This is quite frustrating and complex in multiple levels. The two most apparent are 1) that Utah law would allow for something like this to happen AND once they realized what had happened not immediately “righting” their wrong and 2) that this family continues to pursue a child that should never have come into their custody.
I strongly encourage people to follow this story and help Terry out in anyway you can. Please share this and check out his support sites below.
“Achane and his then-wife Tira Bland were living in Texas when she conceived, Teleah, their first child, who was due in mid-March of 2011. He received a transfer to South Carolina and was told to report for duty by Feb. 1, 2011. His wife planned to stay in Texas until the baby’s birth and Achane planned to come back for the delivery.
But 10 days after Achane left Texas, Bland decided to place the baby for adoption. She contacted the Adoption Center of Choice, then located in Orem, and told them her husband had abandoned her and had no interest in the child. Bland traveled to Utah in mid-February and gave birth on March 1, 2011. She relinquished her parental rights two days later, and the baby was placed with the Freis.
Achane did not learn what had become of his child until June 2011, when Bland finally told him she had given birth in Utah and placed the child through the Adoption Center of Choice. At that point, he contacted the agency and its attorney to demand return of his daughter, but they refused and proceeded with the adoption.
The dispute finally went to court last October, and in December McDade issued a 48-page ruling admonishing the Adoption Center of Choice and the Freis for ignoring Achane once he stepped forward as the child’s legally recognized father.” – Salt Lake City tribune.
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A Roots Search 
One of the worst of the sadly MANY stories from Utah. Any who had a part in this should be hanging their heads in shame, AND paying all his expenses, and have their licenses stripped for life personally.
Ethics matter – adoption has to be done right or not at all.
Last winter I took the time to read the Utah adoption law and piecemeal together what a father had to do, and how much time he had (which is based on the birth date and we all know babies chose to come early sometimes). It simply is impossible to do for any father who lives in another state, whose girlfriend left the state, and zipped over to Utah – their rules apply even if she only “intended” to give birth in Utah at some point in her pregnancy.
Utah is the worst but many other states are RUSHING to the bottom of the ethics ladder in the attempt to secure the infant for adoption.
Not what adoption should be…and if that makes me anti-adoption in peoples eyes they so be it.
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Tao, I will correct you on one thing: It is not from the date of birth, it is from the date of notification. In the case of John Wyatt, his girlfriend sent him a text message that said she was thinking about putting the baby up for adoption in Utah. According to Utah law, that constituted legal notice, and that is when the clock started ticking on his 20 days to register in Utah. Of course they lived in Virginia and he had no idea he had just received legal notice OR that he would have to register in 20 days IN UTAH if he wanted his child. Not to mention that after he received the message he immediately called his girlfriend and she assured him she would not do it. Also, his child was not born in Utah, she was born in Virginia, and he was even granted custody in Virginia within days of her birth. But slimeball attorney Larry Jenkins, who is the attorney in nearly all of these cases (if not all), who is in charge of writing Utah adoption laws, went in and created a law stating Utah does not have to comply with custody orders from other states.
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Wow, yeah I really agree that adoption has to be done right or not at all. This is a pretty messed up case of it going wrong. I mean the intentionality of the couple to break the bonds of terry and his daughter is very distressing.
Where does this motivation come from? Meaning for the laws? I just don’t get why such blatantly manipulative laws are necessary in something like this. I can’t even think of a way they would be used positively. How is there not a legal override sine terry was lied to? It just seems like the state is choosing to uphold a contract that was knowingly manipulated. Soooo frustrating.
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Fedup with Utah Adoption Corruption have you written much about corruption in Utah adoptions? It seems like you know a lot and I’d love to learn more if you have. Thanks!
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Kumar – I have only written comments and responses to posts. I did a lot of research after seeing the John Wyatt case on Dateline in August 2011. I was appalled with the things I have seen and heard! One guy, Ramsey Shaud, even DID file his paperwork in time (he lived in Florida) but the courthouse literally crossed out the date stamp and stamped it again with a new date that was past his due date! He is still fighting to get his child back too! They are just plain corrupt. If you google John Wyatt Baby Emma, you will be able to find out alot about Utah adoption. Also try Ramsey Shaud and Cody O’Dea. Cody’s wife is very vocal about Utah adoption practices, they have a website babyselling.com.
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Thanks for the info! Yeah, I’ll definitely read up on some of these other stories as well. Right now it seems like this one may be heading in the right direction with the state Supreme Court taking the case, but we’ll see.
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oh wow, that is just terrible. How can something like this go on?
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Kumar, thanks for publicizing this!
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