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In reply to the discussion: New Jersey Man Who Named Son After Adolf Hitler Shows Up For Family Court Hearing Wearing Full Nazi [View all]Starry Messenger
(32,382 posts)That is Heath Campbell's assertion, because that's the issue he'd like to win on, but that's not why the kids were ultimately removed.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/31/adolf-hitler-campbell-custody-battle-nazi-names-new-jersey_n_1561046.html
"A state appeals court ruled in 2010 that the children were put at risk of abuse and neglect based on a history of domestic violence in the home, ABC News reported. Deborah Campbell once slipped a note under a neighbor's door saying she was terrified of her husband because he had threatened to kill her, according to court documents. Adolf Hitler Campbell also frequently threatened to kill people, ABC News added.
Now, after a three-year battle, the Campbells cannot have custody of their children, according to the court. Heath Campbell last saw his children about a year ago and is now separated from his wife, who moved out of the state, the Star-Ledger reported.
Attorneys on both sides of the case are not allowed to speak to the press due to a gag order, but the children's father spoke out against the ruling. His kids weren't removed from their home for abuse, he argued, but for their parents' beliefs and the names they chose to reflect those sentiments.
"If I have to give up my Nazism, then so be it. I'll do it," Heath Campbell told the Star-Ledger. "[The children are] more my heart and soul and everything than anything."
Odious as he is, his free speech isn't being trampled. Plenty of hate group leaders don't get their kids taken away for their hateful crap. The children were removed for having their welfare in danger. (I must admit I do think raising children in a hateful environment is child abuse, but that isn't what this case is about.)