Kyron Horman Update: Stepmom Asks for Divorce Delay
PORTLAND, Ore. (CBS/AP) Kyron Horman's stepmother Terri Horman claims that the firestorm surrounding her makes it nearly impossible for her attorneys to respond to her husband's request for a divorce - but she also says she doesn't plan to fight the divorce.
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Terri Horman's attorney, Peter Bunch, filed a motion for abatement to delay the divorce proceedings claiming that "intense scrutiny" by law enforcement and media prevent her lawyer from handling the divorce in an "effective and orderly fashion."
Terri Horman is the last person known to have seen Kyron, who vanished from his school June 4, setting off a massive search and investigation that has drawn national media attention. No charges have been filed against Terri Horman and the authorities have not named her as a suspect, but Kyron's father and birth mother have been very vocal about their belief that Terri Horman was involved.
If the judge grants the motion it would temporarily halt any child custody decisions or investigations into her finances.
Kaine Horman filed court documents earlier this week that claim Terri Horman has paid $350,000 to, Stephen Houze, another attorney for Terri Horman, and asking that she disclose the source of the money to determine whether it should be shared.
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Bunch says that number has been "grossly misstated" and denied that she borrowed any money that could be considered marital property.
Bunch also noted that Terri Horman, a teacher, is unemployed and "under her present circumstances, is not employable."
One possible reason for the request for a delay to the divorce proceeding could be that the divorce could force Terri Horman and her lawyers to choose between her right to respond to claims against her by Kaine Horman and her constitutional right to remain silent in the investigation into Kyron's disappearance, according to Jody Stahancyk, a prominent Portland family law attorney, who is not involved in the case.
Kaine and Terri Horman have an 18-month-old daughter who is in her father's custody.
Terri Horman has been reported to be staying with family in southern Oregon after agreeing to leave the couple's home in a rural area of northwest Portland.