Child Protective Services in Montana is being sued for allegedly sending a 14-year-old girl from her home state to receive therapy for gender change in Wyoming. As a result, her parents’ custody rights were totally terminated.
The Gateway Pundit has received a disturbing story from the family’s representative, Mattie Watkins, outlining the difficulties the Montana-based Kolstad family has encountered.
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With regard to their 14-year-old daughter, Todd and Krista Kolstad are embroiled in a bitter and legal struggle because they believe Montana CPS has taken drastic measures that qualify as “kidnapping.”
Montana passed State Bill 99 in April 2023, making medical transitioning for minors illegal. However, the Kolstad family was profoundly affected by a sequence of events that transpired in August.
In defiance of the parents’ wishes, Montana Child Protective Services sent their daughter to Wyoming, where the state’s unique regulations on medical transitioning for minors let her to receive treatment for her abrupt onset “gender dysphoria.”
The police notified the Kolstad family in August 2023 over a troubling text message from their daughter that seemed to be suggesting suicide ideas. Authorities notified them of her suspected ibuprofen overdose and drain cleaner intake.
Veteran of the US Air Force Todd Kolstad stated in a video, “Our 14-year-old daughter has struggled for quite some time in school from bullying. We have had many meetings over the years with the school systems trying to address these issues.”
“We even moved from Flathead County in west Montana to a much smaller town in Valley County in east Montana, hoping that this will give our daughter a fresh start in a new school system and new environment. On August 18, 2023, we received a call from our local city police. We were informed that our 14-year-old daughter was texting a friend that she had met at a school track meet, saying she wanted to kill herself.
“It should be noted our daughter had only met this child once face to face several months prior and had only phone conversations with her ever since. We took this threat seriously and spoke to our daughter. However, we knew she was struggling with anxiety since school was about to start on Monday. She was also very angry with us because we told her she needed to put her two-week notice in at her summer job so she could focus on starting the 9th grade, Todd said.
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The hospital discovered no signs of ibuprofen or drain cleaner, supported by a negative toxicological testing. Still, the girl was hospitalized for observation; she now identified as “Leo” and preferred to use male pronouns. The Kolstads objected on the grounds of their morals and religion, but the staff disregarded them.
In a video, Krista stated, “The hospital continued to call our daughter Leo, even though she’s a minor, and after I stated it’s against our wishes, our religion, and our core family values, the hospital told me to call their lawyer if I have an issue, as they will do what the patient tells them.”
“I said to them, according to State Bill 99, they may not under the law provide transgender care nor transition our child. Their response was, they are not providing surgery or hormones, so they’re operating in the gray area of the law. I further explained that my understanding of the law was a minor is a minor, and there’s no difference between a four-year-old and a 14-year-old, and we prefer to be called by her birth name.”
To further complicate matters, Krista Kolstad complained after a hospital assistant brought up the subject of “top surgery” (elective double mastectomy) with the youngster.
“The hospital put our daughter on 24-hour supervision because this was a suicide threat. The hospital placed an aide outside her door who began talking about having top surgery and how she identified as nonbinary. I objected and reported it as inappropriate to the doctor on duty. At that point, I was told, why are you not more concerned that your daughter is trying to harm herself than what the aide is talking about?”
The Kolstads’ parental authority and concerns were often disregarded by Montana CPS and hospital staff. Their desire to provide mental health care did not prevent their daughter from being sent to Wyoming for treatment.
By constantly brushing Krista off as “just the stepmom,” nurses undermined her authority as a parent. Since she married Todd in 2017, when her daughter was about seven years old, she has been a part of her daughter’s life.
For their daughter’s ongoing mental health concerns, the Kolstads gave their permission to get therapy and inpatient care. But parents expressed concern about moving her to Wyoming, which does not have any laws against “transitioning children.”
Citing the parents’ denial of medical treatment, CPS and police presented a court order taking custody of the kid without the agreement of her parents and with a last-minute notice of an open bed in Wyoming. Their daughter’s contact was suddenly cut off.
“Court dates were set and the Kolstads were assigned a public defender who advised them to “play nice” with CPS,” Watkins said.
The daughter of the Kolstads was subjected to social transition procedures including chest binding after being moved to Wyoming. Her menstrual cycle is now being stopped by birth control, a move that has drawn criticism for being a quick shift from social to medical transition.
