Divorced father loses custody of his three children 'because he's agnostic'



A divorced father-of-three claims he has lost custody of his children because he's agnostic.

Craig Scarberry, of Indianapolis, Indiana, had shared equal custody of his three young children with his former wife, a practising Christian, for four years.

Then last month a judge ruled the Navy veteran's visitation time be limited to four hours each week and custody reduced to once every other weekend.

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Divorced: Craig Scarberry believes he has lost custody of his three children because he's agnostic

Mr Scarberry said the only possible reason he can find in the ruling for the judge's decision is his comment that 'the father did not participate in the same religious training as the mother... father was agnostic.'

The ruling also stated: 'When the father considered himself a Christian, the parties were able to communicate relatively effectively.'

'I don't see any other verifiable explanation [for the judge's decision].' Mr Scarberry said in an interview with MSNBC television host Cenk Uygur.

'There are a few other things that were listed on the order. However, we were able to refute all those things with our own evidence while we were in court.'

Mr Scarberry said his agnosticism may have been taken into account because the custody ruling was made in light of the divorced couple's inability to 'communicate effectively' about issues including their religious beliefs.

He said: 'They did address my religion with me on several different occasions during the hearings.



'However, I never posed a situation for my children or ever forced my beliefs onto the kids. Matter of fact, they continue to go to a Christian daycare.



'When I had joint legal I agreed to take them to Church functions such as the Mother's Day Choir. As well as allow them to go to church with my mother who attends on a regular basis, in addition to Church camp, those kinds of things.



'We were able to show that in no way, shape, or form do my personal beliefs and decisions reflect onto the children at all.'

Mr Scarberry believes the judge's decision is a violation of his First Amendment right to freedom of religion.

He has now successfully applied for a permit to stage an equal rights protest outside the government office in Madison County, Indianapolis, on December 16.