Family

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
Advertisement

Sophie, from Texas, was seen begging for help in a video shared on social media, sparking the campaign #StandWithSophie.

In the video, Sophie accused her mom's fiancé of sexually abusing her. The scene happened while her own grandma dragged her out of her dad's car during a custody exchange.

The video went viral online with the campaign urging Sophie's dad, Michael Long, to take full custody.

Advertisement

Luckily, a judge has awarded full custody of Sophie and her two younger brothers to their dad.

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
father wins full custody of his daughter who sparked #standwithsophie
Advertisement

Michael will now have the three children in his care as they await the final custody trial in November.

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
father wins full custody of his daughter who sparked #standwithsophie
Advertisement

Michael's attorney, Jamie Graham, told Heavy they're happy with the court's decision.

Michael and his wife Kourtney also told Daily Mail that they couldn't sleep when Sophie was with her mother.

They also said they were terrified of what could've happened to Sophie and her brothers if they didn't win the case.

Kourtney expressed:

"It's really, really hard. There's a lot of guilt – you try to think if there was a sign you could have seen sooner. Or if they were trying to tell you in some other way."

Advertisement

"It felt just awful [to hear what she said]. You feel disgusted all the time. Especially with everybody telling you… it shouldn't be this hard to remove a child from an abusive situation."

"I just don't understand why everybody just keeps throwing them back to the wolves."

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
father wins full custody of his daughter who sparked #standwithsophie
Advertisement

The stepmom added that when Sophie visited them during the summer, the girl felt pains in her private area.

And when they took her to a clinic, doctors diagnosed her with an infection.

That's when Sophie revealed her 'mother's fiancé and his friends had sexually abused her.'

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
father wins full custody of his daughter who sparked #standwithsophie
Advertisement

Michael also told Daily Mail that ex-wife Kelly initially got full custody because she hired a lawyer, and he didn't.

But ever since, with the help of current wife Kourtney, he has been battling for shared custody.

Father WINS Full Custody Of His Daughter Who Sparked #StandWithSophie
father wins full custody of his daughter who sparked #standwithsophie
Advertisement

He also said posting the viral video online was their last hope. They had exhausted every avenue to get justice.

Michael said:

"It's one of those helpless things – as a parent, you do everything you can do to make sure your child gets the help she needs."

"The legal system failed us miserably. I knew the only way to protect Sophie was to record everything."

"I realized we were completely broke, we'd spent everything we had, so you know what, if no one else is going to speak for Sophie, I'll let her speak for herself."

Advertisement

"So, I released it, and we'll let the world decide."

He added:

"They completely took her innocence away. But they didn't take her power away, and they didn't take her will."

"How do I feel towards them? I hope they pay for what they've done. I don't believe in violence, I don't believe in death threats, but justice needs to be served."

"At this point, there's so much evidence."