Ruling: Policy, not DNA, decides competing paternity claims

PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona court says  state law comes down in favor of a man who voluntarily acknowledged paternity of a child and not another man shown by DNA results to be the child’s genetic father. The state Court of Appeals decision Tuesday said Arizona law law clearly declares the importance of providing “permanency and stability for a child” and that a voluntary acknowledgement of paternity “creates a presumption of paternity like that arising from a marriage or a birth certificate.” The decision said Arizona law sets strict limits on legal grounds and time frames for contesting voluntary acknowledgments of paternity and those criteria weren’t met by the man shown by DNA results to be the genetic father.