WINONA, Minn. — The parents of Maddi Kingsbury, who have been caring for her two children since her March 31 disappearance, have now filed a motion asking a judge to immediately suspend any and all contact between the children and Adam Fravel.
Fravel, Maddi's ex-boyfriend and father of the two kids, was charged on Friday with 2nd-degree murder.
In addition, Winona County Health and Human Services filed a letter to the judge recommending that contact and visitation with Fravel be ceased and a permanency petition be filed.
"He is suspected to be the one who ripped these children's mother away, forcing them to live a life without her presence. It is absolutely not appropriate or in the children's best interests for Mr. Fravel to have any access to them, even supervised," attorney Anna Tobia wrote on behalf of David and Cathy Kingsbury.
Visitation rights became an issue on Friday during Fravel's bond hearing, when Judge Mary Leahy, who is also presiding over the child protection case, deferred to her CHIPS ruling regarding custody. In short, if Fravel posts bail, he would be allowed supervised visits with the kids just as he has been before the murder charge.
The Kingsburys argue that "there is every reason to believe he would flee with the children."
"Mr. Fravel has been hostile towards law enforcement, including making lewd comments, exposing himself and actively attempting to redirect their attention while they searched for Madeline Kingsbury," Tobia wrote.
While Fravel is the biological father of the children, he and Maddi were never married. When Maddi disappeared, the county took the children from him because he had no custodial rights, and the county believed them to be in harm's way.
Fravel and the Kingsburys have been fighting the issue in court since then, with an ongoing child protection case as well as a custody case that was initiated by Fravel.
The Kingsburys indicated they will file their own custody petition.
"It is fully anticipated that a new petition will be brought against Mr. Fravel to terminate his parental rights," Tobia wrote. "It is likely such a petition will be filed as early as next week and contact will surely be addressed at that time, however, an order for visitation remains in place until contact is revisited. In the event Mr. Fravel posts bail or bond and is released from custody, he would still be entitled to visits with the children pursuant to the Court’s order. This is absolutely not in the children’s best interests and poses a significant safety risk to the children."
The social worker's letter to the judge cites the various examples of domestic abuse revealed in Fravel's criminal complaint.
"The totality of the complaint is incredibly unsettling, but WCHHS has significant concern for the safety and well-being of the children [based on the incidents of abuse outlined in the complaint]," wrote Alyssa Passehl, Children & Family Services Unit Supervisor.
Kingsbury's remains were found last week in Fillmore County by a deputy. Fravel was charged two days later.
