|
Houston Chronicle Article
Copyright © 1998 Houston Chronicle
Moceanu asked Monday that an emergency court
hearing be held to determine if she is safe. Dumitru and Camelia
Moceanu claim Dominique's court-appointed attorney has left their
daughter under the influence of an undocumented immigrant and two
men of questionable motives who are harming her and her career.
The hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday.
The three people who have been helping her hide
since she ran away Oct. 17 from her parents' home in Spring are
Luminita Miscenco, 26, her gymnastics coach; Brian Huggins, 32,
a friend; and Jeff Pudlo, 23, who coached at the Moceanu gym until
he was fired the day Dominique ran away. Dominique, who turned 17
Sept. 30, filed suit Oct. 19 seeking to be certified as an adult,
saying her father has squandered the money she has earned in her
seven-year professional career. In an affidavit submitted in support
of the request for a hearing, Janice Ward, a friend and former masseuse
of Dominique, said, "Brian Huggins began a relationship with
Dominique Moceanu when she was 15 years old and he was 31 years
old. I counseled her about this relationship, because of the age
 difference
and the fact that he was a married man and his wife never was with
him." Dominique, who moved into her own apartment this weekend,
said Monday that the implication of Ward's statement was "totally
not fair. This has gone way over the limit, how can somebody stoop
so low?" Dominique said Ward used to massage her after workouts
and was one of the few adult friends her parents allowed her to
have.
Huggins, a family friend who provided professional
services for the Moceanus when they built their gym at 6120 Louetta,
which opened last year, said the only reason he is helping is to
ensure Dominique's safety. "As a parent I made the decision
I wouldn't leave her out on the street," Huggins said. "I
think any parent would want somebody doing that for their children."
The Moceanus' court filings include the claim that Miscenco, whom
Dominique credits with reviving her sagging career, "is currently
illegally in the United States and may be subject to deportation
immediately." Dominique's father, Dumitru Moceanu, is Miscenco's
sponsor for her work visa. He fired her the day Dominique ran away.
Dominique said she is confident Miscenco will be
allowed to stay in the United States to coach her. The affidavits
claim that Miscenco, Huggins and Pudlo have conspired to influence
Dominique to run away. "Dom made this decision on her own free
will," Pudlo said, echoing the sentiments expressed by the
others. "As a friend I told her I would help her but not influence
her. The only benefit I want to see is her well-being. I don't want
any money, I don't want anything." The parents' motion also
says Dominique's court- appointed attorney, Ellen Yarrell, was out
of town Friday or Saturday and thus could not be with Dominique.
Yarrell said she was "insulted" by the insinuation she
did not properly carry out her duties. She said it is not her responsibility
to supervise Dominique around the clock. She said she talked frequently
with Dominique by phone, even while out of town. Yarrell said she
met with the Moceanus on Friday to try to settle the matter out
of court, and that they told her they are concerned that Miscenco,
Huggins and Pudlo would leave their daughter "penniless"
if she were certified as an adult. Yarrell said she proposed that
a third party oversee Dominique's trust fund so she would not spend
the money unwisely, but her parents refused, saying it is a "family
matter."
Dominique said Monday she had always assumed she
would have access to the trust fund when she turned 18, but was
shocked to read in a newspaper last week that she would not have
access to it until age 35. The hearing on her request to be certified
an adult is scheduled for Nov. 11, but a request to delay that hearing
will be heard Nov. 4, as well as a request to have the entire matter
dropped. Yarrell said she filed a motion Monday to be appointed
as Dominique's guardian if the adult status hearing is delayed.
|
