THOUSAND OAKS : Fugitive Mother Seized in Unusual Child Custody Case

A Thousand Oaks woman on the run with her 5-year-old child in an unusual custody case was arrested Friday in Pittsburgh, Pa., and the legal father was reportedly on his way to retrieve the girl.

But fugitive mother Catherine F. Thomas won a stay from a local judge who ordered that Courtney Thomas remain with her until a hearing can be scheduled.

Thomas and Courtney were seized at a train station after another traveler recognized them from a TV show about their case. In a brief phone interview, a weeping Thomas said she fled July 29 because she believed Courtney’s legal father was about to seek an end to her visitation rights after having won custody of the child.

Her arrest under a California warrant for felony child abduction was the latest twist in a bitter custody battle with Kevin Thomas of Van Nuys, a former friend who has no biological ties to Courtney.

Catherine Thomas and Kevin Thomas--who legally changed his surname from McCain after Courtney’s birth--were never married and never lived together. But Kevin Thomas, who is openly gay, convinced a Los Angeles Superior Court judge last summer that he had played a significant enough role in Courtney’s life to be legally recognized as her father. Judge Martha Goldin ruled that he was the better care giver and should be awarded sole custody.