Government Property
- Although Neil "had no desire to have Lia's parents prosecuted," he felt that he had no choice but to contact Child Protective Services (7.5). It's the whole thing about nine kids and one with a life-threatening disease, you know.
- In 1985, Lia is taken from her home. Although she's initially only gone for a couple weeks, the courts eventually decree that she has to remain in foster care for at least six months.
- The Hmong community is outraged by this—it confirms all of their worst fears about doctors and Americans. Nao Kao and Foua are devastated.
- Luckily, Lia ends up in the home of Dee Korda, a woman who fosters several children with special needs. Dee falls in love with Lia and cares for her like her own.
- Although Dee follows "the anticonvulsant prescriptions to the letter," Lia continues to have seizures—more frequently than she did at home, in fact (7.31). Maybe there was something to that idea of picking pills based on color, after all.
- Thankfully, the Lee and Korda families bond over their love for Lia. The whole Lee family visits Dee's home regularly—Dee even eventually tells Child Protective Services that Lia should be returned home. Aw.
- After six months, a social worker named Jeanine Hilt takes the case. Thanks to her help, the family reunites with Lia another six months later.