UPDATE 12/22/2016
UPDATE 12/13/2016
#freebabyholm Awareness Event
Supporters will be holding a #freebabyholm Awareness Event in front
of the Cleburne County Courthouse in Helflin, Alabama, beginning at 7:30
am central time on Wednesday, December 13. The Holms have court at 8:30
am. The courthouse is located at 120 Vickery St, Heflin, Alabama 36264.
According to the
event page on Facebook:
We are hosting an event to raise awareness of the situation that Christian Holm
and Danielle Holm have unexpectedly been thrust into. They are in the
middle of the battle of their lives and have a custody hearing scheduled
for Dec 14th at 8:30am. Speakers will be present to give presentations
of the corruption within DHR and shed light on many similar cases.
Please join us in support of this loving and caring family!!! I have
been personally assured by Probate Judge Ryan Robertson that as long as
the event remains respectful to public property, everyone’s 1st
amendment right will be upheld!!!
Baby Given Shots Despite Parents’ Denial of Consent
Supporters have learned that “merely an hour after taking their
baby,” vaccines were ordered at the Anniston Regional Medical Center for
vaccines. This is despite the fact that Danielle and Christian Holm
declined all vaccinations and “even signed a waiver form to deny consent
of vaccination.”
The parents were reportedly heartbroken when they obtained paperwork
showing the order for the shots that they had refused. Danielle has 3
bachelors degrees, including one in biology and another in psychology.
She has researched vaccines and the Vitamin K shot in depth. She
understands the physical risks of vaccination as well as the
psychological impact of pain on the newborn. For these reasons, she and
her husband made the decision to decline the injections.
Alabama law does not mandate either vaccinations or Vitamin K for
newborns, so the parents are within their legal rights to refuse.
Update 12/8/2016
by
Health Impact News/MedicalKidnap.com Staff
Theirs was a spiritual journey of getting back to nature and
rejecting the materialism that they felt held them in bondage. Christian
and Danielle Holm began their journey together in early 2016 as
itinerant missionaries, traveling across the country and speaking to
churches as they sought to live simply and biblically.
The last thing that they expected was for Child Protective Services
to seize their 1 day old baby literally off of his mother’s breast in an
Alabama hospital. What started out as an apparent case of mistaken
identity has turned into a nightmare that the family cannot wake up
from. They don’t understand why their baby was taken from them, or why
he still remains in state custody in foster care while social workers
continue to challenge their religious beliefs.
According to a close family friend who contacted
Health Impact News, the couple are grieving.
The most sacred thing to Danielle and Christian is the
bond of male and female coming together and giving life with God. This
bonding process in the beginning of a baby’s life has been stolen from
them.
There was never any reason for their baby to be taken from them to
begin with, and even now, they have adequate housing and anything else
that could ever be needed and they still don’t have their baby back.
Story Reported in Local Media
The Anniston Star first reported their story on October 13, 2016, just days after the couple’s baby was born on Monday, October 10. Excerpt:
Just out of Regional Medical Center, Danielle has a belly
still swollen from a pregnancy that ended Monday with the birth of a
healthy baby boy.
Her arms, however, are empty. Her son was taken from her the day
after he was born and is in the custody of the Cleburne County
Department of Human Resources pending a hearing at Cleburne County
Courthouse this morning.
“We told them that we were going to do whatever we could,” she said
as tears ran down her face. “I’m his mother. I’m supposed to be
nourishing and bonding with him right now and I can’t.”
Judge Issues Gag Order, Family Friend Contacts Health Impact News
Shortly after the story was reported, District Judge Melody Walker of the Cleburne County Circuit Court
issued a gag order on the couple, forbidding them to speak about their case.
Since that time,
Health Impact News was contacted by a close
family friend who talked to us about the couple and their story. The
source, who asked not to be named, made it clear that the information
that she gave us was from conversations which occurred before the gag
order was placed on Danielle and Christian Holm.
