EXCLUSIVE: Lawyers for RI Woman Who Took Daughters to Texas 31 Years Ago Demand Charges be Dropped

EXCLUSIVE: Lawyers for RI Woman Who Took Daughters to Texas 31 Years Ago Demand Charges be Dropped

The lawyers for former Warwick resident Elaine Yates, who was arrested in Houston, Texas on January 16 for “childsnatching” after fleeing Rhode Island with her two young daughters in 1985, are demanding that Attorney General Peter Kilmartin drop the charges, citing their client’s immediate safety concerns. 

“Right now we’re calling on the Attorney General to immediately dismiss the charges and also to provide her with the necessary security that is needed,” said attorney Lisa Holley in an interview with GoLocalProv.com “What this has done has thrust her back into where she was in 1985.”

“Right now she’s fearful for her life, she’s been receiving phone calls from her ex-husband, she’s had to leave her own home, she’s had to take a leave of absence from her work, all this, because of a charge that was enacted for a mere 48 hours in 1988,” said Holley. “We are calling for immediate dismissal of charges.”

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Holley and attorney Bethany Macktaz spoke with GoLocal on Tuesday about their client, who changed her name to Leina Waldberg — and how they found a Rhode Island law was created in 1988 for two days specifically to be able arrest Yates if found. 

Latest in Childsnatching Controversy

After her arrest on two counts of childsnatching, Yates pleaded not guilty in Rhode Island on January 18, and was released on $50,000 bail. 

Yates and Macktaz provided GoLocal copies of Rhode Island law (see below) — and how they said it changed during the course of one decade, and for the express purpose of arresting their client. 

“Our client in 1985 was forced to take her two daughters, leave the state because of years of torture and abuse at the hands of her husband,” said Macktaz. “In 1988, the Rhode Island General Assembly enacted a statute for only 48 hours for the sole purpose and only purpose of charging our client with a crime. The law on the books when she left didn’t apply to her and she couldn’t be charged.”

Documents provided by Yates and Macktaz show that in 1980, the Rhode Island General Assembly amended the Chapter 11-26 of the General Laws entitled “kidnapping” by adding the following:

11-26-1.1 CHILDSNATCHING — Any person who intentionally removes, causes the removal of, or detains and child under the age of 18 years outside of the state of Rhode Island with intent to deny another person’s right of custody under an existing decree or order in RI Family Court shall be guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of not more than two (years).

Yates took her daughters in 1985; however Holley and Macktaz pointed to an amendment in 1988 that they say was made to specifically address Yates — and then was changed again only two days later. 

On June 7, 1988, 11-26-1.2 was amended — and approved — regarding child snatching by parent — “removal or detention over 60 days,” as well as 11-26-1.3, “Missing Child — Duty to investigate” which stipulated that police had to investigate if a child and a parent are missing more than a week, the police had to investigate. 

Two days later, however another amendment was approved — pertaining to the abduction of a child prior to court order. 

“And so the warrant stayed out in the system for approximately 30 years bringing us to 2017 where members of the RI State Police and the Department of Attorney General decided to act on that warrant,” said Macktaz. “They went out to Houston to arrest our client, extradite her back to Rhode Island to where she’s now facing this felony prosecution.”