The lawmaker also said DHS misled him about severe behavioral issues with the girls. He also said the younger sisters, ages 4 and 2 when they entered the Harris home, were violent. While the Harts did not have the older sister in their home, they had been in touch with girl's then-foster parents and knew she was a troubled child. Gradually, the foster mother said, this troubled girls behavior began to change. Harris also placed some of the blame on officials in the Arkansas Department of Human Services, whom he said misled them as to the abuse suffered by the girls. 100g carbs. In fact, because of the repeated sexual abuse she had suffered at such a young age, she had begun to exhibit predatory behaviors. Primary Menu. The Harrises made the boys sleep in their bedroom and away from the girls. They never once called us.. But what of Jeannette, the oldest daughter and the first to be taken in by the Harrises, who the lawmaker said sometimes spent about eight hours every day screaming and in a rage and threatened violence upon his sons? Harris also claimed that another of the girls 'crushed a family pet to death', further convincing them to get rid of their recently-adopted charges. The story went public in March 2015. Over the years, the Harts have opened their home to close to 70 foster children. "There was a group coming in from Alabama that was supposed to pray over the children and get the demons out as an exorcism," according to Goldsborough. He is also a Republicanformer state representative. Though no one can say for sure, child advocates believe that rehoming is relatively rare in the United States. Francis also had no criminal history, Rep. Harris claimed in that interview. Here was a young, desperate mother pleading for help, seeking a home for her three little lost girls. That summer, the adoption case went before 4th Circuit Juvenile Court Judge Stacy Zimmerman in Washington County. He did not specify what kind of pet it was, nor whether the three-year-old or the six-year-old was responsible. It was the only chance I had to keep my girls together. When they began living with the Harrises in 2012, Jeannette was around 6, Mary was 4 and Annie was around 2. I don't care if I lose my position. The older one was very protective of the younger one.. After the traumatic start to their young lives, the story of these little girls is one of hope, survival and resilience. They were not a challenge compared to a lot of kids weve had, but we were familiar with their kinds of behaviors, Cheryl Hart said. They followed the techniques in a book called 'When Love Is Not Enough: A Parent's Guide to Reactive Attachment Disorder,' by Nancy Thomas, who is a recognized expert on therapeutic parenting techniques, said Jennifer Wells, the couples attorney. Instead, after six months Mr. Harris and his wife re-homed the two girls like pets that didn't work out. We also are prohibited from clarifying any inaccurate information.. The second best result is Justin Harris age 20s in Dayton, OH in the Fairlane neighborhood. Id be pretty pissed off, too.. As well as production work, Justin's 25 year DJ'ing career has seen him play at hundreds of venues around the world (170 cities in 33 countries and counting) including such respected venues as Fabric (UK), The End (London), Planet K (Manchester), Fuse (Brussels), Rex (Paris), Batofar (Paris), Skanssen (Oslo), Lolita (Barcelona), Robert Johnson Follow. We [started fostering] because of our Christianity. Why would anyone go to the trouble of adopting a child and then give the child away?'. The separate source close to the Harrises reported seeing a video that Marsha Harris said showed a demon interacting with one of the girls. In the group Reuters analyzed, more than half were described as having some sort of special need. Harris put a 6-year-old girl he adopted in the. 'They knew, suddenly knew, that this was their forever home, and they were no longer ever going back to Mom's house. Rep. Harris also said in that interview with Arkansas Onlinethat Francis and his wife had three adopted children that they obtained internationally, and that he trusted them as they had passed those background checks. The two foster families themselves strongly objected to the Harris adoption, whether done privately or through the system. Justin Ross Harris: Wiki, Biography, Wife, Age, Kids, Net worth, Parents, Family, Case & More. Our monthly magazine is free at over 500 locations in Central Arkansas. The Harrises learned that this behavior could be related to the girl's diagnosis of Reactive Attachment Disorder (R.A.D.) [The biological] mom wanted to have control of what happened to the children and Marsha and I said we didnt want to go through DHS because of some issues wed had with them in the past. (Roughly around this time, in late 2011, the Harrises were feuding with DHS over an investigation involving Growing Gods Kingdom that found the school included overtly Christian instruction despite receiving public money. Working in association with. Period. I never signed any parental rights away to DHS. And in court, Cheryl Hart recalled, something strange happened: Everyone on the DHS team that had previously opposed the adoption changed their recommendations. They loved each other. