Six-year-old Lexi was removed from the home of the family she has been living with for four years because of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. Summer Page runs out of her home after social workers took her foster child way. ", Page said he responded: "I have to because the county of L.A. said I have to.". But thats not an absolute. A crowd of friends and neighbors wept, prayed or sang hymns. Lexi is now with her extended family and her biological sister in Utah. We will continue to expeditiously pursue our appeal through the state courts in California, and, if necessary, to the U.S. Supreme Court. The Pages issued a press release saying To say we are heartbroken is an understatement While this is certainly a crushing blow, it will not stop us from fighting for Lexis rights and the rights of other children unnecessarily hurt by the Indian Child Welfare Act., The Choctaw Nation issued a press release saying it was pleased that this lengthy and unnecessary litigation has been brought to an end by the U.S. Supreme Court. Relatives are relatives.. Group that started #KeepLexiHome is still outside praying/singing. Her family will provide her a safe, stable and nurturing home to grow up with her sisters and to have contact with her extensive extended family. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Utah family had never met Lexi at that time; and the tribe agreed there was good cause to depart from ICWA's placement preferences. She said unlike her, 11-year-old Riley is growing up on the reservation and learning about traditional medicine and a culture that includes hunting and fishing. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES, refused to intervene in their battle over Lexi. In the days after losing their legal battle, the Pages addressed an online petition called Keep Lexi Home to several California and LA DCFS officials. Lexi had a court-appointed attorney from the Childrens Law Center of California in the lower courts. May 21, 2022 . Its a crusade to them. One of the Pages attorneys, Lori Alvino McGill, also represented the adoptive family in the Baby Veronica case. Our clients have been the only consistent source of love, nurturing, parenting, and protection she has received her entire life. We will continue to expeditiously pursue our appeal through the state courts in California, and, if necessary, to the U.S. Supreme Court. She did make the mat for Daytona 2020 but unfortunately never got to perform one final time as the . Please respect the privacy of Lexi and her family. The Pages have appealed the case to the California Supreme Court. A California appeals court affirmed in July a lower court's decision to remove the girl. Family . She said Lexi and the Utah family had traded messages and had monthly visits during the past three years. ", The National Indian Child Welfare Association said in a statement that the Pages were aware for years that the girl was an American Indian but chose to "drag out litigation as long as possible, creating instability for the child. ABC7 New York 24/7 Eyewitness News Stream. "It would be fairly extraordinary for an appeals court to reverse that," he said. The Pages have three children and want to adopt Lexi, who was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her birth parents. Lexi was ripped away from the only family she has ever known because of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). Lexi was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her birth parents. LOS ANGELES -- A California appeals court affirmed on Friday a lower court's decision to remove a six-year-old girl with Native American ancestry from her foster family of four years and reunite her with relatives in Utah. A king among men, he. And applying ICWA to children who had no prior connection to any tribe raises grave equal protection concerns, as the US Supreme Court recognized in 2013, in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl. 2023 TIME USA, LLC. There is still considerable disagreement over the application of the law and whether it serves children's best interest, said Ralph Richard Banks, a professor at Stanford Law School. A Santa Clarita family appealed to California's highest court to keep a 6-year-old foster child who was removed from their home and sent to live with relatives in Utah. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. The tribe at first said she wasn't eligible for membership but later reversed course. Forrest Hanson For Dailymail.com
Singel is a member of a tribe in Michigan. Lexi entered foster care because her biological parents had substance abuse problems and a criminal record, and the relatives in Utah are related to her through her step-grandfather. The ICWA piece created a vehicle for all of the appeals, she said. Correction: The original version of this story misstated which of Lexis relatives in Utah are members of the Choctaw Nation. But he believes that shouldnt matter here. An independent clinical psychologist was brought in to gauge her ability to transition from the foster home to her relatives. We, as a tribe, are required to follow federal law. Associated Press, Parents whose foster daughter, six, was ripped from them because she is part Native American and they are white, appeal case to Californias Supreme Court as they hit out at 'an outrageous abuse of power', EXCLUSIVE: Biological father of six-year-old girl torn from foster parents because she is part Native American is a violent drug criminal who bragged of 'white supremacist friends', EXCLUSIVE - 'Please do the right thing and send our daughter home': Heartbroken white foster parents of girl, six, seized for being 1/64th Native American plead with new 'family' to return her to the only home she's ever known, 'Food isn't worth eating. In March, Lexi cried and clutched a stuffed bear as Rusty Page carried her out of his home and Los Angeles County social workers whisked her away in a waiting car. The standard is supposed to be the best interest of the child, and thats why these things have to be judged on a case-by-case basis., The Choctaw Nation declined to make the Utah family available for comment, citing concerns over Lexis safety. 0 . But a decision earlier this month ordered the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (LA DCFS) to place Lexi with the Utah family in accordance with the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, the department said in response to inquiries about Lexi's case. Lexi is a 6-year-old girl from California who has spent the the majority of her life in a loving home - a home that she wanted to be her forever home. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES. Her relatives said in a statement they hope the ruling brings closure and "Lexi is at last allowed to live a peaceful childhood in our home with her sister.". I sat them all down on our couch, and said Daddy needs to tell you something, and Lexi turned pale white and started hysterically crying, and our older daughter started screaming at the top of her lungs, he said. Many steps have been taken by the Choctaw Nation to ensure the best placement of Lexi. Lexi, who is 1/64 Choctaw, was taken from her foster home north of Los Angeles in a tearful parting in March and placed with extended family in Utah under a decades-old federal law designed to. The brutal racial politics of the Indian Child Welfare Act. The boy's parents voluntarily terminated their parental rights, and the Brackeens petitioned to adopt him. . Lawmakers found that Native American families were broken up at disproportionately high rates, and that cultural ignorance and biases within the child welfare system were largely to blame. