Russian lawyers slam Russian child abuse in US
The US uses double standards in dealing with Russian child abuse cases, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, commenting on a sentence given to 23-year-old American Elizabeth Escalona.
By Andrey Fedyashin
October 16, 2012 / thevoiceofrussia
She got 99 years in prison for beating her adopted 2-year-old daughter. At the same time, Michael and Nanette Craver were recently sentenced to 16 months behind bars for killing Ivan Skorobogatov, their Russian-born adopted son.
In relevant interviews with the Voice of Russia broadcast on Tuesday, prominent Russian lawyers and rights activists specifically cited the situation in the US, where judges strangely show leniency toward US parents, accused of abusing their adopted children. In this sense, the sentence to Escalona once again reflects the US’ biased approach to the matter, says Russian Children’s Ombudsman Pavel Astakhov.
"Acquitting adoptive US parents is not uncommon in the US, Astakhov says, referring to the so-called “specialists” who regularly attend court hearings, where they try to accuse adopted Russian children of hurting themselves, stealing or lying, among other things. Suffice it to mention the case of Ilya Kargintsev who could not even walk at the age of 18 months, Astakhov says, blaming US judges for heeding opinions of these “specialists” and displaying leniency toward adoptive parents."
According to Astakhov, at least 19 adopted Russian children have already died at their American parents’ hands. An adoption agreement between Russia and the United States will come into force as of November 2012, a legally binding document that Moscow hopes will help prevent US parents from abusing their adopted Russian kids.
The agreement specifically stipulates psychological testing of adoptive parents who will only be allowed to work with accredited adoption agencies. Coordinating adoptions will be representatives of both Russia and the US.