She communicated that the Holms want to cooperate with DHR to do
everything that they can to get their baby back. They are heartbroken,
and they are scared. The source is concerned that the couple may have
unwittingly stumbled into a great deal of corruption, and their baby
could be an innocent victim of some sort of trafficking ring.
Couple Chooses to Leave Materialism Behind, Pursue Spirituality
Though their simple lifestyle of hiking and backpacking through state
parks may suggest otherwise, the Holms come from a background of means
and education. 32 year old Danielle holds a triple bachelor’s degree in
psychology, sociology, and biology. She has worked as a nurse,
chiropractic assistant, child and adolescent mental health counselor,
personal trainer, and was a group leader for Special Needs children at a
youth center. Her husband Christian, 35, comes from a very well-off,
politically connected family. He spent several years caring for his
ailing grandparents before their deaths.
They met and fell in love after finding common ground online. They
decided to make a life together in August of 2015 and moved to New
Hampshire together. Both increasingly felt that possessions and
materialism were holding them in bondage. After they married in
February, they made the conscious decision to give away their
possessions to charity and live simply, traveling as itinerant
missionaries and getting closer to nature.
Excerpt from
The Anniston Star:
The process of surrendering is difficult, though. It took
them until May to start travelling, and even then they were driving, he
said. They only recently left their car in a storage unit in Montgomery
and started walking.
They found the journey amazing; people they met along the way would
give them money, food and water to keep going, they said. On the way
they stopped at probably 30 churches to talk with people and minister to
them, Christian said.
They travelled about five miles a day and ended up camping at Cheaha State Park a few days ago, Christian said.
They Wanted as Close to Natural Birth as Possible
The expectant couple reportedly sought prenatal care and preparation
along the way from midwives, doulas, ob-gyns, and lactation consultants.
They researched and read and asked questions.
They considered seeking a midwife in Alabama, since they expected to
be in the state when the baby was born, but they found information that
told them that midwifery is illegal in Alabama. However, the only
reference in the Alabama code to non-nurse-midwifery is in the section
governing nurse-midwives, Al Code 34-19-3 (b):
(b) Nothing in subsection (a) of this section shall be
construed as to prevent lay midwives holding valid health department
permits from engaging in the practice of lay midwifery as heretofore
provided until such time as the permit may be revoked by the county
board of health.
There is no definition of lay or other non-nurse midwives, such as
traditional midwives, in the Alabama statutes. Because of conflicting
information in the media and online, the Holms did not know that having a
traditional midwife was an option open to them. Instead, they prepared
for an unassisted, husband-coached, natural lotus birth, planning to
birth as closely to nature as possible.
When Danielle went into labor, they had been camping for several days
at Cheaha State Park in Cleburne County, Alabama. After 2 days of
labor, they reportedly became concerned about some bleeding and decided
to call an ambulance, which took them to Northeast Alabama Regional
Medical Center (RMC). Danielle gave birth to a baby boy the next
morning, and he was “perfectly healthy” according to a family friend.
Simple Lifestyle Conflicts with Standard Protocols
The couple wished to adhere to their religious beliefs and remain as
natural as possible, declining any unnecessary hospital interventions.
They agreed to allow eye ointment in their baby’s eyes, but declined the
other typical interventions, including the hospital security band on
the baby’s leg. They reasoned that, since there was never a need for the
baby to be out of his parents’ sight while he was at the hospital,
there was no need for the hospital security band. Danielle chose to
breastfeed her baby.
The couple were able to bask briefly in the beauty of their new son, but their joy was short-lived.
The source close to the family reports that Danielle and Christian
sensed that the hospital staff got a bit nervous when the parents
declined a birth certificate and social security number for their baby.
There were 2 reasons for their declining the documents. Christian and
Danielle felt that the naming of their baby is a spiritual experience.
They wanted to wait to decide on a name for their baby until they first
had time to bond with and get to know their baby to see what name would
be the most appropriate. They also believed that the decision as to
whether or not to have a social security number was one that should be
left up to the child to make when he is older.
