Posted by Beau Dotson 2/24/2009
Edward Vehle is in the process of appealing the custody case. If it was his choice we wouldn't be able to see Savannah at all. I'm looking forward to the day when Savannah is old enough to decide on her own where she wants to live.
Resent pictures of Savannah have been posted.
Posted by Beau Dotson 6/14/2008
Sorry I haven’t been able to post as often as I would like. I’m currently deployed to Kabul, Afghanistan and the military has since blocked this site due to blog related material. Now the only way I can update the site is when websense is down, which doesn’t happen that often.
On a positive note the judge dropped the child support case against us.
We still have to pay Mr. Vehle court costs but I doubt he will ever get the full amount considering his age.
It seems Savannah is adjusting to the change better then expected. She's always a delight when she's around her grandparents. Usually puts up a fuss when she has to return to kids exchange for Mr. Vehle pickup. Mr. Vehle doesn't want to interact with the Dotson family so Savannah has to be dropped off at an exchange thirty minutes prior to his arrival.
There haven't been any new leads in the case. To be honest at this point I just want to find her so that we can give her a proper burial.
Thank you everyone for your continued support.
Posted by Beau Dotson 3/14/2008
I’ve tried to keep all posting impersonal as possible but I am at the point where I can’t.
The latest decision from the judge has made me extremely angry.
Peter Sakai of the 225th District Court decided to give Edward Vehle primary care of Savannah. Which means Ed will benefit from my sister death.
When the Air Force decides to classify my sister as deceased he will gain access to her life insurance, social security, bank accounts, and any property she currently has. Not only that but he will receive 50 % of her pay from the Air Force until Savannah turns 18.
Peter Sakai also decided our family should pay all of Edward Vehle lawyer fees which total $175,000.00. On top of this ridiculous decision my mother will have to pay 20% child support to Edward. We did receive 42% grandparents rights but why would grandparents have to pay child support when he's the executive to Nonnie estate?!?
Our family is planning on appealing but when will it ever end!
From day one Edward hasn’t wanted Savannah and everything he has done has been out of spite because of our actions when Nonnie went missing. The best interest for Savannah should be the number one priority and it's unfortunate Edward doesn't think the same way.
Web Posted: 01/18/2008 01:59 AM CST
Father to get custody of little Savannah
Brian Chasnoff and Nancy Martinez
Express-News
Her mother lost without a trace, a 2-year-old girl will be placed with her father after more than a year of living with her maternal grandparents, a jury decided on Thursday.
The ruling devastated Candice and Kevin Doyle, whose lives were upended in 2006 when their daughter, Nonnie Dotson, vanished while visiting relatives in Littleton, Colo. The Doyles abandoned their jobs and a home in California to move here and care for Savannah Dotson, Nonnie's daughter.
The jurors' unanimous decision left the grandparents virtually in shock.
"I'm so sad," Candice Doyle said, sobbing.
Edward Vehle, the father, declined to comment, turning his back to reporters as he waited for the doors of a courthouse elevator to close.
The jury of eight women and four men took more than nine hours to ponder the fate of the little girl, who spent little time with her father before her mother disappeared. Judge Peter Sakai of the 225th District Court now will craft a visitation schedule for Candice Doyle, who likely will retain certain rights in caring for Savannah.
"It allows Candice to maintain a significant role in Savannah's life," said her attorney, H.E. Mendez.
Lawyers had sparred over the issue of which outcome would be in the best interest of Savannah.
James Bass, Vehle's attorney, had argued that Vehle was entitled to custody of his daughter because evidence didn't show he was an unfit father or that he'd been involved in Nonnie's disappearance.
But Mendez suggested that Savannah would suffer another shock in leaving her grandparents' home, arguing that Vehle had been dismissive of his daughter upon her birth.
"It was a very tough decision," said John Watts Nieto, the presiding juror. "We got the sense that there was a transformation (in Vehle) toward his responsibilities as a father."
Vehle testified at the trial that Nonnie Dotson became pregnant the first night she met him at a dance lesson at a local Western club. He later challenged paternity of Savannah and admitted in court that he'd scrawled, "It's a Bastard," on her birth announcement.
A month before Nonnie Dotson disappeared, a judge named her primary joint managing conservator of Savannah. Nonnie Dotson also had given Candice Doyle the power of attorney — the right to care for Savannah if anything happened to her.
In November 2006, Nonnie Dotson left 16-month-old Savannah in the care of her sister-in-law in Littleton and went dancing at a Western club, where she met a man, according to a sheriff's report.
The next day, she left her brother's house around 3 p.m. to "go out to dinner, shopping and dancing," the report stated. She left with "an unknown female in an unknown vehicle," her sister-in-law told authorities.
