You be the Judge: Case of the Sodomizing Grandpa

​A young mother of five children had four of her offspring placed in government control and didn't believe it was fair that an Orange County Superior Court judge decided to also end her custody of her youngest child, an eight-month-old daughter.

But that judge, Dennis J. Keough, had these facts presented to him:

--The infant's oldest sibling had been sodomized by her maternal grandfather, who also forced his granddaughter to orally copulate him and took pornographic pictures of her.
--The mother, who has a drug addiction and suicidal tendencies, knew of the sexual abuse but continued to allow her father to have unsupervised visits with the kids.
--When confronted about the infant's significant developmental problems, the mother asked why anyone would think that her parenting skills could be a negative factor.
--All five of her kids were routinely exposed to methamphetamines and left unattended.

Despite that history, the mother--whose identity is protected by law--demanded to keep custody of her youngest child. She explained that she is a well-intentioned mother.

This week, a California Court of Appeal based in Santa Ana reviewed the case and sided with Judge Keough.

"A primary purpose of the juvenile law is protection of the child," wrote Justice Richard Fybel in a 12-page ruling. "[The infant's] best interests were served by the removal order."

(I'm thinking this mother is going to reproduce again soon.)

Case closed.

--R. Scott Moxley / OC Weekly