Children disappeared from yards, porches, little shack homes. We live, work and play right here in the Tennessee Valley. Many people from McCaysville have said that Dr. Hicks was doing a public service by putting so many babies into the arms of parents who wanted a child. How do you feel about that, particularly in light of Kitty Selfs situation in January of 1965? No products in the cart. There is evidence Dr Hicks told birth parents that their baby had died and were instead selling them on to desperate couples. publisher_id: "7057", All articles, images, product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. Melinda and her whole family, including her sister and niece, picked Clarence up that day. That must have been right before she went unconscious. Posted on . But in Georgia, there are still hundreds of people looking for answers. Doc Hicks died in 1972 so there is mystery to this day. After completing his doctoral studies, he decided to start "ScienceOxygen" as a way to share his passion for science with others and to provide an accessible and engaging resource for those interested in learning about the latest scientific discoveries. That began my work in investigations. Blasio was one of about 200 infants placed in an illegal black-market baby ring run out of a small Georgia clinic by Dr. Thomas J. Hicks during the 1950s and 1960s. Judy and her husband had looked into adoption through official channels but you could be rejected if you were divorced, or if you werent a home owner. Especially up in the mountains of Copper Hill and McCaysville, Georgia, said Truelove. I was writing him fictitious letters as a pen pal. Truelove said this is what happened to his mother. Apparently, Dr. Hicks had prepared her falsified birth certificate. Clarence had a solid alibi (he was never alone that night), there was no physical evidence and she just couldnt believe, after almost two decades of marriage, that he could be responsible for such a devastating act. Hicks, who owns a dog and a cat, set up a nice space for the rescue pet in her garage, complete with a litter box, cat food, water and a "cozy" box that included a soft sweater. He charged adoptive parents $800 to $1,000 for a child, according to a 1997 report in the New . My husband didnt know his father. In 1965, Blasios adoptive parents drove from Ohio, paid $1,000 cash and a received their new baby through the car window, swaddled in a blanket and still caked with dried blood. submission: { Brooke later told police the attacker looked and sounded like her Uncle Clarence. Never miss a story by signing up for the newsletter now. The Hicks Babies. He's been searching for his biological family for decades. Once the women gave birth, Dr. Hicks would allegedly tell the unsuspecting moms that he had found adoptive parents for the children. It was known that he would perform them anyway. 7 Little Johnstons Season 13 Renewed: Premiere Date Revealed, Netflix Announces Pokemon Original Series. She is one of about 200 people known as "Hicks Babies," named for Dr. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks, a beloved, small-town physician who trafficked in black market babies from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s until he was arrested for performing illegal abortions and lost his medical license. He also secretly placed infants with out-of-state parents in off-the-books adoptions. I visited Clarence and told him, this is the guy, Im telling you. It took Melinda seven and a half years to clear her husbands name. Mobile App|Weather App | WDEF Email Sign Up. They werent having anything to do with me. In the early 1950s, Hicks reportedly beganadvertising illegal abortion services to unwed pregnant womenin phone booths, bus stations and bridges. Wittenberg is a nationally ranked liberal arts institution with a particular strength in the sciences. What have you been able to learn about your ancestry through DNA testing? Where can I watch the documentary taken at birth? The Childrens Home Society was closed. In a gobsmacking move, the court agreed, and decided there was no grounds for a retrial. One reason that our program is so strong is that our . Through town records, he and Atress, who is not a Hicks baby and was raised by her maternal family, found their father, who is now 83. Thomas Hicks, a Georgia doctor, had illegally sold more than 200 babies from the back door of his clinic. Dr. Thomas Hicks died of leukemia, a type of blood cancer. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. He was married and had three children. His appeals exhausted and Melindas bags of DNA accumulating space, she realised she needed help. "They were dirt poor everyone was. She had spent the night at her grandmothers house, Judy. That was my first thought when they told me she had been murdered. What I hoped and expected when I walked into her house was the best-case scenario of finding birth information, the possibility of records. Which led Judy and Melinda to Maury in April 1998. Your email address will not be published. The story of Dr. At least 49 of the babies were sold to parents in the Akron, Ohio area. They were adopted through the Georgia clinic that created a national furor back in. Occupation: Dentist Spouse: Sallie Cobb Johnson Adopted children: Thomas J. III and Sallie