Looks Like Kidnapping is Now Legal in Ohio

By Mir
August 8, 2010
Category Friends

UPDATE 8/10/10: Here is a scan of the affidavits filed in this case for those who are looking for official proof.

UPDATE 8/11/10: I granted Hollis the space to share this story to hopefully generate some media attention. It worked. It also brought over a lot of people who aren’t very good at playing nicely, and as I have a life to maintain I’m now moderating comments rather than allowing y’all free rein to spew all over my site.

UPDATE 9/11/10: Mandy has regained custody of baby Madison! April Brown tested positive for illegal drug use three times in the last month before the hearing. Justice was finally served, albeit at the expense of seven months lost between mother and child.

And now for something completely different: The piece that follows was penned by no other than the mistress of shocking real life herself, Hollis Gillespie. If you are unfamiliar with Hollis’ work, let’s just say that I would have to hate her a whole lot if she wasn’t also so freaking warm and kind on top of being hilarious and successful. Not only that, she’s a fellow divorced mama, and you KNOW we have a club for that. (Although of course now those of you who aren’t members will have to die because I told you. Sorry.)

Anyway, Hollis is trying to get the word out about this story, and I am trying to help. Please read, share, and do what you can. Without further ado, here’s Hollis:

As a divorced parent, I sometimes think I’ve seen it all. For one, I thought there were only two worlds when it came to child-custody; the regular one in which we operate daily, and this other total toilet spin of rules and bureaucratic turd pellets referred to as family law. But at least in that second world the rules are fairly followed. But recently I discovered this whole other third world. Consider it a dwarf planet of pure courtroom nuttiness, where all the rules exist but they’re ignored. This is where the Ohio court case Brown vs. Elliot resides, and you’re not gonna believe this*:

It began one day last March when a young mother named Amanda Elliot, 27, went to retrieve her three-month-old from her babysitter, April Brown, 46. Only instead of giving the baby back to her mother, Ms. Brown informed Mandy that she had gone to court that morning and petitioned for emergency custody of the baby. “Wow,” you may think, “what a crazy squirrel that babysitter is.”

But it appears as though even a crazy squirrel can find a crazy nut every once in a while. And it turns out that the Ohio Miami County magistrate actually granted the petition for custody, based, it seems, mainly on Ms. Brown’s contention that the child had too much pet hair on her clothes. So, in short, there actually exists among us the possibility that your babysitter can just decide one day to take your kid to family court, concoct a story that isn’t even that compelling (since when is pet hair grounds to have your child removed from your custody?) and walk away with a court order that literally gives her your baby. [Click here for more details of Mandy’s case.]

It would be one thing if Mandy was a bad mother. But at this time there is no evidence that Mandy Elliot has never had a complaint levied against her at DFACS or by the police or by any other Child Protective Service or, for that matter, by any party whatsoever, let alone Ms. Brown. The mother has never been convicted or even accused of any drug-related activity. She has two other children and has no criminal record. I’m told that Ms. Brown, on the other hand, does have a police record, and her husband who shares the same address with her has been convicted of criminal child abuse.

Seriously, if you were the extremely forgiving type, you could almost forgive this magistrate and figure it’ll all be dropped the minute Mandy gets a lawyer to point out that the mother is an upstanding citizen, right? But Mandy did get an attorney, a non-profit victim’s advocate named Kimberly Kislig**, who immediately filed an appeal to return custody of the child to its rightful parent. But get this, appeals like this traditionally go before the same magistrate who made the original decision, and this magistrate – based on no legal reason (again, pet hair?), and with the competent albeit very distraught mother standing right there before her — upheld her decision. So presently, this newborn has been separated from its mother going on four months now. The babysitter, Ms. Brown, often doesn’t even allow the mother her court-allotted visitation. This mother, Mandy, has done nothing to merit the removal of her child into the custody of another. The case, Brown vs. Elliot, is slated to go before a higher court in mid-September.

Again, and I apologize for repeating this, but there is no legal reason for Ms. Brown to have custody of this baby over its mother. It is not legal for the court to give your baby to someone else just because that person showed up there and said she thought the baby had too much pet hair*** on her clothes. Remember, this is not a custody battle between a mother and a father, or even one between a parent and a relative. This is a custody battle between a mother and some person who is not related to the baby in any way. Unlike Ms. Brown, though, Mandy is poor. Unlike Mandy, Ms. Brown has a high-priced attorney. Mandy is battling an established bias against her, as mystifying and without merit as that may be, and it takes time, dedication and money for court fees to fight that. So please help Mandy by contributing to her cause or by linking to this story and to Mandy’s donation page. Hopefully it will bring this absurdity to light so it might never happen again. Thank you. I mean it. Seriously. Thank you for doing what you can to help keep the world from devolving into a big awful wad of rubber stamps, bureaucrats, their bad decisions and the children damaged by them.

*All of the accounts in this story are true so long as the truth can be trusted to my own personal recollection and not that of anyone else’s.

** Full disclosure, this is my little sister, otherwise known as “The Good Sister” in my books.

*** Mandy does not even own a pet.

110 Comments

  1. meghann

    I. . .uh.

    …..

    ……

    I’m stunned, and can’t think of anything to say, really.

  2. Randi

    This is just IN-FREAKING-SANE!! Are there any newspapers on this story?!

  3. Jamie

    This is unbelievable. I forwarded it to Nancy Grace of CNN. She is such a tough gal when it comes to children’s cases, I hope she gets the note!

  4. Michelle

    Thanks for sharing this, just donated a little to her campaign. What insanity.

  5. addy

    ummmm ….ya! WTF???

  6. hollis

    I cold-called (via email) a couple of reporters for the local papers. But I have no idea if they’re gonna follow through. Who knows, this might not be a big deal to them. So I thought I’d grass-root it. I’m talking to an NBC producer later tonight.

  7. Veronica

    Gobsmacked.

  8. Karen

    Shades of women who were charged with child sexual abuse for breastfeeding their toddlers.

  9. deborah

    Well that threw our culture back 100 years,,,stupid stupid stupid magistrate. Now what happens-God forbid- this baby is abused while in the so-called babysitter’s care? I’m outraged!

  10. Sherri

    I am shocked! This is horrible. How can a judge justify this decision?

  11. hollis

    Here is the latest: The babysitter, Ms. Brown, recently withheld the mother’s visitation for two weeks because she said that the baby got sunburned previously in the mother’s care. In a subsequent police report it was noted that the baby didn’t look sunburned. A contempt motion was filed to be heard concurrent with Mandy’s final trial, at which point the babysitter may be granted permanent custody. It just keeps getting worse.

  12. Jen B

    this is making me absolutely sick. how utterly ridiculous and sad!

