Qatar: US couple absolved of child’s death

Doha: A Qatari appeals court on Sunday overturned a ruling against an American couple over the death of their adopted daughter and said they are free to leave, ending a closely watched legal saga.

Los Angeles couple Matthew and Grace Huang, who were originally jailed on murder charges following the January 2013 death of their adopted daughter Gloria, headed to the airport soon after the ruling to try to leave Qatar, said Eric Volz, who is coordinating legal and publicity efforts for the family.

The couple was convicted of child endangerment and sentenced to three years in prison in March. They were allowed to remain free pending their appeal but could not leave the country.

The Huangs say eight-year-old Gloria died of medical problems complicated by unusual eating habits that included periods of binging and self-starvation. Prosecutors alleged she died after being denied food and locked in her room.

The Huangs have two other African-born adopted children and have been pressing Qatari officials unsuccessfully for permission to leave the country to be with them.

“It has been a long and emotional trial for me and my family, and Grace and I want to go home and be reunited with our sons,” Matthew Huang said after the ruling. “We have been unable to grieve our daughter.”

US officials intervened on the couple’s behalf, with State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki last month urging Qatar to lift their travel ban immediately and bring the case to “an expeditious and just conclusion.”

Western-style adoptions and cross-cultural families are relatively rare in Qatar.

A report by Qatari police had earlier raised questions about why the Huangs, who are of Asian descent, would adopt children who did not share their “hereditary traits.”

Source AP, November 30, 2014

Related article:
- Public prosecutor had pushed for the death penalty for the Huangs, AFP, March 27, 2014

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