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| Linda Back McKay also went to the same Catholic Infant Home as my mother Helen and Kay. |
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| Linda Back McKay also went to the same Catholic Infant Home as my mother Helen and Kay. |
NPR StoryCorps on American Indian Adoptionby Matthew L.M. Fletcher |
I started doing research on your family, and when I started looking at your family tree, I saw one of my relatives on your paper. So we are cousins. I thought that was just - that was amazing. I'm glad you're my baby. |
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Statement (Source) | Fact | Text of Supreme Court Opinion |
“We were told she was not an Indian child, so we didn’t think it was going to make a difference.” –Melanie Capobianco (Fox News, January 11, 2012) | Mother knew of father’s Cherokee heritage and informed the adoption agencies and the Capobiancos. | “Mother testified that she knew ‘from the beginning’ that Father was a registered member of the Cherokee Nation, and that she deemed this information ‘important’ throughout the adoption process…Mother reported Father's Indian heritage on the Nightlight Agency's adoption form and testified she made Father's Indian heritage known to Appellants and every agency involved in the adoption.” (pg. 4) |
“At just two years old, this little girl is caught up in one of the strangest adoption cases that we’ve ever heard. Her story begins in 2009, when Veronica’s biological parents put her up for adoption. That’s when Matt and Melanie Capobianco entered the picture.” (Anderson Cooper 360, February 22, 2012) | Mother never informed father of her intent to place Veronica up for adoption, and placed Veronica without discussing it with him. | “Mother never informed Father that she intended to place the baby up for adoption. Father insists that, had he known this, he would have never considered relinquishing his rights.” (pg. 3) |
“Four months later, Brown (birth father) changed his mind and decided that he wanted custody despite the fact that he had never met the baby. His lawyers filed suit against the Capbiancos to gain custody of Veronica. (Huffington Post, August 23, 2012) Anderson Cooper: The biological father did waive his rights, apparently, early on, and then two weeks later changed his mind. Jeffrey Toobin: He did. | Father was not made aware of the Mother’s intent to adopt out Veronica until four months after her birth. Father signed an “Acceptance of Service and Answer of Defendant” which was not a lawful “waiver” of his rights. After signing, Father realized that the paper did not relinquish his rights to the mother but instead to potential adoptive parents and immediately attempted to retrieve it. Father sought the advice of a JAG attorney. Five days later, he requested a stay of the adoption. Eight days later he filed official documentation to establish paternity, child custody, and support of Veronica. | “January 6, 2010, approximately four months after Baby Girl was born and days before Father was scheduled to deploy to Iraq. On that date outside of a mall near his base, a process server presented Father with legal papers entitled ‘Acceptance of Service and Answer of Defendant,’ which stated he was not contesting the adoption of Baby Girl and that he waived the thirty day waiting period and notice of the hearing. Father testified he believed he was relinquishing his rights to Mother and did not realize he consented to Baby Girl's adoption by another family until after he signed the papers. Upon realizing that Mother had relinquished her rights to Appellants, Father testified, ‘I then tried to grab the paper up. [The process server] told me that I could not grab that [sic] because . . . I would be going to jail if I was to do any harm to the paper.’” “After consulting with his parents and a JAG lawyer at his base, Father contacted a civilian lawyer the next day, and on January 11, 2010, he requested a stay of the adoption proceedings under the Servicemember's Civil Relief Act (‘SCRA’). On January 14, 2010, Father filed a summons and complaint in an Oklahoma district court to establish paternity, child custody, and support of Baby Girl.” (pg. 6) “It is undisputed that the only consent document Father ever signed was a one-page "Acceptance of Service" stating he was not contesting the adoption. Thus, Appellants did not follow the clear procedural directives of section 1913(a) [of ICWA] in obtaining Father's consent. Moreover, even if this "consent" was valid under the statute, then Father's subsequent legal campaign to obtain custody of Baby Girl has rendered any such consent withdrawn. Therefore, neither Father's signature on the "Acceptance of Service" document, nor his stated intentions to relinquish his rights, were effectual forms of voluntary consent under the ICWA.” (pg. 18) |
| In this case, now-2-year-old Veronica was adopted by Matt and Melanie Capobianco. (Associated Press, July 27, 2012) The state of South Carolina finalized the adoption and terminated Brown's rights as a father for lack of action on his daughter's behalf. Brown waived his right to contest the adoption. At that time, Veronica, then an infant, legally became the daughter of the Capobiancos. (Huffington Post, August 23, 2012) | The adoption was never finalized. This court battle is based upon the South Carolina District/Family court’s decision to deny the Capobiancos’ petition for adoption of Veronica because Father’s parental rights were not and should not be terminated. | “Appellants filed the adoption action in South Carolina on September 18, 2009…On November 25, 2011, the family court judge issued a Final Order, finding that: … (3) Father did not voluntarily consent to the termination of his parental rights or the adoption; and (4) Appellants failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that Father's parental rights should be terminated or that granting custody of Baby Girl to Father would likely result in serious emotional or physical damage to Baby Girl. Therefore, the family court denied Appellants' petition for adoption and ordered the transfer of custody of Baby Girl to Father on December 28, 2011.” (pg. 8) |
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| Russians demonstrated against President Vladimir Putin's ban on adoptions by American families. A couple of essays on Huffington Post have interesting takes on the issue. |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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| Half-siblings Gina Aragona and Maynard Smith stand together in Stockton. The brother and sister met for the first time during New Year’s weekend thanks to G.J. Chris Graves, a retired gentleman who helps adopted children and birth parents find each other. Photo courtesy Maynard Smith |
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