Virginia Supreme Court rules US Marine's adoption of Afghan war orphan will stand

The Virginia Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Joshua Mast, a U.S. Marine, and his wife Stephanie will retain custody of an Afghan orphan they adopted amid a yearslong legal dispute.

Four justices reversed two lower courts' rulings that had declared the adoption void due to procedural flaws. They cited a Virginia law that finalizes adoption orders after six months, preventing challenges by the child's Afghan relatives even if obtained fraudulently.

Three justices dissented, describing the lower court proceedings as "wrong," "cancerous," and akin to a "house built on a rotten foundation."

The child was injured in a September 2019 U.S. military raid on a rural Afghan compound targeting terrorists from a neighboring country. Her parents and siblings were killed, and soldiers took her to a U.S. base hospital. The State Department, during Donald Trump's first administration, coordinated with the Afghan government and International Committee of the Red Cross to reunite her with relatives vetted as her uncle.

The uncle entrusted her to his son and daughter-in-law, who cared for her 18 months in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, the Masts secured custody and adoption orders in Fluvanna County, Virginia, claiming she was a stateless child of foreign fighters. Judge Richard Moore issued the final adoption in December 2020.

After the U.S. military withdrawal and Taliban takeover, the Afghan family agreed to evacuate. Mast arranged their flight and took the child at a Virginia refugee center. The relatives have not seen her since.

Attorneys for the Masts declined comment due to a court order. Lawyers for the Afghan family said they were not prepared to comment. The court issued a protective order, and the relatives' names are withheld over fears of Taliban retaliation against their Afghan families.