In April of 2016, Governor Hutchinson signed into law a new re-homing law concerning Arkansas adoptions. It was a new statute governing an obscure practice known as re-homing. Re-homing refers to the practice of giving custody of an adoptive child to another family after the adoption is finalized.
The law was passed in the wake of some rather horrific news involving state representative Justin Harris, who was revealed to have re-homed his two adopted daughters to a home in which one of the girls was abused.
The law was updated in 2023. Often, laws are a response to an event. As time goes on, these laws are likely to be updated to apply more generally. So what does the re-homing law currently say?
The law forbids parents from assigning custody of children they adopt to another household, except close relatives, without court approval. The crime is a felony punishable by a prison sentence of as much as five years and fines up to $5,000.
What is re-homing?
Re-homing is a euphemism for giving away an adopted child, finding them a new home elsewhere without legal action or court approval. The crime is committed any time someone transfers a child to another home, advertises a child as available, recruits new adoptive parents or recruits adoptive parents to give up their adopted child, harbors a child for this purpose, transports, provides, solicits, or obtains a minor child for this type of transaction. Anyone who participates in a transfer of this kind, whether or not they are paid, is guilty of the crime.
This does not apply to a case in which a child is visiting or temporarily staying with someone else for a vacation or because the parent is incapacitated — for example, in jail or in a hospital.
It also doesn’t apply to situations in which an adoptive parent is unable to care for the child and takes legal steps to place the child with a relative or the Department of Human Services.
The re-homing law concerning Arkansas adoptions is an important step our state has taken to protect our children. Note that re-homing is not a common practice. The vast majority of families honor their commitment to their adoptive children even when times get tough. It may be a blessing that our state now expects no less.
For information about adoptions in Arkansas, contact Justin Heimer.
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