By Ben Winslow
Deseret News
Published: Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2008 12:18 a.m. MST

A Fundamentalist LDS mother who sought sanctions against Texas child welfare officials for taking her 2-year-old daughter in the raid on the YFZ Ranch has dropped the issue.

Naomi Johnson sought financial damages against Texas Child Protective Services, claiming the agency failed to show it had evidence of abuse involving her daughter, Rebecca, and made sweeping abuse allegations against the entire FLDS community.

A hearing on sanctions was scheduled in San Angelo, Texas, Wednesday. But the hearing was canceled after the toddler was "nonsuited" on Oct. 28.

"We basically swapped nonsuits," Johnson's attorney, Robert Gibson Jr., told the Deseret News on Monday. "They dismissed, we dismissed."

In April, law enforcement and child welfare workers raided the YFZ Ranch after a phone call alleged abuse. Approximately 439 of children were taken into protective custody, only to be returned two months later when a pair of Texas courts ruled the state acted improperly and the children were not in immediate danger of abuse.

To date, only 37 children remain a part of the ongoing child custody case. The rest have been "nonsuited," or dropped from court oversight after CPS said its investigators either found no evidence of abuse or their parents had taken appropriate steps to protect the children.

"They went through a hellish nightmare," Gibson said of Johnson and her daughter. "Just to know that they don't have the state hanging over them is a huge relief."

Gibson said FLDS families could pursue a civil lawsuit against the agency for the removal of the children, but noted that Texas immunity laws would make it very difficult. While a recent federal court ruling changed how CPS removes children, it came after the removal of the children from the YFZ Ranch, he said, and any change in law cannot be applied retroactively.

Johnson is still awaiting a letter detailing the findings of CPS's investigation involving her child. Every family is expected to receive a letter that declares whether abuse has or has not been found. If Johnson is found to be an abusive parent but her child was nonsuited, "our remedy is to file a lawsuit to have that removed," Gibson said.

Hearings are also scheduled in Texas Wednesday to review the status of six children that CPS sought to place back in foster care. Their parents struck deals with the agency to keep them in their homes.

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com

http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705264178,00.html

Emphasis added by H4K Editor