  13. Anonymous-for-this-one

    Gave what I could. Wish I could give more. No, wish there was no reason to raise the money. *sigh*

    I’m anonymous for this comment, because I’m trembling with rage. This poor woman has lost her baby for NO reason to a whacko. Meanwhile, my sister-in-law is a meth addict with four children by three fathers. Child #1 is a 12-year-old hitting puberty at full-speed who spends afternoons taking care of the toddler and the baby by herself while surfing the Internet unsupervised. Yes, baby bottles filled with off-brand cola and gummy candies and potato chips as snacks.

    S-i-L “didn’t know” she was pregnant with #4 until six weeks before giving birth. Doctors know of her addiction, due to multiple medical crises, and she’s on various welfare programs because she refuses to work — yet we can’t get custody of any of the children, despite having good jobs, a home of our own, etc.

    There are some SERIOUS problems with the system.

  14. JT

    Why is there absolutely no information on this whatsoever outside of your page?

    The media would be all over this, if it were true. Yet there is not a single mention anywhere.

  15. Julie

    This is the scariest damn thing I’ve ever heard. Will give what I can. Keep us posted on further developments. I feel awful for that poor mother and even worse for that innocent child.

  16. JT

    You’ve also put a lot of work into campaign-tracking the “site with more info on the case”.

    If this were a simple charitable event, why would you need to campaign track? Are you trying to find which online communities have the most gullible occupants?

    Serious question, who does campaign tracking on that sort of thing? I’m amazed people have no initiative to do any fact checking on their own before opening their wallets.

  17. Ingrid

    This is just horrifying.

  18. Linda

    Can we add your link to our Facebook page?

  19. the celt (jessica)

    Will you keep us apprised of this situation? I’m am astounded at the lack of intelligence and common sense shown as this farce goes on. What is wrong with this court system AND that “babysitter”? How did she even think it would remotely be accepted that “too much pet hair” would give her custody and, worse yet, how did it actually go that far as to truly grant her custody?

  20. Nancy R

    I semi-copied this and posted it on my blog.

  21. hollis

    Not sure what campaign tracking is. I learned about this case a month ago because my sister is the non-profit attorney trying to help the mother. This is happening in a small town to a mother living close to the poverty level. I kept assuming the situation would right itself, but as I checked back it just got worse and worse. I figured it was time to get the word out.

  22. Stacy

    This needs to hit the media!! Can someone not get it in the newspapers?
    Link me to some newspaper articles, or a tv interview, etc and I’ll be happy to help out!

    Please, more details to help validify this and I can get people to help!

  23. hollis gillespie

    Hey, all, if anyone has an in with local media in Ohio, message me on Facebook, or just please forward this to them. I’ve cold-contacted via email a couple of journalists in Dayton and Sidney, but I have no idea if they’ll follow through. It’s time someone take the rein.

  24. hollis gillespie

    Donations to Mandy’s cause are TAX EXEMPT. Here is the info:

    Christian Legal Services of Shelby County, Inc. non-profit EIN 27-0309396 (OH)

    Christian Legal Services of Shelby County, Inc. tax-exempt EIN 73-6109354

    (through the Full Gospel Fellowship of Churches and Ministers International (TX)

    Group Exemption Number 1620)

  25. Kimberly Kislig

    I understand that some are questioning the validity of this case. I am Mandy’s attorney and I can verify its validity.

    This is a true case and a very sad one, I think. I am absolutely flabbergasted at what has occurred! However, unfortunately, being poor in Midwest small-town America does not always get you the justice you deserve.

    We are a non-profit Christian agency who offer reduced fee legal services to those in Shelby County, Ohio, who fit within 125%-150% of the Federal poverty guidelines. When Mandy came to me, I told her at first that we could not help because it was in Miami County, Ohio, but once I heard her story (and verified some of the details), I made an exception and took on her case.

    April got emergency temporary custody of Madison, Mandy’s 5-month old daughter, in March, 2010, based on an affidavit filled with blatant lies, including the “pet hair” nonsense; that Mandy is mentally challenged (Mandy has completed 2 years of college!); that Mandy has substance abuse problems (Mandy does not drink or do drugs!); and that Mandy lived in an attic with 15 animals (Mandy lives with her father, in a 2-bedroom apartment, with one dog!).

    I thought the outrageous matter would be taken care of at the first hearing but for reasons absolutely inexplicable to me, the Magistrate continued custody with April, indicating that April was taking good care of Madison!

    In any case, Mandy is in desperate need of any type of assistance. Financial contributions would help, of course, and also please keep her and Madison in your prayers. Her final hearing comes up on September 10, 2010. Even if the Magistrate does the right thing, which is not at all certain considering how she has ruled so far, Madison will still have been separated from Mandy for over six months!

    Mandy is very sad at this time because the justice system has really let her and Madison down and at this point, Madison does not even seem to recognize Mandy as her mother, but rather appears to believe that April is her mother.

    If you have any more questions, please feel free to contact me.

    God bless,
    Kim Kislig

    Kimberly S. Kislig, Esq.,
    Executive Director
    CHRISTIAN LEGAL SERVICES
    OF SHELBY COUNTY, INC.
    219 E. Court Street
    Sidney, OH 45365
    (937) 710-4544 (ph)
    (937) 710-4721 (fax)
    christianlegalshelby@woh.rr.com

    “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.” Phil. 4:13.

  26. Rachel Garcia

    Please let us know how we can fact check this. It sounds like a hoax. The campaign constant webpage is not convincing me- in fact it looks awfully slick for somebody with no money. I live in OH, and I am quite concerned- and yes shocked if this is actually true.

  27. Mia

    I wish I could talk to that momma – the sense of absolute shock and disbelief, the surreal quality of it all, the injustice – I live that too while I’m waiting for MY kids to be returned… only at least, oh thankfully, at least my kids KNOW what’s happening and we can discuss it so they know I’m loving them no matter where I am. But the breath-sucking “it can’t be happening” feeling is still the same. I send her my prayers, because that is all I can afford while I fight my own court battle. Tell her, tell her to hold on to truth no matter what. It won’t really help, but it doesn’t hurt.

  28. hollis gillespie

    Here’s how you can fact-check this:
    The attorney’s name is Kimberly Kislig. Her number is (937) 710-4544 (ph)
    The case is public record in the Ohio Miami County Court — Brown vs. Elliot

    I wrote the campaign page myself. I’m savvy with social media, my sister (Kimberly Kislig) is a social-media techtard. She doesn’t even have a website yet. She’s too busy helping people to court media.

  29. Christina

    If this is true, then I take back anything I am about to say, because that is horrible.

    But, it’s a shocking story that gets people investigating, and I’m sure that all of the links that are in the article and the blog itself are set up to where someone gets paid when you click the links. Smart huh? I just cant believe something like this would seriously be true. How the hell can a judge have a custody hearing when the person who has custody at the time has not been notified or is even aware of what is going on? It couldn’t possibly happen. No freaking way. I smell a big scam for money purposes.

