A Loving father, unafraid to fight for his son
Daniel Schneider is a proud father, loving son, wonderful brother and a caring friend. Daniel has lived in Maryland his whole life. He grew up in Rocky Ridge, then attended UMBC in Baltimore to become a software engineer. He is also a member of Ground Control and a competitor in the MMA community. Daniel's Son, Dorian was taken without his consent from the United States to Russia in the Spring of 2022. Daniel fought to regain shared custody of his son and reconnect with him in Russia. He was arrested in July of 2023, and was convicted over a year later, of committing a crime under paragraph "d" of Part 2 of Article 126 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, on the basis of which he is sentenced to imprisonment for a term of six years. He is currently imprisoned in Kaliningrad, Russia.
A father fighting for his son is not a crime.
We believe Daniel is wrongfully detained and wish for his immediate transfer to the United States.
We wish for Daniel's safety and well-being and to be protected as an American citizen.
We expect the US Government to do more to safeguard its children.
How Does a Child Get Taken?
Throughout the last three years I keep wondering how this happens to someone. I am also a father who cares deeply about his children, and could not stand for them to be taken from me. We live in the greatest country in the world and with it I had assertions; beliefs in our country and the systems it upholds:
The American Government is protecting its children from being taken to foreign countries without a parent's consent.
The Justice System has a way to bring those children back.
Countries have conventions for upholding and enforcing this.
I've learned the fallacies in these beliefs. I've learned that something being both legally and ethically wrong doesn't mean your country will stand up and make it right. I've learned that "it's complicated". It's deeply disturbing to me that this happened to my nephew. I understand how powerless my brother felt after years of trying to get his son back the "right way".
A child that was born in the United States to an American father should not be allowed to leave without consent. Custody rulings should be upheld and enforced. We should not be losing children.
"Under federal law, prosecutors may investigate and prosecute the parent who kidnapped the child, however, prosecutors generally have no control over the custodial decisions affecting the child or whether foreign authorities will order the return of the child."
https://www.justice.gov/criminal/criminal-ceos/international-parental-kidnapping
"Until Russia and the United States establish a treaty relationship per Article 38 of the Convention, parents whose children have been abducted from the United States to Russia or wrongfully retained in Russia are unable to invoke the Convention to pursue their children’s return or to seek access to them."
https://ru.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/international-parental-child-abduction/
-- Ben Schneider