The Missouri Supreme Courtruled Tuesday that a lower court did not follow procedures when it allowed the adoption of a Guatemalan woman’s child four years ago.
Encarnacion Romero was arrested at a poultry processing plant in southwestern Missouri in 2007 under suspicion of illegal immigration. The next year her infant son was adopted by a Carthage couple while she was in prison.
Romero says she never agreed to the adoption.
The state’s high court is sending the case back to a lower court, and one of Romero’s attorneys, Bill Fleischaker, says that’s good news.
“The case gets to go back and be retried and now she, my client, will have a chance to present her full case in court and have a judge hear the evidence,” Fleischaker said.
The child, who was adopted by Seth and Melinda Moser, is now four years old.
The court ordered that the case be heard within 90 days.
Calls to the Moser’s attorneys have not been returned Tuesday.
Missouri Supreme Court Immigrant Custody Case - Full Opinion
