Informant38

Reason Gray: I was on Juvenile Court for Abused and Neglected Children. I can�t get these cases out of my mind. It was common that a single mother -- say she has two children -- would hook up with the wrong boyfriend, who would be a drug dealer. One fine day he would tell her, "Look, Maria, I�ll pay you $500 to take this package across town to Charlie." She basically knows it has narcotics in it. She gets arrested and gets five years in prison.
What happens to her children? They come into my court as abused and neglected children. There�s the mother in a prison jumpsuit and handcuffs and I tell her the truth. "You know, ma�am, you�re not going to be a functional part of your children�s lives for the next five years." She starts to well up with tears. Then I tell her that unless she�s fortunate and has either a close personal friend or family member who is both willing and able to take custody of her children, they are very likely going to be adopted by somebody else by the time she gets out of prison.