Idaho Mom Arrested Second Time as Attempts to Silence Her Fail – Meanwhile 16-Year-Old Son Suffers in Foster Care

Kristine McCreery has spent the entirety of 2019 fighting Idaho Child Protective Services for her 16-year-old son, Brandon, over allegations of medical abuse/neglect because of health issues potentially caused by an untreated Celiac condition. Canyon County Prosecutor Shari Dodge had Kristine arrested Saturday, August 10th, 2019, on felony Injury to Child charges. It was the second time she was arrested on the same charges, as she had posted bond back in June already. Kristine reports that even the police officers were confused as to why they had just arrested her a second time on the same charge, and they let her go without having to post bond a second time. Kristine has also now been charged with contempt of court for going public with her story. In reality, she is being held in contempt because MedicalKidnap.com and Fight for Lilly are refusing to remove Dr. Amy Barton’s picture and the St. Luke’s CARES video from the original article. According to court documents, Judge Courtnie Tucker also filed a written order, dated July 24th, 2019, demanding that the photo and video be removed from the article. As we mentioned in previous articles regarding this family, neither the website MedicalKidnap.com that contains the photo of Dr. Barton, nor the YouTube account through fight4lilly.org that hosts the CARES video, are within Kristine’s control.  MedicalKidnap.com and Fight4Lilly.org have their own policies regarding the removal of such things from their websites, and choose to stand upon the rights granted under the First Amendment of Freedom of the Press. Canyon County Prosecutor Shari Dodge and Judge Courtnie Tucker are publicly funded officials, and the St. Luke’s CARES institution that employs Dr. Amy Barton is a federally funded program - all subject to public scrutiny because they receive public funds. Kristine says that since she went public, those involved in the case have lost focus of the real issue at hand, the health of sixteen year old Brandon: “They seem to care more about publicity than my son or his well-being.” Kristine says Brandon continues to lose weight in foster care, and that his medical needs are not being met by the department. She is greatly concerned about the malabsorption caused by Celiac and a possible lactose intolerance. 

Idaho Judge in 16-Year-Old Medical Kidnap Case Orders Video and Picture of Doctor Removed from MedicalKidnap.com as Cell Phones of Supporters are Confiscated

For the last month, Kristine McCreery has been working to bring truth to light in an extremely complex Idaho medical kidnapping involving her 16-year-old son, Brandon. When a public defender failed her in court, and she spent all of her resources on paid attorneys that she felt weren’t speaking for her, Kristine reached out to her local legislators in desperation. Kristine took it upon herself to start learning the system and how to speak for herself in court. However, after she had submitted a motion to discharge her attorney and requested an evidentiary hearing, Kristine learned that Judge Courtnie Tucker blocked her submission of any further motions, instructing the Canyon County Court Clerk to refuse any documents that Kristine attempted to submit to the court, temporarily silencing her voice to the court once again. On Tuesday, July 16th, Kristine appeared in court for a six-month review of the CPS case. In the week before court, Brandon’s story had made a monumental impact in Idaho, garnering support from all over the state. Idaho House Representative Christy Zito was also at the court and said: "What impressed me the most is the community support. It is so important for our citizens to know their rights, to know what due process is and to make sure it is being followed. I so admire Kristine for standing strong, for fight so hard for her son, for allowing her story to be put out there so that other parents can learn and know what to do if they are ever in this kind of a situation." But Representative Zito and the other supporters were not allowed into the courtroom, and all of them had their cell phones confiscated for trying to record. Shari Dodge, Canyon County prosecutor, and Judge Tucker ordered Kristine to take down a video of Brandon and a picture of Dr. Amy Barton, the Child Abuse Specialist, from the MedicalKidnap.com article, in spite of the fact that Kristine has no control over the content of what is published on MedicalKidnap.com, where both the video and image remain.

Idaho Residents Show Support for Homeschooled Teen Medically Kidnapped – Mom Continues Fight in Court

For the last 7 months, 16-year-old Brandon McCreery has been separated from the only family he has ever known. After being medically kidnapped by St. Luke's Children's Hospital in Boise, over false allegations of medical abuse by his mother, Kristine, supposedly refusing to feed him, Brandon has spent the majority of 2019 in foster care. Desperate to be reunited with her son, and prove the allegations false, Kristine McCreery has sought answers and help from anyone she could find. After the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare and the 3rd District Guardian Ad Litem program refused to listen, and several different attorneys failed to speak for her, Kristine became frustrated and angry with the system. Unable to get anywhere with anyone associated with her son's case, she has turned her anger into a relentless passion and renewed her fight for her son. Since the State wouldn't actually help her, Kristine decided to help herself and turned to her new neighbors in Idaho for their help too. Their story went public on Wednesday, July 10th, 2019. To Kristine and her family's surprise, this young mother's cry for help was met with a monumental outpouring of support from Idaho residents. Kristine appears in court again Tuesday, July 16th for a review hearing on the CPS case. The court is set to decide the permanency plan for Brandon, which appears to be leaning towards not returning him to his mother. But Kristine isn't giving up. She plans to represent herself in court and demand her evidence be heard by the judge. She says, "I am hopeful that I will at least have a chance to be heard. I pray that Judge Tucker will see the truth in my words and Brandon's medical records, and finally send my son home to us." Court support and another rally have been planned for Tuesday to show community outrage over this situation.

Idaho Homeschooled Teenager with History of Medical Issues Removed from Mother Against His Will Due to Child Abuse Doctor Testimony

Brandon McCreery was always a small child, and had always been in the care of his mother, who diligently worked with doctors to find solutions to his medical needs. They moved to Idaho in 2017 in search of better health care. After being diagnosed with influenza, lab tests revealed Brandon had Celiac Disease, which was probably a contributing factor to his constant battle to put on weight. However, a psychological evaluation was ordered and his case was referred to a Child Abuse Specialist at St. Luke’s Children's Hospital in Boise. A short time later, Brandon's mother was being charged with child abuse, and Brandon became a victim of Medical Kidnapping, where his own voice in the matter was suppressed. His mother was further charged with educational neglect for homeschooling Brandon, and he was forced to attend high school even though he had already fulfilled all high school requirements and graduated at age 16.