Op-Ed: Texas Judge Greenlights CPS Reports Based on “Perceived Autism”
BROWN COUNTY, Texas — In a first-of-its-kind civil rights case in Texas, Civil District Judge Mike Smith has agreed with Brown County doctors that they are legally permitted to report parents to CPS based on the doctor’s perception that the parents may have autism.
In a recent hearing, attorneys representing doctors from Hendrick’s Medical Center and Pediatrics of Brownwood argued that doctors are immune from civil liability when they report parents to CPS because of the doctor’s perception that the parents have autism.
The hearing was part of a civil rights lawsuit filed on behalf of parents Joel and Donelle by attorney Ashley Thompson. The lawsuit alleges that the parents’ daughter, Rose, was taken from them for two and a half years after doctors from Hendricks and Pediatrics of Brownwood jumped to assumptions about the parents, repeatedly claiming in medical records that the parents were autistic and not capable of raising their daughter.
The case alleges that doctors not only reported the parents to CPS on this basis, but constructively participated in the investigative process, effectively running the investigation in significant part.
Doctors accused the parents of being to blame for slow weight gain in their daughter, but the condition was later shown to be genetic–a possibility the parents had raised with doctors at the very beginning of the case. Nevertheless, Rose has been separated from them for two and a half years. No apology for this devastating error was ever given to the parents.
Rather than deny the allegations, doctors responded to the lawsuit by arguing in a recent hearing that it is perfectly legal for them to report parents based on perceived autism. They further argued that the law grants them immunity for such decisions.
Family Freedom Project has been working to defend Joel and Donelle in their CPS case, as well as supporting the family in their civil rights case against doctors and CPS.
In response to the arguments from the doctors in the case, Judge Mike Smith of Brown County issued an order agreeing with their argument. By accepting the doctor’s argument, Judge Smith’s order grants broad immunity to doctors to report parents to CPS based on perceived disability.
Jeremy Newman, Vice President of the Family Freedom Project, issued the following statement about the case:
“The idea that doctors have immunity to report parents to CPS and break up families based on perceived disability should offend the conscience of every person in Texas, and it should terrify all of us. The destruction of a family is among the most grave actions the state can undertake. It is egotistical at a shocking level for these doctors to think they can inflict this on families based on a perceived disability, blame those parents for health issues in the child later shown to be genetic, and then walk away and shrug it all off by saying ‘oops, we have immunity’.”
The implications of the ruling could extend far beyond this individual case. The legal arguments advanced in this case raise serious concerns about parental rights, disability discrimination, and the growing power of institutions to separate children from their families with little accountability.
More than two years after Rose’s removal, Joel and Donelle continue fighting through ongoing litigation and appeals for the chance to reunite with their daughter and restore their family.
The Family Freedom Project is actively supporting the family’s legal defense, advocacy efforts, and public awareness campaign surrounding the case. In FFP’s years of experience in parental rights litigation, we have never seen a more brazen attack on an innocent family than the one being perpetrated by doctors and CPS against Joel, Donelle, and their daughter Rose.
