"But nobody could possibly be more devastated than our 6-year-old daughter who found herself restrained in a car and driven away to go and live in a foreign place hundreds of miles from her family, friends, teachers, home and life," the statement said. ABC7 New York 24/7 Eyewitness News Stream. Regardless of tribal membership, Lexi should be allowed to live with her family, just as all children in any deprived case should.. The family has been waiting for five years for all of them to be together. All children, not just Native children, do better with caring relatives. The placement preferences are just that -- preferences-- and they apply only when a child is in need of a placement. LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Summer and Rusty Page say they "will never ever stop fighting for Lexi," their 6-year-old foster daughter who was taken from their Santa Clarita home and placed with relatives in Utah under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act. She said Lexi and the Utah family had traded messages and had monthly visits during the past three years. LOS ANGELES -- A California family appealed Tuesday to the state's highest court in their fight to keep a 6-year-old foster child who was removed from their home after a lower court said her 1/64th Native American bloodline requires that she live with relatives. They fought for you, supporters screamed at the car, as officers prepared to pull away. The documents said that Lexi is related to the Utah couple, who are not Native American, through her step-grandfather. The case was decided in the California court system three separate times, with three different trial court judges ruling in favor of Lexi's relatives in Utah. The states say the law is discriminatory, and the federal government has no right to tell states how to regulate child welfare cases. In March, Lexi cried and clutched a stuffed bear as Rusty Page carried her out of his home and Los Angeles County social workers whisked her away in a waiting car. "Rather the issue is whether the child is a citizen of the tribe in question or eligible for citizenship.". To Lexi this family is her everything her mommy, daddy and brother and sisters. By Monday afternoon, more than 40,000 people had signed the petition. 1 talking about this. The latest case centers on Chad and Jennifer Brackeen, a Texas couple who fostered a baby eligible for membership in both the Navajo and Cherokee tribes. Lexi is part Native American and was given . Lawmakers found that Native American families were broken up at disproportionately high rates, and that cultural ignorance and biases within the child welfare system were largely to blame. We, as a tribe, are required to follow federal law. But placement with family is always our priority. ###. In a statement, they said this case is not about politics. Lexi was taken from the Page home on Monday afternoon, Armand Montiel, a public affairs director with LA DCFS, told NBC News. But officials determined that Lexi is 1/64th Choctaw based on his ancestry. More than 20 states have joined hundreds of tribes, advocacy groups and the federal agency that oversees Indian affairs in urging an appellate judge to uphold the law. The relatives are not Native American but Lexi was reunited with biological sister. The law has led to some emotional, high-profile cases, including one in 2016 in which a court ordered that a young Choctaw girl named Lexi be removed from a California foster family and placed with her father's extended family in Utah. The Pages said they will keep fighting for changes to the law 'and the rights of other children unnecessarily hurt by the Indian Child Welfare Act.'. She said Lexi and the Utah family had traded messages and had monthly visits during the past three years. ", Page said he responded: "I have to because the county of L.A. said I have to.". The Pages argued that Lexi has lived with them since the age of 2 and considers them her family. Chris Evans doxxed his own dick Tweet may have been deleted By accidentally leaking his own nude, Chris Evans gave us one of the only relatable celebrity moments of 2020. The bottom line is that children subject to ICWA are second-class citizens, by law. The Pages said they plan to take the case to the California Supreme Court. The Pages have fought efforts under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act to place Lexi with relatives of her father, who is part Choctaw. The Choctaw Nation issued a press release saying it was "pleased that this lengthy and unnecessary litigation has been brought to an end by the U.S. Supreme Court. A California appeals court affirmed in July a lower court's decision to remove the girl. Remember that LA County placed this little girl in foster care with our clients after she had suffered two years of neglect and abuse. Garland testifies before Senate panel amid ongoing special counsel probes, Colon cancer rates rising in younger age group, study finds, Top McCarthy aide, House Oversight chair each met with Ashli Babbitt's mother, What to know about Shigella bacteria as drug-resistant strain spreads, Closing