Judge Denies Lakeville Dad's Claim that He Didn't Abandon Son

A judge has denied a Lakeville man’s request to dismiss a child-protection order for his 11-year-old son, . 

Steven Alexander Cross, 60, who is charged with child neglect, had asked a Dakota County judge to , which allows county social services workers to be involved in the case and make decisions about the child’s welfare. 

Through his attorney, Cross said the county failed to meet its burden of proof that his son was abandoned. Dakota County Judge Richard Spicer disagreed and ordered that social services remain involved in the case.

Cross is accused of leaving two notes at his Lakeville home on July 18 – one for his son and one for a neighbor – and fleeing to California, where authorities eventually found him living in his van and working at a deli.

Cross was returned to Minnesota and spent several weeks in jail before . 

The boy, who is living with a maternal aunt, is having regular visits with his mother, Katik Porter, 38. ; in the note he left for the child in July, he admitted that she was alive. 

Cross may be able to visit his son at some point if the results of a psychological evaluation indicate that it would be in the child’s interests, and if Dakota County social services workers agree.

Another review hearing in the case is scheduled for Dec. 21. Cross’s trial on the child neglect charge is set to begin Jan. 23.