Citing man's weight, judge takes kids away from 500-pound foster father in Buffalo, NY

Jet, Jan 7, 2002

A 500-pound foster father in Buffalo, NY, said goodbye to three boys after a court ruled that his weight was a hindrance to care for them properly.

Brian Jones, 38, said his inexplicable 200-pound weight gain over the past two years left him unable to participate in court, but not incapable of raising the 9-, 10- and 16-year-old brothers he hoped to adopt. He had been their guardian since 1995, when they were taken from their drug-addicted mother.

Jones said he seldom leaves his house because taxis and wheelchair transportation services cannot accommodate him. Desperate to attend the recent Family Court hearing, he asked furniture stores to drive him in a delivery van, but they said no.

"I'm beyond the shame part now," he said. "I was willing to go in a truck."

Judge Marjorie Mix ordered the children removed after a caseworker reported that Jones had supervised the children mostly from his bedroom and relied on the oldest to do chores such as cooking and shopping.

The caseworker, Shirley Bozeman, said that Jones recently lost his foster parent certification, that cockroaches were in the home and that the children needed more activities outside the home and fewer responsibilities inside. But she said the children are affectionate toward their foster father and wished to remain with him.

Jones, who was granted visitation rights, said he lost his foster parent certification because his weight prevented him from attending mandatory continuing education classes and because he skipped the required health exams for fear his weight gain would be discovered.

Jones, who is single, said he hoped to regain custody of the boys and is willing to have stomach-reduction surgery to get his weight under control.

"My goal is to walk into the courtroom and start my adoption petition," he said.