  30. Christina

    Furthermore, you cant search Brown vs Elliot, link directly to the page with the info and maybe I’ll believe it. This simply does not seem possible, and if it is, it saddens me. But something just doesnt add up. You’re telling me that the media has NOTHING on this? You dont have to have money to contact the media.

  31. Kimberly Kislig

    My client has indicated that I can release this information about her case:

    Miami County Ohio Juvenile Court case number 21030146
    Magistrate Gretchen Beers

    In re Madison Brown DOB 09/25/09

    Movant April Brown – attorney Todd Severt (who is also April’s landlord)
    Respondent Amanda Elliott – attorney Kimberly Kislig

    Here is the summary information that I sent to the guardian ad litem, Jennifer Walters, assigned to this case:

    Ms. Jennifer J. Walters
    80 South Plum Street
    Troy, OH 45373

    RE: Brown v. Elliott GAL investigation

    Dear Ms. Waters:

    You requested a short summary of my client’s position. In short, my client, Amanda Elliott (“Mandy”) believes that April Brown (“April”) has literally and figuratively kidnapped her child, Madison. April received ex-parte custody of Madison in March, 2010, based upon a perjurious affidavit as follows:

    1) April indicated that Joshua Brown was Madison’s father. He is not. (Joshua Brown is April’s nephew and Mandy’s boyfriend. April knew, as well as Joshua, that he is not Madison’s biological father but he planned and plans to raise Madison as his own.)

    2) April indicated that she is Madison’s paternal great-aunt. She is not.

    3) April indicated that Madison has been in April’s care and custody for most of her life. This is untrue as Madison has primarily been in the care and custody of the Mandy.

    4) April indicated that the Mandy lives in an attic with five people, fifteen cats and three dogs. This is untrue as the Mandy lives with her father, who only has one dog, and has her own bedroom.

    5) April indicated that Madison does not have her own bedroom and sleeps in a bassinet that is too small for her. This is only partially true as Madison, who was only five months old (now 8 months old), does sleep in the Mandy’s room but not in a bassinet but a crib, which is plenty big enough for Madison.

    6) April indicated that the Mandy is nomadic. This is untrue as the Mandy lives with her father, and has her own bedroom.

    7) April indicated that the Mandy is mentally challenged and has alcohol issues. This is untrue as the Mandy graduated from high school and Upper Valley Joint Vocational School and has taken college courses. In addition, the Mandy does not drink alcohol.

    8) April indicated that the Mandy is unemployed. This is only partially true and the Mandy had been employed for the last two months before April received custody at a program called Safe Haven, working 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., which is a program that is designed to help single moms become employed. (Because April took Madison, Mandy was terminated from this program.)

    Once April received ex-parte temporary custody, she refused to allow Mandy to see Madison and told Mandy that she would never see Madison again. Three weeks later, in April, 2010, the Court held a one-hour hearing, allowing each side one-half hour, about temporary custody. Mandy testified as to the truth of the false allegations made against her by April. At the hearing, April admitted that the allegations that she made were false and even stated that she had never even been inside Mandy’s residence to see what the living conditions were like or where Madison slept. April also indicated that she had never called Childrens Services with any of her “alleged” concerns about Mandy’s care of Madison. April showed two pictures of Mandy taken on New Year’s Eve and Valentine’s Day, which were on Facebook, which allegedly showed that Mandy was drunk. Madison was not with Mandy in these pictures. Mandy denied that she was drunk and in fact, indicated that she does not drink alcohol at all. April also showed some marked up calendar in which she allegedly marked each day since Madison’s birth that Madison had been in her care. Notably, this “calendar” indicated that April took Madison home from the hospital and then faced with witness testimony that Mandy took Madison home from the hospital, April recanted on the stand, indicating that she had Madison a week later. For reasons unknown to me, the Court kept temporary custody with April, with visitation for Mandy on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. The Court ordered an in-home evaluation of April since April is not related to Madison.

    A review of April’s in-home evaluation done after the April hearing revealed several “inconsistencies”. For one, she continues with her lies about Mandy indicating that Mandy is homeless and learning-disabled, when that was proven untrue at the April hearing. She indicated that Madison lived with April since she was one week old, with Mandy’s consent, which is patently untrue as Mandy has been vehemently objecting, as substantiated by her actions since at least March, 2010. April indicated that Mandy’s two other children, a two year old son and a seven year old daughter, are being raised by their fathers, which is untrue as Mandy has shared parenting of both these children. For another, April indicated that she did not drink or smoke and Mandy has witnesses who state that April both drinks and smokes and in fact, smokes marijuana, which is supported by her possession of drugs violation in 2008. April also takes Wellbutrin for depression; Xanax to calm her nerves, and Lexapro as a mood stabilizer, which certainly is a concern to Mandy. Also, in 2008, the Miami County Childrens Services found a substantiated child abuse allegation against April’s husband, which allegedly lives in the home with April. However, Mandy has since learned that April and her husband have separated; April has moved in some boyfriend named “Bobby” and April’s bi-polar son, Timothy, who has violent tendencies. According to Mandy, April has also started an affair with Timothy’s anger management coach, an African American male that Mandy saw April “seriously making out with” in a car with in front of April’s house, at a time when Madison was supposed to be in April’s care!

    In May, 2010, my client requested expanded visitation, including overnight visits, because she was concerned that Madison was not recognizing her as her mother and that mother/infant bonding was being disturbed. At the hearing, April indicated that she did not wish Mandy to have overnight visitation because Mandy once brought Madison to her house with a dirty diaper. For reasons unknown to me, the Court kept temporary custody with April, with visitation for Mandy on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays and refused to expand visitation.

    In June, 2010, April refused to allow Mandy visitation indicating that Mandy brought Madison to her house with a sunburn. Mandy denies Madison had a sunburn and so does the police officer that Mandy called. On July 2, 2010, I filed a motion in citation for contempt because of April’s refusal to allow Mandy visitation.

    This matter is set for hearing on September 10, 2010.

  32. kathy

    And I’m just jaded enough to believe this is a real possibility of “justice” American style.

  33. Kimberly Kislig

    I know that it is difficult to believe but a person can get custody of a child on an emergency basis, without the mother knowing. The person has to have physical custody of the child, which the babysitter did; the mother has to be notified within 72 hours, which she was; and there has to be a hearing within 10 days, which there was, such as it was. In my opinion, that case was and continues to be an injustice. Please pray for Mandy and Madison. Their hearing is scheduled for September 10, 2010.

    God bless,
    Kim Kislig,
    Executive Director
    Christian Legal Services
    of Shelby County, Inc.