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review the case of a Santa Clarita family fighting to regain custody of a 6-year-old foster girl. "They are not strangers in any way, shape or form. Circuit Court of Appeals. ", The National Indian Child Welfare Association said in a statement that the Pages were aware for years that the girl was an American Indian but chose to "drag out litigation as long as possible, creating instability for the child. About a dozen states have similar laws, some of which expand the definition, said Sarah Kastelic, director of the National Indian Child Welfare Association. The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011. In a statement, they said this case is not about politics. Still, Lexis story is reigniting tensions over the purpose of the ICWA and thorny questions over its role in determining the best interests of Indian children. The experts along with Lexi's long-time individual therapists, her social worker and her attorney, all agree it is in her best interest to be with her relatives. Maddie cant fathom it, and she asks us why, and the fact of the matter is that I cant tell her why, because I cant fathom it.. First published on July 8, 2016 / 10:41 PM. Although foster care is supposed to be temporary, the Pages wanted to adopt Lexi and for years fought efforts under the federal act to place the girl with relatives of her father, who is part Choctaw. Rusty Page told CBS News Radio station KNX-AM. "It coerces state agencies and courts to carry out unconstitutional and illegal federal policy, and it makes child custody decisions based on racial preferences," Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has said. Lexi is also one sixty-fourth Choctaw, and last week she became the latest flash point in a long-running dispute over child welfare and Native American tribal identity. The case is one of dozens brought by foster families since the Indian Child Welfare Act was passed in the late 1970s. The tribe and parents or Indian custodian of the Indian child have an unqualified right to intervene in a case involving foster care placement or the termination of parental rights . She said Lexi and the Utah family had traded messages and had monthly visits during the past three years. You want the child to stay with relatives, especially when Native American questions are at hand, whenever possible. The Pages said they plan to take the case to the California Supreme Court. But officials determined that Lexi is 1/64th Choctaw based on his ancestry. Placement with family is the gold-standard of any child-custody case, not just a case involving tribal children. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. There is a healthy debate going on in this country about whether the Indian Child Welfare Act is on balance a good thing, or not, as a policy matter. Her father has a criminal history, according to court records. In the meantime, our clients hope that the family in Utah will follow through on their promise to keep Lexi in contact with her family in Los Angeles. Rusty and Summer Page said in a statement Monday that the high court's decision is a "crushing blow." The National Indian Child Welfare Association argues that the decision to re-place Lexi was the right one because "the purpose of foster care is to provide temporary care for children not to fast-track the creation of new families when there is extended family available who want to care for the child.". The Supreme Court ruled that portions of the ICWA did not apply to non-custodial biological fathers, and Veronica was returned to the family that had adopted her. Interest in the case had been high, with outpourings of support for the couple from around the world. More than 20 states have joined hundreds of tribes, advocacy groups and the federal agency that oversees Indian affairs in urging an appellate judge to uphold the law. Lexi, who is 1.5 percent, or 1/64 Choctaw, was six years old when she was taken from her foster home near Los Angeles in a tearful parting last March. However, a court found that the Pages have not proven Lexi would suffer emotional harm by the transfer. They were able to adopt the boy in January 2018 after the placement fell through. That case has key differences from the fight over Lexi: Baby Veronica was legally adopted through a private agency, while foster care is a more limited form of guardianship. Singel is a member of a tribe in Michigan. They were also designed to give state courts flexibility to depart from the placement preferences where there is "good cause" to do so. The Choctaw Nation issued a press release saying it was "pleased that this lengthy and unnecessary litigation has been brought to an end by the U.S. Supreme Court. Lawmakers found that Native American families were broken up at disproportionately high rates, and that cultural ignorance and biases within the child welfare system were largely to blame. The girl with Native American ancestry was reunited with relatives in Utah under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, which was enacted in the 1970s to help protect the interests of Native American children. The state denied their request after the Navajo Nation identified a potential home with a Navajo family in New Mexico. Lexi is a 6-year-old girl from California who has spent the the majority of her life in a loving home - a home that she wanted to be her forever home. The LA DCFS said in a statement that the department always seeks to act in the best interest of the children it serves. Attorneys general in Texas, Indiana and Louisiana joined in suing the federal government over the Indian Child Welfare Act in 2017. They do not get the same best-interest-of-the-child standard that applies to all other children. Last month, her kindergarten class gave her an award for being the most caring student. The Indian Child Welfare Act defines Indian children as enrollees or potential enrollees who have a biological parent who is a member of any of the country's 573 federally recognized tribes. Garland testifies before Senate panel amid ongoing special counsel probes, Colon cancer rates rising in younger age group, study finds, Top McCarthy aide, House Oversight chair each met with Ashli Babbitt's mother, What to know about Shigella bacteria as drug-resistant strain spreads, Closing arguments underway in double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, Ex-Georgia star Jalen Carter was racing in deadly crash, arrest warrants allege, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. Hernandez isn't Native American, but the biological father is from Ysleta del Sur Pueblo in El Paso, Texas. Her father has a criminal history, according to court records. Before enactment, as many as 25 to 35 percent of all Indian children were being removed from their Indian homes and placed in non-Indian homes, with presumably the absence of Indian culture. Santa Clarita, Calif., March 21, 2016, PEZ Cancels Easter Egg Hunt After Parents Cause Huge 'Mess', How We Can Learn to Live with COVID-19 After Vaccinations. Lexi, who is 1/64th Native American, was 17 months old when she was removed from the of her birth parents. Associated Press
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