Grandmother Denied Custody of Heather Mack's Baby In Chicago Court

The grandmother of Heather Mack’s baby, who will leave Bali prison next month after being raised there for two years, was denied custody of the child Friday, NBC Chicago reported.

Mack, who was convicted alongside ex-boyfriend Tommy Schaefer for brutally murdering her mother in Bali in 2014, gave birth to the pair’s baby while in jail two years ago. Per Indonesian custom, she’s been allowed to raise the child, named Stella Schaefer, for two years in prison, but that time is quickly running out.

Last week, Mack’s lawyer said on behalf of Mack that she wanted badly to keep Stella in the country so they could have twice-a-week visits and continue to nurture their mother-daughter relationship.

But Kia Walker, Schaefer’s mother and an Illinois native, said she wants Stella back in Chicago with her as soon as the child is released in March.

“My granddaughter deserves an equal opportunity to a better start at life,” Walker, 44, told the Chicago Tribune. “I believe it is in her best interest that she’s brought back to America.”

Walker also said Schaefer himself told her he wants Stella back in the U.S. once she’s released. So, two weeks ago, she filed for guardianship of Stella in Cook County.

According to NBC, that motion was denied on Friday.

Walker reportedly presented her guardianship case to the same Cook County judge who is currently overseeing Mack’s messy trust fund case, NBC reported. As a result of the circumstances, that judge told Walker he didn’t think his courtroom was the appropriate place for the custody discussion.

“The judge didn’t say that she can’t go for guardianship,” Michael Goldberg, Walker’s attorney, told NBC. “He just said she can’t go for guardianship in this courtroom.”

Goldberg filed another motion for Walker’s guardianship case Friday afternoon, NBC reported.