Biological father gets boy in bitter 3-way custody battle

By Julia Spalding

Published on May 23, 2006

In a 28-page opinion, Judge Waddell Wallace said it's in the best interest of 5-year-old Evan Parker White to stay in the home of his father, Stephen White, where he was placed late last year when his mother’s new husband was accused of child abuse.

The child’s original caregivers, Dawn and Gene Scott of Atlantic Beach, raised Evan during the first 3 ½ years of his life and doggedly pursued permanent custody, but never completed the adoption process. When Evan's biological mother and father both sought permanent custody, the Scotts were no longer a legal option for the court to consider as permanent custodians, the judge said.

In January 2005, Wallace awarded temporary custody to birth mother Amanda Hopkins, who lives in Illinois. Ten months later, Evan was removed from that home when Hopkins' husband was arrested on the child abuse charges. Wallace said the child has thrived during the time he’s been with his biological father and that White has a significantly higher earning capacity than the boy's biological mother.

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