In a case of a custody dispute gone terribly wrong, a father from Dalton, Georgia, is now searching for his kidnapped daughter. The father's rights included sole custody of his daughter, which he won after a bitter legal battle. But, by the time custody was granted to the man, the mother of the little girl had already kidnapped her. Authorities believe the mother and daughter are in Mexico.
According to the Sheriff's Office in Whitefield County, an arrest warrant was issued for the mother of the little girl. Sadly, it is nearly impossible for the office to enforce the order if the woman is in a different country. The father is undeterred and is continuing to do everything he can to get his daughter back. It has been almost one year since he last saw his child.
In addition to filing an application with the Mexican government to have his daughter listed in the National Missing Persons Registry, the man has spent numerous hours searching for his daughter and ex-wife's location. Unfortunately, the search has so far been fruitless. However, the father does have some renewed hope after a national nonprofit group that investigates international abductions agreed to assist in his search.
Georgia Father's Rights
It used to be that the mother was almost always viewed as the caregiving parent. Because of this, courts tended to divide labor between divorcing spouses, with the father paying the bills and the mother getting physical custody. But this is no longer the case. Courts are beginning to realize that fathers are equally important parts of their children's lives, and many fathers are now seeking to enforce their parental rights in a divorce.
Father's rights include everything from the right to be consulted before a child is offered up for adoption to basic visitation rights to full custody. If a father believes he is being denied his rights, a family law attorney can help identify and pursue available legal remedies. No one, man or woman, should ever be denied their parental rights.
Source: WRCBtv.com, "Missing in Mexico: Dalton dad gets help in search for daughter," Kimberly Barbour, Sept. 3, 2012
To learn more about this issue, please visit our fathers' rights page.