Teen who 'divorced' killer dad adopted

[question everything]

Teen who 'divorced' killer dad adopted

ASSOCIATED PRESS

March 25, 2005

CANTON, Mass. – A teen who won a groundbreaking legal battle last summer to "divorce" his killer father walked out of court yesterday with new adoptive parents.

"I don't think I'll ever be over it," Patrick Holland said of his mother's 1998 slaying by his father. "But it's a step forward. It's about the biggest step you can take at one time."

Patrick, 15, was adopted by Ron and Rita Lazisky; the pair have been his guardians and were close friends of the teen's mother.

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Find this article at:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20050325/news_1n25divorce.html

[shrike]

1. I get a little annoyed at this terminology

A divorce is the dissolution of a marriage. This kid got his father's parental rights terminated. Big difference.

But that's me.

[Whoa_Nelly]

3. Divorce is also termination

of an existing relationship or union. Divorce it not just about marriage. :crazy:

[DulceDecorum]

4. I feel the same way about Catholic annulments

when they involve offspring.

If the marriage 'never existed"
what does that say about the woman and those children?

[happyslug]

5. Annulments and the Rights of Children to the Annulled Marriage

Was resolved Centuries ago, the Children are treated as if the Marriage was legitimate.

The reason for this is Christ's attacks on Divorce (There is TWO versions of his attack, one makes an exception for Adultery the other does not, the difference is viewed as minor). Christ did not like the fact that under Jewish law a man could divorce his wife if he was basically no longer wanted her as his wife. This forced the woman into a difficult position, until her husband died she could not marry (but he could) but she also was not entitled to any support from her former husband. Thus these women were left out in the cold. This treatment is what Christ objected to and what the Christian Church during the Middle ages practiced. Thus in the Middle ages the only was to dissolve a Marriage was to show that the marriage should NEVER have taken place (or for marital misconduct i.e. Adultery). When it was NOT to the disadvantage of the woman (i.e. she wanted out of the relationship as much as her husband) a finding that the marriage should never have been been entered into was found and the marriages dissolved (Annulled was the term used). Now one of the requirements of Annulments was that the parties to the Marriage (the Husband and Wife) had to take care of any complications of the previous valid marriage (i.e. their Children). As such the children of such an annulled marriage are viewed as legitimate for when they were conceived a valid marriage existed.

Thus an Annulment does not say a valid Marriage never existed, but that the couple who entered into the marriage did not fully understand what they were doing and now that they do they would NOT have entered into such a relationship. Yes, divorce is easier to understand and today most divorces sound more like annulments than divorces (Legally Dissolving an already dissolved relationship as opposed to legally dissolving an existing relationship).

[salin]

2. Sounds like a good resolution to this story

for this young man - at least as good as one can be had given the loss of his mother at the hands of his father.

[happyslug]

6. Would not have occurred in most states

Unless like in his case someone was willing to take care of him. States do NOT dissolve the parental relationship without good cause, for the state wants someone to take responsibility for this Child. In an adoption the adopting parents substitute themselves for the natural parents and thus dissolution of parental rights is always a prerequisite for an adoption. Most states would just have ended his father's parental rights and than let his adoptive parents adopt him. The child's "divorce" of his father is just new catching way for this particular court to do this action instead of just having the Adoptive parents end the natural Father's parental rights.