OKLAHOMA CITY — The father of a Cherokee Indian girl at the center of an adoption dispute has turned himself in to authorities but refused extradition to South Carolina.
Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart says Dusten Brown turned himself in about 10 a.m. Monday. Lockhart says Brown appeared before a judge but refused extradition without a governor's warrant.
Lockhart says Brown paid the $10,000 fugitive bond and has another court hearing in 30 days.
Brown was charged over the weekend with custodial interference after failing to appear at a court-ordered meeting in South Carolina.
A couple there has been trying to adopt the 3-year-old girl, named Veronica. The girl is with her paternal grandparents and Dusten Brown's wife.
The federal Indian Child Welfare Act favors the girl living with her Native American father.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
The father of a Cherokee Indian girl at the center of an adoption dispute turned himself in to Oklahoma authorities Monday morning while his 3-year-old daughter remains with family members, a tribal spokeswoman said.
Cherokee Nation spokeswoman Amanda Clinton said Dusten Brown turned himself in to Oklahoma authorities Monday morning, but didn't say where.
He had been scheduled to attend a tribal court hearing on the matter, but Clinton said he did not attend the hearing, which recessed to be resumed at a later time.
Brown was charged over the weekend with custodial interference involving his daughter, Veronica.
A South Carolina couple, Melanie and Matt Capobianco, have been trying to adopt Veronica since her birth in 2009; they raised the girl for two years. But Brown has had custody of his daughter since 2011, when South Carolina's Supreme Court ruled that the 1978 federal Indian Child Welfare Act, which governs the placement of American Indian children, favored him as her custodian.
Veronica is in the care of her paternal grandparents and Dusten Brown's wife, Robin Brown. The three had been named temporary guardians of the girl by a Cherokee Nation court while Dusten Brown was in Iowa attending training for the Oklahoma National Guard.
Brown, a member of the Cherokee Nation, had never met his daughter and, after Veronica's non-Indian mother rebuffed his marriage proposal, played no role during the pregnancy and paid no child support after the girl was born.
The legal proceedings began when he found out Veronica was going to be adopted. He objected and said the Indian Child Welfare Act favored the girl living with him and growing up learning tribal traditions.
The Capobiancos appealed the South Carolina Supreme Court's 2011 decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. In June, it ruled that South Carolina courts should decide who gets to adopt Veronica, and the state court said the Capobiancos should raise the girl.
Last week, South Carolina Family Court Judge Daniel Martin finalized the couple's adoption, approving a transition plan detailing a gradual process for reintroducing the girl to the Capobiancos.
South Carolina authorities issued a warrant for Brown's arrest Saturday, charging Brown with custodial interference for failing to appear with the girl for a court-ordered meeting with the Capobiancos on Aug. 4 – a date the couple has said was set by the judge and to which Brown's attorneys did not object.
On Monday, the Capobiancos called on federal law enforcement to help them bring the child to South Carolina, saying they'll take the matter into their own hands if necessary.
"Send someone to the location our daughter is being held and work with us to bring her home. No more delays and no more excuses," Matt Capobianco said during a news conference in his James Island neighborhood. "Our daughter has been kidnapped, and I expect the situation to be treated as such."
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Bruce Smith contributed to this report from Charleston, S.C.
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Kinnard reported from Columbia, S.C. She can be reached at . Eaton can be reached at .
Links:
http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP
http://twitter.com/kristieaton Reported by Huffington Post 19 hours ago.
Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart says Dusten Brown turned himself in about 10 a.m. Monday. Lockhart says Brown appeared before a judge but refused extradition without a governor's warrant.
Lockhart says Brown paid the $10,000 fugitive bond and has another court hearing in 30 days.
Brown was charged over the weekend with custodial interference after failing to appear at a court-ordered meeting in South Carolina.
A couple there has been trying to adopt the 3-year-old girl, named Veronica. The girl is with her paternal grandparents and Dusten Brown's wife.
The federal Indian Child Welfare Act favors the girl living with her Native American father.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
The father of a Cherokee Indian girl at the center of an adoption dispute turned himself in to Oklahoma authorities Monday morning while his 3-year-old daughter remains with family members, a tribal spokeswoman said.
Cherokee Nation spokeswoman Amanda Clinton said Dusten Brown turned himself in to Oklahoma authorities Monday morning, but didn't say where.
He had been scheduled to attend a tribal court hearing on the matter, but Clinton said he did not attend the hearing, which recessed to be resumed at a later time.
Brown was charged over the weekend with custodial interference involving his daughter, Veronica.
A South Carolina couple, Melanie and Matt Capobianco, have been trying to adopt Veronica since her birth in 2009; they raised the girl for two years. But Brown has had custody of his daughter since 2011, when South Carolina's Supreme Court ruled that the 1978 federal Indian Child Welfare Act, which governs the placement of American Indian children, favored him as her custodian.
Veronica is in the care of her paternal grandparents and Dusten Brown's wife, Robin Brown. The three had been named temporary guardians of the girl by a Cherokee Nation court while Dusten Brown was in Iowa attending training for the Oklahoma National Guard.
Brown, a member of the Cherokee Nation, had never met his daughter and, after Veronica's non-Indian mother rebuffed his marriage proposal, played no role during the pregnancy and paid no child support after the girl was born.
The legal proceedings began when he found out Veronica was going to be adopted. He objected and said the Indian Child Welfare Act favored the girl living with him and growing up learning tribal traditions.
The Capobiancos appealed the South Carolina Supreme Court's 2011 decision to the U.S. Supreme Court. In June, it ruled that South Carolina courts should decide who gets to adopt Veronica, and the state court said the Capobiancos should raise the girl.
Last week, South Carolina Family Court Judge Daniel Martin finalized the couple's adoption, approving a transition plan detailing a gradual process for reintroducing the girl to the Capobiancos.
South Carolina authorities issued a warrant for Brown's arrest Saturday, charging Brown with custodial interference for failing to appear with the girl for a court-ordered meeting with the Capobiancos on Aug. 4 – a date the couple has said was set by the judge and to which Brown's attorneys did not object.
On Monday, the Capobiancos called on federal law enforcement to help them bring the child to South Carolina, saying they'll take the matter into their own hands if necessary.
"Send someone to the location our daughter is being held and work with us to bring her home. No more delays and no more excuses," Matt Capobianco said during a news conference in his James Island neighborhood. "Our daughter has been kidnapped, and I expect the situation to be treated as such."
___
Bruce Smith contributed to this report from Charleston, S.C.
___
Kinnard reported from Columbia, S.C. She can be reached at . Eaton can be reached at .
Links:
http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP
http://twitter.com/kristieaton Reported by Huffington Post 19 hours ago.