A Mother's Fight Against NYC's Emergency Child Removal System

About this episode

The episode discusses Meredith Trainor's legal battle after her child was removed by NYC caseworkers without a court order.

When Meredith Trainor's 11-month-old daughter tested positive for cocaine at a hospital, New York City caseworkers removed the baby from her arms, without a court order, even though Meredith had been at work when it happened. Five days later, a family court judge ordered the baby returned. Now Meredith is suing the city. WNYC reporter Samantha Max walks us through her case and what it reveals about how the city's Administration for Children's Services uses emergency removals, a process that separates more than 1,300 children from their parents every year. -Got any questions, comments or story ideas? Send us a message at NYCNow@WNYC.org

People in this episode

Guest: Samantha Max

Topics covered

• child welfare
• emergency removals
• legal battles
• family court
• drug testing
• parental rights

Keywords

• child removal
• cocaine
• family court
• New York City
• Administration for Children's Services
• Meredith Trainor
• Samantha Max
• emergency removals
• parental rights

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: New York City, Administration for Children's Services

Places: New York City

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