Jury to Begin Deliberations in Foster vs. Blood Parental Rights Case

Jurors will begin hearing testimony today to determine who gets custody for Hailey and Charla Casteneda, severely abused sisters who's parents are both in jail--their father is serving life in prison and their mother a lesser sentence. Though the mother will be eligible for parole in a few months, the state is asking jurors to sever her parental rights and allow Hailey (whose injuries were so severe that her tongue was nearly severed and who shows signs of developmental delays) and Charla, who was also abused, to be adopted by their foster family.

Complicating the issue are both sets of grandparents, who want custody of the girls. The maternal grandparents had custody of both girls while Child Protective Services investigated an earier incident, but CPS now wants to deny them rights to the girls because they failed to alert authorities when the children moved back in with their abusive father. The attorney for the grandparents, however, argues that CPS should bear some responsibillity for allowing the children to be placed back with their father in the first place.

The case, which no matter the outcome is likely to set a legal precedent in Texas in terms of foster care rights, will probably take about a week to be presented and deliberated.