Teen fled border crossing before CYFD later reunited him with mother in Mexico

A 15-year-old boy who was born and raised in New Mexico has been reunited with his biological mother in Mexico after a series of court and child welfare decisions that drew criticism from a state lawmaker who says the teen’s safety should have been the top priority.

According to a statement from the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department, the teen is now in Mexico with his biological mother, a Mexican national who CYFD said was previously accused of abusing him.

New Mexico state Sen. Crystal Brantley said she has concerns about CYFD’s decision to reunify the teen with his mother.

“We no longer have eyes on that child, and we do not know if they are safe,” Brantley said.

CYFD said the teen spent nine years living with a New Mexico couple under an informal guardianship.

Court records show that in 2019, proof had substantiated that his biological mother abused him.

CYFD said she was also arrested on drug charges and later deported to Mexico.

Emily Schmalz reports on Teen fled border crossing before CYFD later reunited him with mother in Mexico (Credit: KFOX14)

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In May of this year, the teen was hospitalized for a medical condition and entered CYFD custody after the couple said they could no longer care for him. In early June, a judge ended the informal guardianship, leaving the teen in CYFD’s care.

CYFD said he was first placed in foster care before the agency began the process of reuniting him with his mother in Mexico.

Before the reunification, CYFD said it and Texas child welfare officials conducted two virtual home visits with the mother and determined she was safe for placement.

Brantley criticized what she described as an approach that can put reunification ahead of safety.

“What New Mexico does is it prioritizes reunification with the biological parents at all costs. And in some cases, it’s those parents that were the abusers and the offenders that they were removed from in the first place,” Brantley said.

CYFD officials said that on July 6 at the Bridge of the Americas port of entry, the department left the teen to cross into Mexico and reunite with his mother.

Instead, CYFD said, he ran through multiple lanes of traffic, fled back into the U.S. and was later found at a Texas shelter.

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CYFD said the teen had strongly objected to being reunified with his mother, but on July 17 the department escorted him across the border to reunite with her.

“We need to mandate that the best interests of these children are being prioritized and not reunification,” Brantley said.

Brantley said she plans to reintroduce legislation aimed at changing CYFD’s priorities in such cases.

“For many years, I’ve introduced a bill called Best Interest of the Child,” Brantley said.

“These cases need to be given individual case-by-case attention to make sure that we are considering the history of abuse, the child’s interests and certainly the safety conditions.”

CYFD said it followed court approval and completed safety assessments before reuniting the teen with his mother.

The department said the teen was confirmed to be living with his mother in Mexico as of July 20.

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