Evan's Emotional Handoff

By Kyle Meenan First Coast News

JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Evan Johnson is on his way to Illinois for a new life with his birth mother after an emotional handoff in Atlantic Beach Saturday afternoon.

"How can they do this to a little boy?", screamed Dawn Scott, in tears, as the boy she cared for over the past 3 1/2 years drove away.

"That little boy has been traumatized and hurt and nobody cares, nobody!", shouted Mrs. Scott. "Nobody cares, the case is closed!"

Evan's biological mother Amanda Johnson Hopkins, her new husband, Evan's natural father and grandfather drove up to the Scott's home in Atlantic Beach just before noon.

Evan's guardian, Gene Scott, helped carry Evan's belongings to the waiting vehicles, as Evan's screams could be heard from inside the house.

Soon after, Dawn Scott carried a teary-eyed Evan to his birth mother's minivan. Mrs. Scott sat Evan in his safety seat, kissed him goodbye, as other family members wrestled with a crush of media cameras following every emotional move.

A small crowd of neighbors and friends gathered outside the Scott family home, holding signs of prayer and support for Evan as tears streamed down their faces.

"It's more than about Evan," said Gene Scott.

"I'm very upset about this," said Rosemary Vaughn, Evan's maternal grandmother. "Nobody cares about how he feels."

State Representative Stan Jordan (R-Jacksonville) called the case a balance of rights issue, and that children need rights too.

"This is a heartbreaking story and points to the fact that we need to make some legislative changes so this doesn't happen again," Jordan said in an interview by phone.

The Scott family has tried to adopt Evan since his mother, Amanda Johnson Hopkins, gave him up for adoption two days after Evan's birth in Jacksonville, in May 2001.

The case turned into a three-way battle for Evan when his biological father, Stephen White Jr., did not agree to the adoption.

White filed paperwork to get custody of his son. Hopkins also filed for custody, and just before Christmas, a judge awarded custody to Hopkins.

Evan went on a transitional visit to Illinois earlier this month as a precursor to the permanent handover.

Friday night, the attorney for the Scott family, Susan Pniewski, filed an emergency appeal in Tallahassee.

"We can't let this happen, I don't want to see it happen. I can't even imagine what's going through that child's mind and whatever it takes to try and save him that's what we're going to do," said Pniewski.

No word yet on the appeal.

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