At the initial court appearance she was told she needed the school department s approval for her to home school. Without an attorney, she objected on constitutional grounds that she had the right to educate her child without permission. The significance of the change from a criminal to a civil matter is that in a criminal case all the protections of due process and the burden of proof apply. When it becomes a civil matter and DSS is brought in, all the constitutional safeguards fly out the window. The burden of proof shifts from clear and convincing evidence necessary to convict, to a preponderance of the evidence.
Some judges rely on DSS input to such a degree that they almost become rubber stamps.
Procedures are ignored and there is no accountability. So, ironically, parents are safer in criminal court than civil court, strange as that may sound. After that first court appearance, DSS visited the Ricker home, and a court investigator visited and filed a report. Mrs. Ricker learned that not only did DSS have no evidence of abuse or neglect but the court investigator s report was exceptionally positive about Gabriel s home environment. He said the boy was obviously thriving.