I have to say my response to what I have just witnessed in our court system is mixed. Feelings of betrayal, anger, and total disbelief are at the top of the list. While sitting in a Creek County Courthouse in Sapulpa this morning I spoke with Jeremy Simmons and his parents. Navigating their way to their flesh and blood, Desirai, continues to be blocked by the lengthy, unyielding legal system.
Desirai has been legally placed in the custodial care of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe. However, no one has seen Desirai since that ruling. The tribe was represented this morning but refused comment when I asked why someone isn't going after her in South Carolina. Desirai was taken out of Oklahoma when just a few days old and WITHOUT paperwork. The biological mother was given $50,000 to hand over the baby. The Bixlers, ages 60 and 64, took the baby and fled to South Carolina where she supposedly remains today.
This morning was about asking the judge to order the Bixler's to produce Desirai so a DNA test could be conducted for confirmation although Jeremy lived with the biological mother up to the seventh month of pregnancy and supported her throughout. She disappeared after that and Jeremy searched relentlessly until the phone call from the biological maternal grandmother came two days after the birth of the baby to tell Jeremy and his family he might want to know that the biological mother was placing Desirai for adoption. There had been no plan or discussion of adoption.
The same adoption agency, NightLight, attorneys, Ray Godwin, Mike Nomura (ICPC administrator), Paul Swaim, and Mike Yeksavich are involved in this case. The pattern of snatch and grab begins to show. Adoption agency (NightLight) attracts desperate, scared, economically vulnerable biological mother. Mother's instructions include ditching bio dad by no communication or receiving anything from him so he can not claim paternity easily. Go incognito when giving birth and instruct the hospital to withhold information from anyone calling about the birth. Get the South Carolina couple to swoop in, pay money and worry about paperwork later. In the meantime the court system cogs are turning.
The paperwork for adoption is filed out-of-state (even though both South Carolina and Oklahoma indicate the child must have been born or be a resident in the state of the filing) to begin the adoption process. Yes, there may be a few inconvenient hassles doing it this way but as soon as 6 months pass we can get the adoption finalized and viola....the baby is legally yours and no one can undo the adoption.
This process seems to be working well for Mr. Godwin, et al. This is now the second "established" case of taking a child from Oklahoma in this unethical and illegal way. Somehow the courts are closing their eyes to the illegal aspects and not even considering the best interest of the child. This is NOT adoption. This is trafficking. Every judge who has participated in anyway in this process is guilty and needs to stand up to do what is right to protect the citizens of their jurisdiction.
Jeremy needs help. He needs to take to the airwaves and written media to scream about his case just as the Capobianco's used the media to sway public opinion. This is the cruelest form of human trafficking, taking the child right from under the nose of the parents who love and cherish them and would lay down their lives to protect them. The judicial system takes an oath to protect the citizens. Who will stand up and begin the process of seeing justice done?
The fight for Deserai is on, this couple, at their age, have no business adopting any child! They have biological children and grandchildren, but that was not enough, they had to illegally take a child. Bobby Bixler will be 81 and Diane Bixler will be 77 when Deserai graduates from high school, that is, if the both of them live to reach those ages. These people named this child "Merry Rejoice" .. what kind of name is that? If this child is not removed soon, her life is DOOMED!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the update. I am appalled by the complicity shown by the "legal" system in this racket.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with the above. A when a couple reaches around 50, that is when they should be cut off from adopting children, the idea of adoption is to give the child the best life they can have - parents of that age cannot do certain activities with the child and will most probably have passed on before the child is 20 years old. Dealing with the death of a parent is difficult, however, at the age of 18-25, they would have no foundation for the continuation of their lives, nothing to fall back on or help to support them. *smh* S.C adopters are irresponsible. It's time to stop illegal and immoral adoptions - or as I like to call it - child trafficking
ReplyDeleteI think it depends on the REASON for the adoption. My cousin made some bad life choices so my parents adopted her son. He's a tribal. I moved back in and help out. They're in their 50's and the little dude keeps em on their toes.
ReplyDeleteThat being said this is different, just to have a girl at their age?