'16 and Pregnant's' Jamie McKay Files for Sole Custody of Daughter
16 & Pregnant reality star Jamie McKay, featured in this week's episode, has filed for sole custody of her 7-month-old baby daughter.
McKay is alleging that her baby daddy, Ryan McElrath, 18, has legal and personal issues that are detrimental to the health and welfare of her daughter.
McKay alleges that McElrath has a cocaine addiction, and has previously driven under the influence of alcohol, according to documents obtained by celebrity gossip site TMZ.
McKay is asking for full custody, care and control of her daughter. McKay wants McElrath, who is not listed on the birth certificate, to only be allowed supervised visitation at a nearby court-monitored facility. McKay is also demanding that McElrath complete a parenting class and to take drug and alcohol assessments and tests.
Generally, sole custody arrangements are rare. The judge will have to find that McElrath is incapable of caring for the baby in order for McKay to prevail on the case. Parents can be deemed unfit to care for their child if they are addicted to drugs or are abusive.
The evidence may just be on McKay's side, though. The 16 & Pregnant episode featuring McKay and McElrath certainly did not paint McElrath in a positive light. The episode revealed that McElrath was not only unfaithful to McKay when she was pregnant with their daughter, but that he was with his other girlfriend when McKay was in labor.
According to McElrath, McKay is only filing for sole custody to "cause problems. It will clear in court," he told TMZ. McElrath might very well lose custody rights to his daughter soon - the hearing date is set to June 13th.
Along with Jamie McKay, other notable 16 & Pregnant headlines include recent mom Jennifer Del Rio's domestic violence case and custody battle with father Josh Smith.
Related Resources:
- '16 and Pregnant' Jamie McKay files papers for sole custody of baby (All Headline News)
- The Various Types of Child Custody (FindLaw)
- Child Custody Basics (FindLaw)
- '16 And Pregnant' Star's Family May Sue MTV For Defamation (FindLaw's Atlanta Injury News Blog)
