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LINCOLN, Neb. — All Dan Weber wants is the right to visit his 4-year-old sister. His parents, who placed him in foster care when he was 14 because he was “uncontrollable,” want to keep him
away, but they have never said why. Dan, now 17, is fighting his parents in court over an issue that has torn the family apart. Peggy Stevens, a county attorney, argued on the teen-ager’s
behalf before Nebraska’s Supreme Court this month that he is “suffering greatly from his lack of contact.” “If this were a child who was into torturing dogs and cats, violent behavior or
behavior problems in school, we wouldn’t be here,” she said. “But he has never involved another person in his behavior, has never struck out at another person.” Dan’s parents say he broke
the rules, took the family car, shoplifted and smoked cigarettes. “The courts have absolutely no jurisdiction, no fundamental right to interfere with the parents’ right to protect their
daughter from her older brother,” the couple’s lawyer, James Davis, argued. Megan was 5 months old when her brother last saw her. When Dan was 14, his mother, Diane, a homemaker and former
bookkeeper, placed him in foster care for “uncontrollable behavior.” He stayed with an aunt and several foster families, lived at Boys Town for 3 1/2 months and now lives with his
grandmother. When he was first placed in foster care, he asked a juvenile court judge to let him visit Megan. The judge arranged visits supervised by Dan’s therapist. The state court of
appeals backed that ruling, but Diane Weber and her husband, Ken, appealed to Nebraska’s Supreme Court, which could take months to rule. Diane Weber told the Omaha World-Herald that she and
her husband did not give up on their son. She said that she had hoped foster care would make him realize how good he had it at home. He had taken the family car when he was 13, was caught
shoplifting and broke a family rule by taking $2 to school, she said. She also found a pack of cigarettes in his closet, she said. Dan said he did break the rules but has never been
arrested. In an interview, he said he had “just turned 14 and couldn’t do anything” because his mother was so strict. Dan said he doesn’t know if he’ll ever have a relationship with his
parents again. “I see them out, like in the car or something, but they don’t talk to me, they don’t talk to any family.” MORE TO READ