Her relatives haven't seen her since, and investigators in Jefferson County still have no leads in the disappearance.
Meanwhile, bad blood boiled between Vehle and the Doyles. In December 2006, the grandparents hired a private investigator to follow Vehle on at least five occasions as he cared for Savannah. That scrutiny yielded nothing alarming, testified Sterling Smith, the private investigator.
A court-appointed psychologist, Dina Trevino, testified that Vehle, 52, had embraced the responsibilities of fatherhood and recommended that he get sole custody of Savannah under the condition that her grandparents get as much access to her as possible.
"There's still this vulnerable child," Trevino warned. "There's still this hole."
Web Posted: 01/15/2008 12:17 AM CST
James Muñoz
KENS 5 Eyewitness News
Mother of missing AF nurse testifies in custody hearing
The custody battle over a 2-and-a-half-year-old San Antonio girl continues.
On Monday, Savannah Dotson's maternal grandmother, Candice Dotson, took the stand. Candice has been caring for the child since her mother, 33-year-old Nonnie Dotson, disappeared in November 2006.
Both Candice and Savannah's father, Ed Bailey, want sole custody, but after six days of testimony, there's no new information to explain what happened to Nonnie.
Fourteen months ago, she disappeared while on a Thanksgiving trip to Colorado. Authorities believe she was met with foul play and are investigating the case as a homicide.
Meanwhile, the fight over Savannah is far from over. Bailey's attorney says his client feels like his child was stolen from him. Throughout the trial, Bailey has shown a range of emotions and says he wants nothing more than to experience life with his daughter.
Candice was on the stand for hours Monday. Savannah's step-grandfather also took the stand late Monday afternoon.
There are about four more witnesses in the case, after which it will go to the jury, which could happen as early as Wednesday
Web Posted: 01/08/2008 10:40 PM CST
Nancy Martinez
Express-News
The custody battle for Savannah Dotson — a toddler whose mother disappeared more than a year ago — began Tuesday in state District Court, pitting a biological father who maintains he has a legal right to raise his child against maternal grandparents who argue he's never played a role in her life.
Fighting for the 21/2-year-old is Edward Vehle, who says he would provide a loving home for Savannah, the most important person in his life.
"I want to be there when she wakes up in the morning. I want to make her breakfast and comb the knots in her hair. I want to teach her how to ride a blue bicycle. I want to be there when she joins the Brownies and cheerleaders. ... I want to be there always for her," he testified.
Attorneys for the grandparents, Candice and Kevin Doyle, argue that they should get custody, saying Savannah's father was absent for the first 18 months of her life.
"Ed decides he wants custody of Savannah — a child he has never met. It's like a trophy," the Doyles' attorney, H.E. Mendez, told jurors.
James Bass, Vehle's attorney, argued, "If for some reason (children) can't be with both parents, they ought to be with one."
The question of who should raise the blond, brown-eyed toddler became a legal issue after her mother, Nonnie Dotson, mysteriously vanished from Littleton, Colo., in November 2006.
A former Air Force nurse at Wilford Hall Medical Center, Dotson disappeared after a night of Western dancing while visiting her brother in Colorado. At the time, Savannah's mother was her primary caretaker. In the months following Dotson's disappearance, Savannah lived with her maternal grandparents in San Antonio.
The jury of eight women and four men listened to hours of testimony as voices were raised and allegations flung in Judge Peter Sakai's 225th District Court.
Mendez, the grandparents' attorney, argued that it would be in Savannah's best interest to live with her grandparents. "The first year of her life she spent living with her mother," he said.
When asked about being absent from his daughter's life, Vehle testified that he had regrets. "I feel bad about it," he said. "I missed out."
Bass, Vehle's attorney, said his client was kept away from his daughter for too long. "Mrs. Doyle picked her up and wouldn't let Ed see the child. Maybe it was a replacement for her child. She decided she wanted her granddaughter to be her," he said.
One thing was clear from the testimony: At the time Dotson vanished, there were ongoing problems between her and Vehle.
Vehle said Dotson became pregnant the first night she met him at a dance lesson at a local Western club. He later challenged paternity of Savannah and admitted in court Monday that he wrote "It's a Bastard" on her birth announcement.
Vehle described their relationship as "rocky" and "on again, off again," saying he once called police to remove Dotson from his home because she was assaulting him. He said Dotson kept him away from their daughter because he wouldn't marry her.
A month before Nonnie Dotson disappeared, a judge awarded her primary joint managing conservatorship of Savannah.
Vehle, who manages five ranch properties for his family and profits from the land, was ordered to pay back child support to Dotson for $10,500 — an amount he hasn't paid because a subsequent court order didn't include it.
