The London Paradigm (book 4 of Adopted by the Josephs)

32. Tyler

The Columbus Dispatch

Local Celebrity, Daughter in Legal Battle

COLUMBUS, OH- Tyler Joseph, the lead singer of the alternative band 'twentyone pilots' is reportedly embroiled in a legal battle concerning his adopted daughter, Samantha, 15.

Tyler and his wife Jenna adopted the teen nearly two years ago when her late father, the disgraced lawyer Stanley Deitz had his parental rights terminated following the teen revealing that Deitz had caused the death of his late wife, Janet Deitz, neé Solman, the teen's biological mother, seven years ago.

After what the police thought was a thorough search for any blood relatives for the girl, it was determined that none existed and Samantha was adopted by the Josephs.

Following the adoption, Deitz, who had been sent to a federal holding facility, orchestrated an escape during a prison transport, coerced a fellow inmate to abduct his daughter from her school and held her captive for a week, putting the diabetic teen's life at risk.

She survived the ordeal and was returned to the Josephs where in the intervening year and a half, she has reportedly thrived.

Last year, the Josephs welcomed a biological child of their own, a sister for Samantha.

Last Christmas, however, the family was blindsided with the news that Samantha did indeed have a remaining blood relative. Evidently, Janet had a brother who currently resides outside of London, England with his wife and two children. Solman is the legal counsel for a multinational shipping conglomerate based in London.

Following a visit by the teen to visit her family in England, the Josephs were served with papers challenging their adoption of Samantha.

Ohio law states that an adoption that has been finalized for over a year cannot be contested except for extenuating circumstances.

The Solmans are claiming that as they didn't know of Samantha's existence prior to Mr. Solman returning to the US last year and finding out from a colleague what had transpired with his sister and her family, that he should have a right to raise his niece as a member of his family.

Solman had not heard from his sister in nearly fifteen years, following her marriage to Stanley Deitz. During the reopened investigation into her death after Samantha's revelation as to how Mrs. Solman died, tales of abuse and isolation came to light. Following Samantha's subsequent kidnapping, which made national news, colleagues of Solman asked about his sister, who he did not know had died.

The Solmans are claiming that Samantha should have been given into their custody to begin with, though the Columbus police were unable to find any identification with Janet Deitz's maiden name. They could not find her Social Security card, marriage certificate nor any banking or credit card information in Mrs. Deitz's name.

The Josephs, on the other hand, are claiming that Samantha, having been legally adopted, and the adoption finalized over a year ago, is legally in their custody. They also argue that Samantha's entire life history, the good and the bad, are in Ohio. She will be high school in the Columbus area this fall, has made friends, and her biological mother is buried there. They argue that removing her from their custody would be detrimental to the teenager's mental health, something she has struggled with since she came into their lives nearly two years ago. The Josephs claim that along with their daughter, they have all worked hard to help Samantha heal and become the confident and outgoing teenager she's become.