The desperate need for the United States to repeal prohibition becomes painfully clear when the blowback from the drug war claims the innocent lives of those never given an opportunity to live. This is the case with 11-month-old Angel Lane Place, who was killed earlier this month by the Colorado-sanctioned foster mother she had been placed with after her parents admitted to police that they smoked marijuana.
Reports indicate that 20-year-old Sydney Danielle White is being held responsible for Angel’s death after she confessed to dropping her on the floor on September 12, followed by a brutal strangle and shake session a few days later. White told investigators that in an effort to get Angel to stop screaming, she snatched her up “by the neck with both hands and shook her multiple times.” It was only after one of White’s children walked into the room and screamed, “Mommy, stop it,” that she came to her senses and put the baby to bed.
Unfortunately, the life-threatening damage had already been done, giving White no other option but to take Angel to see a doctor. “White said the baby initially became lethargic and wouldn’t wake up, but that later she appeared to be doing better,” police told 7 News. “Later that night White took Angel to St. Mary’s Hospital when Angel’s right side became stiff and she was unresponsive.”
Angel did not survive the night. The coroner report states that her death was the result of “blunt force trauma to the head,” which happened all because her biological parents told police they used marijuana.
Unfortunately, while law enforcement and family services team up to remove “endangered” children from loving homes over cannabis, they are putting them in the hands of psychopaths who are more interested in collecting a monthly paycheck from the state than maintain their care. It goes without saying that Angel should have never been taken away from her parents over an admission of pot use, especially in Colorado where marijuana was legal.
Yet, this injustice keeps happening all across America.
During a recent interview, Keith Stroup, founder of NORML, said his organization receives several calls a week from people who have lost custody of their children over marijuana. We get calls “three or four times a week from people who have lost custody of their children because they tested positive at birth or in a situation where parents are feuding over custody.”
As for Angel’s parents, they plan to file a lawsuit against Mesa County in hopes of restitution. “You know I was seeing pictures of her, seeing videos, you know she was doing good, she was making good progress, and I was okay with the situation she was in,” said Angel’s dad, Ted Place. “And then, all of a sudden, I had just found out that your daughter is in urgent care in Denver, Colorado, and you need to come there. I just want Mesa County to pay for what they’ve done.”
