Court rejects Australian’s appeal for custody of Daphne child

A federal appeals court has upheld the denial of an Australian’s request that his 2-year-old be returned to him by the mother, who left Australia with the baby boy to live in Daphne, Ala.

Gareth Alexander Baran of Altona, Victoria, asked a U.S. District Court to force Susan Elizabeth Beaty to return the boy, Samuel, under the International Child Abduction Remedies Act of 1988.

Beaty conceded that she wrongfully removed her son from Australia in August 2006, when the child was 6 months old. But she argued that he would face a “grave risk of harm” if he returned.

Court rejects Australian’s appeal for custody of Ala. child