Still in Hell

The medical investigation is concluded. They've found no medical reason for the fractures (although we don't feel like they've looked particularly hard) and trauma/abuse is still the diagnosis. They want to discharge him tomorrow because the medical work is done, but he isn't allowed to go home with us because DCFS is still investigating. We have to use a "Safety Plan". At first he was going to have to go to someone else's home (since we have no family nearby, it would have to be a friend). I asked our caseworker if we could have a grandparent fly up to stay in our home to "supervise"- Landon is so young and none of my friends have children, so how could it be in his best interest to be somewhere new with someone who has no experience with taking care of a baby 24/7? (Not that my friends aren't amazing people for even offering.) So for now it looks like he will be discharged as long as someone is with him at all times when we're home, and DCFS and the police are still separately investigating. The DCFS worker didn't seem to be very "against" us, we're still alone with him in the hospital room and she agreed to the alternate Safety Plan, but a doctor must have really pushed the trauma diagnosis because she changed her demeanor somewhat after talking to them.

We've talked to a lawyer (two actually, thanks to the work of the amazing Citations) and we've asked about bone issues (OI and others), but the doctors don't seem very motivated to pursue that. We will obviously get a second opinion as soon as possible. It's so frustrating to be seen primarily as suspects rather than concerned parents- our son has six unexplained fractures in his ribs, that's scary enough.

I just don't see how the DCFS investigation can end well since the doctors have told them the fractures are due to trauma and JP and I are the only suspects. DCFS can take up to 60 days to decide to prosecute (though the caseworker said it should be within two weeks, which is good since we're doing a major shuffling of the grandparents to keep him supervised at all time, as required), so if there's no medical diagnosis by then, but they have no reason to think we did it, (other than the fact there's six fractured ribs) what happens? Can they decide to just drop it as unexplained? The lawyer said it happens, but it's very rare. Odds are they'll choose to pursue a civil guardianship suit. We haven't seen the police detective since yesterday, but we could be facing a criminal suit as well. It's a pretty lose-lose situation. A medical diagnosis would clear us, but any bone disease is a pretty tragic thing for Landon. So we're basically in some kind of parental hell- we don't know what's wrong, can't seem to get people to help us, and are suspected child abusers with no clear end in sight.

*I also wanted to say: thank you so much for your support, it means so much. Everyone we've talked to has been so helpful, indignant, and appalled. It's definitely kept us from actually feeling like criminals and helped us maintain the hope that this will all be resolved in a way that avoids a suit and a tragic bone disease*

**Update: he won't be discharged tomorrow because DCFS decided to take off for the night and not resolve anything. My mom won't be flying up quite yet and we'll be here "through the weekend." Hopefully we can use teh time to keep bugging the doctors to keep looking for something.**