This term to be last, says re-homing lawmaker Harris

In this photo taken March 13, 2015, State Rep. Justin T. Harris, R-West Fork, listens at a meeting of the House Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark.
In this photo taken March 13, 2015, State Rep. Justin T. Harris, R-West Fork, listens at a meeting of the House Committee on Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative and Military Affairs at the Arkansas state Capitol in Little Rock, Ark.

The Northwest Arkansas Republican legislator who "re-homed" his adopted 5-year-old daughter to a man who later raped her announced Tuesday that he will not seek re-election in 2016.

Rep. Justin Harris of West Fork said Tuesday that he made the decision about a month ago, near the end of a second Arkansas State Police investigation into allegations of child maltreatment relating to his treatment of the then-5-year-old girl and her 3-year-old sister.

Harris said Tuesday that there were many factors behind his decision but he didn't want his presence to remain a "distraction" in state politics.

Asked if the move away from politics was temporary, Harris said it was time to "hang up the political hat" and focus on his family.

"This has been a process that would leave anyone disenfranchised on the political process," said Harris, 39. "I'm not gonna run. I'm out for right now."

In March, the Arkansas Times published a story detailing Harris' efforts to adopt the two sisters, both of whom had been the victims of ongoing abuse.

Harris accused state Department of Human Services officials of trying to block the adoptions. And then, when Harris decided he was incapable of caring for them, he said, DHS officials prevented him from returning the children to the care of the state.

He called the experience "a nightmare" and "a living hell," saying the children had problems that he was not equipped to address.

Harris' move of the girls to another home prompted a March 2014 child-abandonment investigation in which investigators found that the new family's father, Eric Cameron Francis, had sexually assaulted one of the girls.

Francis is serving a 40-year prison sentence after being convicted of two counts of sexual assault.

The stories immediately prompted two pieces of legislation aimed at preventing similar "re-homing" stories.

Re-homing children to people who are not close family members can result in a felony charge punishable by up to five years in prison.

Another piece of re-homing legislation also set out the rules for state subsidies given to adoptive parents. Parents must sign an affidavit promising not to re-home children to obtain a subsidy and must renew it every year. Falsifying an affidavit is a Class A misdemeanor and can result in a year in jail time.

Harris said that the publicity about his decision to re-home his adoptive daughters coincided with a call to the Arkansas State Police's Crimes Against Children Division, prompting an "83-day" investigation into allegations made by a baby sitter that he and his wife thought the girls were possessed, sought an exorcism and routinely locked them alone in their rooms for long periods of time.

The allegations were unsubstantiated, Harris said, adding that he and his wife were cleared of any wrongdoing.

State police spokesman Bill Sadler said he couldn't comment on Harris' case and pointed to Arkansas Code Annotated 12-18-104, which bars law enforcement or social service officials from disclosing or discussing a child welfare investigation.

"He's certainly at liberty to tell you anything he may wish to tell you with regard to an investigation that may have been conducted and I would go back to underscore the word 'may,'" Sadler said.

Washington County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Durrett said he was not aware of an investigation.

On Tuesday, Harris said that the national media attention prompted by the story of his re-homing has been difficult on his family.

"It's still real and alive for us. But it has caused me and Marsha both to reflect on just, I don't know, the whole enormity of the situation and how much harm it has caused the girls, just to have to relive it as far as what had happened to them," Harris said. "I am personally very sorry for what has happened to them."

Harris runs a West Fork day care facility, Growing God's Kingdom, which receives about 90 percent of its revenue from government funding.

When he was first elected in 2010, legislators could serve no more than three terms in the House of Representatives. But Amendment 94 changed the term limits requirements; lawmakers can now serve up to eight terms in the House.

Speaker of the House Jeremy Gillam, R-Judsonia, who was first elected the same year as Harris, said he wasn't surprised by the news, adding that comments Harris made before the start of the 2015 regular session suggested he might not seek a fourth term.

Gillam said he didn't feel the issue of re-homing, or Harris' conflicts with DHS, caused any "distraction" for fellow legislators.

House Minority Leader Eddie Armstrong, D-North Little Rock, said he wasn't surprised by Harris' decision not to run again and wished Harris, his family, and the two girls who were re-homed, his very best.

Not long after the stories about the re-homing emerged, Armstrong publicly suggested that Harris resign in order to eliminate the distraction the stories had caused.

"I salute [Harris] for now recognizing it has become a distraction which, indeed, it was always a distraction and we can get back to the people's business," Armstrong added.

In mid-March, Harris stepped down from his position as vice chairman of the House Aging, Children and Youth, Legislative & Military Affairs Committee as well as a position on the legislative Joint Performance Review Committee. Both bodies have oversight of DHS.

House leaders denied they had pressured Harris to give up the post.

Harris was absent for all three days of a special legislative session that was held in May.

Harris said he stayed away, in part, because of the ongoing investigation by state police.

"I felt that was important and I was taking care of some important family matters," Harris said. "That was a one-time situation. These special sessions, we don't know when they'll come up but I will not miss another one. I will finish out my term strong."

Metro on 06/17/2015

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