Dwyane Wade and ex-wife face visitation and child custody issues

Professional basketball player Dwyane Wade has recently been experiencing conflicts with his ex-wife over their child custody visitation schedule. After divorcing in 2010, the NBA superstar was awarded custody of his two young sons in March 2011. The most recent problems with his ex-wife appear to stem from visitation disagreements. In Pennsylvania divorce cases, as with other states, working out child custody arrangements can prove challenging.

Wade requested suspension of his ex-wife’s visitation rights after she reportedly delayed the boys’ return to his custody. She was charged with two counts of unlawful visitation interference, two counts of attempted child abduction and one count of resisting arrest.

Wade has said that his sister was scheduled to pick up his sons on June 16, a few hours before their scheduled afternoon flight in Chicago. They were to be with their father in Miami for Father’s Day. Wade’s sister claims that she called his ex-wife’s house, but received no response. After allegedly waiting several hours, the police were then called to the scene.

The situation became more complicated as Wade’s ex-wife apparently left her young boys with a friend inside her home. At this point, it is unclear if she was leaving to escape police while being taken into custody, or if she was having medical issues that needed attention. She was transferred to a hospital following the incident, and apparently told the police she was short of breath and thought it was possibly an asthma attack. Nonetheless, Wade managed to see his sons early on Father’s Day, after hiring a private jet to bring them home.

Arriving home, Wade’s older son purportedly told him that his mother’s friend had hit him on the head. Whether these allegations and charges are possibly a collection of misunderstandings and a result of difficult scheduling circumstances is unknown. Similar situations involving Pennsylvania child custody disputes are typically focused on keeping the best interests of the children in mind, especially when one parent is living across the country for their career. It remains to be seen what action the court hearing Wade’s petition will take to resolve the dispute, and what effect the allegations in the separate criminal proceedings will play in this post-divorce dispute.

Source: Boston.com, “Wade dealing with custody issue during Finals,” Tim Reynolds, June 19, 2012