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. The California court appointed a marriage and family therapist to perform a child custody evaluation to assess the mental health and parenting practices of both parties. Lexi had a court-appointed attorney from the Childrens Law Center of California in the lower courts. First published on July 8, 2016 / 10:41 PM. Live footage on our Facebook page. Rusty and Summer Page of Santa Clarita, California, have long fought to gain custody of Lexi, 6, who is 1.56 percent Choctaw Native American. She was placed with extended family in Utah under a decades-old federal law designed to keep Native American families together. Many steps have been taken by the Choctaw Nation to ensure the best placement of Lexi. A crowd of friends and neighbors wept, prayed or sang hymns. McGill also requested that custody of the child named Lexi be returned to Rusty and Summer Page until the appeal is decided. "It would be fairly extraordinary for an appeals court to reverse that," he said. 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. "There is a 6-year-old little girl who is going to be ripped away from the only family that she has ever known. Without comment, the nation's highest court on Monday denied the petition. "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?" They were able to adopt the boy in January 2018 after the placement fell through. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday. These relatives have been a part of Lexi's life for almost five years. 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. 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. Their attorney argued the lower court made an error by failing to take into account Lexi's bond with her foster parents and siblings. The Pages have three children and want to adopt Lexi, who has lived with them since she was 2. First published on March 12, 2019 / 8:06 AM. Her . 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. The bottom line is that children subject to ICWA are second-class citizens, by law. 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. "The issue is not what degree of Choctaw ancestry a child has," Singel said. Thousandsnearly one-third of the Choctaw Nationdie of starvation, exposure, and disease on the more than 500-mile journey. 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. The boy's parents voluntarily terminated their parental rights, and the Brackeens petitioned to adopt him. 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. Once a child is placed with a Native American family, it is highly unlikely that the decision would be reversed, he added. Lexi, a six-year-old with one-and-a-half per cent Choctaw blood has been removed from her foster parents of five years Protesters tried to stop government officials from taking the child from. 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. 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. The Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011. The Page family spoke out during a news conference a day after the California Supreme Court refused to intervene in their custody battle over Lexi. Lexis only parent with Choctaw blood is her birth father, who never had custody of her. 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. One of Lexis biological sisters, who is Choctaw, lives with the Utah family, and another lives nearby. Lexi was placed with the Pages who have three other children in December 2011 after two unsuccessful foster homes, including one where she was taken out of because of a black eye and a scrape on her face, the court documents said. Our family is so incredibly devastated, Rusty Page said in a video statement. Therefore we will continue to work to maintain these values and work toward the long-term best interest of this child.". We are appealing the decision, and we have asked the state Supreme Court to step in and halt this hasty change in custody before it causes irreparable harm. Images of the girl being carried away from her foster home drew widespread attention. "There's no doubt in my mind that what happened . A California appeals court affirmed in July a lower courts decision to remove the girl. Official Statement from Lori Alvino-McGill representing The Page Family's Legal Team. Please respect the privacy of Lexi and her family. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. 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 Pages have fought efforts under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act to place Lexi with relatives of her father, who is part Choctaw. Lexi was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her birth parents. She underwent her first surgery just last night but has been unable to sleep well because of the pain and the trauma. The following statement reflects the Choctaw Nation's position on the case of Lexi. All rights reserved, Two Hospitalized in Critical Condition, Including 3-Year-Old Child, in Fire at Long Beach Home, There Goes My Hero.' Lexi can remain where she. Under the transfer, Lexi will live with a Utah couple who are not Native Americans but are related by marriage to her father. The Minnesota couple, the Cliffords, wanted to adopt a girl who lived with them after being in various foster homes for two years. She was taken by the Department of Children and Families in Santa Clarita and placed with relatives of her father in Utah. Lexi was 17 months old when she was removed from the custody of her mother, who had drug-abuse problems. David Crane / Los Angeles Daily News via AP, had been camped out in the street singing and praying since Sunday. The girl's sister is living with the couple, and another sister will be living down the street, said Leslie Heimov of the Children's Law Center of California, Lexi's court-appointed legal representatives. After she left Croatia last year, Lexi jetted off to Saint Lucia, where she spent her birthday. 