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Describing the child's fits of rage, Marsha Harris told 20/20, "It never stopped. RM 2E6B9B6 - Justin Harris (R) is escorted into the Cobb county Magistrate court house in Marietta, Georgia July 3, 2014. The rehoming of Mary and Annie officially came to the attention of DHS on March 28, 2014, thanks to an anonymous call to the child abuse hotline operated by State Police. Goldsborough said the Harrises showed her a picture of [Mary] where theyre like, You can see the demon rising from her back, and it just looked like a little 6-year-old to me. [Mary was 4 or 5.] Among them: two foster families who cared for the girls prior to the Harris adoption, the girls biological mother, a former DHS employee familiar with the proceedings and a former babysitter at the Harrises West Fork home. Chelsey Goldsborough was a high school senior when she started babysitting for the Harrises' two remaining adopted daughters in spring of 2013. Goldsborough also alleged the family would keep the middle child isolated in her bedroom for long periods of time and blast Christian music at her doorway to help keep away demons. The third result is Justin Cory Michael Harris age 30s in Lorain, OH. Sign Up. Date: 2014-04-04 Placement type: Adoption Type of abuse: Sexual abuse Id take her to parks and she wouldnt run off or act all crazy or beat other children to death she was just another kid.. When news of the rape came out in April 2014 and Harris was questioned about his former employee, he told the Times hed fired Francis for a poor work record. By subscribing and supporting our efforts, you'll not only have access to all of our articles, but you'll also be helping us hire more writers to expand our coverage. When it was just me and her one night, I took her on a walk down the street to hang out and took her to the playground., When asked whether either of the girls displayed any signs of violence, Goldsborough said, Yeah theyd throw a fit sometimes if I made them eat their broccoli. But the girls foster parents said they didnt experience those kinds of issues with the girls. 10g EAAs. Because of my behavior, my problems. I hold DHS accountable And Im not sorry for doing it, he declared. The scrutiny-free practice of rehoming opens the door to children becoming victims once again. Subscribe now or donate for as little as $1 and be a part of the Arkansas Times community. Response: 'I don't care what the people of Arkansas think about me. Representative Justin Harris and his wife Marsha adopted the girl, six, and her sister, three, through the Arkansas Department of Human Services in March 2013. He remained famous in 2016 when he was found guilty under charges of killing his 22-month-old son Cooper Harris on June 18, 2014. DHS cant comment on specific cases, but when theTimespreviouslyasked DHS spokesperson Amy Webb whether senior agency officials at the state level ever override the recommendations of a local adoption team, she said, Im sure thats possible thats happened. The Harts also said the adoption was allowed to proceed despite their objections because of the direct intervention of Cecile Blucker, head of the Division of Children and Family Services, the arm of DHS responsible for child welfare. The worst part is they gave them away to Eric Francis who went on to sexually assault at least one of the girls. We choose to forgive the Harrises and hope they will truly follow Christ in humility and repentance for the mistakes they made in our daughters lives. That family could not be reached by the Times. About 18 percent were said to have a history that included sexual or physical abuse. Later, at an emotional press conference, Harris placed the blame squarely on the state health services department, which, he said, refused to help when he and his wife struggled with the girls they had adopted. — -- An adoption controversy in Fayetteville, Ark., has ignited a debate over the controversial practice of "re-homing" and caring for adopted children that have been abused. Eventually she also testified in court against the Harris adoption. We couldnt ever take [Mary] out. The Harts said that a local team working on the adoption including themselves, DHS caseworkers, adoption specialists, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) and therapists from Ozark Guidance, a mental health provider made the Harrises fully aware of the girls history of neglect and sexual abuse and cautioned them that they were unprepared to handle children from such a background, especially considering their home included young boys. For this reason, parents that may be abusive or predatory can still manage to get custody of children through re-homing. He said DHS threat to charge him with abandonment could have cost him custody of his three biological sons (and, though he did not say so, could have cost him his business as well, Growing Gods Kingdom preschool). Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson has also instructed the state to review adoption procedures. You dont just change them in a couple of weeks to be the way you want. I care what my wife thinks about me, and I care what my three sons think about me.'. Arkansas State Rep Justin Harris and his wife Marsha adopted two girls in 2013, but eventually gave them up when the elder child became violent and threatening View gallery The Harris family. So, sure, higher-ups will get into discussions about what is best and what is not., However, a source familiar with the workings of state-level DHS informed the Times that Blucker supposedly remarked in 2012 that Harris threatened to hold up the budget for the division if he didnt get to adopt those girls.. Find contact's direct phone number, email address, work history, and more. Now its safe for them to show all the disturbance that has been hidden, Jensen said. We had decided to add on to our house in order to expand the family, and we couldnt have any more children, so at that point we had decided we were going to adopt. In reality, when they are doing it in these illegal ways, whatit is is child abandonment and neglect, Lestino said. "Exorcisms and telepathy are not part of the Harrises' religious practice. 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