Father reunited with daughter who was adopted at birth by
Utah couple
Courts • Terry Achane’s parental rights were unlawfully
circumvented, Utah judge has ruled.
Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Birth father Terry Achane, left, with lawyer Mark Wiser were pleased as they leave Provo Fourth District Court where it was decided he would take custody of his 2-year-old daughter, Teleah.
Provo • Terry Achane walked out of a 4th District
courtroom Friday clutching a grocery bag containing two baby bottles.
Achane is going to need them.
The previous day, he was reunited with his 2-year-old
daughter, Teleah.
It was a happy ending to Achane’s lengthy court battle to
gain custody of the girl, who was placed for adoption at birth without his
knowledge.
“I’m very happy,” a smiling Achane (pronounced A-chan)
said Friday. “It’s 22 months too long — but the wait was worth it. I’ve got my
daughter.”
The father and daughter will leave for Fort Jackson in
South Carolina on Saturday. Waiting for them is Achane’s extended family, who
can’t wait to meet Teleah.
Teleah’s adoptive parents, Jared and Kristi Frei, brought
the girl to Achane on Thursday, along with the baby bottles, and a list of
instructions outlining what the girl likes to eat and her bedtime.
“They raised my daughter right,” Achane said of the
Freis. “They love my daughter just as much as I do.”
Achane added: “They know what I’ve been through. They’re
feeling that [pain] now.”
The Freis left the court Friday through a back exit and
did not speak with news reporters. Their attorney, Lance Rich, called it a
painful time for them and said they are asking for privacy.
Achane’s attorney, Mark Wiser, asked how it could happen
that a married father’s child could be placed for adoption at birth without the
father’s consent or knowledge
Wiser put most of the blame on the birth mother, who is
now Achane’s ex-wife.
“She came to Utah because Utah allows human trafficking
in babies,” Wiser said.
Achane, 31, and Tira Bland were living in Texas when she
conceived Teleah; the baby was due in mid-March 2011.
Achane — an Army drill sergeant — received a job transfer
to Fort Jackson and left Texas in mid-January to report for duty. He planned to
return to Texas for the baby’s birth and then expected his family to join him in
South Carolina.
But 10 days after Achane left Texas, Bland decided to
place the baby for adoption. She contacted the Adoption Center of Choice in Utah
and told the agency her husband had abandoned her and had no interest in the
child. She gave birth in Utah on March 1, 2011. Two days later, Bland
relinquished her parental rights, and the baby was placed with the Freis.
Achane did not learn what had become of his daughter
until June 2011. He immediately contacted the agency and demanded the return of
his daughter, but both the agency and the Freis refused and attempted to proceed
with an adoption.
In November, McDade ruled that Achane’s parental rights
had been unlawfully circumvented by Bland, the adoption agency and the Freis,
and he dismissed the couple’s adoption petition. McDade set 60 days for the
Freis to transfer custody of Teleah to her father.
The Freis responded by asking both McDade and the Utah
Supreme Court to stay McDade’s ruling while they appealed the transfer
order.
McDade declined to stay his decision, and on Jan. 11, the
Utah Supreme Court did, too.
brooke@sltrib.com
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