From the Jul 19 – Jul 25, 2001 issue

News

Baby Got Back

Police Take Toddler into Custody, Only to Return Him Three Hours Later

by Amy Jenniges

Aku Delves and his small son stopped to pick cherries from a tree at 13th Avenue and Denny Way a few weeks ago. Delves, a 34-year-old black man, climbed the tree to reach the fruit, while his two-and-a-half-year-old son, Soloman, watched from the sidewalk. A resident of a nearby apartment asked Delves to get out of the tree, and an argument ensued.

This dispute is documented in a July 2 Seattle Police Department report. According to the account, the boy was taken away from his father several minutes later, a few blocks from the original argument.

However, less than two weeks later, Child Protective Services (CPS) dropped its investigation of Delves and charges were never filed, making Delves wonder what gave the police the right to take his child in the first place.

"My son was kidnapped, legally it seemed," Delves says in his thick Caribbean accent. "They said they got calls that my child was in danger."

The police report states that Delves, when stopped at 12th Avenue and Denny Way, yelled loudly to nearby pedestrians and vehicles that "the cops are going to kill another fuckin' black man." The report describes him as pacing and yelling at the officers, and says the police suspected he might be on drugs.

"Then they took my son," Delves says, explaining that the officers told him they were taking Soloman for the boy's own safety.

Soloman was released to his mother several hours later, and she returned the boy to Delves. (The two are not married.)

According to CPS procedure, the police make the call when deciding to take a child into custody. CPS then investigates the incident.

But Delves doesn't think the police had just cause to take his son. He says he was not tested or arrested for drug use, and he had no weapons. (Case in point: The police let him walk home after the incident.)

Even CPS didn't find enough evidence to further investigate Delves. After speaking with him last week, a CPS supervisor closed the investigation.

Although he has his son back, Delves doesn't think the situation is over. He is afraid the police will further harass him and his son, and he has spoken with several lawyers about his rights.

"I'll certainly take legal action," Delves says.

amy@thestranger.com