Musician and actor Ludacris has filed a petition to gain full custody of his two-month-old daughter. The two have been back and forth several times over the issue of custody and support with each parent asserting different arguments about the financial aspects of the arrangement but this is the first time that the father has argued that the custody arrangement should be altered.
The mother of the baby currently has full custody and has been seeking a permanent custody and support arrangement, but now the entertainer says that he believes himself to be as fit of a parent and asks that he have primary custody. He is also seeking child support payments from the mother of the child, saying that his earnings are low in the time since his Fast & Furious co-star Paul Walker died in a car crash.
This case is a good example of how the public and sometimes the court can default to awarding the mother of a small child full physical custody. However, that is not always the best choice and oftentimes the father is just as suitable of a full-time parent. In this case there is no evidence to suggest that either parent has the advantage over the other, so perhaps a shared custody arrangement would be the most equitable.
One interesting question in this case is whether the amount of child support the mother is seeking will be considered as a precedent for the amount that the father should receive if he is awarded primary custody.
Ludacris says that he has been an active parent with his older daughter, who is now 12-years-old and there are no reports or allegations to suggest that this is not the case.
Source: Urban Daily, “Ludacris Turns Tables: Files For Custody And Asks For Child Support,” Skyyhook, Feb. 23, 2014.