Child who away on plane placed in child protection services
The boy’s father and a family friend during a press conference a few days ago.
A 9-year-old boy was removed from his family after his father pleaded for help with the boy on national television.
Minnesota District Judge Joseph Klein declared the boy a “child in need of protection or services.” He also ordered therapy for the boy and his parents while officials determine what kind of help the boy needs.
Exactly where the boy is staying was left unclear. The judge and attorneys referred only to an “out-of-home placement” and did not discuss when he might return home. After the hearing, county officials declined to be more specific, saying simply that the boy was safe. Attorneys for the parents and the boy did not object to the arrangement.
According to his parents, the boy has had a history of misbehavior; each instance escalating since this summer.
On Oct. 1, he stole a large delivery truck and damaged other vehicles. Two days later he went to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, snuck past a security checkpoint without a boarding pass and took an empty seat on a Delta Airlines flight. The flight crew became suspicious and turned him over to police in Vegas.
The boy has received psychiatric treatment in the past, last seeing a therapist on Aug. 13.