Parents win full custody of kids found in 2011 living alone on old school bus in Houston area
http://www.washingtonpost.com/natio...9b-f23c246aa446_singlePage.html?tid=obnetwork
CONROE, Texas Nearly a year after their two children were found living virtually unsupervised in an old school bus in Southeast Texas, the parents regained full custody of their kids Tuesday when a judge dismissed a child welfare case against them.
It feels really good, said Sherrie Shorten, of Splendora, after she and her husband, Mark, stood before Judge Jerry Winfree at a hearing that lasted only a few minutes. This is just one more thing weve gotten resolved..............
CPS was absolutely right to take then kids when it did, the familys attorney, Chris Branson, said. The aunt obviously dropped the ball and was neglecting these kids and it was the proper thing to take these kids into custody. However, the parents got out of jail, they fixed the problem, they cleaned up the property and the situation should have been over at that point.
Sherrie Shorten and her husband also have been fulfilling a care plan and attending counseling and therapy. The family was reunited last September under CPS watch, and still lives on the bus.
John Lockwood, an assistant attorney general and counsel for Child Protective Services, told Winfree that authorities recommended strongly the case against the couple be dismissed................
The recommendation for dismissal had been anticipated, then reversed late Monday in what Child Protective Services officials described as a miscommunication, and then reversed again..............more at link.......