We often hear stories of people thrown in jail in other countries for the crime of smuggling contraband, but an American father now sits in a Japanese jail for the crime of trying to rescue his kidnapped children from his ex-wife who broke Tennessee law by removing them from The United States illegally.

After being advised by Savoie that he believed his wife would try to take their children to Japan, the Tennessee court granted and then later lifted the restraining order, giving Savoie's ex-wife the opportunity to do exactly what the father of two feared.

Because of the difference between Japanese and American laws regarding custody and kidnapping, Japan has become a safe refuge for non-custodial parents to flee with children in tow.

After unsuccessful legal and diplomatic attempts to have the children returned to him, Savoie eventually tried to take matters into his own hands and retrieve the children himself.  He was arrested at the American consulate where he was attempting to secure passports for the children.

At this moment Savoie waits in jail with a list of local lawyers and little chance of returning to the United States with his children.

We will continue to follow this story.

Watch another example of fathers caught in this situation.

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Attorney and Counselor at Law
written by Dawn Elaine Bowie, Esq., October 07, 2009

I'm intrigued by the brief reference to Mr. Savoie's "attempt to take the law into his own hands and retrieve the children himself." The brief reference to his arrest while attempting to obtain passports from the US Embassy doesn't enlighten me much. Can you tell us more about what he did to take the law into his own hands, and how he was attempting to retrieve the children himself?

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