Father will be reunited with baby adopted without his knowledge, judge rules

[Xithras]

25. Nope. The adoption agency flat-out broke the law.

The law was pretty clear...when a couple is MARRIED, a child CANNOT be adopted without the positive assent of both parents. The rules are very different from an adoption where a single mother is trying to adopt out a kid with an absent father where his location is unknown. Once they found out she was married, the law was bluntly clear. Nothing happens without his assent.

As the judge himself said in his ruling, the moment the father contacted the adoption agency, their FIRST response should have been "How can we deliver the child to you?" The moment the adoptive parents attorney contacted him and he made it clear that he wasn't assenting, their ONLY legal option was to return the child immediately. The law is INCREDIBLY clear on this. There's a reason that this is recorded as a kidnapping, and why the child will be siezed if they leave Utah. Laws permitting mothers to adopt out their children when the father can't be reached ONLY apply if the mother is unmarried.

The father was in the military. He was in North Carolina because that's where he was stationed. To claim that a married mother should simply be able to GIVE A SOLDIERS CHILD AWAY without his assent is horrendous. Besides, let's flip this around. Our constitution has a great Equal Protection clause that states that all citizens have equal rights, and that laws applying to one person apply to all.

So how about this scenario: Married woman in the Army gets pregnant and has a kid. Husband isn't thrilled about it, but there isn't much he can do. Wife gets called up for active duty and is gone for a few months. While she's gone, she gets an email from her husband, "I didn't want to be a dad, and don't want to deal with child support, so I gave the kid up for adoption. Divorce papers are en route to you."

Still OK with it?