ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, January 26, 1996 TAG: 9601260095
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press|
Elizabeth Morgan, the plastic surgeon at the center of an international child custody dispute, could return to the United States for medical treatment without fear of arrest under a bill moving through Congress, two House members said.
If the measure is passed quickly, Morgan and her 13-year-old daughter could return from New Zealand this year, perhaps as early as March, according to Virginia Reps. Tom Davis and Frank Wolf, Fairfax County Republicans who are among the bill's sponsors.
Morgan, 48, wants to return for two operations she eventually will need, they said Thursday. And the girl, Ellen Morgan - previously known as Hilary Foretich - is eager to return to the United States.
The child has lived in New Zealand since 1987, when her mother sent her into hiding rather than allow court-ordered visits with her father, Eric Foretich.
Morgan contends Foretich had sexually abused the girl. Foretich denies the allegation.
Morgan, once a plastic surgeon in Washington, spent two years in jail for defying the order, which was issued by a District of Columbia Superior Court judge. She joined her daughter in New Zealand in 1989.
If Morgan were to return now, she could be rearrested and jailed again, Davis and Wolf said.
Foretich attorney Jonathan Turley, a George Washington University law professor, said he would challenge the measure in court immediately if it is passed. He said Congress can't pass a law with the sole purpose of penalizing one person - Foretich.
In addition, the case should be resolved in the courts, he said.
``The legislation proposed in Congress is not simply ill-advised, but clearly unconstitutional,'' Turley said. ``Congress has selected one individual out of a population of about 250 million people to change his life. dispute that has already been tragically distorted by public attention.''
The case has taken on urgency because of Morgan's health. She has undergone major surgery in New Zealand to treat ulceration throughout her large intestines, according to a Jan. 23 letter from her current husband, Paul Michel, a U.S. appeals court judge living in Washington.
Furthermore, Morgan's elderly father is being treated at a Bethesda, Md., hospital for congestive heart and kidney failure.
``If she doesn't get back fairly soon, she may never see her father again,'' Wolf said. ``This situation has gone on too long, and now it is time for those of us in Congress to do something about it. If the courts can't resolve this situation, Congress must.''
The bill would temporarily change a District of Columbia law and allow any child age 13 and older under certain conditions to choose whether to visit with a noncustodial parent. The measure is written so that the only child likely to qualify is Ellen, however, Davis said.
The change would expire when Ellen turns 18 or when all legal action in the custody dispute ends. She has said she doesn't want to see her father.
Foretich, an oral surgeon in McLean, Va., would be free to petition the court again for visitation, Davis said. A House subcommittee is expected to begin work on the bill next week, Davis said.
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