  34. Me

    How come it says *Mandy does not even own a pet, then in one of the comments above it says Mandy shares a 2 bedroom apt. with a father and he owns 1 dog???

    It does seem odd……..

    I am in a custody battle currently and HAVE to let my ex see his kids regularly and unsupervised and he is an ADDICT, has been arrested several times, AND has no license because he has totalled several of his vehicles…. So it is hard for me to believe someone can just take your child when I can not even protect mine….

  35. hollis gillespie

    Thanks, Kathy!! I’m posting those links on my Facebook Page!!

  36. hollis gillespie

    Mandy, the mother, has given permission to release this information about her case:

    Miami County Ohio Juvenile Court case number 21030146
    Magistrate Gretchen Beers

    In re Madison Brown DOB 09/25/09

    Movant April Brown – attorney Todd Severt (who is also April’s landlord)
    Respondent Amanda Elliott – attorney Kimberly Kislig

    guardian ad litem, Jennifer Walters, assigned to this case:

    Ms. Jennifer J. Walters
    80 South Plum Street
    Troy, OH 45373

  37. EMCD

    To all the skeptics; I understand you suspicions but I think this is legit. If you do not know of her, Hollis Gillespie is a published author and frequent columnist for a popular newsweekly here in Atlanta. I imagine she is doing what she can “to alert the media” which is not nearly as easy as it sounds. Given the specifics and contact information provided by the attorney I am inclined to believe this insane story.

  38. jwg

    Has anyone looked into any prior relationship between the magistrate and the baysitter? I smell collusion.

  39. Marianne

    Hollis-

    Can’t you get this story on NPR?

  40. Anon

    This same thing happened to my best friend. Her two year old son was taken from her by her father (previously abusive, never did a thing for my friend, was babysitting for the night because she had no other options). He got him on the grounds that she didn’t have a job (was 8 months pregnant on bedrest) and was planning to move away after giving birth to her daughter (for a job and marriage). She finally got him back, but now has to go through all these hoops to keep him.

    Ridiculous.

  41. hollis gillespie

    Totally ridiculous. What would make it even more so would be if someone who is not related to your baby in any way did the same thing, and the court LET it happen, then, once the mistake was pointed out to them, they still refused to give the baby back.

    Glad your friend got her son back.

  42. Calling crap!

    I am calling bullshit on this – seriously and for the posters who believe this crap are proving themselves to be idiots galore. My BS meter has been up from the start. I believe the story is real but I don’t believe it happened the way that it’s presented.

    Here is what I found in 2 minutes of looking on the Miami County website.

    Do I have to have a hearing to obtain custody of a child?
    Yes. It is important to gather all the important information so the Judge or Magistrate can make the decision that will be in the best interest of the child. Even if the parties involved agree about the outcome, the Court must inform them of their rights and responsibilities in any custody action.

    How do I file for custody?
    The best way is to contact an attorney who will gather the information and put it in the correct format to be filed with the Court. You may, however, choose to file an action on your own. If so, you must pick up a packet from the Court that includes basic instructions on completing the forms. You are responsible for supplying the name and address of any party that has an interest in the custody of the child such as a parent or current custodian of the child. The Court cannot act as your attorney. If you choose to file on your own, it will be up to you to try your own case and subpoena witnesses if necessary. You must also pay a filing fee of $75.00 per child in order to start a custody action.

    From here (bolded by me)

    10.01 When a complaint, counterclaim or a motion to determine paternity, establish or modify custody or any aspect of the allocation of parental rights and responsibilities is filed, the Petitioner or Movant shall file the original pleading, a memorandum or affidavit in support and the child custody affidavit with sufficient copies for all parties. The original pleading and supporting documents shall be attached by paperclip with copies stapled. Any complaint or motion that initiates or reactivates a case, but for visitation only matters, shall be accompanied by a completed, signed Title IV-D application. Pleadings shall be signed in accordance with Ohio Civil Rule 11. The matter will be set for a pretrial/uncontested hearing before a hearing officer at which time further hearings, referrals, investigations, assessments, etc. shall be discussed and scheduled. If service is complete on the opposing party and the opposing party fails to appear, personally or through counsel, an uncontested hearing shall take place.
    10.02 Counsel filing a complaint, counterclaim or a motion to establish or modify custody or allocation of parental rights and responsibilities shall also file a notice of hearing that contains the following language:

    “This matter has been scheduled for a pretrial hearing and uncontested hearing on ___________________, _______at ___________ .m. The parties, with or without counsel shall be present on the above date on the Second Floor of the Safety Building, Troy, Ohio. Failure to appear may result in the dismissal of the matter or an uncontested hearing on the matter.
    10.03 Complaints/Motions involving custody or visitation filed by a nonparent shall state the relationship to the minor child. A home study shall be ordered for all cases where a nonparent requests custody. The party seeking custody shall pay the cost of the home study.
    10.04 The Court may furnish and require the completion and filing of such forms as it deems necessary. Unless waived by the Court, no pleading shall be accepted for filing until the information requested in required forms is provided.
    10.05 A proposed Judgment Entry or Entry Setting Hearing shall be submitted with all Motions. All Entries setting hearings shall specifically state all motions/matters to be heard at said hearing.

    So I don’t believe this all happened in one day and that Mandy had no idea what was going on. She had to have been served with papers and my suspicion is that she failed to appear, making this an uncontested hearing. This also says that there had to be a home study of April’s house so no way this happened the morning she took over custody. Sorry, not buying it.

  43. Calling crap!

    Hollis, you need to get your facts straight and also perhaps get your story together. Take it to the real media – not your website where you get money for everytime someone “refreshes” or enters your website.

    There is no acknowledgement of any kind from any form of media. When you google, the only thing that comes up is you and your website – I highly doubt that you are the only “true source” and are the only “brilliant” one to think of this as a highly important case.

    I challenge you to take this to the 6’o clock news. Then, maybe I will believe your ballsy story. I challenge you to use your connections for something other than lining your pretty pockets and do “good” for someone for once (if you truly stand behind this story). Speak on behalf of this poor mandy, be her voice of reason, why are you hiding behind the blog?

    I call BS.

  44. hollis gillespie

    Just to verify, I get no money when people refresh any page anywhere whatsoever. I’m seriously curious about that common allegation, and would love to know to pursue this bountiful “pay-per-click” fortune everyone keeps bloviating about.

    I WOULD LOVE to take this the the news. That is the point of building awareness right now.

    I am also really mystified as to why people think something can’t be true just because they are the first to hear it. Or that something can’t possibly exist because the people involved don’t have blogs. Or that something is a hoax just because little is yielded in a google search.

    The fact is that this mother had her child TAKEN from her and given to a convicted criminal of no relation for no legal reason. Period.

