Cult Kids Withheld From Parents

Judges and lawyers have been knee deep in children rescued from the Eldorado ranch compound of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a renegade religious sect. Officials are calling the custody case one of the largest in U.S. history.

On the day of the April 3rd raid at the compound, 139 women chose to leave voluntarily with their children in tow. So far, only children who are 4 years old or younger have been permitted to stay with their mothers. There is no record of how many women chose to stay at the ranch.

“It is not the normal practice to allow parents to accompany the child when an abuse allegation is made,” said Marissa Gonzales, spokeswoman for the state Children’s Protective Services agency.

Authorities had given the women a choice. They could return to the Eldorado ranch or be transported to another safe location.

Monday night saw approximately three dozen women, many of whom had children, sobbing as they recounted how they were surrounded by police who were telling them that they had to leave the compound. Reportedly, the women were not permitted to say goodbye to their crying children.

“They said, ‘your children are ours,”‘ said Marie, a 32-year-old mother of three boys. “We could not even ask a question.”

Marie claimed that the children at the ranch have not been abused but the mother feels as if “they are being abused from this experience”. Marie also stated that the children have been “have been so protected and loved”.

The women of the radical Mormon sect believe the initial complaint to police originated with “a bitter person” outside their secluded community.

The sect has been officially accused of physically and sexually abusing the children. As a result, the state seeks to remove them from their parents with the intention of sending the children to foster care. The enormity of the would-be custody case has been an overwhelming obstacle for court officials.

“Quite frankly, I’m not sure what we’re going to do,” Texas District Judge Barbara Walther said during Monday’s press conference. Court hearings are scheduled to begin Thursday to decide how to proceed with the case.

Also attending the conference with Walther were several dozen attorneys representing or preparing to represent the children. According to the Texas Bar Association, more than 350 lawyers from across the state have volunteered to take on the cases pro bono.