Jerusalem – Father Of Meah Shearim Mother Accused of Abusing Child Imprisoned Speaks, Others Continue Protest

Jerusalem – Angry protests continue to stage throughout Meah Shearim and Kikar Shabbos after a Meah Shearim woman exhibiting signs of Munchausen psychological syndrome in abusing her 3 year old child was seized by state authorities and imprisoned.

Hundreds of protesters rioted and riot police were sent to deal with them. One policeman was lightly injured, and one protester was severely hurt and had to be hospitalized for treatment. 15 protesters were arrested.

The couple are Toldos Aaron chassidim who have 5 children. No accusation of abuse was levelled at the mother for how she treats her other children.

The mother had spent a substantial part of the last 2 years in and out of hospitals with her youngest child, while devotedly insisting on watching the child in the hospital. Doctors were puzzled at the illnesses she reported, and despite numerous tests, could not find the reason for the child’s low weight. Finally, a month ago, the suspicion was raised that the woman suffered from Munchausen syndrome.

Below video a prayer protest staged earlier today on the street

In Munchausen syndrome, the affected person exaggerates or creates symptoms of illnesses in themselves or their child to gain attention or sympathy from the hospital staff. Patients with Münchausen syndrome are aware that they are exaggerating, in contrast to hypochondriacs who believe they actually have a disease. This disorder is a medically recognized condition which is considered a specialty and is treated in clinics as prestigious as the Mayo Clinic.

Doctors placed a hidden camera in the child’s room. The camera recorded that when the woman was alone, she would remove the intravenous supplying the child with nutrients.

Dr. Glick, the doctor from Meuchedet HMO who first suspected the syndrome, reported it to his seniors who soon had the police involved.

The husband relates what he says was the brutal conduct of the health authorities:

“A month ago, there were no complaints from the medical staff. Then suddenly, they began to give my wife the feeling that they don’t want her in the hospital. In the meantime, our child’s health got worse after they gave him his food in a different way. They related badly to us, until a week and a half ago, my wife was given a court order to keep away from the child. She cried a lot, but nothing prepared us for what was coming.”

After the husband and his wife returned from a 3-day vacation, “we were asked to urgently come to the Welfare Dept. We were in touch with them because a social worker helped us with the child’s health problems and the heavy expenses it entailed.

“We sat down with the head of the department, Ruthy Shapira, and she told us we had to show up in court because of the distance order. We left the Welfare department and suddenly six policemen jumped on us and put handcuffs on my wife. Since last week, she’s in custody. If someone is being abused, it’s my wife. They won’t even let her put on her contact lenses.

“My wife is an aishes chayil and a devoted mother. Since she was arrested, I feel a huge hole in my life and great sadness. She was the mainstay of the house. I feel that the police and welfare department is destroying our home. She was devoted to our five children. She dresses them, washes their clothes, and cares for their meals throughout the day. She was never violent. For the past two years, she has stayed with our sick child throughout the day. It’s impossible that she is an abuser.”

In fact, Munchausen syndrome is often so well disguised that even family members are unaware of it and the ones afflicted with the syndrome can appear the very paragon of a devoted parent.

Many Meah Shearim residents are slinging the typical accusations about the Zionist bullies looking for an opportunity to demonize the Meah Shearim populace.

But not all. One resident, who requested anonymity, says that it could be that the woman suffered from a medical syndrome which caused her to needlessly hospitalize her child many times.

“So for that you send a contingent of police to arrest her and throw her into prison? Why wasn’t medical staff sent to deal with the lady? Since when are people suffering from psychological disorders arrested and thrown into prison?” he asks. He attributes the riots in Meah Shearim to the anger of the residents to the ugly way the State dealt with the case.

“They suspect the woman had Munchausen syndrome?” another Meah Shearim resident said. “How did the State handle other cases of Munchausen syndrome? With lurid accusations of abuse and public arrests accompanied by lengthy newspaper articles?”

In the meantime, the secular demonization of Meah Shearim residents is continuing. Child abuse professionals are moaning that the “closed nature” of the Meah Shearim community prevents early diagnosis of the syndrome, and the community’s likely volatile reaction to state interference makes professionals wary to get involved.

However, Dr. Yuval Weiss of Hadassah Hospital said that this particular case will not affect the hospital’s protocol concerning diagnosing similar cases.

“One must be careful in this delicate field, we can’t go to the opposite extreme,” he said. “You can’t suspect every parent. We’ll continue to check out and rule out physical diseases. We see tens of thousands of children from every community, all of whose parents are devoted. We’re speaking about an exceptionally unusual case from which one shouldn’t draw any conclusions.”

The Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court partially accepted the appeal by the woman’s lawyer, Atty. David Halevi. He petitioned for her release, saying there was no point in keeping her in custody. A hearing will be held on Friday to consider it.

The judge said, “There is room already at this stage to release her under strict conditions.”

The police at first insisted that their investigation requires the woman to remain in custody, but today retracted their resistance as long as she is released under limiting conditions.

A secret meeting was held between the Jerusalem police commander Aaron Franco, and a group of Aida Hachareidis communal workers. They reached an agreement that the woman would be released in exchange for the community furor coming to an end.

In the mean time Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat ordered all city services to the area of the Meah Shearim and Geola haredi neighborhoods in the capital be suspended, in an attempt of thwart the threat posed to municipal employees’ wellbeing and in light of the local residents’ vandalizing of city property.

The Jerusalem Municipality said that the services will not be renewed “until such time as providing them will not entail risking human lives.”