DALLAS — A couple who fought unsuccessfully to adopt Lauren Calhoun when she was a toddler hope to regain temporary custody of the girl who was found two weeks ago locked in a closet where police say she had been for at least four months.
Bill and Sabrina Kavanaugh of Canton, in northeast Texas, planned to seek temporary custody of the girl, now 8, at a hearing Tuesday and initiate adoption proceedings.
They have undergone psychological and other tests and say they are optimistic about a reunion with the little girl they last saw when she was 2.
Lauren was rescued from a trailer where she lived in a lice-infested closet, locked away from her mother, stepfather and siblings. She weighed only 25 pounds, and official said her stomach was bloated because of malnutrition.
She remains in serious but stable condition in hospital, said CPS spokeswoman Stacey Ladd.
"I don't anticipate she'll get out any time soon," she said.
If approved by the court, the Kavanaughs will attend six to eight weeks of classes that teach foster parents how to deal with mentally challenged children.
Judge Cheryl Lee Shannon is expected to decide at Tuesday's hearing whether Lauren's five siblings should be placed with relatives or remain in foster homes under the custody of Child Protective Services.
The girl's mother, Barbara Catherine Atkinson, 30, and stepfather, Kenneth Ray Atkinson, 33, are charged with injury to a child and are in Dallas County Jail. If convicted they face up to 99 years in prison.
Barbara Atkinson's attorney said last week that her client will voluntarily give up her parental rights to Lauren in favor of the Kavanaughs, if approved by Shannon and CPS.
Douglas Dunn, a lawyer appointed by the court to represent the six children, was not available for comment Monday.
CPS spokeswoman Stacey Ladd said Lauren's birth father would have to be located and terminate his parental rights before adoption proceedings could be completed.
The Kavanaughs say they tried to adopt Lauren when she was born but lost their custody when Atkinson changed her mind and wanted her baby back.