ROSEBURG, Ore. — The stepmother of an Oregon boy whose disappearance in 2010 touched off an intense search has failed to persuade a judge to let her change her name.
Terri Horman testified Monday in Roseburg that her life has been threatened and she hasn’t been able to find a job since Kyron Horman vanished from his Portland school.
She told Judge Randy Garrison that the last name Horman was a stigma and kept her from winning positions, including full-time employment at the Veterans Administration hospital in Roseburg, the Roseburg News-Review reported.
She said changing her name to Claire Stella Sullivan would allow her to start life over.
“After being divorced for six months, I decided I wanted to start my new life under a new name,” she said.
Four people involved in search efforts for the boy and fundraisers objected in court, saying Terri Horman hadn’t answered questions about him.
“Kyron doesn’t have a voice … I don’t understand how that’s fair,” said Vernice Porter of Roseburg. “Why should she get to move on with her life? Everybody has a right to know who she is.”
The judge rejected the request, saying it wouldn’t be in the public interest because an investigation remains open.
Terri Horman told investigators she dropped off the 7-year-old for a science fair at Skyline Elementary School on June 4, 2010. There has been no trace of him since. There have been no arrests.
She and the boy’s father, Kaine Horman, divorced, and she moved to Roseburg, her hometown.
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