Not a fair comparison. The Elian Gonzales case was about returning Elian to his parent--his dad. His mother had stolen him away to come to the US, but drowned in the attempt. He was initially placed with more distant kin, but his dad had the better legal claim to custody.
Elian's case would be akin to me stealing away with my kid, placing him with my parents in Ohio, then expecting the law not to return him.