Wednesday, March 18, 1998

Judge moves children from accused parents

By Bob Greene

FOND DU LAC, Wis. -- Rejecting pleas from attorneys for accused child abusers Michael and Angeline Rogers that it would be a hardship for Mr. and Mrs. Rogers to move, Judge Steven Weinke last week ordered that they leave a house where they are living with four children.

Judge Weinke also ordered that Mr. and Mrs. Rogers not live in any house where minor children are living.

Although this would seem beyond obvious -- Mr. and Mrs. Rogers are each charged with 10 counts of felony child abuse for, among other things, allegedly repeatedly locking their 7-year-old daughter in a basement dog cage overnight -- the judge's ruling came only after we reported that Mr. and Mrs. Rogers were living with children.

They had been ordered not to have any contact with their own children, but free on bail, they moved from Calumet County, where they had been arrested, to Kewaunee County, where they moved into the house where the four other children live. The house belongs to Angeline Rogers' mother; the children are hers.

Judge Weinke had approved the move. What he did not know -- apparently he never asked, and no one told him -- was that there were children there. The judge had warned attorneys in the case not to discuss it with reporters and had forbidden disclosure of where Mr. and Mrs. Rogers had moved.

When we learned the accused abusers were living with children, we informed Judge Weinke before reporting it in the newspaper. He immediately arranged a conference call with attorneys in the case, which led to last week's hearing.

At the hearing, an attorney for Michael Rogers argued it should be permissible for Rogers to live with the four children because, according to household rules, "He is not allowed to do any disciplining whatsoever toward the children." He said the children would be safe because Mr. and Mrs. Rogers "are not allowed to violate any laws," and "they understand the laws of Wisconsin as to abuse of children."

Angeline Rogers' attorney said that "if (Mr. and Mrs. Rogers) commit a crime," they would be in violation of their bond, but as long as they don't, they should be allowed to live with children.

The reason Mr. and Mrs. Rogers want to live where they do is apparently a financial one -- because the house is owned by Angeline Rogers' mother, they can live there paying no or little rent. But prosecutor Ken Kratz argued this is not reason enough to put children in danger.

Bond conditions are sometimes "inconvenient for criminal defendants," Kratz said. But criminal courts "are not required to be convenient for defendants," especially when "to do so puts other potential victims at risk."

The risk to the children in the home "is a real risk, not just a potential risk," Kratz said. He referred the judge to a letter from Bud Hanson, director of the Kewaunee County Department of Social Services, saying that for Mr. and Mrs. Rogers to live with minor children "is not appropriate" and, because of the felony child abuse charges against them, should not be permitted.

Kratz also disclosed in court that the four children living with Mr. and Mrs. Rogers are represented by a court-appointed attorney who was previously assigned to protect their interests in an unspecified matter. That attorney, Kratz said, strongly objected to Mr. and Mrs. Rogers being allowed to live with the children.

Judge Weinke ordered that Mr. and Mrs. Rogers leave the residence within two weeks. He ordered that, wherever they move, it cannot be in a home with minor children.

Informed of the judge's decision, Bud Hanson -- whose job it is to protect abused children in Kewaunee County -- said, "I think this is much safer for everyone. You need to remove the potential for serious problems."

He said he was sorry the judge did not require Mr. and Mrs. Rogers to live farther away from their 11-year-old son who, on the night of Nov. 17, walked barefoot and in tears to a police station to ask for help for his sister and brothers. Mr. and Mrs. Rogers, with Judge Weinke's permission, had moved closer to the boy than had originally been allowed.

Hanson, in his letter presented in court, had said the boy "should be free to walk around in this town and be able to participate freely in community activities without concern for (Michael and Angeline Rogers') presence." But Judge Weinke did not amend the protective distance.

Although Mr. and Mrs. Rogers appeared disappointed that they will be required to move, neither they nor their attorneys addressed the fact that, since the arrest, their five children have been forced to move to as many as three different foster homes each.

The criminal trial is scheduled to begin in May.

Chicago Tribune