Kyla
09-09-2004, 09:54 PM
Judge Knocks Fla. Gay Foster Rules
by Fidel Ortega
365Gay.com Newscenter
Miami Bureau
Posted: September 9, 2004 11:03 am ET
(Largo, Florida) A Florida judge had high praise for a gay couple fighting to retain custody of two foster children calling them models for all parents.
A caseworker who was under contract with Florida Department of Children and Families turned to Curtis Watson and his partner, a social worker, last year, when she could not find a home place the two young girls.
One girl had a history of emotional problems and at times would become violent. In two months she had been in 17 different foster homes.
Watson and his partner, who was not named in the court action, had a history of helping children. They had fostered 29 foster children at their Seminole home for varying lengths of time.
The couple worked with the girls and eventually a bond developed.
The agency which oversaw fostering programs then recommend the girls stay in the long-term custody of the couple, an unusual arrangement in Florida which while allowing gays to be foster parents does not permit adoption.
The plan was signed off by a judge, but a short while later the state decided the move was a mistake and filed a motion to reopen the case. The state alleged that the caseworkers had not tried hard enough to find an adoptive home.
A Hillsborough County woman testified that she and her husband offered to adopt all three but were turned down by caseworkers.
In court Watson and his partner were described a loving parents who spent long hours and made personal sacrifices to help the children.
During his testimony Watson read a letter from one of the girls in which she said: "Dear Dads: I love you. You love me when I am bad and when I am good. You gave me a home when no one would. I'm here forever."
A clinical psychologist Robert S. Klein, appointed by the court to evaluate the girls, testified that under the couple's care there was "an improvement not only in their emotionality, but in their intellectual functioning."
"It's incredible to watch Curtis work with" the younger girl, Klein said, noting his "loving firmness" and overall patience. "It'd be a lesson for all parents."
In her ruling Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Irene Sullivan denied the state motion to reopen the case saying that the state owes the two men "a debt of gratitude".
"I'm going to personally thank Dad and Daddy here, for in their way, stopping the cycle of abuse," Sullivan said. She even suggested the state use the men to train other foster parents.
"It's not just love, it's love, experience, background, intelligence. They seem to have it all," Sullivan said of the couple.
An attorney for the state said the Department of Children and Families will study the written ruling before deciding whether to appeal.
©365Gay.com® 2004
by Fidel Ortega
365Gay.com Newscenter
Miami Bureau
Posted: September 9, 2004 11:03 am ET
(Largo, Florida) A Florida judge had high praise for a gay couple fighting to retain custody of two foster children calling them models for all parents.
A caseworker who was under contract with Florida Department of Children and Families turned to Curtis Watson and his partner, a social worker, last year, when she could not find a home place the two young girls.
One girl had a history of emotional problems and at times would become violent. In two months she had been in 17 different foster homes.
Watson and his partner, who was not named in the court action, had a history of helping children. They had fostered 29 foster children at their Seminole home for varying lengths of time.
The couple worked with the girls and eventually a bond developed.
The agency which oversaw fostering programs then recommend the girls stay in the long-term custody of the couple, an unusual arrangement in Florida which while allowing gays to be foster parents does not permit adoption.
The plan was signed off by a judge, but a short while later the state decided the move was a mistake and filed a motion to reopen the case. The state alleged that the caseworkers had not tried hard enough to find an adoptive home.
A Hillsborough County woman testified that she and her husband offered to adopt all three but were turned down by caseworkers.
In court Watson and his partner were described a loving parents who spent long hours and made personal sacrifices to help the children.
During his testimony Watson read a letter from one of the girls in which she said: "Dear Dads: I love you. You love me when I am bad and when I am good. You gave me a home when no one would. I'm here forever."
A clinical psychologist Robert S. Klein, appointed by the court to evaluate the girls, testified that under the couple's care there was "an improvement not only in their emotionality, but in their intellectual functioning."
"It's incredible to watch Curtis work with" the younger girl, Klein said, noting his "loving firmness" and overall patience. "It'd be a lesson for all parents."
In her ruling Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Irene Sullivan denied the state motion to reopen the case saying that the state owes the two men "a debt of gratitude".
"I'm going to personally thank Dad and Daddy here, for in their way, stopping the cycle of abuse," Sullivan said. She even suggested the state use the men to train other foster parents.
"It's not just love, it's love, experience, background, intelligence. They seem to have it all," Sullivan said of the couple.
An attorney for the state said the Department of Children and Families will study the written ruling before deciding whether to appeal.
©365Gay.com® 2004