Why would a mother plead for leniency for her child’s alleged kidnapper – especially when the mother has been deprived of any contact with her child whatsoever since 1996?

That’s exactly what happened in this unusual case.

The man was convicted and imprisoned on charges of custodial interference, for aiding his friend in kidnapping the friend’s daughter with the man’s niece – from a supervised visit. The friend then absconded with the child to Iran.

The child’s mother has not been able to have any contact with her since.

Nonetheless, the mother has sought leniency for her uncle, whose wife now requires expensive medical treatments for cancer. The man reportedly wants his freedom so he can return to a six-figure job to pay for her treatments.

And that is what has tipped the scales of – mercy – in favor of the convicted kidnapper’s early release, just halfway through his 16 month sentence.

This case inspired an important change in Connecticut’s child custody laws in 1999.

In Connecticut, it is now illegal for a parent with joint custody to take the child away from the other parent either “permanently or for a protracted period of time”.

Read more in this Stamford Advocate article: Man serving time for kidnapping is out early.