A man in Las Vegas has taken his story to family court, filing a petition to uncover whether he is actually the biological father of his younger brother after suffering repeated abuse from his own mother.
A man who was subjected to repeated sexual abuse by his own mother starting at just 10 years old is now left questioning whether his younger brother might also be his biological son.
Logan Gifford, now 26, has spoken out about the horrifying abuse he suffered over many years at the hands of his mother, Doreene Gifford. His early life was already marked by loss and instability. Logan was exposed to drug use at a young age, and the family endured tragedy when one of his younger brothers — Logan is the oldest of four boys — drowned in a pool at the age of three. The child was in a vegetative state for several months before passing away, a loss that deeply affected the entire family.
In a 2015 preliminary court hearing, Logan, who is from Las Vegas, testified that around the age of 10, his mother led him into the bedroom he shared with his father. While a pornographic video played on the television, she began to sexually abuse him, marking the start of a pattern of repeated assaults.
Logan Gifford was repeatedly abused by his motherImage: 8 News Now
According to statements made in court, another deeply disturbing incident occurred in late 2008. Unfortunately, that was not the end. The abuse continued, with additional incidents taking place until around 2014.
Doreene Gifford has always insisted she is innocent. However, after Logan opened up to a therapist about what he had endured, she entered what is known as an ‘Alford’ plea.
An Alford plea is a type of legal agreement where the accused maintains their innocence but accepts that the evidence gathered by prosecutors would likely lead to a conviction if the case were to go to trial.
Doreene GiffordImage: 8 News Now
A judge sentenced Doreene to serve between eight and 10 years in prison and ordered her to register as a sex offender.
When Logan was 17, he was in a therapy session where the therapist raised a painful and shocking possibility: that his younger brother, born in 2009, might actually be his biological son, according to reporting from the Las Vegas Review Journal.
“Look at the mess that I’m left with,” Logan Gifford said to the Las Vegas Review Journal. “I didn’t ask for any of this. I was a child when all of this happened and yet now I’m responsible for picking up the pieces of something that really is still continuing to have an impact in my life and dragging me to deal with that. I feel that as though it is my obligation or my duty to (him) to do this and find out who his biological father really is.”
Logan aged 10Image: 8 News Now
Logan, who has since earned a college degree and now works as an account executive, has taken steps to try and get answers. He has filed a paternity petition and has said he is open to taking a DNA test to determine if he is indeed the father of his younger brother.
At present, his younger brother is living with Logan, along with Logan’s wife and stepdaughter. Logan has been granted temporary guardianship of the child as the situation unfolds.
Logan’s attorney, Timothy Treffinger, explained that if the DNA test confirms Logan as the father, the legal proceedings will shift into a custody case. However, if he is not the father, it will remain a guardianship matter.
Logan revealed the abuse to a therapist, leading to a criminal caseImage: 8 News Now
Determining the boy’s paternity could be complicated because both Logan and the child would share DNA with Logan’s father, Theodore Gifford. Despite this, Logan has said he is committed to being there for his younger brother no matter what the paternity results say.
“To sit here and say that my brother may be the product of my sexual assault is a very visceral thing to think about as a male survivor,” he said. “But he’s here now. There’s no going back and undoing anything. And he deserves to have a quality of life where he’s comfortable, where he can be a kid.”
The Las Vegas Review Journal also reported that Doreene’s public defender argued in a sentencing memorandum that Logan held deep resentment toward his mother. The document also pointed out some inconsistencies in Logan’s account of events.
The memorandum further claimed that Doreene herself had experienced abuse during her own childhood, both from her parents and while in foster care. It also described abuse during her marriage and noted that she struggled with drug addiction, particularly methamphetamine.
