What Happened to the Couple Who Adopted a Ukrainian Child but Came to Believe She Was an Adult?

The Gist:

• In April 2010 Michael and Kristine Barnett adopted a 6-year-old girl from Ukraine with dwarfism named Natalia Grace.
• The couple soon accused her of actually being an adult and abandoned Natalia, leaving her alone in an apartment.
• Michael was charged with neglect and was found not guilty after his trial while Kristine's charges were dropped.
• Kristine's whereabouts are unknown while Michael remarried.

In April 2010, Indiana couple Michael and Kristine Barnett adopted a 6-year-old girl named Natalia Grace. She was born in Ukraine and had a form of dwarfism called spondyloepiphyseal, but the couple felt they were up to the challenge of adding a fourth child to the three boys they already had.

However, it didn't take long for them to suspect that something was off with Grace. According to the Daily Mail, they began to believe that Grace was actually an adult masquerading as a child.

They alleged that Grace showed signs of going through puberty which included menstruating. Soon, the Barnetts also claimed that Grace was trying to kill them. Doctors who saw Grace reportedly concluded that she was not only older but also mentally unwell.

After petitioning the court in 2012 to change Grace's birth year to 1989 legally, the family moved to Canada and left her behind in an apartment. Where are Michael and Kristine Barnett now? Here's what we know.

According to People, Michael and Kristine Barnett divorced and were charged in 2019 with neglecting a dependent. "Prosecutors couldn't charge the couple with neglect of a child because of Natalie's court-ordered age change," the magazine reported.

In October 2022, Michael Barnett was found "not guilty of three neglect charges and conspiracy to commit neglect of a dependent," per Fox News.

Less than six months after Michael Barnett was acquitted, Kristine's charges were dropped in March 2023. The Journal & Courier reported that the prosecution felt there was insufficient evidence to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Court documents obtained by The Exponent list Kristine as living in Florida.

In Max's May 2023 The Curious Case of Natalia Grace docuseries, we learn that Michael Barnett remarried two years after his divorce to a woman named Jennifer, whom he said put him back together. He admitted to suffering from severe anxiety which contributed to panic attacks and over the course of his life, Michael Barnett has attempted suicide three times.

As far as Kristine Barnett's whereabouts, she was asked to participate in the Max series and responded by saying, "Your network is whack." During the course of Michael Barnett's trial, Kristine Barnett's Facebook messages were subpoenaed as part of discovery. It was then Michael Barnett became aware of his wife's numerous infidelities. She also wrote a book about their other adopted child, and never shared the profits with Michael or their son. Apparently Kristine planned to do the same with Natalia but that did not work out.

When asked about her age while on the stand, Grace had to say she was 22 years old because, legally, that was what her birth certificate said, per the Journal & Courier. From there, she described what happened when the Barnett family moved away, leaving her to fend for herself. Grace claimed she did not know how to do anything. Things like going to the store to buy food were unknown and made more difficult due to her disability.

Grace testified that Katherine moved her to a city three counties away from where the Barnett family was living in 2013. "She took me to Lafayette to an office," Grace said.

Indiana State Police Detective Brandon Davenport testified that Michael Barnett told him this was because "Kristine said Lafayette is a white-trash town and nobody is going to care or worry about her."

While at that office, Grace "signed a lease that indicated that Michael Barnett was the payee for the rent," reported the Journal & Courier.

Grace told the court this was not what she wanted at all. "I wanted to be with the Barnetts," she said. "I wanted to live with them."

This was actually the second time she lived on her own. A year prior, she'd had an apartment in Westfield where she'd mainly lived on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, pizza, and Ramen noodles, per her testimony.

After a month in Lafayette, Grace met Cynthia Mans, who decided to take her in, along with her husband Antwon and their children. Mans would teach Grace to read and write while charging her $250 monthly rent. She was taught by the Mans how to live and survive. With them, she learned about her social security disability benefits and a food-stamp card.

Cynthia Mans and her husband remain Natalia Grace's guardians and it was Antwon who brought his adopted daughter to meet with Michael Barnett in April 2023 for their explosive conversation in the Max series. During the meeting, Michael Barnett played the victim to his adopted daughter stating he and Natalia were both victims of Kristine and her abusive behavior. He then walked out over a disagreement regarding his use of swear words.