PA Woman Faces Felony Charges In Child Custody Case

A Pennsylvania woman faces felony kidnapping charges in her child custody case. Brittany Joseph of Dunbar, Pennsylvania, has been charged with kidnap for ransom and interfering with a child custody case. Magisterial District Judge Michael Metros upgraded the misdemeanor child custody charge to a felony. The judge upgraded the charge after learning Ms. Joseph took the child from her home state to stay with relatives in Texas for two years. She also neglected to contact the father, Michael Haines, to inform him of the whereabouts of his child.

Details of the Child Custody Case

Mr. Haines testified that he left his child with her grandmother on July 4, 2013, as dictated by the visitation agreement in his child custody case. When the mother and grandmother failed to return the child after the holiday weekend, Mr. Haines called the state police to report his child was missing. With the help of Pennsylvania State Trooper Daniel Istik, Mr. Haines attempted to contact the child’s mother in Texas. Trooper Istik located Ms. Joseph through a relative of her current husband and obtained an arrest warrant.

Child Custody Case and Criminal Charges

A local judge served a bench warrant on Ms. Joseph in January, and Pennsylvania authorities located her in Texas in July. Pennsylvania troopers arrested Ms. Joseph on August 11. They returned the child to Mr. Haines while Ms. Joseph awaited her arraignment. District Attorney Jack Heneks Jr. argued that the interference in the child custody case charge should be upgraded from a misdemeanor to a felony. He also claimed that her transporting of the child across state lines, combined with hiding from authorities, met the criteria for the kidnap for ransom felony charge.

Stiff Bond in Child Custody Case

The bond conditions in this child custody case include both a high cash bond and a severe stipulation. Judge Metros ruled that Ms. Joseph should be held on $50,000 bond prior to her trial.She posted the bond on August 18. Her trial date has not yet been set. While she is free on bond, the judge also prohibited Ms. Joseph from having any contact with her child as a condition of the bond. Her attorney in her child custody case argued to have arguments regarding the contact condition moved to family court, but Judge Metros upheld the conditions.

Source: Uniontown (PA) Herald Standard

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