Court Names Brother Legal Father After Abuse Case

A Nevada court has ruled that a man who was abused by his mother as a teenager is now the legal father of his younger brother — a child born during the years of abuse.

A Clark County judge ruled that Logan Gifford, 26, is the legal father of his 15-year-old brother — while also noting DNA testing did not make a final determination on biological paternity — according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, KLAS-TV and Yahoo News.

The decision came after Logan filed a petition earlier this year — his father, Theodore Gifford, did not respond to the case, and the judge entered a default ruling, per the outlets.

PEOPLE previously reported that DNA testing showed both Logan and his father as likely matches, leaving the question of biological paternity unresolved.

Logan’s mother, Doreene Gifford, entered an Alford plea in 2015 to attempted sexual assault and lewdness with a child under 14. She was sentenced to 8–20 years in prison, served nine years, and has since been released on parole. She remains a registered sex offender.

Logan said in an interview with PEOPLE the abuse began when he was 10 and continued until he was 17, when his mother was arrested and later convicted.

“In order to survive it, I had to compartmentalize people,” Logan said in the interview. “Doreene from nine to five was these certain characteristic traits — Doreene from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. was a little bit of a different person.”

Logan told PEOPLE he only began to suspect his younger brother might actually be his son years later. “We had a therapist for a long time who saw multiple family members, and he was quite familiar with all of the chaos,” Logan said. “He just outright asked me one day if there was any possibility, and that was the first time it kind of clicked. I honestly didn’t know.”

Now that the legal case is resolved, Logan said he feels a mixture of relief and sorrow. “It’s really a peculiar feeling if I’m being transparent. I feel partially vindicated,” he said. “I am happy that the trial is concluded. The social services system needs to be trained in spotting the signs of this abuse. I also feel sorry for my brother. Clearly, this is a tragic situation and I know he is ready to start the road to recovery.”

Logan said he plans to ensure his brother has the medical and educational support he needs. “My brother has been put into this generic box with his disabilities,” he said.

“He has been labeled as SLD [standardized learning disabilities],” he said. “That generic label doesn’t really move the needle for him, and for a majority of his life, no one actually was willing to dig deeper. He deserves to have the help necessary so he can thrive.”

Logan also said he is working with local advocates and officials to push for reforms.

“I believe this should have been handled when my mother was originally sent to prison,” he said. “If we were to mandate genetic testing in all incest cases we could have avoided this. I am currently attempting to work with Stop The Traffic Foundation and Henderson City Councilwoman Dr. Monica Larson on how to make these reforms at a county and state level. No child should have to endure what I did.”

Logan told PEOPLE he is also pursuing additional genetic testing in the hopes of bringing more clarity to his family’s situation.

Looking ahead, Logan said he and his wife are expecting a daughter on Oct. 2.

“I’m excited to really get the chance to raise not only a daughter from start to finish, but to really go and show that, even though I may not have necessarily experienced it, I know what a good woman should be like and can pass on those values,” he said. “It makes us really lay down, really, on those important family values. And I’m glad I have someone like my wife to really share that with. I didn’t think I was actually going to wind up married.”