Baby Briana’s arms twitched and legs flopped against cold concrete. She stopped breathing.
The 16-month-old needed an ambulance to arrive within minutes and someone to pump air into her lungs with infant CPR until it got there. Briana’s life depended on who was with her when a hidden health condition stole her breath.
A few weeks ago, it wasn’t clear who that would be.
Texas child welfare workers removed the girl and her brother – both under age 2 – from their parents’ home in January 2025. Their nana Rochelle cared for them for months until, one day last September, a state official took the children from daycare without notice or explanation. Eventually, the kids were driven 170 miles to live with strangers.
Afraid she’d never see Briana and Jayden again, Rochelle decided to fight to bring them home. It would only happen if she could assert her voice in a court where she had, so far, felt voiceless.
