Meanwhile, in the reddest state in the union, Daren Jensen was running for GOP vice chair of SL county ran into a minor snafu that destroyed his candidacy: he's not a registered Republican (just plain conservative I guess). He thought he checked the box last time he voted, but alas it was never recorded. Meanwhile, registered GOPers at the top knew of the error and didn't let him know of his mistake until was too late so they could just disqualify him.
He has pushed for legislation to overhaul the Division of Child and Family Services and the Guardian Ad Litem's Office, two state agencies involved in the high-profile push to force his then-12-year-old son, Parker, into chemotherapy in 2003."I don't need an office or a vice chairmanship to continue to represent people of like values," he said.
Daren Jensen refused to treat his son's leukemia with chemo and thus attracted the ire of the GAL office and a debate about the role of government. Actually, it does sound like Jensen is more Libertarian than GOP. The GOP nowadays would love to legislate how you raise your children, how you get your jollies, what you see on TV/Movies/Internet, how you end your life, etc. The GOP is trying to legislate their American Taliban brand of morality (another thing that makes these extremists akin to their Islamic counterparts in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan).
Personally, and I think most people would agree with me, I think Mr. Jensen doesn't have the right to decide the fate of his son like that. Chemo is a crude method of treating cancer, but until we develop more advanced treatments, it is sometimes the only treatment option. If Parker was 18+ and said he didn't want treatment, I would respect his wishes, but since he was 12, he can't really give consent and when parents make choices on behalf of their children that harm their life expectancy, the state should properly intrude.
Parker is now 13, and apparently cancer free, thank God. His father's legislation would force state agencies like GAL to take children like Parker's wishes into account when making these decisions. If Parker, just prior to going on to life support, had told his parents and state social workers that he didn't want to prolong his life, then I would be down with that per Crusan. Not all kids are really capable of making the right choice as Parker was when it comes to something less drastic than the life-support scenario; that is, how do you define who is a "mature-minor?"
Jensen's bills: Senate Bill 83 provides that a parent's medical decision does not constitute neglect unless the state can prove by "clear and convincing" evidence that the decision was not "reasonable or informed." House Bill 202 narrows the definition of child abuse, excluding threatened physical harm and upping mental harm to mental cruelty and neglect to chronic neglect. To get it past committee, sponsor Wayne Harper, R-West Jordan, discarded even more controversial provisions. House Bill 338 seeks to limit the role of the Guardian ad Litem, a division of attorneys appointed to represent the best interests of children in juvenile court.
SB 83 passed both houses of the legislature and Governor Huntsman is expected to sign the bill into law. The others failed in the Senate I believe. At the very least, Daren Jensen ended the career of at least one state official: GAL head Alicia Davis stepped down in February after it was revealed that the office doesn't usually meet with the children to discuss their wishes and that all but $75,000 of her office's $239,000 budget went to cover the salaries of Davis and her assistant.
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