Because they sensed that the hospital staff was uncomfortable with
their philosophy, which is rooted in their spiritual beliefs, the family
friend states that Christian pro-actively decided to approach the
hospital social worker “on his own terms,” to ensure that there were no
issues and that they would be in compliance with applicable laws.
Instead of answering, the social worker reportedly left to seek more
information. A short time later, she returned to their room with an
intern from DHR, the Department of Human Resources, Alabama’s Child
Protective Services. The DHR representative reportedly questioned the
couple about their religious beliefs. The Holms reportedly stated that
they wanted to “live as close to nature as possible, just like their
native American ancestors.”
When Christian asked, “What is the most simple way we can live
without being harassed?” the DHR worker reportedly told him she had
never been asked that before, and that she would consult her supervisor.
Baby Snatched from Mother’s Nursing Breast
The family friend explained that Christian has a house in his name,
but it is currently tied up in a family trust. Despite their journey of
walking through nature, camping wherever they found themselves, the
couple has been in process of trying to move into the house, but there
have been complications, causing those plans to fall through. The friend
reported that Christian had hoped to discuss this with the social
worker, but he did not get the opportunity, because the hospital social
worker and the DHR intern returned to the hospital room with 4 police
officers, a detective from the sheriff’s department, and a hospital
security guard.
After Christian was escorted to another room, Danielle was shocked
when the sheriff’s detective allegedly reached down and pulled the baby
literally off of his mother’s breast where he was latched on.
As she cried out, asking, “Why?” and telling them she has done
nothing wrong, the detective told her that they had reason to believe
that they were not who they said they were. He reportedly told her that
the baby was now in state custody.
Case of Mistaken Identity Has Devastating Consequences
The detective reportedly began a barrage of questions aimed at the
confused new mother, demanding “her real name.” Danielle thought that
the confusion could be from her previous married name. Her ex-husband
was Holmes, and her current husband is Holm, so she simply deleted 2
letters from her last name. That was apparently not the source of the
confusion.
The detective asked Danielle if she was really Daniela Ruiz,
and asked her about her involvement in human and drug trafficking in
Arizona. She asked if she had ever been arrested in Arizona, and when
she had crossed the border into Mexico.
None of this reportedly made any sense to Danielle, who had spent a
short amount of time in Arizona as she and Christian were on their
journey, but she had never been to Mexico, never been arrested, and had
never been in any trouble at all. The name Daniela Ruiz meant nothing to
her.
They asked if Christian had ever gone by another name, which he had.
His middle name is Clarke, and that is the name he went by growing up.
Both Danielle and Christian readily showed the detective their IDs.
In addition to her New Hampshire drivers license, she showed her social
security card and her passport, which did not show any trips to Mexico.
Christian reportedly showed his New Hampshire drivers license, social
security card, and a federal ID.
It was not enough. DHR took their baby into custody, and they were
only able to see their baby once more before they left the hospital, and
that visit was under the watchful eyes of a nurse and a police officer.
Christian Holm later posted an article on his
Facebook
page that he found about the criminals that the Cleburne County
officials apparently thought they were. Though the comment has since
been deleted, Christian had this to say:
So this is who the investigating officer said that my
wife and I are after giving her three forms of identification from both
of us showing that we are not these people. She was not satisfied with
that and told me that these can be faked. They really need an oops
button in these situations when an infant and or innocence is involved
to give child back. Swallow the pride and stop destroying lives for your
view on life. We are children of God being attacked by the ones
influenced by the devil. They know not what they do.
The criminals arrested in Arizona were Daniela Ruiz of Tuscon,
Arizona, and Richard Christian Holm of Nogales, Arizona. There are
several news stories which appear to originate from the same source
which simply describe 2 separate incidents in the same article, such as
this article that Christian Clarke Holm found:
Though both people arrested have similar names to the couple
traveling in Alabama, the Arizona duo do not appear to be connected even
to each other. They were arrested on 2 different days in 2 separate
incidents.
Is Violation of the 4th Amendment Standard Practice in Alabama?