Vehle — who wasn't sure of his net worth, but estimated that he had spent more than $140,000 in attorney fees thus far — testified that Candice Doyle wrongfully accused him of having something to do with Nonnie Dotson's disappearance, even after he provided evidence that he was in Texas at the time.
More than a year later — with no new leads — Nonnie Dotson's disappearance remains under investigation.
Posted by Beau Dotson 12/23/2007
Pre-trial motions have continued throughout the week. The actual trial should take place Monday, January 7th, 2008.
Posted by Beau Dotson 12/11/2007
Custody trial is scheduled for Dec 17th.
Posted by The Denver Post- Colleen O'Connor 11/28/2007
Their lives have turned upside down. They've moved from California to Nonnie's home in San Antonio to wage legal war while caring for Savannah in a temporary-custody arrangement.
Candice took a year's leave of absence from her job as a flight attendant for Northwest. That year is now up.
"I have to get a doctor's note saying I am in no shape to come back," she said. "I haven't had time to grieve over my daughter because I'm fighting a battle for my granddaughter."
The Doyles are using their retirement money for legal fees, and trying to sell their house in California with the hope of using the money to increase the reward to $100,000.
Relations between the Doyles and Vehle are so fractious that they use a child exchange center when Vehle picks up Savannah for visitation.
Vehle's custody lawyer, James Bass of San Antonio, has not returned repeated calls.
Bitterness preceded Nonnie's disappearance. Court records show that Dotson and Vehle had several legal disputes over paternity and child support.
After Nonnie's disappearance, he missed a meeting with detectives. He later said he didn't know Dotson was even missing until he saw a newspaper article in which the Dotson family seemed to suggest he had something to do with it.
Vehle provided receipts from two grain stores that proved he was in Texas at the time Dotson disappeared, and also gave access to his cellphone records.
As the Doyles gear up for the jury trial in the custody case, Tony Dotson is papering his neighborhood with postcards he's printed: pictures of Savannah and information on the $25,000 reward.
"It's a message," he said, "from Savannah, saying, 'Help me find my mommy.' "
Family, friends recall ICU nurse missing for a year
For many who gathered at Clement Park on Sunday afternoon, the spiraling white and pink balloons were a beautiful but grim reminder that Nonnie Dotson isn't coming back.
Her friends and family know this because Dotson, a single mother and Air Force nurse, would never have willingly left her young daughter.
They know it because she had so many plans for herself and little Savannah.
And they know it because of the raw feeling in their guts.
The 33-year-old San Antonio resident vanished while visiting her brother, Tony, in Littleton on Nov. 19, 2006. She was due back at work as an intensive care nurse at Lackland Air Force Base two days later, her family said.
"We think she's gone," Dotson's mother, Candice Doyle, said Sunday from San Antonio, where a similar commemorative event was held.
"I've had this feeling for quite a while now, but still, there's a piece in the back of our minds and our hearts that do want to believe she's out there - that she's being held against her will."
But even that explanation isn't comforting, Doyle said.
"She would have figured out a way to get out by now," said her mother, who's caring for 2-year- old Savannah while custody issues are resolved.
At both events, people shared memories, listened to Dotson's favorite songs and sent balloons aloft.
They wept and hugged. Many participants, who have been grieving alone, finally got to share their feelings and memories.
In San Antonio, a colonel recalled how Dotson had nursed him to health after he suffered a brain aneurysm. He joked that she always felt she had to be on her best behavior because of his rank. One day, another high-ranking officer came to visit in civilian clothes and Dotson remarked, "I'm glad you're not a general," only to find out he was.
"We told stories about Nonnie and laughed a lot," Doyle said.
Friends recalled Dotson's exuberant laugh and big heart. They remembered how much she loved her daughter.
A jury trial is slated to begin one week from today in Texas to determine custody of Savannah. Her father, Edward Vehle, of San Antonio, is seeking custody, as are her grandparents.
Dotson and Vehle never married, and family members say he was not involved in his daughter's life.
"We're just hoping they'll be able to read through the lines and see who's sincere and do what's best for Savannah," Doyle said. "She's a loving little girl. She's very active now, very talkative, very possessive of her nana and papa."
The Doyles have put up a $25,000 reward for information leading them to their daughter.
"Somebody knows something," Dotson's older brother, Tony, said at Clement Park. "If she isn't with us anymore, we'd like to put her to rest."
A Jefferson County Sheriff's Office investigator is assigned to the case, said sheriff's spokesman Jim Shires. The detective is in contact with the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
Dotson had logged onto a dating Web site for single parents a few times in the hours before she failed to return to her brother's home after running errands.
Posted by Tony Dotson 11/16/2007
Youtube video with family photos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY8JasV4Khc
