I Love My Daughter

Domestic Violence Awareness ~~ Only Fathers With $$ Can Fight Back

Post by Children's Rights.

Congress: Don't Export Discrimination Against Male and LGBT Victims of Domestic Violence
Domestic violence is a problem throughout the world. A bill known as the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA) has been introduced in Congress to combat domestic violence in ot.

"The Family" and Family Courts

Dr. Stephen Baskerville in Amsterdam at the 5th World Congress of Families

Dr. Baskerville presents a compelling argument for a paradigm shift globally to recognize the role of both fit parents in children's lives and a departure from the current trajectory toward the growing welfare state in western civilization.

 By now the Committee on the Rights of the Child (“Committee”), which is charged with overseeing the implementation of the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), has made so many exaggerated claims of authority that they can’t even shock us anymore. Well, until they do.

Last month the Committee issued its review of CRC implementation by the Holy See, the political entity of the Vatican and the Roman Catholic Church. While the extreme leftist agend of the Committee has never been much of a secret, it is on display at its most egregious in this “Concluding Observations” report.

The key issues of “concern” for the Committee were as one might expect: abortion, teen sexuality, homosexuality (and homosexual marriage), corporal punishment (spanking), and parental rights. According to Catholic Church doctrine, abortion is the murder of an unborn child; sex is intended only within the confines of marriage; homosexual activity or lifestyle is a sin; a moderate spanking is – or can be - a part of godly discipline; and parents have the ultimate God-given responsibility for their children.

But the Committee disagrees on all points. What’s more, they communicated the expectation that the Catholic Church must change its stance on all of these topics to comply with the Convention. In so doing, the Committee placed its own opinion above the Scriptures, traditions, and religious convictions of the Catholic Church.

How to Sue a Family Court Judge

ABA Section of Litigation: Children’s Rights Litigation

Children are the innocent victims of such litigation and the grief that it inflicts. They should not be awarded to the "winner" as if they were a prize, whether that winner is an adoptive parent or a biological parent. Children are blameless. 

Depriving a child of his/her established, psychological family ties without consideration of the harm he/she will suffer infringes upon his/her procedural due process rights. 

Children's Rights are constitutionally founded and are at the core of all liberties, for if children cannot count on the inalienable right to life and liberty in the family context, then what does our society offer them? 

These constitutional interests are both procedural and substantive. Therefore they should not be disturbed absent a compelling, established competing interest which is entitled to constitutional protection. Even then, if the constitutionally protected interests are in conflict and evenly balanced, the conflict should be resolved in favor of the child.

A Century of Legal Ethics: Trial Lawyers and the ABA Canons of Professional Ethics

The ABA Canons of Ethics was adopted in 1908 and created ethical standards for lawyers.

How to Sue a JudgeBy David C. Grossack
Constitutional Attorney Common Law 

Leon Koziol Judicial Conduct Commission Report Dated April 23, 2013 by LeonKoziolJD

Examining Judicial Accountability and Immunity in the Family Courts ~~ Florida"s 11th Judicial Circuit

8 News NOW

Exposing Family Court Judges' Unaccountability and Consequent Riskless Wrongdoing

Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress

The first case to recognize a non-custodial parent’s cause of action based on the tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress was Sheltra V. Smith, 392 A. 2d 431 (Vt. 1978). In this case, the non-custodial parent brought suit for damages alleging that:

“defendant willfully, maliciously, intentionally, and outrageously inflicted extreme mental suffering and acute mental distress on the plaintiff, by willfully, maliciously, and outrageously rendering it impossible for any personal contact or other communication to take place between the (plaintiff and child).”  ~Id. at 433.

The Superior Court, Caledonia County, dismissed the complaint for failure to state of cause of action on which relief could be granted. The Supreme Court of Vermont, however, found that the plaintiff stated a prima facie case for outrageous conduct causing severe...

Florida legislators have been asked to look into reforms to help husbands who claim they have been victims of false domestic violence injunctions.

Florida Dads Asking for Help Against False Accusations

By Phil Attinger

BARTOW — Florida legislators have been asked to look into reforms to help husbands who claim they have been victims of false domestic violence injunctions.

In what one citizen referred to as a pendulum shift in the justice system, men who claim to have had their lives destroyed by false accusations of domestic violence or child abuse are hoping locally-elected legislators can help solve the problem.