According to the Holms’ friend, there was no court order or warrant
to seize the baby, nor was there an emergency situation. This is
consistent with what other Alabama parents have reported to
Health Impact News. Earlier this year, Shelby County DHR social worker Ahzshaka Evans told a 14 year old rape victim:
There are two people who don’t need a court order or a warrant: the Department of Human Resources and law enforcement. (See story.)
Shelby County police officer Edmunson told the Prince family in June
that DHR didn’t need a court order or warrant to take a child. All they
needed was a pickup order from DHR.
Haly Boothe’s 3 day old baby was taken in May from a Birmingham hospital without a court order or warrant. (See
story.)
Several parents have reported being told that the state legislature
has given authority to DHR to seize children with only a “DHR pickup
order,” which may apparently be merely verbal, not necessarily written.
Parents are told that the court hearing within 72 hours meets the
standard of search and seizure laws.
However, this practice stand in direct conflict with the 4th Amendment of the Constitution:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,
shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable
cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the
place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
New Mother Denied Basic Care After Baby Seized
In another disturbing similarity between the Holms’ story and others
of mothers whose newborn babies are taken from them at the hospital,
basic medical care was reportedly withheld from Danielle after her baby
was seized by DHR. She was given no discharge instructions. There was no
counsel or handout given about what signs of infection to watch for or
how to care for her stitches, even though she was a first-time mother.
Ordinarily, all patients checking out of hospitals are escorted out
in a wheelchair. Not so with many mothers whose babies are taken from
them by the state. Despite their pain and grief, they are singled out to
walk out of the hospital on their own strength.
Orders Given to Put Baby on Formula Against the Wish of Parents
The family member reports that Danielle is still pumping her milk for her baby, even though the
Anniston Star
reports that the Holms have no idea whether or not their baby is
receiving the breastmilk, and that there were orders given at the
hospital for the baby to be given formula.
This is especially hard for mothers to deal with who know the myriad
of benefits of breastfeeding and the multitude of health risks that
formula-feeding carries. Feeding their baby his mother’s own milk in the
natural way that God designed was a very important value to Danielle
and Christian Holm, according to their friend, and knowing that their
baby is being fed formula from the hands of a stranger is yet another
tragic aspect of their baby’s kidnapping.
The couple are also reportedly very concerned about the emotional and
psychological well-being of their baby, because they understand that
separation of mother and baby, especially in the early weeks and months,
can have a devastating psychological impact on the growing baby.
Gag Order Issued
The Anniston Star reported that the Holms were issued a gag
order after the publication brought the story to public attention. In
their article dated October 18, some important considerations are
raised.
Excerpts:
Courts can use gag orders to protect the interests of
children or victims, but some attorneys say the instrument does so at
the cost of other constitutional rights.
Gag orders are not a black-and-white issue, though, and
they can be challenged, said Andy Olree, professor of law at Faulkner
Law in Montgomery.
Gag orders can be an infringement on constitutional rights,
Olree said.The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects
citizens’ right to express themselves and the public’s right to hear
discussions of issues of value to them, but that right is not absolute,
Olree said.
See also:
DHR has questioned the intelligence of ordinary citizens with regard
to understanding the meaning of confidentiality. According to the
Anniston Star:
All juvenile dependency cases, those in which a child’s
custody is decided, are confidential cases by state law, Cleburne County
Judge Melody Walker said Monday.
Tony Hamlin, attorney for the Department of Human
Resources, said a judge could issue a gag order because lay people don’t
always understand what confidential means.
Alabama Attorney – Confidentiality Laws Not Designed to Silence Parents
Birmingham-area attorney Lisa Chasteen disagrees. She told Health Impact News
that the Alabama law regarding confidentiality of juvenile cases is
often misused by the system to tell parents that they cannot talk about
their own cases, but that is not the way the law is written. Alabama
Code § 12-15-133(g) states:
Except for the purposes permitted and in the manner
provided by this section, whoever discloses or makes use of or knowingly
permits the use of information identifying a child, or the family of a
child, who is or was under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, where
this information is directly or indirectly derived from the records of
the juvenile court or acquired in the course of official duties,
[emphasis added] upon conviction thereof, shall be guilty of a Class A
misdemeanor under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court and also may be
subject to civil sanctions. Provided, however, that nothing in this
section shall be construed to prohibit or otherwise limit counsel from
disclosing confidential information obtained from the juvenile court
file of the child as needed to investigate the case of the client or
prepare a defense for that client, provided that the disclosure is in
furtherance of counsel’s representation of the party.
