Watch CBS News

David Goldman Custody Battle Leads to Block of Trade Bill

(AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
In an apparent effort to exert political pressure on Brazil to return a nine-year-old boy to his New Jersey father, Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey is planning to hold up a trade bill that would benefit that country.

The Associated Press reports that Lautenberg placed a hold on the bill, which allows certain countries, including Brazil, to export certain products to the United States duty-free.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court in Brazil kept David Goldman (pictured) from retrieving his son Sean, who was taken to Brazil five years ago by his now-deceased mother.

The court said Sean must remain in Brazil until the case is settled. It goes into a two-month recess at the end of the day.

Goldman had flown to Brazil after a lower court ruled that his son should be returned to him, though that ruling was stayed before he could take the boy back to America.

A number of American political leaders, including President Obama, have pressured Brazil to release the boy to his father. New Jersey Republican Rep. Chris Smith flew to Brazil in an attempt to force the issue.

Goldman's wife took Sean to Brazil in 2004, then divorced him and remarried. She died while giving birth to a daughter last year, and her family has sought to keep Sean in Brazil.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.