| In February 2001 Melissa had her second child, Haley Mae. Melissa by this point had already ended the very short relationship she had with Haley�s biological father, William Cody Casteel. Mr. Casteel was not there for the birth and not once came to visit. For more than a year after her birth, the only eyes of a father figure Haley glared into were the eyes of Melissa�s on and off, long-time boyfriend Willie Hendrix. After Melissa�s incarceration Haley was placed in the care of my mother and father, Kevin and Diane Brown, by social services. Mr. Casteel made his first visit to see Haley at this point in time. Haley was more than a year old. On October 5, 2002 Mr. Casteel made his second visit to Haley. He picked her up from the babysitter�s house with the promise to have her back by 8:00 that evening. Much to our distress and to the agony of my imprisoned sister, Mr. Casteel failed to hold up to his end of the bargain. He fled to Missouri with Haley with no intent to return her. Granted he didn�t have custody and because he has never paid a dime of child support, we thought we would have no problem getting Haley back in the care of a stable home with familiar faces. To our astonishment the Craven County Sheriffs Department stated to my mother that since he was Haley�s legal father and no one but my sister has legal custody, we would not be able to send for her. Odds are stacked against Melissa. Is it fair and deserving? I�d love to have your input. Be sure to contact me at �contact information.� Robert C. Hobbes III |