Radiolab: ICWA at center of high-stakes Supreme Court case


Radiolab reports on Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, an Indian Child Welfare Act case that was heard by the U.S. Supreme Court last month:
This is the story of a three-year-old girl and the highest court in the land. The Supreme Court case Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl is a legal battle that has entangled a biological father, a heart-broken couple, and the tragic history of Native American children taken from their families.

When producer Tim Howard first read about this case, it struck him as a sad but seemingly straightforward custody dispute. But, as he started talking to lawyers and historians and the families involved in the case, it became clear that it was much more than that. Because Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl challenges parts of the 1978 Indian Child Welfare Act, this case puts one little girl at the center of a storm of legal intricacies, Native American tribal culture, and heart-wrenching personal stakes.

Get the Story:
Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl (Radiolab 5/30)

Oral Argument Transcript:
Adoptive Couple v. Cherokee Nation (April 16, 2013)

South Carolina Supreme Court Decision:
Adoptive Couple v. Cherokee Nation (July 26, 2012)

Related Stories:
Law Article: Supreme Court due for decision in ICWA case (05/16)
Letter: Indian Child Welfare Act designed to protect families (04/29)
Letter: Adoption lawyers circumvent Indian Child Welfare Act (4/22)
Supreme Court decision in ICWA case expected by end of June (4/17)
Jackie Pata: Baby Veronica and Native American family values (4/17)
NARF/NCAI/NICWA: Case shows ugly side of adoption industry (4/16)
Jacqueline Davis: An Indian family torn apart in South Carolina (4/16)
Turtle Talk: More interruptions for tribal interests in ICWA case (4/16)
SCOTUSBlog: No easy answers in Indian Child Welfare Act case (4/16)
Supreme Court takes up dispute over Indian Child Welfare Act (4/16)
Editorial: Supreme Court should take Cherokee girl from father (4/16)
Editorial: Congress may need to limit Indian Child Welfare Act (4/16)
Tribes gear up for big battle with Supreme Court's ICWA case (4/15)
Column: Supreme Court set to hear racially-tinged ICWA case (4/15)

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