The law was designed to help Native American families remain intact. Allie Greenleaf Maldonado said her grandmother and uncles were placed in boarding schools, forced to cut their hair and beaten if they practiced their religion. About a dozen states have similar laws, some of which expand the definition, said Sarah Kastelic, director of the National Indian Child Welfare Association. By. Regardless of tribal membership, Lexi should be allowed to live with her family, just as all children in any deprived case should.. They said they wanted to adopt the girl. 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. ", The Associated Press contributed to this report, Elizabeth Holmes has 2nd child as she tries to avoid prison, New Topgolf facility opens next to Montebello Golf Course, Man stopped at Pa. airport with explosive concealed in checked luggage. One of her biological sisters lives with the family in Utah, and another lives down the street. "The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011," the tribe said in a statement. It was enacted in 1978 because of the high removal rate of Indian children from their traditional homes and essentially from Indian culture as a whole. Copyright 2023 by The Associated Press. The standard is supposed to be the best interest of the child, and thats why these things have to be judged on a case-by-case basis., The Choctaw Nation declined to make the Utah family available for comment, citing concerns over Lexis safety. She has a broken nose, a cheekbone and also a hole in her jaw. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. "It was important to halt that removal, to correct state behavior, to put in minimum standards," she said. After she left Croatia last year, Lexi jetted off to Saint Lucia, where she spent her birthday. It means if youre a foster family and if you have an Indian child, you should be terrified that your child could be taken at any time, says Mark Fiddler, a Minnesota attorney who represented the adoptive parents in the Baby Veronica case. 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. Last March, she was taken from her foster home near Los Angeles, and a state appeals court in July upheld the girl's removal from the Page home. 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. Distraught and weeping, Page shared his foster daughter's parting words with CBS Los Angeles: "Don't let them take me. In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the law didn't apply in a South Carolina case involving a young girl named Veronica because her Cherokee father was absent from part of her life. 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. They are taking her! The Page family loves you.. Family . The boy is now 3, and the couple is seeking to adopt his younger half-sister. 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). This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. Theyre using this to attack tribal sovereignty, attack Indian people, and attack the Indian Child Welfare act, he says. 2019 The Associated Press. And applying ICWA to children who had no prior connection to any tribe raises grave equal protection concerns, as the US Supreme Court recognized in 2013, in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl. Group that started #KeepLexiHome is still outside praying/singing. An independent clinical psychologist was brought in to gauge her ability to transition from the foster home to her relatives. She was taken by the Department of Children and Families in Santa Clarita and placed with relatives of her father in Utah. 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. Many steps have been taken by the Choctaw Nation to ensure the best placement of Lexi. Her mother had substance abuse problems, and her father had a criminal history, according to court records. At issue is the Indian . 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 is now living in Utah with relatives of her father who are not Native Americans. "While the past 10 days have been complete anguish for our family, there's no way our pain can compare to the confusion and disorientation that Lexi is experiencing," Rusty Page said. ABC's Kayna Whitworth has the details from Los Angeles. The tribe intervened and has identified three dozen possible placements. Official Statement from Lori Alvino-McGill representing The Page Family's Legal Team. The Minnesota couple, the Cliffords, wanted to adopt a girl who lived with them after being in various foster homes for two years. Her father, who had a criminal history, never lived on a Choctaw reservation and didnt have any social, political, or cultural ties to the tribe, according to the court documents. Lexi had sobbed as she was taken away, begging her father: 'Don't let them take me away.'. The Librettis in Nevada arranged with a pregnant woman, Altagracia Hernandez, to adopt her unborn child. 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. "Our family is so incredibly devastated. 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. 1 talking about this. The state Supreme Court declined to review the case, clearing the way for the family to petition the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene. 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. However, a court found that the Pages have not proven Lexi would suffer emotional harm by the transfer. The boy's parents voluntarily terminated their parental rights, and the Brackeens petitioned to adopt him. Remember that LA County placed this little girl in foster care with our clients after she had suffered two years of neglect and abuse. 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. Where is Lexi page now? Lexi was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her birth parents. 2016 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Bipartisan Senate group unveils rail safety bill in response to Ohio derailment, 6-year-old caught in tribal custody battle. Copyright 2023 KABC Television, LLC. 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. Please respect the privacy of Lexi and her family. The Pages were always aware of this goal. Removal 1830-1862. Lexi's safety and wellbeing are the Choctaw Nation's paramount concern. Please enter valid email address to continue. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. 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. Fletcher contends the Pages lawyers are using Lexis case as a legal weapon to challenge ICWA. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. There's a heartbreaking update to . The brutal racial politics of the Indian Child Welfare Act. Those factors included Lexi's relationship with her extended family and half-siblings, their capacity to help her reconnect with her tribal roots, and the Pages' "relative reluctance or resistance" to foster Lexi's relationship with her extended family or encourage exploration of her Choctaw cultural identity, the judges wrote in their ruling. 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. 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. Opinion. "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. 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 tribe at first said she wasn't eligible for membership but later reversed course. Placement with family is the gold-standard of any child-custody case, not just a case involving tribal children. And Lexi is part Choctaw, a federally recognized American Indian tribe, which means the Indian Child Welfare Acts placement preferences applied. The documents said that Lexi is related to the Utah couple, who are not Native American, through her step-grandfather. 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. 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. 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. Officials with the Choctaw Nation have said previously they desire "the best for this Choctaw child. Many Native American families have stories about loved ones who disappeared and never returned. BY LORELEI LAIRD January 11, 2017 www.abajournal.com. But a decision earlier this month ordered the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (LA DCFS) to place Lexi with the Utah family in accordance with the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, the department said in response to inquiries about Lexi's case. 19:37 GMT 09 Jan 2017 They are not interested in anything except full custody, and they are not thinking about this little girls best interests, the lawyers statement said. The Removal Act affects Choctaw first. Her name is Lexi," the petition said. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Chyler Grey starred in Grey's Anatomy on ABC from 2007 until 2012. . All children, not just Native children, do better with caring relatives. Lexi is now with her extended family and her biological sister in Utah. Her former foster parents, Rusty and Summer Page, asked the appeals court to reverse a lower court ruling that ordered them to surrender Lexi. All children, not just Native children, do better with caring relatives. There is still considerable disagreement over the application of the law and whether it serves children's best interest, said Ralph Richard Banks, a professor at Stanford Law School. Lexi can remain where she belongs, with extended family that will raise her and a sister in the Choctaw tradition. 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. ICWA gives a higher preference to family members seeking to adopt, as does California law. "The foster family was well aware years ago this girl is an Indian child, whose case is subject to the requirements of the Indian Child Welfare Act," the National Indian Child Welfare Association said in a statement. I'm scared. Lexi can remain where she. Where is Lexi page now 2021? Images of the girl being carried away from her foster home drew widespread attention. "These relatives have been a part of Lexi's life for almost five years. 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. Hernandez is a plaintiff in the case. Testimony in Congress showed that was due to ignorance of tribes' values and social norms. The law, passed in 1978, outlines federal requirements that apply to state custody proceedings that involve a child who is a member of or eligible for membership in a federally recognized tribe. 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 Five Tribes purchased new lands in present-day Oklahoma, but some relocated . 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