09-28-2013, 08:58 PM
The birth parents:
Veronica's birth mother, Christy Maldonado, had two other children when she gave birth to Veronica.
![[Image: Birth-mother-and-Veronica-200x200.jpg]](http://cdn.southcarolinaradionetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Birth-mother-and-Veronica-200x200.jpg)
Christy Maldonado and Veronica
Veronica's father is a member of the Cherokee Nation. His name is Dusten Brown.
Dusten had relinquished rights to Veronica and did not want to pay child support. Christy (who is not Indian) decided to give Veronica up for adoption because she says she wanted the girl to have a better life.
The adoptive parents:
The couple who ended up adopting Veronica were Melanie and Matt Capobianco, a childless couple from South Carolina. The couple had Veronica for two years.
![[Image: 567]](http://www.trbimg.com/img-52461fe1/turbine/la-apphoto-indian-child-welfare-dispute-jpg-20130927/567)
Melanie and Matt Capobianco and Veronica
The legal battle for Veronica:
Dusten contested the adoption even though he'd previously relinquished his parental rights. He was able to challenge the adoption legally on the grounds that his tribe had not been notified, which the federal Indian Child Welfare Act requires.
Veronica is 3⁄256 Cherokee. The Indian Child Welfare Act, passed by Congress in 1978 established that it was best to keep Native children with their families or, short of that, within their tribe to preserve their culture.
Dusten (well, the tribe) won custody in a lower court. Dusten had Veronica for two years and reportedly refused to let her see the Capobiancos during that time.
![[Image: imagesizer?file=alex-johnson4EF3CCEE-C56...&width=600]](http://m.static.newsvine.com/servista/imagesizer?file=alex-johnson4EF3CCEE-C563-4D5D-EDC6-CA7D0168AFA9.jpg&width=600)
Dusten Brown and Veronica
The Capobiancos, in turn, trashed Dusten publicly. Veronica's birth mom, Christy, sided with the Capobiancos and stood by her decision that they were best qualified to give Veronica a better life.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Indian Child Welfare law did not apply in Veronica's case, in part because her birth parents were not married and also because Dusten never had custody.
But Brown refused to hand over Veronica and the girl remained with the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma until the Oklahoma Supreme Court weighed in on Monday. Hours later, she was placed back with the Capobiancos in South Carolina.
Cherokee Nation officials said on Tuesday that Brown would have to decide whether to continue to pursue his adoption challenge, which is still being appealed.
=====================================================
Thanks, Adub, for bringing up the case of Baby Veronica in another thread. I haven't followed the case closely, but have followed the major developments. Hope you weigh in and add or correct anything to my summary.
It's an interesting case which brings up questions about the rights of adoptive parents, the rights of birth fathers, the application of tribal laws to preserve cultural identity...
Personally, I hope the adults in this case can gain some maturity and unselfishness. If they can establish some good guidelines and put Veronica's interests first, maybe all of the adults who love her can have a place in Veronica's life without her winding up feeling like a pawn who's not sure where she belongs. It's not unheard of for birth parents to be allowed access and visitation by the adoptive parents.
Thoughts and Opinions?
Veronica's birth mother, Christy Maldonado, had two other children when she gave birth to Veronica.
Christy Maldonado and Veronica
Veronica's father is a member of the Cherokee Nation. His name is Dusten Brown.
Dusten had relinquished rights to Veronica and did not want to pay child support. Christy (who is not Indian) decided to give Veronica up for adoption because she says she wanted the girl to have a better life.
The adoptive parents:
The couple who ended up adopting Veronica were Melanie and Matt Capobianco, a childless couple from South Carolina. The couple had Veronica for two years.
Melanie and Matt Capobianco and Veronica
The legal battle for Veronica:
Dusten contested the adoption even though he'd previously relinquished his parental rights. He was able to challenge the adoption legally on the grounds that his tribe had not been notified, which the federal Indian Child Welfare Act requires.
Veronica is 3⁄256 Cherokee. The Indian Child Welfare Act, passed by Congress in 1978 established that it was best to keep Native children with their families or, short of that, within their tribe to preserve their culture.
Dusten (well, the tribe) won custody in a lower court. Dusten had Veronica for two years and reportedly refused to let her see the Capobiancos during that time.
Dusten Brown and Veronica
The Capobiancos, in turn, trashed Dusten publicly. Veronica's birth mom, Christy, sided with the Capobiancos and stood by her decision that they were best qualified to give Veronica a better life.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Indian Child Welfare law did not apply in Veronica's case, in part because her birth parents were not married and also because Dusten never had custody.
But Brown refused to hand over Veronica and the girl remained with the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma until the Oklahoma Supreme Court weighed in on Monday. Hours later, she was placed back with the Capobiancos in South Carolina.
Cherokee Nation officials said on Tuesday that Brown would have to decide whether to continue to pursue his adoption challenge, which is still being appealed.
=====================================================
Thanks, Adub, for bringing up the case of Baby Veronica in another thread. I haven't followed the case closely, but have followed the major developments. Hope you weigh in and add or correct anything to my summary.
It's an interesting case which brings up questions about the rights of adoptive parents, the rights of birth fathers, the application of tribal laws to preserve cultural identity...
Personally, I hope the adults in this case can gain some maturity and unselfishness. If they can establish some good guidelines and put Veronica's interests first, maybe all of the adults who love her can have a place in Veronica's life without her winding up feeling like a pawn who's not sure where she belongs. It's not unheard of for birth parents to be allowed access and visitation by the adoptive parents.
Thoughts and Opinions?