March 7, 1997
For Immediate Release
Please Contact: Kelly Shackelford (214)890-0360
Houston - A federal district court judge has ruled that Terry and Deborah Dawson have no legal recourse against Children's
Protective Services - even though their children were taken from them without their knowledge, consent or due process; they
and their children later faced court custody proceedings initiated by a Children's Protective Services caseworker using an
affidavit containing false information; and their 13 year old son was strip-searched by a female caseworker while her female
friend stood by and watched.
In a decision entered February 27, 1997, the judge held that although the Constitution does grant families integrity, this right is
qualified and so poorly defined in case law that CPS caseworkers never know if their conduct violates it. Therefore, offended
particularly in the case, the Dawson family have no legal recourse.
"The federal courts are making it abundantly clear that they are not going to protect a family's constitutional right to be free
from unwarranted and abusive government intrusion. Consequently, the legislatures, federal and state, must take action now to
protect the families of this country," said Patrick Appel, a Rutherford Institute attorney who is handling the case.
A state computer database on child abusers still contains the Dawsons as "perpetrators" of child abuse because no corrective
or expungement procedures exist. The Dawsons also have been denied an administrative review of the caseworker's
determinations as required by the Constitution and state law. In 1993, CPS began its investigation after the Dawson's son told
a school counselor he had been paddled. CPS then took custody of Bradley and Crystal Dawson for more than a month
without any attempt at due process. The Dawsons' children have since been returned, and they have been clear of any
wrongdoing.
"This decision is an outrage," said Kelly Shackelford, southwest regional coordinator for The Rutherford Institute. "The court
has sent a clear message to government officials that they can file false affidavits and violate state law with impunity because
families have no legal recourse. We will fight to overturn this decision."
The Rutherford Institute is an international, nonprofit civil liberties organization.
***********************************************************************************
Source: CNEWS, 10 Mar 1997
Return to: Family Abuse