Custody Awarded to Dead Jogger's Family

The family of Nancy Cooper will care for the couple's two young daughters.

ByABC News
July 25, 2008, 4:24 PM

July 25, 2008 — -- Custody of the two young children of murdered North Carolina jogger Nancy Cooper was turned over to the mother's family under a settlement reached today in Raleigh, N.C.

Brad and Nancy Cooper's two daughters, Bella, 4, and Katie, 2, will live with their mother's parents, Garry and Donna Rentz, and her sister, Krista Lister, in Alberta, Canada, until another custody hearing on Oct. 13.

Rentz' and Brad Cooper's lawyers reached a custody settlement before appearing in court for a hearing that was scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. today. At approximately 3:15 p.m., lawyers from both parties announced to a packed courtroom that a settlement had been reached.

Under the agreement, Cooper will be allowed two weekends of visitation with his daughters, during which he will be able to have the girls for four hours per day. A member of Nancy's family will be present throughout these visits, said Wake County District Court Judge Debra Sasser.

Cooper will also be allowed four phone calls or Web cam chats with his daughters per week, but each call may not exceed 15 minutes – giving the father a total of one hour of phone time per week with his kids.

Both parties are also prohibited from disparaging each other or talking to the press in the upcoming 75 days until the next custody hearing takes place. The daughters are also not to be exposed to the media, according to the settlement.

Alice Stubbs, a lawyer representing Nancy Cooper's family, spoke briefly to reporters upon exiting the courtroom.

"We're just grateful to have a settlement," said Stubbs.

The agreement comes on the heels of an already bitter custody dispute stemming from the murder of Cooper, who was found dead near her upscale home on July 14. Since their mother went missing, Bella and Katie were being cared for by the Rentzes after they filed an emergency custody petition.

Since then, authorities have not named a suspect or person of interest in the homicide, and have not disclosed the cause of death.