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Attorney Accused of Coercing Marshallese Women into Illegal Adoptions

Courtesy
/
Maricopa County Sheriff's Office
Maricopa County, Ariz., Assessor Paul Petersen is accused of smuggling pregnant women from the Marshall Islands and paying them to give birth in the United States.

An attorney with the license to practice in Arkansas, Arizona and Utah has been arrested on federal charges in connection to a scheme that involved coercing dozens of Marshallese women to come to the U.S. to give their babies up for adoption, which is illegal under the Compact of Free Association between the U.S. and the Marshall Islands.

Kyle Kellams is KUAF's news director and host of Ozarks at Large.
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