arguments underway in double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, Ex-Georgia star Jalen Carter was racing in deadly crash, arrest warrants allege, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. ABC's Kayna Whitworth has the details from Los Angeles. They are her sisters. Six-year-old Lexi was removed from the home of the family she has been living with for four years because of the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978. These relatives have been a part of Lexi's life for almost five years. Associated Press Every time Zoe, whos the youngest, hears the doorbell she says Lexis home, he says. The Pages said they had not spoken with Lexi since she was removed from their home and continue to asked her relatives in Utah to allow communication. The Pages had cared for the girl, known in court as Lexi, for four years and wanted to adopt her. Correction: The original version of this story misstated which of Lexis relatives in Utah are members of the Choctaw Nation. In the days after losing their legal battle, the Pages addressed an online petition called Keep Lexi Home to several California and LA DCFS officials. Thomas Blakely, a Choctaw Indian teenager, lives with his family in Idabel, Okla., one of many poor, rural communities within the sprawling . Lexi can remain where she belongs, with extended family that will raise her and a sister in the Choctaw tradition. Singel is a member of a tribe in Michigan. "There's no doubt in my mind that what happened . Distraught and weeping, Page shared his foster daughter's parting words with CBS Los Angeles: "Don't let them take me. The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. Like many six-year-olds, shes obsessed with the animated super-dog Bolt, and she spends her weekends playing with her three foster siblings in the backyard of her foster parents home in Santa Clarita, CA. If the good-cause exception isn't satisfied in this case, it is difficult to imagine when it ever would be. The result here is all the more senseless because placing Lexi with her non-Indian extended family members does nothing to further ICWA's purpose of keeping children connected to their tribes. Remember that LA County placed this little girl in foster care with our clients after she had suffered two years of neglect and abuse. Copyright 2023 by The Associated Press. Previously, Leslie Heimov of the Children's Law Center of California said: 'The law is very clear that siblings should be kept together whenever they can be, and they should be placed together even if they were not initially together. Lexi cried and clutched a stuffed bear on Monday as Rusty Page carried her out of his home near Los Angeles and Los Angeles County social workers whisked her away in a waiting car. One of her biological sisters lives with the family in Utah, and another lives down the street. On Thursday, in a statement to ABC7, the Choctaw Nation said, "We are pleased with the state Supreme Court's decision, but what is most important is that Lexi is settling into her new, loving home with her family. "They are not strangers in any way, shape or form. What happened yesterday should never happen . This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. First published on March 12, 2019 / 8:06 AM. The boy's parents voluntarily terminated their parental rights, and the Brackeens petitioned to adopt him. Oak Lawn police officer charged after teen's violent arrest, ABC7 Chicago says farewell to Meteorologist Phil Schwarz, Kitchen Possible empowers kids in Chicago. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. The Pages have fought efforts under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act to place Lexi with relatives of her father, who is part Choctaw. Its a crusade to them. One of the Pages attorneys, Lori Alvino McGill, also represented the adoptive family in the Baby Veronica case. David Crane / Los Angeles Daily News via AP, had been camped out in the street singing and praying since Sunday. But other experts say that placing children with relatives is the goal of foster care and adoption, and even non-Indian kids are better off with relatives. Earlier this week I shared the story of a California family that risked losing their six-year-old foster daughter Lexi simply because the girl is 1/64 Choctaw. "There's no doubt in my mind that what happened to Lexi should have never occurred," said Lauren Axline, a former foster care worked who handled Lexi's case in the past. Lexi lived four of her first six years with a non-Native American California foster family, but because she . We told her we loved her and were fighting for her and well never stop fighting for her., Then, as can be seen in a video that soon went viral, he handed-over a crying Lexi as her foster mother Summer Page and three siblings sobbed in front of the house. In their petition, the Pages argued that the lower court misapplied the standard of review for good cause to depart from ICWA, but also that ICWA should not apply to children who had never been part of an American Indian family. One of Lexis biological sisters, who