“On September 27, a judge temporarily blocked SB 99 pending a lawsuit filed by patients and medical professionals. Since then, she has been given a chest binder, which can restrict breathing, break skin and bruise or fracture ribs. She is currently in consultation for birth control “menstrual therapy” to halt her menstrual cycle,” said Watkins.
The Kolstads’ kid may be sent to live with her biological mother in Canada, who has been missing for the last seven years, as the issue becomes more complicated on a global scale. Furthermore, Dr. Wallace Wong, a psychiatrist in Canada who has a contentious position about the treatment of “trans” children in foster care, practices.
Parents are reportedly urged by Wong to take extreme steps to shorten the wait times for gender change therapies.
Watkins wrote, “Also in Canada is Dr. Wallace Wong – a perfect example of the risk of malpractice to troubled, sex-confused kids placed in government care. In addition to his private practice, the psychiatrist is responsible for children currently in the care of B.C.’s Ministry of Family and Child Development.
“A court-reported transcript of a talk Wong gave to parents in 2019 shows him bragging about a 125% increase in “trans” kids in foster care since 2010, bringing the total from 4 to 500. In 2019, there were 5,713 – 6,263 kids in B.C. foster care, making 7.98% of them “trans” compared to 0.33% of the population according to Statistics Canada. They were closer in line with government data in 2010 when there were 8,264 kids in B.C. foster care. The four “trans” kids reported by Wong would come to 0.44%.
“Wong, who has privileges in California and trains doctors for the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), then scared parents with the lie that “trans-kids” are at greater risk of suicide and coached them on how to manipulate long wait times by having their kids threaten to kill themselves.”
Through a GiveSendGo campaign, the Kolstad family is presently raising money to hire a private counsel to help them regain custody of their daughter. Donations are accepted HERE.
Krista said, “Todd and I love our daughter beyond words. We are not naive and understand that we have an adolescent girl who has struggled with mental health issues most of her life on our hands. The system has not helped our daughter. Instead, the system has taught her how to weaponize the system itself to receive what she wants.”
“We do not believe the system has tried to treat her mental health issues. Instead, it has forcefully focused on the transgender component and on forcing us into doing things against our family values, religious beliefs, and core moral beliefs. Much damage has already been done to our family. How many families will the system destroy?
“Is the state of Montana willing to open a door and take every troubled child who is angry with their parents, placing them in group home settings and violating their rights as caregivers, providers, and parents, and morally diminishing and destroying our family units?
“This is a medical kidnapping, and this needs to stop. We currently only have a public defender whose advice has been to play nice. We are running out of time. If there is any attorney willing to fight for us pro bono, please contact us.”
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Governor Greg Gianforte (R-MT) of Montana made a comment about the controversial child welfare case.
Despite being long, the Governor’s speech has drawn criticism for lacking specifics regarding the matter. The statement, according to critics, does not make it clear if the child’s family was actually removed because they did not accept her gender identification.
Governor Gianforte stated the following in a string of tweets:
Children should have the opportunity to grow up in loving, healthy homes with supportive families in order to offer them the best chance to realize their full potential. Unfortunately, this dream isn’t always fulfilled.
Sadly, abuse and neglect put children’s lives, health, and well-being in grave danger. Removal from their homes should only be done as a last resort.
I asked Lieutenant Governor Kristen Juras, a seasoned lawyer, constitutional conservative, mother, and grandmother, to look at recent charges pertaining to a child welfare issue.
After personally reviewing the case files and conferring with the DPHHS director, Lieutenant Governor Juras has determined that both the court and DPHHS have handled this terrible situation in accordance with state law and policy.
I have requested that the lieutenant governor keep an eye on the situation as it develops. Additionally, the use of government funds for medical or surgical treatments for kids with gender dysphoria is prohibited under Senate Bill 99, which I signed into law in April 2023.
Our administration will keep pushing for laws that support adoption and prohibit invasive, permanent medical procedures that alter a child’s life, such as sex reassignment surgery, hormone treatments, and puberty blockers. These policies are designed to strengthen families and safeguard Montana’s youth.
The Kolstads’ custody rights were removed by a judge on January 19, 2024, since they did not want to assist their child’s transition. In addition, the judge ordered them to take down an internet video that explained their predicament.
Now that Todd and Krista are subject to a gag order, speaking out might result in contempt of court.
The court wants to remove the following video that Krista and Todd are in:
