As many Kansas residents understand, family situations can be complicated. Especially those concerning child custody, as made evident by a developing story in another state. This particular situation involves a tragedy that some involved say could have been prevented.
A mother of a 2-year old child is now deceased. Her death is believed to have come at the hands of her own husband. What’s more, several parties have filed wrongful death lawsuits, claiming the woman’s life would likely have been saved if police officers had done their duty. As it stands, two patrol officers reportedly arrived on site where the woman was being physically attacked but allegedly left the scene without ever exiting their patrol car.
The aftermath of the woman’s death has erupted into a contentious child custody battle between the toddler’s biological father (who was not the woman’s husband) and the maternal grandmother of the child. The grandmother says the father is simply using the child as a pawn in his desire to score millions in the wrongful death claim he and his own mother have filed in relation to the death of the child’s mother. The man in question has adamantly denied that, stating the only reason he was not involved in his daughter’s life was because the mother’s new relationship made it impossible.
The man took a DNA test to prove his paternity at least a year before the recent tragedy occurred. It is a complicated child custody matter that intersects the wrongful death cases both sides have filed in court, which may award more than $20 million each, if successfully litigated. If a Kansas parent is facing similar problems in seeking custody after a biological parent’s death, a practical step would be to reach out for experienced legal support.
Source: New York Daily News, “Woman’s wrongful death ignites vicious custody battle over her 2-year-old daughter“, Laura Dimon, Stephen Rex Brown, April 18, 2018