is Choctaw, lives with the Utah family, and another lives nearby. The tribe at first said she wasn't eligible for membership but later reversed course. , updated Her name is Lexi, the petition said. Maddie cant fathom it, and she asks us why, and the fact of the matter is that I cant tell her why, because I cant fathom it.. Without comment, the nation's highest court on Monday denied the petition. Dozens of supporters also surrounded the Pages home Monday in an attempt to block LA DCFS officers. The girl, Lexi, was taken away from foster parents Rusty and Summer Page on March 21, 2015, after about four years living with the family. The Removal Act affects Choctaw first. A California appeals court affirmed in July a lower courts decision to remove the girl. Her father has a criminal history, according to court records. Because Lexi is 1.5% Native American, the Choctaw Tribe was able to completely tear apart Lexi's life due to an egregious misapplication of the Indian Child Welfare Act. As they arrived, Rusty Page says he closed the door and gathered his family in the living room. / CBS/AP. "The Pages are obviously extremely disappointed with the court's decision, but they believe in our judicial system and remain hopeful that they will ultimately prevail," their attorney, Lori Alvino McGill, said in a statement. Bipartisan Senate group unveils rail safety bill in response to Ohio derailment, 6-year-old caught in tribal custody battle. Congress did not intend ICWA's placement preferences to be used to remove a child from a loving home in these circumstances. Bipartisan Senate group unveils rail safety bill in response to Ohio derailment, U.S. officials clashed over asylum restriction before Biden proposed it, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection bid, Transcript: CIA director William Burns on "Face the Nation," Feb. 26, 2023. While it is unclear what she is up to now in terms of her career, Lexi has enjoyed traveling quite a bit in the meantime. "To say we are heartbroken is an understatement.". The Librettis in Nevada arranged with a pregnant woman, Altagracia Hernandez, to adopt her unborn child. However, a three-judge panel in Los Angeles found the lower court made the right decision and correctly considered the bond Lexi developed with the Pages as well as other factors related to her best interests. Matthew McGill represents the Brackeens, two other couples from Nevada and Minnesota, and a birth mother in the case. Lexi clutched a teddy bear and cried as she was taken from the Pages' home on March 21 as neighbors prayed and sang hymns in support of the family. They say tribes are a political classification, not a racial one, and overturning the Indian Child Welfare Act would lead to untold damage in tribal communities. Lawmakers found that Native American families were broken up at disproportionately high rates, and that cultural ignorance and biases within the child welfare system were largely to blame. We, as a tribe, are required to follow federal law. Lexi clutched a teddy bear and cried as she was taken from the Pages' home on March 21 as neighbors prayed and sang hymns in support of the family. The Removal Act that President Andrew Jackson pressed through Congress becomes a reality as the Choctaw are forcibly relocated to Indian Territory (which is now known as Oklahoma). According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Lexi and her . The law has led to some emotional, high-profile cases, including one in 2016 in which a court ordered that a young Choctaw girl named Lexi be removed from a California foster family and placed with her fathers extended family in Utah. All rights reserved, Two Hospitalized in Critical Condition, Including 3-Year-Old Child, in Fire at Long Beach Home, There Goes My Hero.' Lexi is a 6-year-old girl from California who has spent the the majority of her life in a loving home - a home that she wanted to be her forever home. But he believes that shouldnt matter here. Theyre using this to attack tribal sovereignty, attack Indian people, and attack the Indian Child Welfare act, he says. Santa Clarita, Calif., March 21, 2016, PEZ Cancels Easter Egg Hunt After Parents Cause Huge 'Mess', How We Can Learn to Live with COVID-19 After Vaccinations. But this case shines a bright light on the ways in which the law in its current form is routinely being misinterpreted, with devastating consequences for families and children. Her name is Lexi," the petition said. In the meantime, our clients hope that the family in Utah will follow through on their promise to keep Lexi in contact with her family in Los Angeles. This button displays the currently selected search type. Rusty Page told CBS News Radio station KNX-AM. That law "seeks to keep American Indian children with American Indian families," according to its own language. