Today the Texas Supreme Court ruled that all of the Children removed from their parents at the Yearning for Zion Ranch of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was the right decision.

Undoubtedly there will be much outrage and criticism of this decision. Further, there was undoubtedly various dimensions of abuse going on in their community. However, the way the raid went down and the children were removed was completely unconstitutional and the State of Texas had no right to remove ALL of the children from the compound.

In the same way that there were certainly instances of abuse in the compound, there was undoubtedly a majority of parents were and are loving and caring people. On average they most likely will raise their children more lovingly and carefully than any foster parent could.

So where do both the state and the FLDS go from here? If the state truly is concerned about the Children they need to perform investigations on an individual level and only base those investigations on probable cause. Just the fact that a family lives on the compound should not qualify in such a matter. If there is probable cause and an investigations justifies removal of the Children , so be it.

The one concern I have is what the level of justification would be for removal. I think it needs to be based on legality purely, if the family chooses to raise their Children based on their religion and educate them on such a curriculum that should be their right. Generally speaking, parents, especially in America, should be free to raise their children in any manner they choose within the law.

The FLDS folks also need to be proactive to protect their interests. They need to not only submit to a measure of oversight, but they should invite it. They need to be more open to local law enforcement and build a cooperative and friendly relationship with the law and the local community.

Undoubtedly the local community is concerned about having the FLDS compound there. They fear another Branch Dividian situation. There is no better way to alleviate these fears than by being more open and welcoming. Perhaps they should take a page from the Amish community in Pennsylvania. They are free to educate and raise their kids in a bubble, in a manner that they please. If the FLDS pursue this course they should expect a prosperous future wherever they choose to reside.