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. . The wrenching dispute echoes themes of the 2013 Baby Veronica case, in which an adoptive family sued for custody of a young Cherokee girl after her biological father renounced paternal rights. I'm scared. Forrest Hanson For Dailymail.com Associated Press 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. The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Monday to hear a foster familys challenge to the adoption of their former foster daughter under the Indian Child Welfare Act. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. When the federal law was enacted, studies showed up to one-third of Native American children were being taken from their homes by private and state agencies, including church-run programs, and placed with mostly white families or in boarding schools. The Pages have three children and want to adopt Lexi, who is 1/64th Choctaw on her birth father's side. She was reunited with her biological sister in the home but none of the family members are Native American. "The fear is without the statute, Indian children will once again sort of disappear into the child welfare system and be lost to their families and their tribes," said Adam Charnes, who will present arguments on behalf of five intervening tribes before a panel of the 5th U.S. An independent clinical psychologist was brought in to gauge her ability to transition from the foster home to her relatives. "Early this morning, we learned that the U.S. Supreme Court will not hear our case," the Pages wrote in a statement on the SaveOurLexi Facebook page. The Supreme Court made no comment when it denied certiorari in the case Monday (PDF). But placement with family is always our priority. ###. "Rather the issue is whether the child is a citizen of the tribe in question or eligible for citizenship.". The family's lawyer, Lori Alvino McGill, filed the request for the California Supreme Court to hear the appeal. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Relatives are relatives.. She said Lexi and the Utah family had traded messages and had monthly visits during the past three years. Rusty Page told CBS News Radio station KNX-AM. Placement with family is the gold-standard of any child-custody case, not just a case involving tribal children. In the days since Lexi was removed from the Southern California home, her foster parents have continued to fight the decision. Group that started #KeepLexiHome is still outside praying/singing. The following statement reflects the Choctaw Nation's position on the case of Lexi. 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 . 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. Her father has a criminal history, according to court records. All children, not just Native children, do better with caring relatives. That case has key differences from the fight over Lexi: Baby Veronica was legally adopted through a private agency, while foster care is a more limited form of guardianship. DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The custody battle over a 6-year-old girl heated up on Friday, as a state appeals court heard arguments from both sides. Lexi, who is part Choctaw, was 17 months old when she was removed from custody of her mother. In 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs issued guidance on implementing the Indian Child Welfare Act - clarifying that tribes alone are responsible for determining who is a member. Congress passed the Indian Child Welfare Act in 1978 because a high number of Native American children were being removed from their homes by public and private agencies. What happened yesterday should never happen, to any child. . "She has a loving relationship with them," Heimov said. One of Lexis biological sisters, who is Choctaw, lives with the Utah family, and another lives nearby. 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. 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. "It was important to halt that removal, to correct state behavior, to put in minimum standards," she said. The Pages have appealed the case to the California Supreme Court. Removal 1830-1862. The Supreme Court ruled that portions of the ICWA did not apply to non-custodial biological fathers, and Veronica was returned to the family that had adopted her. what happened to lexi choctaw 2021. The foster family understood this. 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.". "They are not strangers in any way, shape or form. "The issue is not what degree of Choctaw ancestry a child has," Singel said. The California Court of Appeals originally ruled in August of 2014 that Lexi could stay with the Pages and they could continue to fight the Utah family for custody of the child. According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Lexi and her . Oak Lawn police officer charged after teen's violent arrest, ABC7 Chicago says farewell to Meteorologist Phil Schwarz, Kitchen Possible empowers kids in Chicago. The family has been waiting for five years for all of them to be together. 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 Choctaw Nation has advocated for Lexi to live with her family since 2011. ", 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. , updated 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. Her mother had substance abuse problems, and her father had a criminal history, according to court records. 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. However, Lexi also had extended family members who sought to adopt her once it was clear that a reunion with her birth father was not possible. The Pages were always aware of this goal. But officials determined that Lexi is 1/64th Choctaw based on his ancestry. Alexa suffered injuries on her face. "Fundamentally, the issue here is that the Indian Child Welfare Act subordinates individualized considerations of a child's best interest in favor of a blunt assumption that being placed with a tribe is going to be better for the tribe, and that's just demonstrably untrue," he said. 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. 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