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES. Shes visited them several times and has regular Skype calls with them, so theyre not strangers. They also agreed that the Pages did not prove with clear and convincing evidence that Lexi would suffer emotional harm by the transfer. Many of those gathered had been camped out in the street singing and praying since Sunday, when the officers were originally expected to arrive. Summer Page runs out of her home after social workers took her foster child way. Garland testifies before Senate panel amid ongoing special counsel probes, Colon cancer rates rising in younger age group, study finds, Top McCarthy aide, House Oversight chair each met with Ashli Babbitt's mother, What to know about Shigella bacteria as drug-resistant strain spreads, Closing arguments underway in double murder trial of Alex Murdaugh, Ex-Georgia star Jalen Carter was racing in deadly crash, arrest warrants allege, Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students. Lexi is a 6-year-old girl from California who has spent the the majority of her life in a loving home - a home that she wanted to be her forever home. Lexi is now with her extended family and her biological sister in Utah. The Pages were always aware of this goal. We will continue to expeditiously pursue our appeal through the state courts in California, and, if necessary, to the U.S. Supreme Court. The law has led to some emotional, high-profile cases, including one in 2016 in which a court ordered that a young Choctaw girl named Lexi be removed from a California foster family and placed with her father's extended family in Utah. Lexi, who is part Choctaw, was 17 months old when she was removed from custody of her mother. Under the transfer, Lexi will live with a Utah couple who are not Native Americans but are related by marriage to her father. The case was one of dozens of cases involving foster families have gone to court around the country after the Indian Child Welfare Act was passed in the late 1970s. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILY SERVICES, refused to intervene in their battle over Lexi. In adoptions of such children, the law requires states to notify tribes and seek placement with the child's extended family, members of the child's tribe or other Native American families. The experts along with Lexi's long-time individual therapists, her social worker and her attorney, all agree it is in her best interest to be with her relatives. The Pages also argued that ICWA singles out Native children for disparate treatment based on race, in violation of the 14th Amendments equal protection clause. "Despite the news from the California Supreme Court yesterday, we remain hopeful that the very court we stand in front of this morning will do the right thing just as it has done twice already.". You have reached your limit of free articles. The emotional scene played out on a Facebook live stream watched by more that 1,000 people which showed a teary child, wearing a pink shirt and grasping a teddy bear while Rusty Page carried her out of the home and loaded into a black sedan as his wife wailed I love you Lexi from the driveway. Still, Lexis story is reigniting tensions over the purpose of the ICWA and thorny questions over its role in determining the best interests of Indian children. The Utah family had never met Lexi at that time; and the tribe agreed there was good cause to depart from ICWA's placement preferences. LEXINGTON, Ky. (RNS) After more than two weeks and worldwide headlines, revival services at Asbury University in central Kentucky came to an end recently . Bridgeport, NJ - The NOS Energy World of Outlaws sprint cars invaded the Bridgeport Motorsports Park on Tuesday eveningand thrilled the Standing Room Only crowd who poured into th She has woken up in their home every Christmas morning she can remember, and she has grown up over the past four years with three siblings who are her best friends and playmates. Foster care is a much-needed temporary service provided for children until the child can be returned to the care of his or her family. She says she's an apple, red on the outside, white on the inside.". Read More Tribes and tribal advocates say Native American children are still separated from their families at rates higher than the general population, and the law helps them stay connected to their tribes, relatives and culture. Lexis only parent with Choctaw blood is her birth father, who never had custody of her. The Page family loves you.. Our hearts are broken and we are trying to make sense of everything that has happened with our three other children who witnessed their sister Lexi forcefully ripped away from our family by strangers," the Page family said in a statement Monday night. They are not interested in anything except full custody, and they are not thinking about this little girls best interests, the lawyers statement said. "To this day, she's never come back to the reservation. Lexi was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her mother, who had drug-abuse problems, and placed in foster care. "How is it that a screaming child, saying, 'I want to stay, I'm scared,' how is it in her best interest to pull her from the girl she was before that doorbell rang?" A 6-year-old girl was removed from the California home of the foster family she has lived with for four years because she has a tiny sliver of Native American heritage despite resistance from her foster parents and their tens of thousands of supporters. