COUPLE'S BABY APPREHENDED AT BIRTH

It was less than an hour after midnight on Nov. 16 when Annaliese
Gwendolyn Postma entered the world.

She arrived weighing 7 lbs.15 oz. and was 51 cm. long with a full head
of brown hair.

Parents Caitlin Herman and Nathaniel Postma were thrilled to meet
their daughter.

"I was actually the one bawling my eyes out when she came out,"
recalls burly Nathaniel.

But less that 12 hours later, confusion, anger and sadness would
overshadow their happiness.

Before lunchtime, a nurse came in and took Annaliese from her mom's
arms.

The nurse didn't say anything or answer Caitlin's questions as she
wheeled the child out of the room in her bassinet.

Nathaniel had been sleeping nearby but awoke to the ensuing chaos as
several social workers and RCMP officers entered the maternity room at
Surrey Memorial Hospital.

The baby was being seized, the parents were told, and taken into the
care of the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

The dad, according to government documents, was agitated and volatile,
even the next day. But his child was being taken, he argued, of course
he was stressed.

Caitlin and Nathaniel are both 19. They were in foster homes much of
their own lives. Both "aged out" of care earlier this year.

Caitlin, whose birth mother abused drugs and alcohol, was put in
foster care at birth. Over the years, she has been diagnosed with
myriad mental health disorders, including fetal alcohol syndrome,
neonatal abstinence syndrome, attention deficit disorder, oppositional
defiant disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety and depression.

Nathaniel lived mainly with his grandmother until age 14 when he began
having anger management and abandonment issues, and she could no
longer care for him due to her own health issues. He's since suffered
from anxiety, depression and psychosis. He remains close to his
grandmother.

Both have also been on medications for years, although Caitlin went
off them prior to becoming pregnant. She has since followed up with
her psychiatrist and a letter written after her Dec. 11 appointment
says the new mom "does not require any medication at this time."

Nathaniel says he manages his symptoms without the pills but does have
a prescription for a low-dose anti-psychosis medication.

When the couple met more than a year ago, they fell in love quickly
and decided to have a baby together.

But six months into the pregnancy, in July 2008, someone placed a
child welfare call, expressing concern about the pair's ability to
care for a child. Their many diagnoses were cited, as was the fact
they'd not been taking their prescribed medications.

A social worker didn't meet with Caitlin and Nathaniel until late
October. A report provided to The Leader by the couple says the worker
was concerned about the sanitary state of the one-bedroom apartment,
noting there was cat hair, the carpets were dirty and there was a
sour/stale smell. It also outlines Caitlin's admission that she has
mood swings and smoked pot during her pregnancy. (Caitlin says she
smoked very little, and only to stop nausea to allow her to eat). It
also talks about verbal arguments and the teens slapping one another,
but they say it's always in fun and never escalates to physical fights.

The report references collateral checks with family and professionals
indicating concerns about the pair's mental health issues, as well as
"the conflictual nature of their relationship and maturity/developmental
ability to safely and effectively parent and (sic) infant."

A source also told the worker Caitlin drank and used drugs prior to
knowing she was pregnant and predicted she'd go back to using in order
to cope with the stress of being a new parent.

Sitting on a couch in their small but tidy apartment with family and
friends, Caitlin and Nathaniel talk openly about their past, their
troubles, their mistakes and their plans for the future.

Their baby, they vow, would be safe and loved and well-cared for in
their home. While they are both on disability assistance and earn a
combined $1,500 a month, they've budgeted for their daughter's needs.

"I've been around newborns since the age of 10," Caitlin says. "I do
feel I'm one of those people that was meant to have a baby."

Nathaniel believes he's a "natural" when it comes to
fatherhood.

They're currently allowed to visit their daughter in her Coquitlam
foster home three times a week. Annaliese weighs close to 11 pounds
now. Caitlin breastfeeds during her visits and pumps her milk during
the week.

But the bassinet in the couple's bedroom remains empty at night,
except for a blanket bearing their daughter's photo. No overnights
with the baby are allowed.

On the change table beside the bed is a pale pink Christmas stocking
they filled during their supervised holiday visit. They await the day
Annaliese can come home to stay.

Kids only apprehended when 'immediate' threat: Ministry

Decisions to seize children are always a last resort, according to the
Ministry of Children and Family Development.

Only when a child protection concern is raised - be it through a
hospital, a family member or a neighbour - does the provincial body
step in.

Caitlin Herman and Nathaniel Postma wonder why, if they were viewed as
such risky parents, they weren't offered supports - such as parenting
or anger management classes - prior to the baby's birth and
apprehension.

While a complaint was made in July, a social worker didn't come to
their home until October, just weeks before the baby was born.

A spokesperson from the ministry could not speak about Annaliese's
case specifically, but said the ministry often works with parents and
parents-to-be on self-help skills and specific tasks such as meal
preparation and money management.

"Our first goal would always be to try to put those supports in place
where that's a possibility, but in some cases, there are immediate
child protection concerns which outweigh those goals," he said, noting
the approach is the same whether the child is born yet or not.

"Children are only removed when there's an immediate threat to the
child. Unless that threat is apparent, we would not act to remove the
child."

Nathaniel and Caitlin can't understand how their newborn would be in
any danger, but say they weren't offered any assistance prior to the
baby's birth.

Having been in foster care her whole life, the young mom says she
would have attended any courses or counselling to assure her daughter
would come home from the hospital with her.

"I know what it's like and I never wanted that for my daughter. Had
they given me the choice - I would have done anything."

The couple has since registered for a parenting class that begins this
month and they are looking for a relationship counselling course that
doesn't have a waiting list.

Last month in court, the province applied for a three-month extension
to the temporary custody order for Annaliese, but the couple's lawyer
contested it.

Both sides are now scheduled to sit down and discuss the case during a
conference scheduled for Feb. 19.