    Here is a link to a press release:
    http://www.inappropriateconversation.com/2010/08/09/kidnapping-now-legal-in-ohio/

  45. Mir

    I think I’m the one supposedly making buckets of money off every click, Hollis. You know, as part of my nefarious plan. The one that’s making me rich RIGHT NOW.

    Wait. It doesn’t seem to be working. Could you come up with a better story, please? ;)

  46. cardinal

    Just linked the press release to my FB account. Hollis, you are reaching more people than you know. (Sorry the crazy people are in that group.) My mind still can’t wrap itself around this story.

  47. Pamela

    Calling crap:

    If you read the information from Mandy’s lawyer, you will see that there was a hearing, a home study etc. However, April kept the baby during this process (and you can see why, in a real emergency, that would be desirable). Mandy and her lawyer are asserting that she had no idea what was going on before the claim was filed; the events you discuss would happen after that.

  48. hollis gillespie

    Again, legal reasons are needed to take a baby away and just give it to someone else of no relation. Of course the mother had no idea her babysitter planned to cart her child into court one day and file for emergency custody, which was rubber stamped in a snap. The in-home evaluation (of only the babysitter’s house) was conducted after the mother was refused reunion with her child. The guardian ad litem has never been to the mother’s house or even spoken to the mother at all, and isn’t scheduled to until days before the trial Sept. 10. This is just odious.

  49. hollis gillespie

    Mir, once you’re flush with all that imaginary cash from people clicking on this post, let’s laugh all the way to the imaginary bank together!

  50. Cheryl Lewis

    I’m still shocked that this is possible, though it’s happening in my own family. For you naysayers, no, I’m not related to the case above – this is yet another one – this time in Georgia! My niece was recently awakened at daybreak by police arriving to take her three young children. Her husband had left to “run an errand.” Turns out his parents had filed an emergency petition for custody, alleging mental incapacity, and that he was planning a divorce. This was the first she had heard of his intention to leave or his parents’ plot to get the kids. This is their only hope for custody, since their son has seizures and can’t drive the kids. They planned removal on the day my sister was undergoing 6-hour surgery, so she was under anesthesia the whole time and couldn’t advocate for her daughter or grandchildren! There was no investigation into the allegations prior to taking the children. It has been over a month and there has been no 72-hour or 10-day hearing, since it is not a DFACS case and their attorney has “scheduling conflicts.” Only one visit has been granted for a few hours and, since the girls became hysterical when they had to be returned to the in-laws, not even phone calls are allowed now. It’s a travesty! I’m utterly shocked that the court would (a) take someone’s children without first checking into the claims and (b) fail to return them quickly when no wrongdoing is proven! Both mother and children are frantic and the court is, in effect, encouraging the same emotional anguish that it is supposed to seek to prevent!

  51. hollis gillespie

    Lord, Cheryl, seriously?? OM-effing-G!!!

  52. Heather

    As a fellow web designer myself, there is NO known technology which allows you to get money just for refreshing a page, or just visiting it. There may be Google ads, which require clicks to get impressions, but those offer windfalls of pennies apiece… if you click no ads, then no revenue is given.

    Blogging (and the internet) just doesn’t work that way.

    Having a professionally designed website is also not an indicator of anything… I’m a web designer myself, and it costs me *nothing* to create professional, “slick” websites that you wouldn’t be able to tell aren’t designed by firms.

    Knowing how to sling HTML and how not to make a site that sucks does not a scam make.

    There may be details about this case that are or aren’t true, but the idea of
    refreshing a page or just getting revenue by visiting a web page are silly in the extreme.

  53. Star

    This is Horriable…. But i am from ohio and i havent herd anything about this.

  54. hollis gillespie

    Star, if you are from Ohio, can you please tell people about this? The mother lives in Piqua. I’m about to blast the Brown Publishing Group with the press release. If you get local people to inquire at the paper that may help. Thanks!

  55. Bekah

    Considering that the courts have allowed a sexually abused 2 yr old child in MD to stay with the family that abused her, rather than letting her go with her father, I’m more inclined to believe that this happened and the child would be staying at said kidnappers house until facts are cleared that she wasn’t in danger at her mothers home. I don’t like it. It’s not ok at all in my book, but I do understand why the court system would think it’s ok.

    That said, my husband and I are both in agreement that the judge should be disbarred and thrown in jail. So should Ms. Brown for the slander that she has thrown upon Ms. Elliot. The idea that CPS was not involved to see if it was a legit emergency in the first place is troubling all on it’s own.

  56. Stephanie

    I read this yesterday, and my heart.just.stopped. That poor, poor mother. I talked about this with a friend last night, and now I’ve linked to the press release on my facebook page. I hope this helps get the word out, and helps in some small way.

  57. BethRD

    The thing about this that I don’t get (no matter how accurate the accusations of mistreatment of the child are or aren’t) is, why if it whatever the babysitter saw was taken as evidence that the child as in danger, why would the judge leave her with the *babysitter*? In cases like that, isn’t the child usually put into foster care, or given to a trustworthy relative or something while the justice system figures out the facts of the case? It’s just beyond peculiar that the baby would be left with a stranger who wasn’t in the foster system.

  58. hollis gillespie

    BethRD, EXACTLY!! Absolutely on-the-nose. That’s why this case is so atrocious.

  59. Rachael

    I live here in Oklahoma, and I’ve submitted the story to all three of our local stations. I can’t believe this hasn’t hit the airwaves yet.

  60. kathy

    my friend who lives in Texas and free lance photo shoots for a local paper has turned this over to her paper. I hope they do something with it.

  61. Rachael

    Well, anyway, I know my local news stations well enough to know that if this story is legit, it will be all over our news stations… all I know is, that as a mom to seven wonderful children, if this was my child, I would be beside myself! Some things don’t appear to add up, but I do know that God does know about all of this, and what Kim is trying to do for Mandy and that little one, and should it be a false story (although I don’t think it is), it will be made known. My prayers go out to this mom.

  62. Lynne

    I’ve sent it on to CNN and 2 newspapers in Ohio. I’m hoping that if we all try to get the news media involved, they will catch the hint.

  63. Mary

    This is what I got when I googled the case info.

    babysitter “kidnaps” child – this is just horrifying! – Bargain …
    10 posts – 6 authors – Last post: Feb 29, 2008
    Miami County Ohio Juvenile Court case number 21030146. Magistrate Gretchen Beers Movant April Brown – attorney Todd Severt (who is also …
    community.babycenter.com/…/babysitter_kidnaps_child_-_this_is_just_horrifying?…

  64. Dawn

    But didn’t April present herself as a blood relative aunt to the baby, rather than babysitter, in the emergency custody petition? Did the judge reaffirm temporary custody after learning April was an unrelated third party? How does anyone know that Mandy hadn’t abandoned her child or gone off for extended time, or given April some reason to think that the baby needed protection? There had to be some compelling reason for an emergency custody order of an infant…

    There are always 2 sides to every story. If this all went down in March, I am shocked that now in AUGUST, 5 months later, we are just seeing a press release..

