Send Ethan home - Riportiamo Ethan a casa dai suoi fratelli
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Help Me Bring My Baby Home:
Legal Fund for Ethan’s Return
My name is Claudia Ciampa, and I am an Italian mother fighting an unimaginable battle to bring my 11-month-old son, Ethan, back home to Italy—where he belongs.
My world was shattered on August 30, 2024, when Ethan’s father—an American citizen—abducted our son and took him to the United States without my knowledge or consent.
Now, I am in desperate need of financial support to cover mounting legal expenses and living costs as I fight for Ethan’s safe return through the Hague Convention in U.S. federal court.
How We Got Here
In 2011, I met Ethan’s father in Sorrento, Italy. We first became friends, then dated briefly before going our separate ways. Years later, after I married, had two children, and divorced, we reconnected, and our relationship deepened.
When I became pregnant with Ethan, I agreed to travel to the United States for his birth so his father could be present for the delivery. With this understanding, I traveled to the U.S. with Ethan’s father, along with my two younger children—then 10 and 9 years old—a month before Ethan was due.
Ethan was born on February 13, 2024, and as planned, we all returned home to Italy shortly afterward.
Unfortunately, my relationship with Ethan’s father did not last, and we officially ended things on August 5, 2024. We arranged a daily visitation schedule so he could bond with Ethan. Since Ethan was only six months old and I was breastfeeding, his time with his father was limited to a few hours each day.
However, I grew increasingly uneasy about his father’s insistence on keeping Ethan’s U.S. passport. Then, on August 30, my worst fears came true. After his scheduled visit, Ethan’s father never brought him back. Instead, he boarded a plane to the United States—abducting our son.
The Nightmare Unfolds
When Ethan’s father failed to return him at the scheduled time, I frantically called and texted him, pleading for my baby. At first, he told me they were at the zoo and would be home soon. But this was a lie. He was already on a flight to the United States, via London, with Ethan in his arms.
Panic-stricken, I immediately reported Ethan’s abduction to Italian authorities and filed a Hague Application within days, seeking his return under international law. The Italian Central Authority contacted the U.S. Department of Justice, and eventually, law enforcement in California was alerted.
On October 24, 2024, the Orange County Superior Court issued an Emergency Ex Parte Order and a Protective Custody Warrant for Ethan. After nearly three months of agonizing uncertainty, Ethan was finally found on November 18, 2024, and removed from his father’s custody.
For 82 harrowing days, I had no idea where my baby was. His father never once revealed his location.
But despite Ethan’s recovery, my battle is far from over.
Why I Need Your Help
I must now fight in U.S. federal court for the right to bring Ethan home to Italy. This legal battle is complex, exhausting, and incredibly expensive. Without strong legal representation, my chances of bringing Ethan back are at serious risk.
As a single mother, I am struggling to cover the overwhelming costs of this international legal fight—while also ensuring the well-being of my two other children, whom I have not seen in person since coming to the U.S. in November. Initially, family and friends helped, but the financial burden has become impossible to manage alone.
Your donation will help cover:
Attorney’s fees for representation in U.S. courts
Filing fees and court costs
Living expenses while I remain in the U.S., fighting for Ethan’s return
Ethan Needs to Come Home
Ethan is not just a child caught between borders—he is a baby who was stolen from his mother, siblings, and home. Everything he has ever known is in Italy, and he deserves to come back.
When his father abducted six-month-old Ethan and hid him from me for three months, he demonstrated that he is unfit to care for our son. His selfish actions put Ethan in danger and completely disregarded his well-being. He cannot be allowed to keep Ethan from his home and family.
Please consider donating to my legal fund—every contribution, no matter how small, brings me one step closer to reuniting with my baby.
If you are unable to donate, please share my story. Spreading awareness is just as powerful.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your support.
#SendEthanHome”
https://lavocedinewyork.com/en/news/2024/10/07/italian-mother-asks-us-government-for-help-infant-taken-by-the-american-father/
https://www.unionesarda.it/en/italy/newborn-kidnapped-and-taken-to-the-us-mother-writes-to-tajani-quot-it-was-my-ex-help-mequot-dpd81bpi
https://www.thelocal.it/20241007/italian-mother-demands-help-after-american-partner-abducts-son-to-us
https://www.ilmattino.it/en/ethan_temporarily_reunited_with_mother_amidst_international_custody_battle-8492023.html
Sono Claudia Ciampa, la mamma di Ethan.
Il 30 agosto 2024, all’età di soli 6 mesi mentre ancora lo allattavo al seno, il mio piccolo è stato portato negli Stati Uniti a mia insaputa da suo padre.
Dopo 82 giorni a dir poco strazianti, senza sapere nemmeno dove fosse il mio bambino, finalmente sono riuscita a riabbracciarlo.
Appena saputa la notizia del suo ritrovamento mi sono dovuta recare urgentemente ad Orange County in California, dove è stato trovato. Sono arrivata il 20 novembre insieme a mia figlia Chiara che mi sta aiutando e supportando incredibilmente, in questo mi sento molto fortunata, davvero non saprei come avrei potuto affrontare tutto ciò senza di lei.
Da quando siamo arrivate Ethan è stato affidato a noi e ogni istante con lui mi sembra un sogno.
Il 21 novembre c’è stata la prima udienza in presenza presso il tribunale per i minorenni e la giudice aveva già fissato udienze quotidiane in quanto la convenzione dell’Aja del 1980 prevede massima priorità per stabilire se il piccolo sottratto debba essere rimpatriato o meno, e sembrava che tutto si potesse risolvere nel giro di un paio di settimane, ma il padre sottrattore ha richiesto e ottenuto che il caso venga spostato alla corte federale il che comporta tempi più lunghi e la necessità di avvocati americani e di conseguenza le udienze sono state sospese. Le festività poi rallentano ulteriormente la procedura.
Le spese che sto affrontando sono notevoli trasporti, vitto e alloggio, spese legali (la parcella per l’avvocato americano è di 650 dollari all’ora e sebbene la mia famiglia mi stia già aiutando mi vedo costretta a chiedere aiuto perché sono in difficoltà e non so nemmeno per quanto ancora dovremo trattenerci qui. Purtroppo le istituzioni in questi casi non potrebbero far altro che in prestito con la promessa di restrizione entro 90 giorni il che mi provocherebbe ulteriore stress.
Con la speranza di rientrare a casa al più presto dove ci aspettano Ettore e Clelia, i miei altri due figli, insieme a mia madre e a tutti i miei fratelli e le loro famiglie con le quali siamo molto legati.
Confido nella vostra solidarietà e generosità, grazie
Organizer
Claudia Ciampa
Organizer
Piano di Sorrento