Aunt Challenges State After Girls Taken Into Care

Three young sisters, just four, six, and eight years old, were recently removed from their home and placed in a children’s facility after raising concerns about their living conditions. But their removal sparked another issue: a frustrated aunt who says the family was never given the chance to care for the girls themselves. According to Deyanie Staine, a capable close relative was ready to take the children in, yet that option was never put on the table. The girls had been living with Staine’s mother until her passing last year, which forced them back into the environment they were just taken from. In a social media post, Staine called on Belizean authorities to work with the family to find a safe, permanent home for the sisters. And after speaking out, she says she was finally able to begin the legal process to have the children placed with loved ones instead of in state care.

 

Deyanie Staine, Aunt of Rehomed Children

“I reside in the US and here is actually the family member is first option. The social worker must considered family first. Before going to other avenues versus Belize when I was reading the law, that’s not the case. I think that’s really twisted in the system because we put these kids in these homes when they’re going through stuff and they see it as a punishment, they don’t see it as, I’m taking you away from the situation you’re in because even if the situation is bad in their eyes, that’s still mom and dad. And you putting me in the system is, I don’t know these people. Another issue with the system is the parents, in this case it’s my sister. She was given visitation rights, supervised visitation rights, but it’s been two weeks and still no information. We don’t know which home the kids are at. We know they are in a home, but we don’t know which home because a social worker says, oh, we need at least two weeks to release that information. Then I need time to schedule a visit. These kids need to at least hear it’s going to be okay. That’s all we at least wanna just see them to say that it’s going to be okay. We will figure it out. But they’re just there. They just took them and didn’t even say, okay, this is what gonna happen. Can you give your goodbyes? It’s for you to just give them, that little word, just to feel safe, that we will figure it out. And then also in this specific case my aunt was actually at court. She wasn’t allowed in the room, and she spoke to the social worker. And the social worker said okay. You they would have to request for you to be in there. So he knew she was out there, but he didn’t request for her to be in there. If you had requested, the judge would’ve seen her and probably, the judge would’ve been like, okay, let’s consider her let’s do the background search to see if she’s a good fit to take them.”