Gary and Amy Strouhal never thought they would be sitting at this table in the court house being forced to sign papers relinquishing their parental rights to their third child taken by CPS, but they were. What brought them to this point was a long hard fought battle in which the Strouhal's lost terribly. They lost their children, their hopes for the future, they lost parts of their hearts and souls the day their children were stripped from them by CPS. 

CPS removed infant son Bryce and 2 year old Stephanie from their parents custody with the sole intention of terminating the couples parental rights. After two agonizing years, the case finally went to trial. For three weeks a jury would hear about every mistake the parents had made. They would hear criticism of the parents and their characters would be placed under a microscope. Worst of all, their ability to care for their children would be judged. What brought them here? How did this happen? It all started with the Strouhal's infant son's surgery. He became dangerously underweight after a 1999 surgery. Doctors at Cook Children's Medical Center suspected Amy was feeding her son too quickly after the surgery. CPS thought that their 2 year old daughter Stephanie was in danger as well, so they removed both children from the couples care.

Gary had not been abusive to his children, but in the eyes of CPS, he had not protected them from his wife, who they believed suffered from Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy, a disorder in which the mother intentionally causes or fabricates illnesses in her children to gain attention. Because he didn't protect his children from his wife, CPS declared him unfit.  Records from Cook Children's Medical Center indicate that Amy was intentionally feeding Bryce too quickly. Nurses at the hospital noted that Amy had seen a video on how to feed her son through a "g-tube", a valve that goes into the baby's stomach that is used to feed him. The Strouhal's blame the hospital, they say their son wasn't properly diagnosed. 

This wasn't a criminal trial, so the prosecuting attorney Assistant Attorney Angela Goodwin, didn't have to prove "beyond a reasonable doubt, she only had to provide clear and convincing evidence.  Mike Viesca insisted that the Munchausen theory was not a primary issue in the case, " It was a case based on children who were in danger." he said. The Munchausen theory was indeed their central focus during the trial. It had to be due to the fact that that was why Stephanie was removed from the home. 

However, testimony from several top noted specialists indicated that Amy did NOT fit the the profile for a woman suffering from Munchausen. Mark Foster preformed an evaluation on the couple and came to this conclusion. His report states that Amy is an unfit parent because she is narcissistic, immature and impulsive. He also stated that she reads on an eight grade level and performs math on a fifth grade level. 

"It is likely she will have difficulty in appreciating how her choices affect others," Foster said in his report, " ..Amy may have to make the same mistake repeatedly before learning from the experience." Fosters report doesn't include any mention of Munchausen's, when testifying, he could not say whether she fit the profile or not. 

John Jeffrey, a Duncanville psychologist, discounted the Munchausen's theory. "Amy is probably guilty of being self-centered, strong willed, immature, impulsive with a grandiose sense of self importance that made communicating with the doctors more difficult than it needed to be." Because CPS based it's theory of the disorder primarily on Bryce's weight gain while in foster care, Jeffrey's report stated that it was ,"an alarming lack of evidence." 

CPS would go on to win that fight and terminate the couples parental rights. That wasn't good enough for them though. Nine days after Amy gave birth to her third child, a son named Mathew, the couple was again subpoenaed to the Johnson County Courthouse where CPS wanted to terminate their parental rights regarding Mathew. The CPS affidavit reads, "This child is at extreme risk of severe physical abuse and neglect. Gary and Amy Strouhal's parental rights were terminated on their first two children due to Munchausen's Syndrome by Proxy."   

With hands shaking and tears in her eyes, Amy knew the chances of keeping her son were slim to none. An attorney representing the infants best interest warned the Strouhal's that if they contested the termination their son would be shuffled from foster home to foster home until a permanent placement could be found. They didn't have the money to fight the state, so with a heavy heart, she signed the papers that would terminate her parental rights to her newborn son Mathew. 

Amy and Gary now live in Missouri. These days Amy is tending bar instead of raising her children. 

"I hope this never, never, never happens to anyone else ... but I know it will," Amy said

On June 12th, Amy had her tubes tied, she'll never have children again.