CENTER - Testimony continued Tuesday from employees of the Nebraska Children's Home Society during the second day of a custody battle for a infant boy.
Jason and Angela Vesely of Verdigre were given the boy to care for last November as part of the adoption procedure. But Mrs. Vesely was pregnant at the time. The adoption agency is seeking to return the boy to his biological mother because Mrs. Vesely's pregnancy - as alleged by the agency - make the couple ineligible to adopt.
A two-day custody hearing began Monday in Knox County District Court here and resumed Tuesday with Carly Wendt of the Nebraska Children's Home Society of Omaha on the stand.
Wendt was being asked Monday afternoon why a question-and-answer portion of the agency's Web site was recently changed. But that's when Judge Patrick Rogers halted the day's proceedings early because of bad weather.
One of the questions now on the agency's Web site asks, "What do I do if I become pregnant during the adoption process?" But that information wasn't there until recently, the Veselys say.
Earlier Monday, Karen Authier, the agency's executive director, also was asked about the Web site.
Authier was asked if she was aware that particular question was added in January - after the Veselys had the boy, whom they named Morgan, placed with them.
Authier said she wasn't sure when the site was changed and that she was not responsible for the changes. Changes occur regularly, with new information added to the site "probably on a monthly basis," she said
The boy's 22-year-old biological mother - Megan Lynn Morgan of Sutherland - says in court documents that she wanted the parents who adopted her son to not have their own biological children. She wanted them to either raise her son alone or adopt more children if they wanted to expand their family.
During opening arguments on Monday, Kathy Rockey, a Norfolk attorney representing the Veselys, said her clients did not intentionally hide Mrs. Vesely's pregnancy.
Rockey said the Veselys were never asked if she was pregnant by the adoption agency and didn't know there were rules against mothers being pregnant and still applying for an adoption.
Rockey said the Veselys applied for adoptive services in good faith, attending classes and participating in a home study, among other things.
The process began in December 2006, but the Veselys were told it may be a "long time" before they could adopt, Rockey said.
In July 2007, Mrs. Vesely became pregnant after receiving fertility treatments. The couple had lost three babies earlier.
Rockey said that on Nov. 1, 2007, the couple received a call that they could meet with a biological mother in North Platte. After meeting with a caseworker and going through procedures, they signed the papers. Within about 24 hours, the Veselys embarked on an open agreement for adoption, Rockey said.
It wasn't until December that Jason Vesely was asked if Mrs. Vesely was pregnant. When he was asked, he said, "yes," Rockey said.
The agency didn't learn Mrs. Vesely was pregnant until after the couple adopted Morgan, Authier said in her testimony.
Authier said it is standard practice that if a couple becomes pregnant while waiting for an adoption, they are supposed to let the adoption agency know.
Authier has been serving as executive director for the agency since Aug. 2, 2007. Before that, she worked four years for Lutheran Family Services.
Authier said that last year, about 10 couples waiting to adopt let the Nebraska Children's Home Society know when they became pregnant. They are still eligible to adopt after waiting, typically about 18 months, she said.
Authier said that if Morgan would have been returned in mid-December, he would have been placed with his biological, maternal grandparents in a "cradle home" or temporary home.
On cross examination, Authier was asked by Kelly Tollefson, a Lincoln attorney also representing the Veselys, if anyone told Jason or Angela Vesely prior to Nov. 2, 2007, that they could not adopt Morgan if Mrs. Vesely was pregnant.
Authier said such knowledge should have been communicated during meetings the couple attended to learn more about adoption. Authier said she never was present when it was told to them.
The Nebraska Children's Home Society is being represented by attorney Tom Hockabout of Norfolk.
Hockabout said there is no disputing that the Nebraska Children's Home Society is the infant's legal guardian until six months of age when the adoption becomes finalized.
The children's home has revoked the placement "face to face" and in writing, Hockabout said.
Placement is not the end of the story, Hockabout said. It's conditional and the Veselys violated the agreement by proceeding along two tracks - moving forward with fertility treatments and seeking to adopt, he said.
Also on Monday, Carol Krueger, director of social services for the Nebraska Children's Home Society, said the Veselys were asked to return Morgan on Dec. 14, with plans for him to be placed with the biological mother's parents.
Krueger said the Veselys obtained a temporary guardianship on Dec. 13, but it has since been dismissed.
Krueger said it's not unusual for adoption agencies to require mothers not to be pregnant when adopting.
"It's standard practice," she said.
When Krueger was asked if she knew whether the Veselys were ever told that Mrs. Vesely could not be pregnant when they adopted Morgan, she said, "I would say. It would be standard practice."
