A nearly 7-week-old baby is home after sheriff's deputies seized him from his parents so doctors could perform a mandatory blood test that the boy's parents object to on religious grounds.
ANNA JO BRATTON / The Associated Press | Posted: Thursday, October 18, 2007 7:00 pm
OMAHA — A nearly 7-week-old baby is home after sheriff’s deputies seized him from his parents so doctors could perform a mandatory blood test that the boy’s parents object to on religious grounds.
Mary and Josue Anaya of Omaha say their due process rights were violated and they’re considering legal action against the state and county, which decided to “grab the baby and ask questions later,” said their attorney, Jeff Downing of Lincoln.
The Douglas County attorney’s office says it only did what was necessary to protect the baby’s health. The blood test — usually performed within 48 hours of birth — screens for dozens of rare diseases, some of which can cause severe mental retardation or death if left undetected.
“Our job is to uphold the law and provide for the safety of a child that’s at risk,” said Nicole Brundo Goaley, a deputy Douglas County Attorney. “We wanted to make sure the testing was going to get done.”
It’s the first time in Nebraska a child was taken from parents to draw the drops of blood from the baby’s heel for the screening, said Marla Augustine, spokeswoman for the state Department of Health and Human Services. Nebraska is one of four states — South Dakota, Michigan and Montana are the others — that doesn’t offer a religious exemption for parents who don’t want the test performed.
Health officials say the newborn screening is one of the state’s most cost-effective public health programs. Last year, out of 26,819 babies tested, 537 tested positive for one of the dozens of diseases, and 43 of those results were confirmed, according to the state’s Newborn Screening Program.
The Anayas and some other families say the screening is not only unnecessary for them, it may be dangerous to their children’s physical and spiritual well-being.
The Anayas believe that the Bible instructs against deliberately drawing blood and that ignoring that directive may shorten a person’s life.
Mary Anaya gave birth to Joel on Sept. 2 at home. She filed a birth certificate with the state, and state workers noted that the child had not been tested. They sent a certified letter to the Anayas, then called, Augustine said.
Mary Anaya told a health worker they would not have Joel tested, and health officials told the county attorney’s office, which got an order from a juvenile court judge, saying the child was in “imminent danger.” With the order came permission to place the baby in foster care while the test was performed.
Deputies came Oct. 11 to take the baby.
“The fact that they could grab custody apparently by making him a ward of the state, that was beyond my imagination,” Mary Anaya said. “They were claiming immediate danger when there was no immediate danger.”
On Oct. 12 a judge ordered that the baby remain in foster care until the preliminary results came back and confirmed further testing wasn’t needed.
In the meantime, social workers let Mary Anaya nurse her son several times a day, and he was returned to her Tuesday when the tests came back negative.
“It was all for nothing,” Mary Anaya said. “He didn’t have anything. … There was no immediate danger.”
The county attorney dropped the case, and no criminal charges were filed.
The Anayas have been through this before. In 2005, the state Supreme Court ruled against them when the state said they had to test their eighth child, but the baby was 2 years old by then and was never tested.
The county could have pressed the issue and asked a judge to hold the Anayas in contempt of court, but the parents still could have prevented the testing by going to jail themselves, said Kristin Lynch, a deputy Douglas County attorney.
A different county attorney was in office then, and the people who worked on that case aren’t with the office, Lynch said.
“The follow-through wasn’t there,” Goaley said. “This time it was.”
Mary Anaya gave birth to their ninth child in Iowa, which offers a religious exemption.
Earlier this year, state Sen. John Synowiecki of Omaha introduced a measure in the state Legislature to provide for a religious exemption, but the bill didn’t make it out of committee.
Goaley said the boy was taken from his parents because “each day made a difference.” The diseases tested for are easier to treat the earlier they’re caught.
“We had to use the most efficient way to take care of this child,” Goaley said.
Downing said that if state and county officials believe that, they would have taken the boy much sooner.
“They did not even send any letter to this family until several weeks after this birth,” Downing said. “With each passing day, it became clear he was not exhibiting symptoms of these rare diseases.”
Augustine said a letter was sent soon after the birth certificate was filed, and Goaley said the county took action as quickly as possible.
“We were making sure we did it right,” Goaley said.