By DAVE COLLINS
Associated Press Writer

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) _ A Waterford woman who disappeared for five years with her son during a divorce and child custody case has lost a court fight over thousands of dollars in legal fees and alimony she was ordered to pay.

The state Appellate Court, in a unanimous decision released Wednesday, upheld a lower court ruling ordering Bonnie Rubenstein to pay two-thirds of a $77,000 legal bill and $50 a week in alimony for life to her ex-husband, Jeffrey Rubenstein.

Jeffrey Rubenstein filed for divorce in 1996 and was granted full custody of their 3-year-old son, Randy, in September 1997.

Bonnie Rubenstein fled with the boy one day after the custody decision, claiming she had to protect him because he had been sexually abused by his father. Jeffrey Rubenstein has strongly denied the allegations and was never charged by police.

FBI agents found Bonnie Rubenstein and the boy at her sister's home in Delray Beach, Fla., in 2002, after she had traveled to eight countries with her son. She was charged with custodial interference for allegedly abducting the boy, but was acquitted by a Norwich Superior Court jury in 2003.

Three months after she and her son vanished, a state judge trial referee finalized the couple's divorce. The judge ordered Bonnie Rubenstein to pay $50 a week in alimony, determining Jeffrey Rubenstein went into considerable debt while searching for his son.

New London Superior Court Judge Elaine Gordon upheld the weekly alimony amount in 2006, saying Bonnie Rubenstein's conduct led to Jeffrey Rubenstein's financial troubles.

``It is only equitable that she assist his support through a continuing order of alimony,'' Gordon wrote in her decision.

Earlier in 2006, Gordon ruled that Bonnie Rubenstein was responsible for two-thirds of the $77,000 in legal fees for the attorney appointed to represent Randy Rubenstein's interests shortly after he and his mother disappeared.

Bonnie Rubenstein, 47, appealed both of Gordon's decisions to the Appellate Court. She claimed the judge improperly awarded excessive legal fees and ignored several important factors when deciding on the alimony. She also accused the judge of being biased against her and wrongly blaming her for Jeffrey Rubenstein's money problems.

It was not immediately known Wednesday whether she planned to appeal. A message seeking comment was left for her.

Jeffrey Rubenstein, 47, said Wednesday that he would comment later in the day.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)