[Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO

[RJ Sandefur]

My sister believes Blind people have no biziness raising children, and that 
the state has the responiblity to keep children safe! RJ
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Lenora J. Marten" <bluegolfshoes at aol.com>
To: <nfbf-l at nfbnet.org>
Cc: <blindkid at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2010 6:34 PM
Subject: [Nfbf-l] Blind Couple's Baby Returned Kansas City, MO


>
> For those of you who heard about this story in Dallas.... here is an 
> update.
> Lenora
>
>
> Visually Impaired Couple Wins Baby Back From State
> Erika Johnson, Blake Sinnett Were Reported To Children's Services
>
> POSTED: 9:02 pm CDT July 20, 2010
> UPDATED: 10:55 am CDT July 21, 2010
>
> KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A couple says ignorance about their blindness resulted 
> in their daughter being taken away by the state.
> Erika Johnson and Blake Sinnett were reunited with their 2-month-old baby, 
> named Mikaela, on Tuesday. Erika Johnson told KMBC's Peggy Breit it 
> started just after Mikaela was born, when Erika was breastfeeding the baby 
> and a nurse became concerned.
> "Well, at first I was pretty shocked," Johnson said. "She said because I 
> said, 'Is she OK?' She said, 'No.' She was beginning to turn blue, but, 
> you know, it's OK, it could happen to anybody."
> Johnson and Sinnett kept tending to their child unaware that someone had 
> called children's services. That night, a social services agent came to 
> see them.
> "Her concern was because we were blind, we weren't going to be able to 
> adequately care for Mikaela," Johnson said.
> The agent first suggested that the couple get 24-7 sighted care to help at 
> home. When they could not make that happen, Mikaela was taken away.
> It was through the Federation of the Blind that Johnson and Sinnett found 
> attorney Amy Coopman.
> "Any parent out there (blind or not), you have a constitutional right to 
> that relationship with your child. That has been violated here. They're 
> not going to get that time back," Coopman said.
> Breit reported that the couple's first battle is over -- the state dropped 
> its petition and brought Mikaela home.
> "Well, I'm very happy and grateful that she is finally back in our care 
> again," Sinnett said.
> The couple said that they want to make sure that no other visually 
> impaired Missourian goes through what they have.
> "The most challenging thing, I think we're going to have to face, is the 
> ignorance of other people -- the assumption that because we are blind or 
> visually impaired that we can't take care of our child," Johnson said.
> Centerpoint Medical Center issued the following statement: "Centerpoint 
> Medical Center is committed to providing the very best patient care for 
> our expectant mothers and newborn babies. While patient privacy laws 
> prevent us from commenting on these specific allegations, the health and 
> safety of all our patients is very important to us."
>
>
> Copyright 2010 by KMBC.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be 
> published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
>
>
>
>
>
> Lenora
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