Mother Before Judge Mary Lou Alvarez
Reference: DTWK-YTNB-AK2D-B3GN
- Outcome
- Baby Returned
- Outcome detail
- Returned to the mother on 21 October
- Jurisdiction
- San Antonio, TX, United States
- Year
- 2025
- Account type
- Court Or Official Findings
Quick summary
- Quick summary
- A Bexar County judge ordered a four-day-old baby taken from his mother at a paternity hearing and held at the courthouse before CPS was even notified.
Full story
- Full story
- On 7 October 2025, at a paternity hearing in the 288th District Court, Judge Mary Lou Alvarez confirmed paternity, then ruled both parents unfit and ordered the four-day-old baby kept in the courthouse Children's Court Protective Room until a CPS investigator arrived. No petition had been filed by the district attorney, DFPS or any agency. The mother was on bond awaiting a prison sentence in an unrelated child injury case. The judge returned the baby to her on 21 October.
Where
- Agency
- Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS)
- City
- San Antonio
- State
- TX
- Country
- United States
- First Nations
- Not Stated
The removal
- When the baby was taken
- After Discharge (First 28 Days)
- Baby's age when taken
- 4 days
- Where the baby was taken from
- Other
- Stated reasons
- Prior Child Protection History
- How it was done
- Emergency Removal Without Order
Support after
- Grief counselling offered
- Not Stated
Getting baby back
- Did she get her baby back
- Yes
- Time apart
- 14 days
- Where the baby is now
- Returned To Mother
People, hospitals and agencies
| Name | Role | Organisation |
|---|---|---|
| Mary Lou Alvarez | Judge / Magistrate | 288th District Court, Bexar County |
| Larry Roberson | Lawyer | Bexar County District Attorney's Office |
Official response
- Official response
- The Bexar County DA's office asked CPS for an administrative review, saying the court acted 'in the absence of any petition' and raised 'substantial due-process, statutory, and constitutional concerns'.
- Legal action
- Inquiry Or Review