Pubdate: Thu, 26 Oct 2000
Source: Plain Dealer, The (OH)
Copyright: 2000 The Plain Dealer
Contact:  1801 Superior Ave., Cleveland, OH 44114
Website: http://www.cleveland.com/news/
Forum: http://forums.cleveland.com/index.html
Author: Amanda Garrett
Note: Plain Dealer reporter John Coyne contributed to this article.

BABY BORN WITH DRUGS IS ABUSED, COURT RULES

Mothers who give birth to babies testing positive for illegal drugs have 
committed child abuse, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled yesterday.

The court, in a 5-2 ruling, said the mothers are not criminally liable 
under Ohio law, which has a different standard for a fetus and a child.

But its decision opens the door for civil liability and offers more 
powerful legal ammunition for family services agencies seeking permanent 
custody of such babies.

What effect the ruling may have on mothers and babies is unclear. Many 
social service agencies across the state, including Cuyahoga County's, 
already label many such newborns as abused.

And though not every judge has agreed with that label - until yesterday's 
ruling there was no case law to support the practice - the objections 
rarely mattered. Social services agencies could win custody for many other 
reasons. "So all this is going to do, really, is make it easier to prove 
that it's abuse," said Yvonne Billingsley, an assistant Cuyahoga County 
prosecutor who supervises the 29 other prosecutors who work exclusively on 
behalf of Children and Family Services.

"The bigger question is, now, what do we do" about pregnant women using 
drugs? she said.

The Supreme Court ruling is based on a 1998 case in which the Stark County 
Department of Human Services sought and won custody of a Canton newborn 
named Lorenzo Blackshear.

According to court documents, hospital officials tested Lorenzo's blood 
after they noticed how "jittery" he was. When tests revealed cocaine in the 
baby's system, they reported it to county social services officials.

Paula M. Sawyers, a Stark County prosecutor, said after the ruling 
yesterday that it was clear Lorenzo was abused by his mother, Tonya Kimbrough.

At the time, the county had already taken custody of her first child for 
the same reason, Sawyers said. Lorenzo was her second child born with 
cocaine in its system.

And now, the county is in the process of taking custody of Kimbrough's 
third child, who tested positive for cocaine when the baby was born a few 
months ago, Sawyers said.

"This is really a very big problem for families," Sawyers said.

There are about 100 babies born with drugs in their systems reported each 
year in Stark County, she said. Of those, the county seeks and wins custody 
of about half. Lorain County reports taking custody of about 10 such 
newborns a year.

The number of children in Cuyahoga County is much higher, Billingsley said, 
but the percentage of those taken is about the same, half.

Social workers make many of the decisions.

In Cuyahoga County, for example, they are dispatched to a hospital within 
an hour or two of being notified.

Over the next 72 hours, the social workers investigate: Does the baby's 
mother have strong support from her family? Is the mother willing to seek 
drug treatment? Has the mother had other babies with drugs in their systems?

Plain Dealer reporter John Coyne contributed to this article.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jo-D