Opinion ID: 1986881
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Evidence of Mother's use of twins for financial or other gain

Text: Throughout the course of seeking an open adoption, [10] Mother accepted multiple gifts from the prospective parents. From R.A. and V.A., she received approximately $300 worth of clothes for her other children. They paid approximately $50 to have her hair braided and gave Mother a pair of diamond earrings. A.K. and J.K. brought some small gifts for N.W. when they met Mother in California and mailed N.W. more gifts later that year. During the drive from California to St. Louis, they purchased additional items for Mother's children. The placements in California and the United Kingdom permitted Mother to receive free travel, lodging, meals, and airfare. She, N.W., and the twins stayed at R.A. and V.A.'s house in California for nine days without Mother contributing to any of the expenses. A.K. and J.K. paid the remainder of Mother's and N.W.'s expenses for that trip. Mother also did not pay for the airfare to visit the twins in the United Kingdom. Mother further used her children as a means to receive more welfare benefits than she was entitled. In an application dated January 2001, Mother listed her household as including all five of her children. She later admitted that her two sons had been living with her mother since August 2000, and the twins had been residing in adoptive homes since October 2000. As a result of this false statement, Mother received approximately $3,000 in temporary aid and food stamp benefits to which she was not entitled. Mother pleaded guilty to welfare fraud and was ordered to pay restitution for this crime. When Mother, N.W., the twins, A.K. and J.K. were driving cross-country, they were stopped by police in Kansas for speeding. In an effort to avoid the consequences, A.K., J.K., and Mother conspired to tell the police they were speeding because the twins were sick. Even though the twins were not sick at the time, one of them was then taken to the hospital and examined as a result of this ruse. In her attempts to justify why she vacillated regarding adoption of the twins, why she placed them with the couples she chose, or why she withdrew them from custody, Mother never explained her actions in the context of what was best for the twins. In every situation, as she explained it, her decisions rested on what was better for her: whether she could obtain a boyfriend with five children, whether the twins would know her and she would receive letters and photos of them, whether the couple she selected was financially sound, and whether she could visit another country.