Chasteen asserts that the confidentiality laws were designed to
protect the family from the people working on their case disclosing
information to the public. They do not apply to the families themselves
talking about their case with friends, family, or the media.
Attorneys, GALs, social workers, or any other agent working for the
state could “acquire” information about the case “in the course of
official duties,” and are thus bound by confidentiality laws, but the
family members are not.
She cites
KR v. LAUDERDALE COUNTY DEPT. OF HUMAN, 133 So. 3d 396 – Ala: Court of Civil Appeals 2013,
which clarifies that the information that law 12-15-133 refers to is
that which is “derived from the records of the juvenile court.” The
findings of the Appeals Court further state that Ҥ 12-15-133 is
intended to protect the identity of juveniles, not DHR employees,
guardians ad litem, or juvenile-court judges….”
Though this law is often cited to parents simply as the
“confidentiality law” and is often used in the attempt to bully and
silence parents from discussing their case with the media, attorney Lisa
Chasteen maintains that this was not the intent of the law at all. The
family has the right to discuss their story with whomever they wish. She
made these points in a meeting last year with other attorneys and DHR
state commissioner Nancy Buckner, and reports that no one refuted her
that day.
Law Professor Jenny Carroll notes issues of concern with gag orders, reports the
Anniston Star:
An additional problem with a gag order in the Holmses’
case is that the public has no information about what steps the state is
taking to protect the child and if the parents’ rights are being
protected through the proceedings, said University of Alabama School of
Law Professor Jenny Carroll. It is, she noted, the parental rights that
are in question in the case.
“The public has a right to check if actions being taken in our names are in fact correct,” Carroll said.
The courts are public forums, she said. If they are insulated to the
point that the public is excluded it makes it very difficult to know
that everyone involved is being treated fairly. That’s not how our
courts are supposed to work, she said.
Land of the Free?
Because of the gag orders and threats about confidentiality, Danielle
and Christian Holms are reportedly afraid to speak out about the
injustices that their friend says are happening to them. The lifestyle
they are leading appears to be similar to that of John the Baptist or
some of the Old Testament prophets. Many of the patriarchs of the
Judeo-Christian faiths, such as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, lived
relatively nomadic lifestyles. While Jesus told his disciples to “Follow
Me,” He also said:
Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head. (Luke 9:58, NIV)
The Holms’ friend doesn’t understand how America, “the land of the
free,” can take someone’s newborn baby away from them for choosing to
follow their religious beliefs and living a life that is not like the
mainstream. Yet, Danielle and Christian Holm are stuck in a state they
were simply passing through, engaged in the fight of their lives for
their baby.
How You Can Help the Holms
Call Alabama Governor Robert Bentley’s office at 334-242-7100. He may also be contacted
here. He is also on
Facebook.
Senator Gerald Dial is the Senator for Cleburne County. He may be reached at 334-242-7874, or contacted
here.
Representative Richard Lindsay represents their district. He may be reached at 334-242-7713, or contacted
here.
Alabama has a nine-member task force created to examine the work of the Alabama Department of Human Resources (DHR). If
you have issues or concerns about DHR services, your best plan of
action is to contact the following legislators/lawmakers and committee
members:
Connie Rowe, State Representative, has replaced Mac McCutcheon as the Task Force Chair / 334-242-7600/ email
here.
Chris England, State Representative /
334-242-7703 /
205-535-4859 / email
here.
Greg Reed, State Senator /
334-242-7894 / he is on
Facebook.
http://medicalkidnap.com/2016/11/03/newborn-baby-kidnapped-from-alabama-hospital-after-parents-decline-birth-certificate-and-ssn/
