Jason Auriemma of Palm Coast is currently fighting hard to gain rights to see the child he has raised for the last six years. Jason met Briana, his daughter, when she was six months old, when he started dating the child’s mother. Jason and the mother were and still are legally married, and the child has never known their biological father who is now deceased. Jason told us how he has been there every day since she was six months old, and until now, has never missed spending a birthday with his daughter Briana. Briana had her 7th birthday on March 6th, and it was the first birthday since infancy where Jason did not get to see her, talk to her, or spend any time with her.
Jason has been fighting since early 2024 to obtain legal rights to stay in Briana’s life, “I am the only father she has ever known”, Jason explained. Currently he is waiting to file a motion in the Appellate court, because the Seventh Circuit Court Judge was forced to rule against Jason in regards to establishing him as the reputed father. It was clear in the ruling, which took 8 days for the judge to write, that he did so with a heavy heart.
Jason’s lawyers worked hard to come up with case law that could change the way step-parents are allowed to fight for the rights to the children they help raise, citing McGovern vs Clark, which normally is only used in same-sex marriage cases. However, Jason hopes that his fight with the courts will help make strides in changing things for step-parents who step up to raise their step-children beyond what is required.
Jason explained to us that in his case, he is the only father Briana has ever known, and his daughter deserves to have a father in her life. He continued explaining, “that I will never stop fighting for her. I write in a journal at least every couple of days, and I write like I am writing to her. I want her to know that I never gave up and I didn’t abandon her.”
Because he is currently waiting to file a motion in the Appellate court, he has started a GoFundMe to help him with the costs. Appellate Lawyers charge large fees, and Jason explained that he has already exhausted every avenue he had available to him, and now is struggling to keep up with bills due to the divorce and the fight for rights to the child he has raised as his own. You can find his GoFundMe here.
