VALPARAISO, Ind. (WRTV) — A Valparaiso mother and father are fighting to get their kids back after they say the Indiana Department of Child Services wrongfully accused them of abusing their baby.
Amanda Denney, an emergency room nurse, and her husband Louis Stanford say Indiana’s child welfare system is “unchecked power.”
They contacted WRTV Investigates Kara Kenney for help.
'It was terrifying': Couple says DCS took children amid abuse allegations
The Stanfords say their daughter, Clara Stanford, appeared happy and healthy at four weeks old.
On November 6, 2025, her mother, Amanda, saw something about Clara that concerned her.
“I looked in the inner corner of her eye, and I just noticed a red mark, and I'm like, 'What is that?'” asked Amanda.
The next day, Clara’s other eye also had bleeding, according to Amanda.
Amanda took Clara to the pediatrician, who referred them to Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
As a nurse, Amanda knew to expect a lot of questions and tests at the hospital.
“They did the CT, did the X-ray, which was, in fact, a skeletal survey, which, from my research, automatically triggers a consultation to a child abuse pediatrician,” said Amanda. “I don't think we were concerned at all because there was, nothing was going to show up on a scan or an X-ray to substantiate our child was abused.”
Clara’s parents say the child abuse pediatrician asked them a lot of questions, including about Clara’s birth and family history.
“She said, you know, an infant cannot injure themselves like this; something had to have happened,” said Amanda.
Amanda said she explained to the doctor that Clara had been straining to make a bowel movement in the days before.
“She was bearing down, like purple face, arms over her head, trying to have a bowel movement, and we're like, 'Could that have caused it?'” asked Amanda.
Doctors contacted the Indiana Department of Child Services, and a DCS caseworker came to the hospital.
“She's like, 'I can detain your kids,'” said Amanda. “I freaked out. It was terrifying, absolutely and utterly terrifying.”
DCS removed Clara and her older sister from the Stanfords through an emergency detention, where the agency can remove a child without a court order.
“I bargained, yelled, screamed and cried on the floor for like a good two and a half three hours because I was in just such shock and disbelief that this was even happening to us,” said Amanda.
Indiana DCS paperwork provided to WRTV Investigates by the Stanfords shows DCS noted, “Parents cannot explain cause of injury to infant who is not mobile enough to cause injury on their own,” and “believe to be trauma caused by shaking, hitting, blunt force, or other unknown causes.”
- WRTV Investigates: What do you say to people that say, you know, is it possible that one of you somehow hurt your baby? What's your response?
- Amanda: Nope, not at all.
The Stanfords had a New York doctor, D. Phyllis Weiner, review Clara’s records.
Dr. Weiner evaluates alleged child abuse cases and found the cause of Clara’s eye issues was Vitamin K Deficiency bleeding, as well as forceful vomiting and straining.
“This is not a case of Child Physical Abuse,” said Dr. Weiner in her report.
“For me, it was relief that somebody took the time and reviewed the notes and, like, looked at everything that was happening and said, 'Yes, there is a medical explanation for this,” said Louis Stanford.
Across the country, child abuse pediatricians contract with state child welfare agencies to help determine whether injuries were the result of abuse or neglect.
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Colorado professor, child abuse pediatrician explains role
WRTV Investigates spoke with a child abuse pediatrician who is not affiliated with Indiana or the Phillips’ case.
Dr. Antonia Chiesa is a professor of pediatrics at the Colorado School of Medicine with a specialty in child abuse pediatrics.
Dr. Chiesa can’t comment on individual cases, but she said child abuse pediatricians are trained to look for conditions that mimic abuse.
“If a child comes in with bruising, we don’t automatically jump to the conclusion that the child’s been abused,” said Dr. Chiesa. “We take a good history. We do an exam. We speak to the parent or the child if they’re verbal, and we think about other conditions that could be causing this."
Dr. Chiesa says child abuse pediatricians collaborate with other medical colleagues.
“When it’s gray and ambiguous, and a diagnosis can’t be determined, we need to say that,” said Dr. Chiesa.
When there is a diagnosis of abuse, medical providers must legally report those concerns, said Dr. Chiesa.
“We are not there to figure out who did what,” said Dr. Chiesa. “We are just there to say, with the best understanding of the medical literature in our practice, this injury is diagnostic or makes sense for physical abuse.”
Child abuse pediatrics was approved as a new specialty by the American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) and the American Board of Medical Specialties in 2006, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics website.
“We’re a relatively new medical specialty,” said Dr. Chiesa. “We are trained on all forms of child maltreatment, physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and sexual assault."
Indiana Department of Child Services responds
Every year, dozens of Indiana children die from abuse and neglect.
The Indiana Department of Child Services received 213,938 reports of suspected abuse and neglect in 2025, records show.
WRTV Investigates reached out to DCS, and they can’t legally comment on individual cases.
The agency told us broadly, “Statute and case law guides how DCS determines when to remove a child from the care of a parent."
The DCS also says in general they must receive authorization from a juvenile court to "keep the child in custody if the child was removed under exigent circumstances."
WRTV Investigates reached out to Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago for comment and we are still waiting to hear back.
'Unchecked power': Stanfords push for change
The Stanfords say they have not been contacted by police regarding their suspected abuse case.
DCS filed a CHINS petition, or Child in Need of Services, against them.
The DCS case is still pending, and court hearings are scheduled for later this year.
Meanwhile, Clara and her sister are staying with their grandmother while the Stanfords get supervised visits.
“We are also completely compliant with all the services they’re forcing on us,” said Amanda. “I guess the taxpayers can pay for our therapy once a week and pay for visit supervisors to sit in our house and watch us be a family.”
They say the child welfare system needs an overhaul and that the opinions of child abuse pediatricians carry too much weight in the child welfare system.
“It goes back to unchecked power,” said Amanda.
The Stanfords story is spreading on social media, including the hashtag #BringHomeTheStanfords.
“We’re not alone,” said Amanda. “There’s power in numbers. This has to stop. You shouldn’t be scared to get your children help.”
