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> There are a lot of shitty parents out there who fear prison more than they fear losing their child. There are even parents who want to kill their children. T
by mysterypie 9y ago
> There are a lot of shitty parents out there who fear prison more than they fear losing their child. There are even parents who want to kill their children.
This raises a question I've wondered about. Can a parent who doesn't want their child "give up" the child to the state without any strings attached? I.e., without doing something bad that would cause the state to take away the child and without being on the hook to the state for future child care.
Before you tell me that enormous crowds are waiting to adopt cute healthy babies, imagine for example a dangerous delinquent adolescent with a serious genetic disorder. Can you voluntarily ask the government to take such an unwanted child with no further contact and no financial obligation?
You would think that this situation comes up frequently, and that there should be a process: Fill in form 54F, signed and notarized by both parents. But it's surprisingly difficult to google a clear-cut answer for any country or jurisdiction.
- evanpw 9y agoYes, at least in the US: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safe-haven_law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safe-haven_law
- mysterypie 9y agoThat's for babies, under 30 days old, which the parents could have readily put up for adoption even without this law. Moreover, the government treats it as a criminal act (abandonment) in some states. Like I said above, it surprisingly difficult to get a straightforward answer to this.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- Sleeep 9y agoNo, Safe Haven laws are only for newborns. Nebraska had an accidental experiment by omitting an age limit on their Safe Haven law. Parents drove thousands of miles to abandon their older children until the loophole was closed. https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/us/03omaha.html https://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/us/03omaha.html
- mysterypie 9y agoGood article. The most relevant quote: "Mr. Landry, the state director of children and family services, said parents and guardians were mistaken if they thought they could walk away from their responsibilities. The courts might even order them to pay child support." Furthermore, Nebraska has since changed the law, as you already noted; they permit only babies up to 30 days old.
- derefr 9y ago> The courts might order them to pay child support. Now that's intriguing; it almost sounds like the state is willing to take possession of children in exchange for a monthly fee.