"You're assuming it was done, is that correct?" Tollefson asked her.
"Correct," Krueger said.
Reader Comments
Posted: Monday, February 18, 2008
Article comment by:
An adoptive mom
I am curious about Marc Mastalir's comment inferring that the child was "less than perfect" (ie. his head) and that their family took him and made him perfect. How do you do that in 3 months? I have heard of and seen the helmets used to do the shaping, but it takes a very long time. If you shaped his head on your own, that sounds very much like child abuse to me. If I missed the point here, I'm not sure how just by your families' presence he became perfect. As a creation made by God, the child was created in His image. I'm sure he was perfect the day he was born. I have never taken credit for the beauty of our children: that came from their birth families.
Posted: Saturday, February 16, 2008
Article comment by:
Ron Arnold
Several factors contribute to make the decision to take Morgan from the Veselys reprehensible and outrageous including:
1. The birth parents relinquished custody of this baby; It used to be that a person's word was their bond; now it's apparent a signature means nothing even in a Nebraska court of law.
2. The Nebraska Children's Home botched this and then, under pressure of a suit from the birth family, chose to lie and misconstrue what had actually transpired. The posting in December (weeks after the placement of Morgan)of ineligibility to adopt by parents who are pregnant is an in indictment of their motives and reveals their disingenuous position.
3. Attacking the good name and reputation of this family (The Veselys) is the final straw. I've known these people for many years; anyone who does know them would stand with me in declaring the excellence of their character. This attack adds grievous insult to the heartbreaking injury the Judge and the Court have inflicted upon them.
It will take a long time for the Vesely family to heal; but unlike other parties in this case including the folks at the Nebraska Children's Home, they will at least be able to sleep with a clear conscience that they told the truth and simply wanted to love a child that another family chose to give away.
Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008
Article comment by:
Alisha Bartling
Ok, this is ridiculous, all a nightmare. Morgan's best interest is to be with people who love him and want him in their lives. Has anyone thought about the child at stake. Megan, had her chance. She chose to sign away her rights after seeing him in the hospital, had her chance to take him home and didn't. She is not being blamed for being pregnant and giving up her baby. She is being blamed for realizing that she was wrong and now ripping apart a family. She shouldn't get a second chance after signing the papers. So, she lives with her parents and now her parents get to have the baby- so what? He becomes her brother? Please, I hope this is a nightmare. Jason and Angela don't deserve this. Megan, if you have time to email people and judge them, maybe you should get a hobby.
Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008
Article comment by:
Brandy
I'm not surprised to see all the vitriole that is being spewed towards women that choose to place their children for adoption. We aren't icubators and we aren't babymakers for those who are infertile.
We are women that are in crappy situations and alot of times have no support from the other person that helped create that baby. We love our children so much to admit that our situation is less than perfect and choose to place. When we do so we should not be deceived by people so desperate for a child that they will lie at any cost.
I hear comments all the time but they bonded. Well tell you what,I bonded with my child for nine months while I was pregnant with him, but that bond just gets thrown out the door because we "give our babies away." Which we apparently do in many people's eyes because we were terrible, irresponsible, immoral people.
Have some compassion. I can almost promise you if she would have chosen to parent in the first place those of you that are blasting her for placing would be blasting her for using public assistance. She is between a rock and a hard place huh?
Lastly, someone is going to have to explain to that child someday why he was treated like a piece of propery. All of the parties need to sit down, explain and apologize.
Posted: Friday, February 15, 2008
Article comment by:
Marc Mastalir
It was brought up in court during the trial that there was some concern on how long Morgan had been in the birth canal and on the shape of his head and that he did not have any pre-natal care. I guess the birth family must not have wanted to take a risk on having a child that would be less than perfect. After Angela and Jason have raised him into a perfect, loving, well adjusted child he now makes the grade. The legal system/court is blind if it could not see what the Morgan's and the Children's Home were trying to do. How can a birth mother that did not want her baby at the time of it's birth call all the shots just because the court refuses to have a backbone. The Children's Home clearly did not have policy and procedure in place and now the judicial system has allowed the Children's Home to change policy in the middle of an adoption process. I feel now that my daughter and son-in-law will never heal from this tragedy. They have now lost Gavin, Griffin, Jessany, Ava, and now Morgan just as all this hurt was starting to heal. I will hope against all hope that Gage makes it, but I WILL NO LONGER PRAY FOR ANYTHING IN THIS LIFE. My daughter told my wife that she prayed every day and she knew that God would not take Morgan away. Well I guess the court has more wisdom and authority than God.