  65. Traci

    For all those who think that the legal system would never allow this to happen…I must say that I am happy that YOU have never personally had to deal with Family Court. I live in California and am a foster and adoptive parent. You would be shocked by the things that can happen with no evidence other than word of mouth. All you have to do is fill out a form to request an Ex Parte emergency hearing, where no one need be notified, hence the emergency designation.

    I will pray with every ounce of my being that this child is returned to her mother and the the separation has traumatized her as little as possible.

    Before I adopted my children I believed in innocent until proven guilty…now I believe they deem you guilty and the burden is yours to prove yourself innocent. Which costs loads of money. It is so sad that this is a system that should be protecting this mother and child.

  66. Just Margaret

    I don’t doubt this for a moment.

    I have seen first-hand what can happen in family court, when one party is intent on preventing the other from having access to their own child. It happens every day, though I’ve rarely seen/heard of anything this far beyond the pale. I wish I could say that I was shocked–I’m not.

    My thoughts are with Mandy and her baby…may true justice be served (including nailing Ms. Brown for false testimony and harassment).

  67. karyn

    This is terrible. And i do believe it. There are people that are this dillusional, and believe they have a right to that baby, even when they don’t. There are women who steal babies from hospitals, women who leave thier children wrapped in plastic bags in dumpsters, women who cut babies from other women and try to pass them off as thier own (curry-demus) so do i believe that someone would do THIS? Absolutely.

    I pray she gets her daughter back and that there are no long term reprocussions from her being away from her mother for so long.

  68. Amanda

    How sad for that baby being away from her mom and being denied that chance to bond. The story doesn’t really shock me but I know it’s hard for people to think that things like this happen. I linked it to my facebook yesterday. Maybe every little push out there in cyberland can help this poor woman get the justice she deserves.

  69. Patti Ann

    Obviously, many of the people who posted have not had any dealings with the court system. When I was fighting for custody of my children, in a conversation with my attorney, I began a sentence with, “Well, the truth is-.” He interupted me and laughed, saying, “Who told you this is about the truth? This isn’t about the truth. This is about who wins.” That turned out to be a true statement. (Funny enough.) Ultimately, my children were with me but not before months of separation with all it’s attendant court stuff, lies, etc.

    The court system in America is NOT working. In fact, one of the family judges in the county where I lived when the custody hearing was going on was arrested three separate times for DUI before he was finally set down as judge. The reason my children were taken from me was far-fetched as well, but not as bad as this. And thank God my children were older. Taking my baby would have pushed me over the edge.

    God bless this woman and her child.

    For those of you who did not read carefully, it did not say that she lived with a father. It said that she lived with her own father. And get over the fact that they have a dog. Wherever that came from, the courts get that kind of stuff wrong ALL THE TIME.

  70. JustLinda

    Holy moly, what a horrible thing to happen!! (And yes, I’m taking at face value the information presented here, and no, I don’t think anyone is getting rich off my visit to their blog to the point they would throw out their integrity and make up blatant lies – most bloggers of any status do have a reputation to uphold).

    I am one who usually speaks out against big ol’ law-suits, but let me tell you this – if the stupidity of any entity, but especially an entity meant to protect and provide justice – made me miss out on half of my baby’s first year, I would sue the pants off them.

    I hope this mother gets her child back and perhaps a settlement that allows her to spend more quality time with her children in the coming years.

  71. Kerry

    FWIW, something similar happened to my friend. She was up in our state, about 800 miles from home visiting family and friends, planning to drive home that weekend. Her sister asked if she could take her child out for ice cream. Instead the sister took the child to the mother’s house, who has a valid MH Dx.

    The mother took the child to court and got an order of emergency protection. This was on a Friday afternoon prior to a long weekend. My girlfriend was not able to even SEE her child until Monday when she was able to get into court. At that point her mother regained full legal custody although my girlfriend was allowed temporary physical custody so she could return home. It was almost a year before she was able to meet all the courts requirements in order to get legal custody back. It was HELL, and one of those things that if you hadn’t been there and seen it with your own eyes, you would never believe it could happen.

    I don’t know how to help this poor mother. While I’m sure there is more going on behind the scenes that we aren’t being told, it should NEVER be okay to have your child taken. If the person petitioning the court was not the one granted custody, I bet there would be a lot less petitioning. Sigh. Positive thoughts for that mama and baby.

  72. Ralph

    Note: These press releases come directly from community sources and are not edited or verified by daytondailynews.com

  73. Gina

    I have reasons for doubting this and that is after a little investigation have found that none of the ages add up. This blog says the mother is 27, the attorney says the mother is 25. The blog says the baby was 3 months when this happened and the baby was actually 6 months and has lived with April almost half of her life if not more. Also April is NOT 46, but only 38. Also the only criminal record I could find on April was drug charges that were dismissed and did not go into detail on what the drug charges were.

    There are too many inconsistencies for me to believe that a lot of this is anywhere close to accurate and I highly doubt the case is happening the way it has been presented here. Of course all of the links that have been posted all are related to this blog and almost word for word what this blog says. Also the lawyer is going on all sorts of websites and posting information that should never be posted in a juvenile case including giving WAY too much information, which is how I found April on Facebook and messaged her about this. April’s attorney has also been notified of everything that has been posted and all of the information.

    I do believe there is a case going on between these 2 ladies, but I do not believe for one second that it is happening the way it has been said. Also said was that Mandy was kicked out of a single mother’s program to help her get a job because of losing Madison, but she has 2 other children who she supposedly has shared custody of. The program only requires that Mandy have the kids 50% of the time, so if she truly has SHARED custody, she would still qualify for the program. Mandy doesn’t seem as innocent in this as they are making her out to be. She has 2 other children with 2 different fathers, but only one of the fathers is saying that she is a good mother, but his version of a good mother could be that she sees the kids during her scheduled visitation and is never late.

    I feel sorry for anyone that has actually donated money to this.

  74. Cele

    And people don’t believe this can happen, crap it’s so absurd of course it happened. I think she needs a newspaper and a TV station on her side. And seriously, has anyone contacted Oprah? Media.

  75. Mariella

    So, I am curious as to what kind of law school did this shmuck of an attorney go to? I am pretty sure that ALL DOCUMENTS pertaining to a minor (such as in this case) are usually sealed by the courts (hence why many can’t find the case when looked up via the case#). And the documents that are not, would mean the other attorney (baby sitter’s representative) in this case would be also disseminating it and showing to around as well.

