That's right.
R.P. comes forward (after being found) and says that while he doesn't remember the mother of B.C., if paternity testing says he's B.C.'s father, he's willing to do the right thing for the child. Good for him.
The trial court says: "Okay, I'll do paternity testing, but you (R.P.) have to pay for it." Nope. That's not how it works. Good job pointing that out by the Court of Appeal.
Let me just say one more thing. B.C. was eight years old when he was taken from his mother. She failed to do what she was required to do, and her parental rights were terminated. So be it.
B.C. is now almost twelve years old. His mother's out of the picture. He's never known R.P. The only father figure in his life is Mr. F, a middle school teacher who's been taking care of B.C. for the past several years and who's willing to adopt B.C. but wants to cut through the red tape. Indeed, at an earlier point, Mr. F. decided he was no longer interested in adopting B.C. because it was taking too long. But he's changed his mind, and is interested in giving B.C. a permanent home.
Let's do it already. We know how this is going to end up. We know how this should end up.
Let's make it happen. Sooner rather than later.
