Father is ending battle for custody

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.儲存Oct. 11--Eventually, she'll be old enough to read about the first four years of her life, when the courts and the media insisted on calling her "Baby Veronica."Never mind the cameras and the reporters. Veronica herself, whatever age she might be when she hears it, was the real audience for Thursday's press conference."Never, ever for one second," Dusten Brown told her, pausing to fight back tears."Never, ever for one second doubt how much I love you, how hard I fought for you, or how much you mean to me."Ending a custody battle that stretched across two states and dragged on for nearly four years, Veronica's biological father prom-ised to "stop all litigation."The fight already seemed over, with the Oklahoma Supreme Court deciding Sept. 23 to lift an order that had been keeping Veronica in the state while the appeals continued.Technically, however, the appeals were still pending with the state Supreme Court, along with separate motions in Cherokee Nation courts.The case could've gone on for years to come. But Brown had little, if any, realistic chance of getting custody again, according to legal experts.Even then, it would've meant uprooting Veronica for a third time in her young life -- or a fourth time, counting the original adoption in 2009, Brown taking custody in 2011 and the adoptive parents taking her back last month."It was no longer fair to Veronica to have her in the middle of this battle," Brown said."Veronica is only 4 years old, but her entire life has been lived in front of the media and the entire world, and I cannot bear for that to continue any longer."Nobody said so explicitly Thursday, but if Brown continued fighting in court, he also would've been risking what little contact he has left with his daughter.One of his attorneys confirmed that Brown has had "communication" with Veronica in the last 17 days but wouldn't provide details.Chrissi Nimmo, an assistant attorney general for the Cherokee Nation who led the tribe's fight to keep Veronica in Oklahoma, used the press conference to speak directly to Matt and Melanie Capobi- anco."We hope you will continue to honor your commitment," she said, "to allow Dusten and his family to be a part of Veronica's life."A member of the tribe, Veronica stayed on Cherokee property, guarded round- the-clock by Cherokee marshals, for several weeks while the tribe helped the Brown family appeal the case.Now both Brown and the tribe are facing contempt of court proceedings in South Carolina, where the Capobi- ancos have sought compensation for legal fees and other expenses.Brown is also still facing a felony complaint of custodial interference. While South Carolina is no longer asking for his extradition, Brown would be subject to arrest if he went to that state."Show some mercy," Nimmo said, calling on the Capo- biancos to stop the contempt proceedings and use their influence to have the criminal charges dropped too."Listen to your heart."Meanwhile, after a vacation at an undisclosed location, the Capobiancos returned home with Veronica this week.TV crews camped in front of their suburban home for several days after the hand over in Oklahoma. But the media were gone by Wednesday, when a reporter from the Post and Courier stopped at the house."We're just trying to get back to normal," Melanie Ca- pobianco said. "Or at least a new normal."The couple arranged a private adoption with Brown's ex-fiancee in 2009.But Brown won custody of Veronica two years later, after courts in South Carolina ruled that he hadn't 迷你倉iven "voluntary consent" to the adoption, as required under the federal Indian Child Welfare Act.The U.S. Supreme Court, however, ruled this summer that ICWA didn't apply in this case, because Brown hadn't had custody of Veronica at birth.Courts in South Carolina then demanded that Brown give Veronica back to the Capobiancos, which he refused to do for several weeks while appealing the decision in Oklahoma."During this four-year fight to raise my daughter, I had to make many difficult decisions -- decisions no father should ever have to make," Brown said Thursday."The most difficult decision of all was to let Veronica go."The press conference lasted 10 minutes, with no questions allowed."It's difficult to put into words how empty our home feels without her in it," Brown said."To come home from work and not have her be able to come to the door and greet me, no matter how dirty I am or not -- going into her room and seeing all of her toys, without her playing with them -- is the worst pain I have ever felt."Representatives for the Capobiancos did not return messages from the Tulsa World on Thursday.Michael Overall 918-581-8383michael.overall@tulsaworld.comBaby Veronica case timelineDecember 2008:Dusten Brown and Christy Maldonado get engaged and soon after learn that she is pregnant. Within months, Maldonado ends the relationship.September 2009:Matt and Melanie Capobianco come to Oklahoma for the birth and take Veronica back with them to Charleston, S.C.January 2010:Days before deploying to Iraq, Brown signs an "Acceptance of Service" document to relinquish his parental rights. But not knowing about the adoption, he says he believed he was only giving custody to his ex-fiancee. Within days, he files an appeal to stop the adoption.December 2011:Now 2 years old, Veronica returns to Oklahoma after courts in South Carolina grant custody to the birth father.June 25:U.S. Supreme Court rules that federal law doesn't require that Veronica be given to her biological father. The court, however, does not clear her adoptive parents to immediately regain custody.July 17:The South Carolina Supreme Court terminates Brown's parental rights and gives full custody to the adoptive parents.July 26:Brown files a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case and require South Carolina courts to hold a best-interest hearing for Veronica.Aug. 2:The U.S. Supreme Court denies Brown's July 26 petition. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor were the only dissenters.Aug. 5:A South Carolina judge orders Brown to surrender custody "immediately" after he didn't bring Veronica to a court-ordered visitation with the adoptive parents in South Carolina.Aug. 30:A judge in Nowata County confirms the court order from South Carolina, demanding that Brown give the girl to the Capobiancos. But the Oklahoma Supreme Court put a "stay" on the order, giving Brown time to appeal the decision.Sept. 3:The two families meet again for a brief hearing in Nowata County before driving 150 miles for an 80-minute hearing at the Oklahoma Supreme Court.Sept. 16:Brown and the Capobiancos begin a week of negotiations in downtown Tulsa, where the Oklahoma Supreme Court appointed a judge to serve a mediator.Sept. 23:Brown gives custody of Veronica to the Capobiancos in Tahlequah.Oct. 10:Brown and the Cherokee Nation announce they will pursue no further legal action in the case.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesself storage