    Thanks for providing the info, as much as I believe that the court systems in our country is flawed, with foolish lawyers working cases like this – doesn’t help the cause.
    Does Mr. Everett, ESQ know that the details of this case are being leaked to the internet and bloggers alike? I will sure to contact him to advice him that you as the attorney ms. probono is doing your client no favor. You have probably hurt her case rather than help it.

    Hollis, from what I have read, it wasn’t you who contacted the media. Several other moms on a baby website were gung-ho about bringing the “truth” of this story out and contacted Snopes, local tv and newspaper reporters to get the information out. So, lets stop pretending you are equal to a do-gooder.

    I hope my curiousity is not mistaken for invalidity of this case. I believe that such a case *could* exsist. But the details just don’t add up. I also understand the work of pro-bono attorneys, I am married to an attorney myself. However the details are far too sketchy to be considered “true” and “complete.”

  76. hollis gillespie

    Hey, all I have not read the latest comments (I just want to focus forward), but I have some good news. Finally the local media has contacted the mother’s attorney, and she interviewed with three reporters yesterday. Tomorrow the mother is scheduled to be interviewed by them as well. I think that the fact that so many people can’t believe this story will make it a better story when it comes out that yes, it is actually possible for an innocent mother to have her baby taken from her and have that abduction sanctioned by a kangaroo court, right here in our wonderful country. Part of the reason it can happen is that so so few people want to believe it when it does. For updates, pics of the baby and her mother, and official court docs, here’s the link: http://www.inappropriateconversation.com/2010/08/09/kidnapping-now-legal-in-ohio/

    P.S. I think it’s interesting to note that one reporter told Kim (the mother’s attorney), that he overlooked the lead at first due to internet rumors that it was a hoax. But then a colleague in Chicago called him about it, asking, “Have you checked this out?” so he decided to check into it and found that it’s real. His story will be out soon.

  77. hollis gillespie

    BTW, just wanted to clarify that if my kid was ever taken from me by a lying babysitter with a criminal record and I was poor, I would pray for an attorney like this one who would take the case for next to nothing, do everything she could to right the situation, including the dissemination of ANY official document that brought the story to light.

    And if those Moms on that baby website were the ones who finally got through to the media, then I salute them and thank them for the discourse, whether they believed the story or not. It got some reporters to the mother’s door, that’s all that’s important.

    As far as me being not being a do-gooder, I completely agree with you! It’s like the universe knocked on the wrong door, and when I answered it said, “Meh, you’ll do.”

  78. Gina

    “P.S. I think it’s interesting to note that one reporter told Kim (the mother’s attorney), that he overlooked the lead at first due to internet rumors that it was a hoax.”

    Um okay. The local paper was called by one of the ladies on the baby board and he started looking into it immediately. The other reporters that were called also started looking into immediately. It was the reporter that told the mom he didn’t believe it.

    Quit posting a damn blog to try to prove anything about this story. I already know what the baby looks like as the baby is on April’s facebook. I really couldn’t care less what Mandy looks like. Quit trying to act like you are some kind of saint, when you didn’t do crap to get this to the media. Someone posts it on a blog that hardly anyone knows about. Everyone else did the work and they only did it to prove there is more going on in this case than what you are putting out there.

    ” I also understand the work of pro-bono attorneys,”

    Kim isn’t doing this pro-bono. She posted this on the baby site that Mandy had to borrow the money for the initial $300 plus court costs. To say she is doing this pro-bono was another lie. She is doing it at a highly discounted fee, but not pro-bono.

  79. Gina

    “lying babysitter with a criminal record”

    Again, prove the criminal record. Everything I have found shows that April has lived in the same county for like her whole life. I found ONE thing she was charged with that was dismissed, meaning all charges dropped, meaning no criminal record. So quit trying to play up like she is some evil person.

    If Mandy left her child with someone with a criminal record and someone with a child abuse record, than Mandy is certainly no saint and very negligent.

  80. Gina

    Also interestingly enough, a reporter has contacted some from the baby board back and “He said he has come to learn that the the facts in this case are a total misrepresentation as things transpired in real life.”
    There will no longer be a story.

    There’s a shocker. *sarcasm*

  81. Gina

    “Ok, he said that he spoke off the record with the atty for Brown (the atty is also a close friend of Brown’s), but didn’t share the deets on that one. He also called the local authorities about Amanda and she was in the system for various disturbances at least 8 times. He said he knows that the DDN got the same press release, he knows the reporter who got it and they are backing off. He said he’s going to probably keep an eye on it to see what happens and they might write something on it later but for now they are playing it safe. He also has a call to the magistrate (I’m guessing there has been no return yet) to see if they can clear anything up on the whole thing.”

    Even more info from the reporter for the local paper in that area.

  82. BethRD

    Gina, where’s the thread on the baby center board where this is being discussed now? The one I was looking at last night doesn’t seem to have new posts.

  83. hollis gillespie

    If the reporter said that, it means that his did his job and saw that the facts presented by April Brown in her affidavit, the “facts” upon which the ruling was based, “were a total misrepresentation of how things transpired in real life.” Literally, the facts in this [court] case were contrary to real life, which means the reporter is collaborating Mandy’s story. That’s good news for the mother.

    BTW, Kim Kislig, the attorney helping the mother, is a NON-PROFIT attorney, which is not the same as pro-bono. Kim Kislig has never represented herself as pro-bono.

  84. hollis gillespie

    BTW, I’m talking with the mother’s attorney, and she is fielding reporter’s calls as we speak. Mandy is scheduled to give two interviews tomorrow. I don’t care who runs with the story as long as it gets out there. Thanks for keeping this alive, ladies.

  85. Gina

    “If the reporter said that, it means that his did his job and saw that the facts presented by April Brown in her affidavit, the “facts” upon which the ruling was based, “were a total misrepresentation of how things transpired in real life.”

    Um no, he is saying the facts represented in this blog are a total misrepresentation of how things transpired in real life. IN other words, that this is somewhat of a fabrication. Also says that Mandy has a criminal record, not April. So once again, as I thought, Mandy is no innocent here. They are backing off the story because they feel there is no story, but are going to keep an eye on it.

    Beth:

    Here is the link for the new thread: http://community.babycenter.com/post/a23869881/if_anyones_interested…..?cpg=-1&#c2195622367

  86. Gina

    I am glad as the truth is coming out with the reporters, including the Dayton Daily News and the local newspapers, that they are killing the story and NOT keeping it out there. I knew this was bullshit the minute it was posted.

  87. Mir

    I find it fascinating, Gina, that you were completely unwilling to believe this story as told here and elsewhere, but are immediately willing to believe a fellow BBC board member’s word as gospel. I think it’s a little early to conclude that this story is over and done, personally, but as my involvement pretty much ended with providing a forum to get the word out, I don’t have anything else to add until there’s more information available.

