Most Tennessee parents would do anything for their children. During the often difficult process of divorce, many parents are pushed to their extremes. Ill-fated court agreements and unfair child custody arrangements can result for some parents. Under pressure of losing the right to see their children, a handful of parents have taken to the extreme, fleeing the country with their child. International abduction is one of the gray areas of divorce that can often lead to conflict and unpredictable results. But for many parents, it is worth the fight to gain their kids back.
Recently an international child custody case between the US and Brazil has captured the attention of many people. The case involves an American mom and her six-year-old daughter who are currently stuck in Brazil due to a child custody battle. After splitting from her husband in 2009, the mother was awarded primary custody of their daughter with limited visitation rights to the father who resides in a small town in Brazil. The father paid for a plane ticket for his ex-wife and child to visit Brazil. The ex-wife was supposed to drop off the daughter to her father whom she had not seen in three years.
Instead of dropping off the six-year-old, the mother fled to another part of the country to meet a boyfriend whom she had met online. After not receiving the child, the father contacted authorities where they later confiscated the mother and daughter’s passports trapping them in Brazil. Representatives from the US are currently working toward getting the mother and daughter back to America. Until then, the pair is stuck in limbo in another country.
International custody disputes are rare and often an extremity in the outcome of a child custody agreement. For most Tennessee parents that are unsatisfied with their current arrangement, a modification may be requested with the help of an experienced attorney.
Source: NBC News, “American mom, daughter, 6, stuck in Brazil in child custody battle,” Bridget Murphy, July 5, 2013
