American Idolalum Syesha Mercado and partner Tyron Deener have lost custody of their newborn daughter following a roadside safety check in Florida on Wednesday.
Deener and Mercado recorded this week’s police encounter on Instagram, writing: “THEY TOOK OUR BABY AGAIN!”
The traffic stop was reportedly a surprise to the couple, as they had asked that all casework be handled through their lawyers,The Rootreported.
The child remains in state protection following an August 12 court hearing, according to theSarasota Herald-Tribune.
Mercado appeared on season 7 ofAmerican Idolin 2008, placing third toDavid CookandDavid Archuleta.
The 34-year-old singer claims she had previously taken her son Ra to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in Florida for fluids while transitioning from breastfeeding to the bottle due to her pregnancy when Child Protective Services took the boy.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
Mercado also insists her children are prime examples of racial discrimination in Manatee County.
“Our Sun has since been placed with a white foster family without interviewing qualified relatives or friends of our family for placement while they investigate. We are given limited information and presently only have weekly zoom visitation for an hour with our sun, with no court order stating these visitation limitations,” reads her GoFundMe, which was initially created to help bring her son Ra home.
Jemal Countess/Getty
“The racial discrimination that our community is facing right now is focused on Police Brutality because of the visibility and documentation. But we don’t think about the other forms of systematic oppression that come as a sub-set. In particular, the Victimization of our children through the Foster Care System. They become the forgotten ones, falling through the cracks because mothers and fathers are too afraid to take on the gigantic task of standing up to a way of thinking and laws that are steeped in colonial times. Parents are coerced to sign plans and documents under mental duress, essentially signing away their rights to a system that doesn’t love or understand us,” the fundraiser continues.
The Florida Department of Children and Families did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment. A representative for Mercado also did not respond to PEOPLE.
Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital provided PEOPLE with the following statement.
“Our first priority at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital is always the safety and privacy of our patients and their families. Therefore, we strictly follow privacy laws that limit the amount of information we can release regarding this particular case. However, we can say that our first responsibility is always to the child brought to us for care, and we are legally obligated to notify the Department of Children and Families (DCF) when we detect signs of possible abuse or neglect. It is DCF that investigates the situation and makes the ultimate decision about what course of action is in the best interests of the child.”
Mercado’s GoFundMe has raised over $250,000 as of this publication.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
source: people.com
