THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT  
              Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Friday, October 27, 1995               TAG: 9510270556
SECTION: LOCAL                    PAGE: B7   EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: RICHMOND                           LENGTH: Medium:   51 lines

CORRECTION/CLARIFICATION: ***************************************************************** Sharon Bottoms, a lesbian, has renewed her fight to regain custody of her son. A headline in Friday's MetroNews section erroneously said she was trying to regain custody of her daughter. Correction published in The Virginian-Pilot, Saturday, October 28, 1995, on page A2. ***************************************************************** LESBIAN AGAIN FIGHTS HER MOTHER TO REGAIN CUSTODY OF DAUGHTER

Lesbian Sharon Bottoms renewed her fight to regain custody of her son by filing a petition Thursday in the same court that declared her an unfit mother.

In rulings that have outraged national gay rights groups, the Virginia Supreme Court and two lower courts have ruled that the child should live with his maternal grandmother, Kay Bottoms.

In a petition filed in Henrico County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court, Sharon Bottoms' lawyers argued that her living conditions have improved substantially while Kay Bottoms' situation has deteriorated.

In a 4-3 ruling last April, the state's highest court said Sharon Bottoms' relationship with live-in lover April Wade could bring ``social condemnation'' on Tyler Doustou, now 4. That ruling reversed the Virginia Appeals Court, the only court that has sided with Sharon Bottoms. She lost the first two rounds in juvenile and circuit courts.

The rulings against Sharon Bottoms have cited a number of problems in addition to her homosexuality: unemployment, frequent address changes and Kay Bottoms' testimony that her daughter hit Tyler hard enough to leave a hand print.

Willis said that while his client remains a lesbian, ``her living situation has improved dramatically over the last couple of years. She has lived in a stable relationship, in the same place, and she has a job.''

The petition claims that Kay Bottoms, on the other hand, has moved into a mobile home and ``has no visible means of support.

``Further, Kay's current residence is less than adequate for Tyler's well-being,'' the petition says. ``There have been times when she has had no running water and the quarters were so cramped that Tyler had to sleep on a couch.'' by CNB