The teen claimed she would watch the girls for a few hours every day after school for several months -- a length of time disputed by the Harrises. I knew how foster homes are some are good, some not. And then, she found the Harrises. The neighbor kids liked her. — -- 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. We tried to sort of put all our cards on the table and say why this was a bad idea, Cheryl Hart said. It may be in the report you have, but just in case the minors identities are known, we dont want to be specific for their own protection.. Despite her reservations about the Harris adoption, Wallis thought things were going well with the Harrises and the two young sisters. Asa Hutchinson has ordered a review of the agencys practices regarding adoption. FOLLOW MORE IBT NEWS ON THE BELOW CHANNELS, IBT Fast Start - Let the best of International News come to you. Justin Harris, a Republican who sits in the state's House of Representatives, legally adopted the two girls in March 2013 - but handed them over after just six months to a man who would go on to rape the eldest. He said they suffered from reactive attachment disorder, a condition sometimes occurring among children with unstable backgrounds that results in severe emotional and social problems. Our daughters are a precious gift from God and truly a blessing to each one of our lives and our extended family and friends. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Justin Harris and could vary in the range between $556.5K - $1.6M. At some point before he was arrested and after his firing, Francis and his wife gave the two girls away to another family, where they are now living. Shortly after the oldest girl arrived, the Harrises said she began to display disturbing behaviors. 'At this time, that situation, as far as we're concerned from the House perspective, is past tense, and we're moving forward and looking at the remainder of our calendar and finishing the month strong,' Gillam said. Describing the child's fits of rage, Marsha Harris told 20/20, "It never stopped. DHS had placed her in a therapeutic foster home where the foster parents would be trained to deal with her special needs. 'Upon the advice of both a psychiatrist and a pediatrician, they were forced to move the children to the home of trusted friends, who had a lot of experience with children with reactive attachment disorder. And nothing is gettin' better." Although they still decline to share the full circumstances of their adoption, the parents said they felt compelled to respond to the statements Justin Harris has made this past week that portray the girls as dangerous and violent. They were like any other kid I watched.. This story will refer to the three girls taken in by the Harrises by pseudonyms: We will call the oldest sister Jeannette, the middle sister Mary and the youngest sister Annie. Police only learned that Eric Francis had raped the girl because of an anonymous tip. The idea that someone could use the foster care system to treat their adopted children like basketballs, tossing them from family to family is horrible. He saw it as, Im with God. An emotional Rep. Justin Harris (R-West Fork), his wife at his side, told reporters at a press conference last week that he sent his two adopted daughters to live with . 'Faced with no help from DHS, we thought we had found a perfect solution,' said Rep. Harris. We had a dog, a little Bichon, that they were around all the time and there was never once any issue with her abusing an animal. Justin Harris. They say Blucker exerted pressure on the Washington County DHS office on behalf of Justin Harris to facilitate the adoption. Months later, according to the Harrises, they were struggling to cope with the mental and behavioral challenges presented by the two girls, particularly the older one, who was 4 at the time. They repeatedly told us they had degrees in early childhood development, they had therapists there at their preschool, and they had God to help them through this. 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. Our monthly magazine is free at over 500 locations in Central Arkansas. Startled by the Harris case, Arkansas could be next. We [started fostering] because of our Christianity. And I just said, 'God, I can't do it anymore.' Though Rep. Harris is talking about this adoption, by law we cannot do so and are concerned about the very sensitive and protected information that has been released about vulnerable children. Justin Harris and his wife adopted three girls and later 're-homed' them. The three sisters taken in by Justin and Marsha Harris had already lived with atoxic mixture of neglect and abuse. Bart Ricardo. She said she was originally introduced to the Harrises by a former friend. Reuters An Arkansas state legislator who sent his adopted daughters to live at the home of a former. Related Artists. The ones that are good, that is their life. Others, she said, dont care. So she called us out of the blue, the mom, and said Will you take my three girls? Finding the truth behind political rhetoric, reviewing claims to see whats accurate and whats misleading. I care what my wife thinks about me, and I care what my three sons think about me. With attachment comes a sense of security; without it, a child may experience a heightened wariness of his or her environment, become withdrawn, and be unable to respond to attempts at comfort. They were not allowed to be around each other because of the Harrises belief in demonic possession and telepathy, she said. It was hard. 