Natalia Grace, a Ukrainian-born American with dwarfism, was adopted by American couple Michael and Kristine Barnett but abandoned two years later. In 2012, Barnett’s adoptive parents successfully petitioned the court to change her birth year from 2003 to 1989 on the grounds that she was a legal adult.
However, a DNA test conducted by TruDiagnostic in August 2023 found that Grace was around 20 years old, implying that her adoptive parents abandoned her when she was around 9 years old.
Two television dramas are based on Barnett: the upcoming Hulu series Untitled Orphan Project and the 2023-2024 series The Curious Case of Natalia Grace.
The Curious Case of Natalia Grace Documentary Series
It’s the story that has shocked the entire world. This ID documentary series follows Michael and Kristine Barnett, a white picket fence-dwelling couple who adopt Natalia, a little Ukrainian girl with dwarfism, and charge her with being an adult pretending to be six years old. The second season of the show, which premiered on January 1, introduces new elements to the plot as Natalia discusses her terrible experiences with her adoptive parents and confronts Michael in person.
Who are Natalia Grace’s biological parents?
Natalia Grace is 20 years old as of 2024. She was born in Ukraine on September 4, 2003, to Anna Volodymyrivna Gava of Mykolaiv. DNA testing confirmed Gava’s biological mother status. She was taken to a Ukrainian orphanage after birth. She was diagnosed with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, a rare type of dwarfism.
Lesser-known facts about Natalia Grace
- In July 2013, the Barnett family moved Natalia to an apartment in Westfield, Indiana, and later to Lafayette.
- The Barnetts were accused with neglecting a dependant, although Michael was later found not guilty.
- Grace, originally adopted by the Barnett family in 2010, was misidentified as an adult due to spondyloepiphyseal dwarfism. She was eventually abandoned by her adoptive parents.
- Grace has since confronted her prior adoptive father twice, in dramatic Natalia Speaks episodes.
This is all about Natalia Grace.
