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Italian ‘Forest Family’ Loses Appeal as Juvenile Court Plans Custody Review

The court will reconsider the children’s placement after lawyers say the parents have begun cooperating with social services.

Overview

  • The three children remain in a care facility, with the mother visiting daily and the father allowed regular visits.
  • Social services deemed the off‑grid home without running water or electricity unsuitable, citing poor hygiene, social isolation, and the children’s lack of schooling.
  • Media reports say the children encountered electric light switches and a shower for the first time in care, and that the eight‑year‑old cannot yet read or write in English or Italian.
  • The case began after a severe mushroom poisoning in September 2024 led doctors to alert police, triggering a youth‑services investigation.
  • Senior politicians criticized the court decisions while the national judges’ association defended the magistrates and warned against political pressure tied to a coming justice‑reform referendum.