The State - News from April 19, 1988

A Navajo medicine man prayed over an ailing 8 1/2-month-old girl caught in a custody tug-of-war involving the tribe, her natural mother and her would-be adoptive parents, a lawyer in the case said. “A ceremony is being conducted for the health and well-being of the child,” said Linda Lach, attorney for Cheryl and Rick Pitts of San Jose, the foster parents seeking to adopt the child who has lived with them since birth. The child, Allyssa Kristian Pitts, whose natural mother, Patricia Keetso, is a Navajo, was turned over to Navajo officials in Arizona on orders from a Santa Clara County judge. The judge ruled the tribe would keep the baby until a Navajo court decides on custody. Keetso supports the Pitts’ bid for custody and members of the Pitts and Keetso families said the tribe neglected the asthmatic child’s health. Tribal officials denied the allegation.