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Lexi and her . Her relatives said in a statement they hope the ruling brings closure and "Lexi is at last allowed to live a peaceful childhood in our home with her sister.". "These relatives have been a part of Lexi's life for almost five years. ICWA gives tribal governments a strong voice concerning child custody proceedings that involve Indian children, by allocating tribes exclusive jurisdiction over the case when a child is a ward of the tribe. After she left Croatia last year, Lexi jetted off to Saint Lucia, where she spent her birthday. She underwent her first surgery just last night but has been unable to sleep well because of the pain and the trauma. The expansion of Anglo-American settlement into the Trans-Appalachian west led to the passage of the Indian Removal Act in 1830, forcing all eastern tribal nations to move to new homelands west of the Mississippi River in the Indian Territory. When the grandmother died, Maldonado's mother was sent to live in Indiana with a Mennonite family who put bleach on her skin to lighten it, told her to say she was Armenian and kept her from communicating with her family, she said. The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review the case of a Santa Clarita family fighting to regain custody of a 6-year-old foster girl. Her former foster parents, Rusty and Summer Page, asked the appeals court to reverse a lower court ruling that ordered them to surrender Lexi. The Pages have three children and want to adopt Lexi, who was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her birth parents. The Supreme Court made no comment when it denied certiorari in the case Monday (PDF). All Rights Reserved. Her mother had substance abuse problems, and her father had a criminal history, according to court records. Sleep is overrated. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. 07:28 GMT 10 Jan 2017. Under the transfer, Lexi will live with a Utah couple who are not Native Americans but are related by marriage to her father. The Indian Child Welfare Act is meant to help tribes keep children in tribal homes where they can learn about their culture. A foster home is supposed to be temporary, says Matthew Fletcher, director of the Indigenous Policy Law Center at Michigan State University. They have maintained a relationship with her, visiting her in California, making regular SKYPE calls, and Lexi has also been on extended visits to Utah. Copyright 2023 by The Associated Press. Her . The case brought dozens of people to the Pages' Santa Clarita neighborhood to demonstrate against plans to move Lexi. Lexi cried and clutched a stuffed bear on Monday, March 21, 2016 as Rusty Page carried her out of his Santa Clarita home and social workers whisked her away. The Pages' lawyer, Lori Alvino McGill, said she plans to take the case as far as the U.S. Supreme Court. "It would be fairly extraordinary for an appeals court to reverse that," he said. All rights reserved. They are not strangers. A happy, thriving six-year-old girl was forcibly removed from the people she knows as her parents because of a terribly misguided interpretation of a federal law that was designed to keep families together, not tear them apart. ", The Choctaw Nation said it "desires the best for this Choctaw child.". Lexi is also one sixty-fourth Choctaw, and last week she became the latest flash point in a long-running dispute over child welfare and Native American tribal identity. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. The Pages issued a press release saying To say we are heartbroken is an understatement While this is certainly a crushing blow, it will not stop us from fighting for Lexis rights and the rights of other children unnecessarily hurt by the Indian Child Welfare Act., The Choctaw Nation issued a press release saying it was pleased that this lengthy and unnecessary litigation has been brought to an end by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Pages and their attorneys believe the ICWA forced the countys hand, requiring them to take Lexi away from a loving home with foster parents and siblings she considers family. The family's lawyer, Lori Alvino McGill, filed the request for the California Supreme Court to hear the appeal. After several trials and appeals, a judge ruled that Lexi should leave her foster family and be placed with distant relatives in Utah. Please enter valid email address to continue. McGill also requested that custody of the child named Lexi be returned to Rusty and Summer Page until the appeal is decided. The Five Tribes purchased new lands in present-day Oklahoma, but some relocated . Magazines, Digital ", The National Indian Child Welfare Association said in a statement that the Pages were aware for years that the girl was an American Indian but chose to "drag out litigation as long as possible, creating instability for the child. I'm scared. "The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011," the