Couple Tries to Un-Adopt Kids Who Threatened to Kill Them

A couple in Long Island adopted two children in 2008, hearing from agencies that the Russian-born kids, supposedly siblings, were "healthy and socially well-adjusted." But that was far from the truth, the parents say, and now they want to give up the children, the New York Post reports. They're asking a judge to dismiss the adoptions of the children, now 12 and 14. The parents, who haven't been named, say the kids suffer from mental health issues and have often threatened to kill them. The parents are also suing adoption agencies in New York and Maryland, saying the kids actually aren't siblings and that they were sexually abused.

But the children's rights ombudsman in Russia says it's "utter nonsense" that the parents weren't informed of the kids' conditions, saying they received a dossier full of details and the parents had the right to speak to doctors, Russia's TASS reports. If the adoption is nixed, the kids, currently in mental health institutions, will be in state hands and could end up in foster care, the Post notes. An adoption lawyer says adoptive parents should be entitled to all the kids' medical details, but "you can’t get a warranty with a human being." The case comes amid controversy after Russia banned US parents from adopting Russian kids last year. (More adoption stories.)