Nov 9, 2009 5:18 pm US/Central
Mother Fears She May Lose Custody Of Disabled Son
Carol Lopez Says DCFS Charged Her With Medical Neglect
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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Carol Lopez fears she may lose custody of her 5-year-old son Alexander. She says DCFS is charging her with medical neglect.
CBS
A Chicago mother is fearful she'll lose custody of her young son. She insists she's being falsely accused of neglect. CBS 2's Jim Williams reports that her case gives us a rare glimpse into how the state investigates such a serious charge.
Carol Lopez says she is devastated that anyone would suggest she is not a good mother to her 5-year-old son Alexander, who is developmentally disabled.
"The bottom line is I am 100 percent a better parent than I can be with my son. Why is the school doing this? I don't know. I have no idea," Lopez said.
Alexander is a student at the Pulaski Fine Arts Academy in Bucktown. The school told Lopez that Alexander needed an emergency medical evaluation because of his behavior in class.
Lopez, who is a single parent, insists she complied, even cutting back her hours as a janitor to meet her son's needs.
"I have done everything they want. What more do they want me to do?" Lopez said.
The school wasn't satisfied and called DCFS. The state demanded Lopez come to the school Monday for a meeting.
CBS 2 was there when she came out.
"She's charging me with medical neglect," Lopez said.
Medical neglect is a serious allegation from the state. Now Lopez fears she could lose her son.
"I fear the state can step in and take my son away from me," Lopez said.
Neither the school nor DCFS would comment today on this specific case.
"It's confidential," the case worker said.
But a DCFS spokesman said removing a child from a parent is a last resort. It's only done if a child is judged to be in imminent danger. The first step is to work with a parent.
Carol Lopez says the DCFS case worker told her she will be involved in her life from this moment on. Lopez resents it.
"It's insulting. It's offensive in every way possible," Lopez said.
But for now, Carol Lopez will have to live with it.
Without commenting on this case, DCFS says it must investigate when it gets "enough specific, actionable information."
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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