A series of speakers during the April 22 public-comment period told the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners they or family members were harmed by child-welfare investigations and family-court procedures, and urged county and state authorities to act.

Gerry Anderson described years of family trauma stemming from a 2016 removal, saying his granddaughter was taken from the home and later died. Anderson identified the removal date and said he was told his granddaughter had a federal "helpless child" classification; he characterized the county response as a violation of federal law and asked the board to help.

Several other speakers echoed concerns about Division of Social Services (DSS) case handling and family-court practices. Jeter Anderson (same family) described perceived failures of local child-welfare authorities to explain removals and said intake and investigation records left questions unanswered.

Amy Betts, who identified herself as the founder of Adelises, called for audits of DSS and family-court practices, asked for restoration of children to biological families and urged establishment of a survivor-led review board. She cited a presidential executive order dated April 9, 2025, and a series of high-court rulings she said limit agency authority; she said her group had submitted a petition for rule-making and constitutional compliance.

Eric Hux said his five children were being held in protective custody and accused local agencies and courts of corruption and denial of due process. Several speakers alleged gag orders, sealing of records, expensive transcript fees and other barriers to court access.

Others who addressed related matters included Stephanie Hooks, who said her children were removed while the family was traveling and asserted that she had not been proven guilty of wrongdoing; and two speakers who criticized aspects of local legal representation and investigative practice.

What commissioners did: The board heard public comments. No formal investigation or immediate action was taken at the meeting; the speakers asked county and state officials to review DSS practices and family-court procedures.

Caveat: The allegations reported at the meeting were made by public commenters and were not independently verified during the session. The board did not provide findings or a response on the record at the meeting.

Ending: Commenters urged transparency, audits and policy changes; some asked the board to prioritize investigations or to press state actors to review practices affecting families.