| brassmonkey |
12-08-2014 10:55 AM |
Couple Fights for Custody of Children Following Unassisted Home Birth
Erica May Carey gave birth to her twins, a son and a daughter, just two months ago, but she and her husband Cleave Rengo say they have barely seen them since. That?s because Child Protective Services removed the babies, along with her 1-year-old son, from the family?s home in Bellingham, Wash., just a few days after they were born, reports King 5 News. UPDATE: On Friday, according to local reports, the children were returned to their home, although they remain under state protection; a judge ordered the parents to seek out counseling as a condition of the babies? return.
The parents say they believe their children were removed in the first place because Carey, 29, gave birth to the babies at home, without the assistance of a midwife, and because she refused to take them to the hospital for an exam when paramedics, presumably summoned by a neighbor, showed up at her door. (The mom and dad, incidentally, did not know they were having twins until after the first baby was born, as Carey says she never had an ultrasound during her pregnancy.) Also reportedly at issue is the older child?s case of eczema, and the parents? decision to treat it with natural rather than steroid-based remedies. The parents say they made their decisions based on their Christian beliefs. They had petitioned the Superior Court of Washington on Tuesday for custody of their children.
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