I have male friends who’ve lost their children when the mothers put them up for adoption. So I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by these two articles about other unwed fathers and the injustice they face in the same situation, but it still breaks my heart.
Dads call obscure Florida adoption law unfair
A Marine sergeant contends his newborn son was fraudulently adopted while he was stationed overseas after his West Palm Beach girlfriend had another man sign the parental consent papers. She died less than two months later.
In a similar case, an Arizona man once engaged to a Pensacola Christian College senior is seeking custody of their son, saying the woman’s parents removed her from school because the two had premarital sex. She hid the pregnancy from her former fiance until 23 days before birth, court records show. The child was adopted even though the apparent father had filed a paternity case.
In both instances, the men say they want to raise their child, but lost their parental rights for failing to sign up with a state databank that notifies them when the mother consents to adoption.
Unwed Fathers Fight for Babies Placed for Adoption by Mothers (must be registered to view)
“My specialty is contested adoptions, and the most common contest is where the mom wants to place the baby and the dad objects,” said Martin Bauer, president of the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. “Registries can protect men against birth mothers who won’t disclose the father’s name or actively lie about his identity.”
Adam Pertman, executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute, a nonprofit research and education group, sees it differently. “It’s all smoke and mirrors,” Mr. Pertman said. “How can registries work if no one’s heard of them? And it’s just not reasonable to expect that men will register every time they have sex.”
Turns out that any unwed male who has sex with a female runs the risk of being denied parental rights to any offspring conceived, unless he has the forethought to register his name, her name and I’m assuming the date of the encounter, with his state’s Putative Father Registry.
Flowers…$20
Dinner…$75
Hotel room…$100
Remembering to register…PRICELESS!
