Patterico's Pontifications

4/30/2008

New Mexico Child Removal Case

Filed under: Civil Liberties,Law — DRJ @ 8:14 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

In a much smaller version of the Texas FLDS case, New Mexico police have removed 3 children from a church compound near Clayton NM because of allegations of inappropriate contact between minors and an adult leader. A fourth child was interviewed but lives elsewhere and was not removed.

A New Mexico spokesperson indicated they received information that warranted removal of the children but declined to state what that information was. Two children were placed in foster care and the other was put in voluntary placement.

The leader, Wayne Bent, professes to be the Messiah. He reportedly has 70 followers and has acknowledged having sex with the wives of 2 of the followers and with his daughter-in-law “at the direction of God.” Bent, 66 and known in the church as Michael Travesser, accused the State of kidnapping his children and going “against God.”

Bent’s son Jeff denied any child abuse and posted the following message on the internet:

“The group educates its children “to avoid the slavery you seek to impose on them, and to experience the freedom they have in God,” Jeff Bent wrote.

“We have given everything to prepare them for an eternity with God. We haven’t oppressed them with your atheistic globalist curriculum, socialist indoctrination, and ‘alternative lifestyles’ dogma that comprise modern public education. We have taught them higher values than the values of your slave-state, and have sought to shield them from the abuse that is institutionalized in your system,” he wrote.”

Jeff Bent also wrote to NM Governor Bill Richardson: “Now that you have moved against us because of our faith, the cup of God’s anger is full to the brim, and now He is free to move against you.”

It’s deja vu all over again.

— DRJ

7 Responses to “New Mexico Child Removal Case”

  1. Now that a generation has passed, have we forgotten the horrible lesson of the “child-abuse” scandals of the early 80’s?
    We do not need another witch-hunt by “child protective services” nanny-staters in every county of the land, only to find out many years later, that it was all a horrible mistake.
    Be warned, CPS people: Don’t jump the shark, again!

    Another Drew (f9dd2c)

  2. You know, there used to be lots of super-religious groups like this back in the 1600’s (less the sex w. children aspects we hope).. they were called anabaptists (babptists) and puritans. Too bad for these modern groups there is no new world for them to go to. Our nation didn’t turn out so bad I think, for having been founded by these types.

    EdWood (06cafa)

  3. that’s what we need: a brave new world where child abuse is welcome and protected, because after all, the children belong with the parents no matter what they do to them.

    you’d condemn thousands of children to torture, neglect and either an early death or a life of pain & suffering from the after effects, just so you two can feel good about your warped world views. that’s both utterly disgusting and beneath contempt.

    what’s even worse is that the two of you willingly ignore the physical evidence that abuse was occurring. that is frightening.

    redc1c4 (292479)

  4. There was a show recently on the National Geographic Channel about this group. The show was called ‘Inside a Cult’ and Wayne Bent admitted he had sex with the women. Not sure of NatGeo will show it again, but it was a very interesting look into this group.

    Wander (279bfb)

  5. “and Wayne Bent admitted he had sex with the women.”

    Oh, Oh, warning, warning. Now if he was having sex with the men in the privacy of their own homes it would be ok.

    davod (5bdbd3)

  6. redc1c4…
    I don’t condone anything, or intend to ignore anything; what I am doing is getting the hairs on the back of my neck up warning me to be aware that we have the potential for another bout of national hysteria not unlike the McMartin case and the subsequent epidemic of child-abuse allegations at day-care centers accross the country – 99% of which turned out to be bogus.

    Real people were ruined by these allegations, entire families and communities. All due to the over-heated imaginations of some quack therapists.

    Another Drew (f9dd2c)

  7. redc1c4— I’ll just ditto Another Drew #6 on this one.

    I could propose a different extreme scenario.. but opposite of yours… in your brave new world nobody would have their own children since every parent would have “endangered” their kids some way or another allowing the state take em away and give them to someone else…. now isn’t that silly?

    EdWood (06cafa)


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