Court: Texas had no right to take polygamists' kids
By The Associated Press
Posted 1:36PM on Thursday, May 22, 2008
SAN ANGELO, Texas - An appeals court has ruled that Texas had no right to seize hundreds of children from polygamous sect.<br />
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Earlier, it was reported that half the mothers from a polygamist sect that Texas child welfare authorities put in foster care as children have now been declared adults.<br />
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Attorneys for Child Protective Services say 15 of the 31 mothers are adults. One is actually 27.<br />
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Another girl listed as an underage mother is 14, but the state has conceded she is not pregnant and does not have a child.<br />
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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.<br />
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State officials raided a ranch run by a polygamist sect in west Texas. Their contention that abuse was widespread led to the removal of more than 460 children.<br />
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