That's the latest. It's been in the papers here for the last couple months. Utah has been getting pretty lambasted as a state from the Chicago news sources. The Chicago side of it is that Utah adoption agencies are unethically flying low-income mothers to Utah to put their babies up for adoption.
This particular mother claims she was suffereing post-partum depression and not in a fit state of mind to make the adoption decision. The whole thing got another twist when the adoptive parents in Utah got busted for drugs. The baby is back in Chicago now, but the whole thing seems to be a giant mess.
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Is this sort of thing unique to Utah adoption agencies? Is there concern that the "pressure" spoken of is due to an LDS influence? Oh no! The Mormons are trying to steal your babies!
I know that the LDS church strongly encourages unwed mothers to give up their children for adoption, I assume as a better alternative to abortion and to give the child an option for a 2-parent family if they don't have that option. Would this be considered pressure? Is it possible that the Tamia's mother Maria pressured her to keep the baby after giving it up without her consent? (This is a big issue in some cultures.)
I imagine giving up one's baby is horribly difficult. Our previous landlords ran a non-profit adoption agency out of their home and I remember a mother coming in with her year-old child to give up. I couldn't imagine the pain she must have been feeling--especially since she had had a whole year to bond with her child. (Most of their work is with babies from other countries who have already been abandoned by their parents.) But the idea is that one giving the child up feels they cannot provide as good a home for their child as a well-selected, stable couple.
It is unfortunate that the parents chosen in this case turned out to be "bad eggs". I imagine it is an inherent risk impossible to prevent %100. The situation *sounds* bad when you focus on the emotions of the reunited mother and child and the criminal acts of the adoptive parents in this particular circumstance. But I do wonder about the actual truth of the situation here.
I have a good friend who has adopted two children. In each case there was some question on whether or not the mother or father would give consent. Once it is given, do they regret it? I imagine they do. There is some risk of the birth parents attempting to reclaim their child. That is one of the reasons why the LDS church imposes a strict waiting period on families wishing to have adopted children sealed to them in the temple.
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It does appear that Utah, as a state, has very lax regulation of adoption compared to other states (like for example the fact that a Mom N Pop adoption agency like your landlords could exist at all) Is this directly "Church-influenced"? Highly unlikely. Indirectly, however, the culture could definitely have a strong influence on these lax policies.
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Yup, it was definitely a "Mom N Pop" adoption agency. They themselves through their work decided to adopt 6 more of their own in their old age. They had already raised 5 kids of their own.
I don't know very much about adoption laws. Maybe they need to be stricter in Utah? I don't know.
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They themselves through their work decided to adopt 6 more of their own in their old age. They had already raised 5 kids of their own. 
