Judge nixes custody request of teen, wife

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ELLIJAY, Ga., Dec. 9 (UPI) -- A Georgia judge denied custody to a woman who had a child with a 15-year-old boy, but the now-married couple can have increased visitation, family members said.

Lisa Lynette Clark, 42, who now goes by her married name of Lisa Gonzalez, and her now-20-year-old husband, Adrian Gonzalez, had asked a county judge in Ellijay, Ga., for custody of their 4-year-old son, Skye Cobain Gonzalez, who lives with a legal guardian.

The couple were married Nov. 8, 2005, when Lisa Clark was 37 and pregnant and Adrian Gonzalez was 15. They took advantage of a legal loophole that let a minor marry without permission from a parent or guardian if the bride is pregnant, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The law has since been changed, and now 16- and 17-year-olds can wed only with the approval of a parent or guardian and a probate judge.

A day after the marriage, authorities charged Clark with child molestation, statutory rape and enticing a child for indecent purposes. Clark pleaded guilty to statutory rape in March 2006 and spent nine months in jail, where she gave birth to Skye.

Skye was placed in a foster home, where he lives with Angela Perkins, who was once Clark's boss.

Clark and Gonzalez said they were betrayed by Perkins, who promised to return their son when Clark got out of jail but has refused to do so, ABC News reported.

The Gilmer County, Ga., judge denied the custody-change request late Wednesday, WAGA-TV, Atlanta, reported, citing family members. United Press International was unable to confirm the judge's decision.