    Keep in mind, however, that my blog is not a public messageboard, and although I’m allowing you to spend most of your day spewing vitriol here, after a while I will likely become bored and stop allowing you to continue making an ass of yourself here. It’s kind of embarrassing, frankly. Take it back to BBC where y’all thrive on it, okay?

  88. Gina

    “BTW, Kim Kislig, the attorney helping the mother, is a NON-PROFIT attorney, which is not the same as pro-bono. Kim Kislig has never represented herself as pro-bono.”

    She might not have, but the blog said that she was representing Mandy for FREE, which is pro-bono, which is what led people to question why Mandy needed money donated for lawyer fees if the attorney was FREE.

  89. Gina

    Why because I am pointing out the inaccuracies that you and hollis are posting? And I am not just believing what is posted on BBC. You don’t think that I haven’t been in contact with people as well. It is funny that you would think that.

  90. Gina

    OH and the story hasn’t been told elsewhere. A few blogs that all state the same thing. The thing in DDN was even posted as not verified and the reporter is saying they are not going to be printing more on it as they have found the misrepresentations between this blog and IRL.

  91. Mir

    Gina, one more time: It’s a little early to conclude the story is dead. But I’m sure if it gets covered by the mainstream media, you’ll come back and apologize, right? Of course you will. ;)

  92. Gina

    Nope, because I have no doubt that it will come out that Mandy is not an innocent in this. Oh wait, it already has.

  93. hollis gillespie

    Gina, you are obviously a friend of the evil babysitter, if not the evil babysitter herself. Maybe on the internet it’s okay to say it’s okay to take someone’s baby, but in the real world judges are supposed to have legal reasons to hand someone’s child over to a stranger to the family. If this could happen to Mandy it could happen to any of us.

  94. Gina

    HAHA. Actually I don’t even know the babysitter. I live in Texas.

  95. Gina

    “in the real world judges are supposed to have legal reasons to hand someone’s child over to a stranger to the family.”

    And the judge did, but won’t name those reasons. Once again to protect a juvenile case. Juvenile cases are meant to be private for a reason. Thanks to this blog and other information posted, I was able to find April and the baby’s home address, phone number, criminal record (or lack thereof), as well as other information. It is information like this that put children like Madison in danger.

  96. LOLtoofunny

    This is hilarious. NO ONE KIDNAPPED A BABY! Sweet Jesus. A mother LOST CUSTODY because she was UNFIT. Perhaps she will have gotten her act together by the next court date and she might get her child back. The reporter stated that Mandy has been in trouble with the law EIGHT TIMES. A normal, good person doesn’t get arrested/in trouble that many times! You call us blind and unwilling to believe the truth…yet you’re doing the same! The story being spouted here is NOT THE TRUTH. Period. There are glaring inconsistencies that Mir, Hollis and the attorney ignore (even when DIRECTLY ASKED ABOUT THEM).

    This whole thing is ridiculous. The reporter flat out said the blog story was wrong. End. Of. Story. Nice try, but mandy was an unfit mother, her child was removed from her custody (THANK GOD!!) and hopefully she gets her act together, keeps it together, stays out of trouble and maybe she will get custody again. She has THREE children no longer in her custody. time for her to step up, and act like a mother.

    [Ed. note: I haven’t addressed any “inconsistencies” because I have never said anything other than “I think this is a case that needs exposure, here is the story as it was told to me.” After two comments over on BabyCenter it became clear that there’s a level of CRAYZEE over there that’s insurmountable, so I backed off. I can’t answer questions when I don’t know the answers. All I did was provide a space to get a story out, to get people talking. Mission accomplished. The fact that people got so worked up and are touting their conspiracy theories (under anonymous handles, always the sign of the very bravest of souls) now is really interesting and all, but, um, I did what I set out to do, and now we’ll see what comes of the story. Seriously, people, I have a job and a husband and kids. Y’all appear to have a lot more free time than I do.]

  97. Gina

    WORD!

  98. Gina

    I do hope that Mandy gets herself together enough to get her baby back and that is what Mandy needs to be focusing on.

  99. Mariella

    Amen, Gina! Amen. I am surprised that these bloggers really think that majority of the readers are just as dumb as they are. Get over yourself.

    PS: I spoke to the attorney. I advised him of this blog and of the attorney coming on the baby website and this sharing court documents as well as sharing the details of the documents with everyone on the blog and a random website. I also advised him to review the comments sections in this blog and to see that the attorney might need to be looked into or reprimanded for violating any rules/regulations that might have at the county/state or even moral level.

    Do I care that an innocent child is left hanging in the middle, YES. But, far be it for me for readers to make snap judgements based on an “author” acting like a blabbering baffoon on her uneducated, biased, unrealistic, falsely written blog.

    So, I urge you to call your sister and back peddle really quick. This case will be the last thing she’s going to have to worry about.

    Hollis, you should be thanked for helping your sister out. Bravo! I am sure she’ll appreciate the attention your idiocacy has brought to this mis-informed, biased case when she has to appear in front of the magistrate or the court to discuss her actions as of the last 24 hours!

  100. Gina

    “I haven’t addressed any “inconsistencies” because I have never said anything other than “I think this is a case that needs exposure, here is the story as it was told to me.”

    Maybe before posting stuff like this, you should at least verify accuracy before going off and saying that the babysitter kidnapped the baby. Otherwise, it makes you look less than credible. I mean you didn’t even get the kid’s age right.

  101. Gina

    OH and BTW, I don’t post under an anonymous screenname. Hell, a lot of babycenter has either my address or phone number, plus email, facebook. To say that we are posting anonymously is absurd.

    [Ed. note: Jesus, Gina, is it hard to walk around with that chip on your shoulder? I left the comment about anon screen names on a comment that was anonymous. Not on your comment. You’ve gone from embarrassing to pathetic. I think we’re done here.]

  102. LOLtoofunny

    Gina has gone from embarrassing to pathetic? Hahaha…oh my! Nope, YOU have. The author of the almighty blog is accusing some random mom of being the “evil babysitter” or her best friend. Now who has the crazy conspiracy theories? Heck, you have also insinuated that no one actually contacted a reporter and that it must’ve been made up.

    Seriously…everyone has agreed that stupid stuff happens in court..particularly family court. the oNLY thing people have said is there was NO WAY a baby was removed from her safe, loving mother/home because of ANIMAL HAIR ON HER CLOTHING. And whaddaya know? She was removed for much much more.

    [Ed. note: And now you’re done, too. Might want to take some time to invest in reading comprehension; I am the owner of the blog, and I am not the person who suggested Gina is the babysitter. Hollis has a sense of humor I wouldn’t expect you to get, but I would expect you to be able to differentiate my name from hers.]

  103. DLief

    I’m not sure what’s going on here, but I’m confused. Is this a hoax? A scam to get money? Do you all know each other, because I must be missing a big part of the story.

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