Cobb Hicks Son of Chassie Copeland and Dr. Thomas Jugarthy Hicks Sr. who performed illegal late term abortions, sold infants on the black market and is the subject of the TLC documentary Taken At Birth.. The second best result is Eric Ray Hicks age 40s in Greeley, CO in the Westmoor Acres neighborhood. She has served for more than nineteen years in federal law enforcement. Georgia Tann died of cancer in 1950, three days before the state investigators delivered their damning report. The administrator advised me to seek an attorney, investigator, and detective to help assist me as this is a serious situation and has FREQUENT his office. One of the Hicks Babies, Melinda Dawson, told CBS that her adoptive parents paid $1,000 for her in 1962. CHATTANOOGA, TN (WDEF-TV) About 30 people showed up this weekend to give cheek-swab DNA samples. Paul Payne, who is a Hicks Baby, said this story is not new, and it digs up a lot of questions. Were there more doctors involved? virtual: false, The neighbour, Tonia Brasiel, was cooking breakfast for her children at the time and made Brooke wait for 45-minutes on the front porch. We've received your submission. Born and raised in the city of London, Alexander Johnson studied biology and chemistry in college and went on to earn a PhD in biochemistry. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. She took Jacks fathers last name, Hollinsworth, so that people would think she was a widow, instead of having had a child out of wedlock. I was so afraid that they were coming to get me and my sons, they have my husband in jail and Im left like a sitting duck. Send your birth certificate to Georgia to McCaysville and see if youre part of that group.". Jane Blasio is the youngest of the known Hicks Babies. "I want to know who I look like, I want to know how my sons got so tall, I want to know if my sons look like their grandfather or their father.". This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Thats why they are back again this year. The "Hicks Babies" explore their past in TLC's "Taken at Birth.". Jane Blasio is a Hicks Baby, sold at birth and passed through the back door of a clinic in North Georgia. evvnt_require("evvnt/discovery_plugin").init({ text: "Promote your event", Id even send him envelopes so he would send me a letter back, the envelope type that you had to lick it on the back and seal it, just to get his saliva. One of those. detail_page_enabled: true, The Real Story Behind TLC's 'Taken at Birth', Carrie Underwood Shares Hilarious Fashion Fail, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. I always felt there was something very odd that [Tonia] wouldnt have called the police and let my niece in, she left her on the porch. He charged what he could get from the hopeful couplesanywhere from $200 to $10,000, dependent upon the financial status of the couple. Taken at Birth, a miniseries series starring Jane Blasio, Lisa Joyner, and Christopher Jacobs is available to stream now. TLC presents Taken At Birth, a three-night television event coming October 9th at 9/8c. The "Hicks Babies" are now grown and many have babies and grandbabies of their own. For nearly three decades, Hicks sold as many as 200 babies to local and out-of-state couples who didnt have the time or money for legal adoptions, for prices ranging from $100 to thousands of dollars. It worked. Stapleton, who now lives in Long Beach, Calif., with his longtime girlfriend, was reunited with a half sister, with whom he shares a father. ", First published on October 12, 2014 / 8:16 PM. More to the point, he also facilitated over 200 illegal adoptions. Dilbeck is the oldest of the Hicks Babies at age 69, according to TLC's Taken At Birth. Hicks was the beloved town doctor in the tiny mountain town of McCaysville, but women came from miles around to seek his services. But still, deep down, Stapleton has a desire to learn more about his birth family. He died in 1972 and it took three decades before Hicks' actions were brought to light. And the pair have formed an easy bond: We have matching DNA tree tattoos on our backs, Stapleton says of his sister Atress Davis. I was so happy for Clarence, and my sons. When Signal Centers opened its doors in 1957, our program consisted of nine children with cerebral palsy, one small classroom, and a common goal to help individuals with disabilities achieve a life of self-sufficiency. He had done prison time for selling drugs in Tennessee and lost his. Source: YouTube Screenshot They add it how people in this region had to do things. John and Cyndy were just two of more than 200 newborns sold by Dr. Thomas Hicks, a doctor in McCaysville, Ga., who was selling babies out of the back door of his clinic in the 1950s and 60s. . How many Hicks babies have found their biological family? In the 1950s and 1960s, hundreds of newborns were taken from a small-town Georgia clinic sold on the black market. As part of his practice, Hicks performed abortions, which were illegal at the time. RICHARD WAGNER, MCCAYSVILLE "I remember Doc Hicks from when I was a kid. A new TLC special will share the untold stories of the "Hicks Babies," more than 200 newborn babies illegally sold or given away from the back steps of a small-town Georgia clinic run by Dr.. Its question like those that has the Truelove family taking action.