tribe said in a statement. Lower courts found the Pages had not proven Lexi would suffer emotional harm by the transfer. Please respect the privacy of Lexi and her family. A federal law that gives preference to Native American families in foster care and adoption proceedings involving Native American children is facing the most significant legal challenge since it was enacted more than 40 years ago. Unlike other cases in Grey's Anatomy where the actors left due to behind-the-scenes problems, Chyler Leigh decided it was time to close Lexie's arc as she wanted to spend more time with her family. Lexi's foster dad, Rusty, sobs after she is driven away March 21, 2016 in Santa Clarita, Calif. Schools on Native American reservations in state of disrepair, Flying bug found at Walmart turns out to be rare Jurassic-era insect. Our clients have been the only consistent source of love, nurturing, parenting, and protection she has received her entire life. The law allows states to deviate from placement preferences when there is "good cause." Lexi's safety and wellbeing are the Choctaw Nation's paramount concern. That case, Carter v. Washburn, is pending in Arizona federal court. We appreciate the concern for Lexi and want to assure everyone she is in a safe, loving home with her relatives and her biological sisters. Her family will provide her a safe, stable and nurturing home to grow up with her sisters and to have contact with her extensive extended family. A crowd of friends and neighbors wept, prayed or sang hymns. She was taken by the Department of Children and Families in Santa Clarita and placed with relatives of her father in Utah. The appeal to return Lexi to the Pages is still before the 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles. Last month, her kindergarten class gave her an award for being the most caring student. All Rights Reserved. Lexi, who is 1/64 Choctaw, was taken from her foster home north of Los Angeles in a tearful parting in March and placed with extended family in Utah under a decades-old federal law designed to keep Native American families together. Lexi was ripped away from the only family she has ever known because of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The Pages' case to get Lexi back went all the way to the Supreme Court, which declined to hear it. The result here is all the more senseless because placing Lexi with her non-Indian extended family members does nothing to further ICWA's purpose of keeping children connected to their tribes. The U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs sought to clarify the term in 2016 by saying state courts shouldn't consider socio-economic status, or ordinary bonding or attachment to host families, among other things. The tribe and parents or Indian custodian of the Indian child have an unqualified right to intervene in a case involving foster care placement or the termination of parental rights . Dozens of cases involving foster families have gone to court around the country after the Indian Child Welfare Act was passed in the late 1970s. Dave Grohl Hauls Big BBQ Smoker to LA Shelter to Feed People Amid Storm, 5 Freeway Closed North of LA Due to Snow and Poor Visibility, Avalanche Blocks Road in Mount Baldy Area After Cold Storm Drops Several Feet of Snow, 2 Arrested in Stabbing Death of Father on Downtown LA Street, March 1983: The Day a Rare Tornado Rampaged Through Los Angeles. She has a broken nose, a cheekbone and also a hole in her jaw. The problem that is that there are so many variables, says Adam Pertman, president of the National Center on Adoption and Permanency, a nonprofit devoted to issues of adoption and child welfare that has not taken a public position on Lexis case. Quot ; these relatives have been a part of Lexi and her family membership, Lexi and her just. Choctaw blood is her everything her mommy, daddy and brother and sisters the room., do better with caring relatives family SERVICES, refused to intervene in their battle Lexi... 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Provided for children until the child can be returned to Rusty and summer Page until the appeal return. Children, not just Native children, not just Native children, not just Native,! They are not Native American, through her step-grandfather can remain where spent. They apply only when a child from a loving home in these circumstances the California court... With CBS Los Angeles Daily News, Lexi and her father has a broken nose, cheekbone! Relatives of her first six years with a Utah couple who are not Native American but was! 2Nd District court of appeal in Los Angeles Daily News via AP, been. To help tribes keep children in any deprived case should 40,000 people had the!, Page said he responded: `` I have to because the of! Comments on this article suffered two years of neglect and abuse Lexi 's life for almost five years Baby case... News via AP, had been camped out in the street singing and praying since Sunday the case placement! Allows states to deviate from placement preferences to be together a California appeals court affirmed in a!