2009 CPS ENTERS THE PICTURE
This is the story that lead up the the Lee's raid...................................
Early in 2009, Samantha and her neighbor who is the town marshal of the next town over got into it over Samantha's horses. This person said he was going to call CPS on Samantha. 12/15/09 CPS visited the Lee home, were asked to come to the CPS office on 12/17/09, in which they did, before leaving the caseworker asked them if they'd allow her to open a case on them. The Lee's said no. CPS unsubstantiated the allegations on 12/21/09.
The case worker then "called in" a welfare child check on 1/6/10 (on a family with no case). The same neighbor answered the call. This time, the town Marshal (that had been stalking the Lee's for months was brought in on this (and amazingly is behind the 2011 raid also). The Lee's told the Town Marshal he was not invited into the home because they were trying to clean the basement from where it had flooded. (The basement had flooded they had moved Josh and Candace both out of their basement bedrooms until they could get the flooding under control, and were cleaning the displaced, waterlogged items). The family was washing down stuff in the kitchen and they needed to get it finished. The town marshal refused to leave and argued with Samantha that he was going to come into the house, that he was there to check for heat. Samantha told him, "look up you can see and smell the fireplace." He then said he needed to check for hot water. Samantha told him that both he and the caseworker knew that she is disabled and REQUIRED aqua therapy daily in order to be mobile. So heat and hot water were essential in the Lee household period. He said he didn't care he needed in the house to check on it. Samantha had to stand outside in the cold for 50 minutes fighting for her right to privacy because this town marshal would not leave, he even threatened to lock up Randell for a joke he said, remember, this is a neighbor. Samantha was on the phone for 20 minutes arguing with the caseworker that they had no right to be there and they were not coming in and the family was busy. The caseworker told her someone was going to get into that house that night if she had to come out herself, Samantha said she had already offered the town marshal (neighbor to neighbor) to come back in 2-3 hours after they got done what they were doing, he refused that and they were not going to allow him in, they felt he had no right to even be there. The caseworker argued that she'd have someone else to come out, Samantha argued no, they weren't going to stop until they were finished. Samantha who is disabled and cannot be in cold air or talk on the phone long told the case worker she was then in pain and had to get off the phone and was going in but was not going to let the town marshal in, the caseworker kept arguing and would not let Samantha off the phone. She kept on Samantha asking Samantha to let her open a case on the family, Samantha said no, so she started again on the town marshal getting into the house. Again Samantha said no, this went on for about another 8 minutes. Finally Samantha near tears in pain told the case worker that she can have the town marshal come back in 2-3 hours after they got done. The case worker said no, he was going to get in then. Samantha said no he isn't he can come back in 2-3 hours but I am hanging up. Then the caseworker said "FINE, but you BETTER let him in and he will be there in TWO hours." Samantha told the caseworker the family would have to stop what they were doing to clean up the kitchen floor, take all the dirty items back down to the basement and cram all the cleaned items in the loft, etc. The caseworker also said, that she would be out the next day to discuss opening a case on the family. Samantha handed the phone to the town marshal, told him to come back in 2 hours and walked into the house. They didn't go in before because they feared what this town marshal would do, they do not trust him. It took Samantha 50 minutes to fight for her right to privacy.
On 1/7/10 the case worker said she wasn't coming out because of snow, but asked Samantha if she'd agree to opening a case on the family. Samantha said no. The caseworker said she will discuss it with her when she comes out the following day.
On 1/8/10 the case worker said she wasn't coming out because she didn't feel well, but asked Samantha again if she'd agree to opening a case on the family. Again, Samantha said no. The caseworker said she'd see her on Monday and would discuss it then.
On 1/11/10 the case worker came out to the house, was 30 minutes late at that. The reason Samantha let her in is because she was tired of the harassment and wanted to set the record straight with this case worker. The case worker lied the minute she opened her mouth. Said the school called in a complaint about the kids. Samantha told her "hold it right there, I know you are lying, you had to of called the school. And the reason I know the school would not had called you is because I have an open relationship with that school and the principle because of Josh!" The caseworker never denied and records show the caseworker did call the school. Then when Samantha called her on that, she started in on the cats, saying this cat had feline leukemia, this cat was sick, that cat was sick, that cat was emaciated, just on and on and on. Samantha told her she was a former vet tech, had an animal educational background, and that some of the cats were currently under a vets care and that one cat that was pointed out was not emaciated, that she was long and lanky. Then she started in on Samantha homeschooling Parker. Samantha has followed the Indiana Department of Education laws on homeschooling, the caseworker didn't even know what the laws were and Samantha had to educate her. As the caseworker was getting ready to leave, once again asked if they' d allow her to open a case on them. The Lee's said NO again. The caseworker explained it would be an informal case plan and that she would be able to get them a grant to finish remodeling their home, to get new kitchen cabinets, floor, furnace, etc. Samantha said "we do not agree to an open case, we do not want the states money, we will fund the remodel the way we have been out of our own money". With that the caseworker left. The Lee's felt they finally put things straight with this caseworker.
1/12/10 Per documented CPS records the caseworker told her supervisor and the director of CPS that Samantha and Randell were cat hoarders. With that the director told this caseworker to contact animal control.
1/13/10 The caseworker called Samantha and told her to stay put she was on her way back out to the house, even though Samantha told the caseworker she didn't have time to meet with her, the caseworker refused to listen and made Samantha stop to meet with her. The caseworker arrived at the Lee home with her supervisor and 2 sheriff deputies and told Samantha and Randell they were there to detain the children (without a warrant and without exigent circumstances) and that she called animal control and he would be there shortly. The Lee's were dumbfounded as the last thing either of these parents would do would be harm their children or their pets, both are the world to them. They knew something did not make sense but knew that animal control would set this straight. So when the ACO arrived at the home Samantha spoke with him and he stood in the Lee's living room for 20 minutes commending Samantha on a job well done. He questioned her about a few things just to assure her knowledge, in which Samantha picked up on his ill spoken terminology relating to animal care, but dismissed it. As the ACO went to leave he looked over at the caseworker as though to say goodbye and with that his demeanor changed and he said he would be back the following day to seize all the cats. It did not matter that the animals were under veterinary care just 30 days prior, did not matter that Samantha had proof of that, did not matter that Samantha provided proof of medication the cats were on, or anything.
1/14/10 The ACO came back and took the cats and coerced Samantha in surrendering Parker's ducks. He said that if she didn't he would just get abuse charges on them also. Samantha felt that wouldn't happen and that surely she'd see a judge and the judge would see their was no reason for them to even be on her property. She just wanted him gone, and not sure of what was going on she surrendered the ducks. The ACO told Samantha and Randell that a bench warrant would be issued and she could see about getting the cats back. However, that has never happened.
In September 2010 AFTER waiting on the bench warrant that the ACO told her and Randell that would be issued, Samantha contacted the investigator and told her that she wanted the cats back. The investigator told Samantha they were waiting on test results to come back. Samantha told her she knew that was a lie as it does not take 8 months to get test results. Then the investigator said they were still being used as evidence against her, but would tell the aco. The investigator kept on Samantha wanting to know where her horses were, this was 8 months AFTER the seizure, they could not find the horses and were still looking for them.