In April 2024, Kaliyah Chism and her husband, Jaicobi Freeman, called an ambulance to take their two-month-old son, Kylen, to the hospital after he experienced an injury. By the next day, the state had seized all of their children. Now, the mother and father are fighting the state of Georgia not only for their own freedom but also for the freedom of their children.
The family’s ordeal began during a routine diaper change. “My husband explained to me that he was changing the diaper, and Kylen’s leg got caught in the onesie. He tried to get it out, and he heard a pop,” Chism told Townhall.
After arriving at the hospital, Kylen was moved to the Children’s Hospital of Atlanta (CHOA). The staff informed the parents that the child had several fractures in his ribs, lower extremities, and his left leg.
Kaliyah and Jaicobi, both 23, were shocked, as they had “only [been] aware of the leg fracture.”
Soon after, Dr. Emmanuel Peña, a pediatrician, reviewed Kylen’s lab work and told the parents that he had a vitamin D deficiency. However, she claimed “it didn’t have anything to do with the fractures,” Kaliyah said.
This did not sit right with the parents. “I started to do a little bit of research… and found out that that is actually a cause for fragile bones in infants, especially around the age that Kylin was.” When she asked to see the lab results herself, she was initially denied access: “The nurse told me that she wasn’t able to give me any labs because DFCS was involved.”
Jaicobi Freeman with Kamryn and KylenBut after pressing the matter, the nurse relented and gave the parents a single sheet showing Kylen’s results. “That’s when I saw that Kylen’s vitamin D level was at a 9.2…it was supposed to be at a 30.” Kaliyah also noted that she herself had a documented deficiency during that time: “I myself also had a vitamin D deficiency of 8.6.”
Kaliyah had been breastfeeding Kylen without knowing about her own deficiency, which meant the child was not getting enough vitamin D.
Infants who experience severe vitamin D deficiency “have a tendency towards increased fracture rates,” according to the National Library of Medicine. As Kaliyah said, the safe range is between 30 and 100 ng/mL
Dr. Eric Perszyk, a radiologist at CHOA, issued a report stating that there was “no evidence of classic metaphyseal lesions,” which are more indicative of physical abuse.
Nevertheless, after interrogating the couple multiple times at the hospital, the state decided to take the couple’s children. Kaliyah received a phone call from her mother, stating that Department of Family and Children Services (DFCS) agents had arrived at her house to take their daughter, Kamryn, who was one year old at the time.
“DFCS actually used my mother’s phone to talk to me… and tell us that they would be removing the children from our care, and that we would soon be getting escorted out of the hospital,” Kaliyah said.
After the initial court hearing, Jaicobi and Kaliyah told the juvenile court about Kylen’s health problems. They referred to the radiologist’s report and a geneticist who also found that the child was more susceptible to fractures.
DFCS refused to allow the parents to seek outside medical opinions while dismissing reports about Kylen’s condition.
Dr. Peña testified that “The bones don’t look optimal to me” and acknowledged that Kylen’s bones were “suffering. Yet, he insisted that his injuries were the result of abuse.
Still, the judge ruled that DFCS would retain custody of the children.
The parents were allowed regular visits with their children. The mother described the impact the separation has had on Kylen and Kamryn. “They would cry. They would scream when it was time to leave visitation… Cameron started throwing tantrums. She never acted like that before,” she said.
The parents’ ordeal didn’t stop there.
Kaliyah was involved in a car accident in November 2024. This was when she realized that there was a warrant for their arrests. “So I got arrested at the car accident scene. I didn’t make it far from our home. My husband walked up to the car accident scene, and they arrested him from there as well, too,” she said.
The parents were charged with six counts each of aggravated assault and six counts of cruelty to children. The couple did not receive any prior notice of the arrest warrant, despite their attorney having offered to surrender them if charges were filed.
At bond court, the prosecutor showed no mercy. “The DA told the judge that we really would not want them to have a bond,” Kaliyah said. “But if you’re going to give them one, we ask that you make it as high as possible so that they have no way of getting out.”
The judge granted bond ($150,000), but added restrictions, including no interaction with any children. Jaicobi is not permitted to have contact with any children under the age of 16.
Kaliyah Chism and KylenAs a result, the couple was denied any form of contact with Kylen and Kamryn. The couple had another son in March 2025. The son, also named Jaicobi, was taken from the couple shortly after he was born. He is now in the custody of Kaliyah’s mother. The parents have not seen any of their children since their arrest.
“We can’t even ask about the children. We can’t receive any updates. We can’t receive any medical updates. We don’t receive any photos. They can’t be told about us… and our parental rights have not been terminated,” Kaliyah said.
Darice Good, the attorney representing the couple in their battle to regain their children, also pointed out: “These bond conditions functionally violate their parental rights despite no termination having occurred.”
“The bond conditions are draconian. They can’t even get updates on their own kids. They’re treated like they’ve already lost their rights,” she told Townhall.
Good indicated that Chism and Freeman’s story is not an isolated case. She said DFCS, in conjunction with CHOA, has torn many families apart over false allegations of child abuse. “They often make abuse determinations within hours, before reviewing full records or alternative explanations,” she said.
The attorney further explained that Georgia’s system, as well as other states, often target families without the means to challenge the allegations. "What keeps me up at night is all these indigent parents who CHOA is accusing that don’t have the means to fight these cases,” she said.
The parents are exhausted, but determined. "I’m only fighting for the sake of my children," she told me. "God and my babies are the only things keeping me going."
The family set up a GoFundMe page to help them regain custody of their children and to challenge the criminal charges against them.
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