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LEGAL/LEGISLATIVE UPDATES
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ACROSS THE STATES
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State breaks new ground
Utah has a good reputation when it comes to respecting parental rights, and the Utah legislature recently made history by creating an office of child welfare parental defense to make sure every parent's rights are protected. House Bill 268, sponsored by Representative Mike Thompson, established the new office this year as a part of the Utah Department of Administrative Services. The legislation budgets $239,000 to establish a child welfare parental defense fund and hire an executive director to provide assistance and advice for families charged with child abuse or neglect.
American law provides for "public defenders" to guarantee that poor citizens charged with a crime do not go unrepresented in court simply because they cannot afford competent legal counsel. Home School Legal Defense Association has long been concerned by the grave injustice of a system that protects criminal defendants from jail but leaves parents in danger of having a child taken away upon the mere suspicion of abuse or neglect. Utah has taken the first step to ensure real assistance for poor families who face this threat.
If you know a competent Utah attorney who is eager to defend parental rights against state power and might be a good candidate for executive director of the new office, please contact legale@hslda.org at your earliest convenience. With your help, we can make sure that the new director of the office of child welfare parental defense does an excellent job of advancing freedom for Utah families.
— by Scott W. Somerville
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