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. All I wanted to do was to make sure my girls were safe and in a good home, you know? I hold DHS accountable And Im not sorry for doing it, he declared. Casting out demons: why Justin Harris got rid of kids he applied pressure to adopt "Rep. Justin Harris blames DHS for the fallout related to his adoption of three young girls, but sources familiar with the situation contradict his story and paint a troubling picture of the adoption process and the girls' time in the Harris household." In most cases, custody of an adopted child can be transferred simply by both sets of parents signing a document, and child protective services will only step in if they suspect the child is not being properly treated, which can be near impossible for them to judge at times. As a legislator, Harris knew Blucker personally and has some influence over her budget. In most conversations with us, [Harris] would mention Ceciles name. By Chris Spargo and Kieran Corcoran For Dailymail.com, Published: 18:20 EST, 6 March 2015 | Updated: 09:39 EST, 7 March 2015. It is for this reason that rehoming is such a scary practice according to Amy Webb, a spokesperson for theDepartment of Human Services. In fact, a past DHS employee at the time came to us and confirmed that the plan at DHS was to seek abandonment charges if we returned the girls.". Sex crimes: Eric Francis (above) is now serving 40 years in prison for rape, Blame game: In a press conference on Friday Rep. Harris blamed what happened on theArkansas Department of Human Services. Justin Harris is our managing director and the owner of Harris Residential. Friday afternoon, Rep. Justin Harris and his wife Marsha held a press conference at the state Capitol to address the revelations in this week's Arkansas Times cover story about their failed adoption, which ended in the "rehoming" of two girls in a household where one of them was sexually abused.As Max Brantley wrote yesterday, it was an emotional statement. I care what my wife thinks about me, and I care what my three sons think about me,' said Rep. Harris, Rapist: Francis pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault in the second degree. Justin Harris. Justin Ross Harris, who prosecutors said intentionally left his 22-month-old son strapped inside a hot car to die because he wanted to live a child-free life, sits in Cobb County Magistrate Court . Mary, they said, had some problems at preschool tantrums and occasional inappropriate behavior. They felt like we had an ulterior motive to wanting these children in the first place.. There is no question, however, that it became a perfect nightmare. The Harts reject Harris claim that the family didnt want the oldest child. Arkansas state legislator Rep. Justin Harris gave his adopted daughters away because he and his wife thought they were possessed by demons, according to a report in the Arkansas Times. It is an overall forecast for the net worth of Justin Harris. The failed adoptions that we have seen are parents who think they can love their child into being good, the therapist said. He claims he put the girls in counseling but it did not help, and that is when he decided to rehome the two. This action directly lead to the rape of the six-year-old girl who Rep. Harris is responsible for and even received government funding to care for through the foster care system. The former DHS employee confirmed this account. Kimberly A. Warren: 'Mr. The Harrises sent Mary and Annie to live with the Francises in October 2013, just a year after they had taken them into custody. When a child has repeated changes of caregivers, that child is learning that the world is not to be trusted and there is no one there for me at a critical time, and I might be bounced out at any moment, he said. Rep. Justin Harris, R-West Fork, asks a question Friday in the House Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs. All Rights Reserved. Since they have been home with us, they have adjusted beautifully and are thriving in our home with unconditional love and patience. The former DHS employee confirmed this account. 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. Goldsborough, who is now a college student in Bentonville, said she would stay at the Harris house for three to four hours after school many days during the spring semester of her senior year of high school. We were threatened with possible abandonment charges and potentially losing our own boys as well if we returned the girls to DHS custody. 10g EAAs. Because Im about ready to lose them to DHS. . They got therapy every day play therapy, occupational therapy, anger management.. 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. Join the fight for truth and become a subscriber of the Arkansas Times. Francis also had no criminal history, Rep. Harris claimed in that interview. An extensiveReuters and NBC News reportin 2013laid out the series of events that often plays out online, where parents use message boards and Facebook groups to find new families for their unwanted adopted children: Faced with the allegations before they were published by the Arkansas Times, Harris first became defensive. She loved to dress up., Craig Hart objected strongly to Harris implication that the girls were dangerous. Therapeutic foster parents are trained to deal with the intense demands of traumatized children and nudge them toward healing and bonding with intentional, careful steps. 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 And here was a stable family with a successful business, the father a state representative, seeking new children. We couldnt ever take [Mary] out. She didnt have boundaries, Cheryl Hart recalled. 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. About us - Harris Residential. And throughout their childhood,police had documented sexual abuse in their home,which experts say can be a strong signal for potential predators. They initially took in the third. The lawmaker did not reveal at the time the child Francis raped was Harris own. 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