On Thursday, locally-elected Florida state representatives and senators who represent all or part of Polk County got to hear about the problem.

William Dunn of Lakeland, part of the Florida chapter of Fathers Supporting Fathers, said he ran into a problem in 2006: The Department of Children and Families believed accusations that he had abused his daughter and took her away from him for 11 months.

In June 2007, DCF held a hearing to revoke Dunn’s parental rights, but the girl changed her story on the first day on the hearing, saying she hadn’t been abused.

She was returned to Dunn, but since then, he said his life has been a shambles and both he and his daughter have suffered medically from the stress.

He said DCF has not wanted to help him clear his name despite now knowing that the accusations were false.

Although legislators did not want to debate what should be done to solve the problem, they heard quite a bit from other petitioners.

James Petruska of Hernando Country said he lost his daughter, his $300,000 home, and his $150,000 business as a result of a false domestic violation injunction made by his ex-wife. Although it has since been found to be false, he said he has been unable to regain what he lost, especially his daughter.

He has approached Senator Ronda Storms (R-Valrico) with the issue. Her district — District 10 — covers Hernando County and part of Polk County.

Erik Romerhaus, with the SAVE (Stop Abuse of Violent Environments) Coalition in Washington, D.C., told the delegation that when the Violence Against Women Act passed in 1994, it was to protect women and men who were victims of domestic violence. Each state interprets it differently.

“Now the pendulum has swung a bit too far,” he said.

Tom Lemons of Spring Hill, who runs falsedvireports.com, said 80 percent of those injunctions are thrown out and used as a tactic in child custody cases.

He also alleged that the attorneys are the ones pushing the tactic, because it gives such a strong advantage.

If a woman makes a false claim of domestic violence, it can speed up the divorce process, Romerhaus said, so there is incentive to use it as a legal tactic, but it can drive the children out of the target parent’s life permanently.

In many cases, Romerhaus said, there is no due process for that accusation. Even if someone is innocent of the accusation, “you can kiss your kids goodbye.”

“I don’t blame the local judges as much as the federal law,” Clemons said. “Prosecutors are not filing cases on clear false allegations.”

When asked if she would be in favor of refining the statutes to provide some relief, Storms, a member of the Florida Bar, said that if someone is innocent, he deserves to have his name cleared and be with his children.
She would also like Romerhaus and others to work with domestic violence victims’ advocates to find out where they can agree on legal language that would help move the process forward.

Senator JD Alexander (R-Lake Wales) expressed empathy for the men who spoke, and encouraged them to continue to seek a solution within the legal system.

Source 

Posted by Children's Rights on Saturday, September 19, 2015

False allegations of abuse are grounds for losing timesharing.

Court says: Grandparents' false allegations of abuse grounds for losing visitation

CHARLESTON – The state Supreme Court has ruled a family court judge erred in not terminating an Elkview couple's visitation rights with their grandson after they falsely accused his adoptive father of abusing him.

The Court on April 14 overruled a decision by Kanawha Family Law Judge Mike Kelly denying a petition filed by Warren Lee and Melissa Arnold to terminate visitation by Melissa's former in-laws, Robin and Janet Lyons, with her son, Jon. In an unanimous memorandum opinion, the Court said the Lyons' attempt to not only halt Warren's adoption of Jon, but also coaching Jon to say Warren abused him was more than sufficient grounds for Kelly to grant the Arnold's petition.

"While a best interests analysis will necessarily include an assessment of the bond and the relationship developed between the child and the grandparents," the Court said, "we disagree with the lower court's determination that the relationship between Jon and his grandparents is of a beneficial nature to Jon under the circumstances present here."

"The particular facts of this case, including the vicious nature of the grandparents' actions to forestall Jon's adoption proceedings, as well as their baseless pursuit of abuse allegations against Jon's adoptive father, illustrate a relationship in constant conflict with that of Jon's parents."

Rocky relationship

According to court records, Melissa was married to the Lyons' son, Jonathon, until 2000. Shortly after their divorce, Jonathon died in a car wreck.

Following her marriage to Warren in 2003, she moved with Jon to Spencer. Two years later, Warren, despite the Lyons' objections, successfully petitioned to adopt Jon.

Prior to Melissa's marriage to Warren, records show she agreed to allow Jon to visit the Lyons. The visitation included at least one overnight stay a month, four hours on Thanksgiving Day and nine hours on Christmas Eve and Dec. 26.

Warren's adoption of Jon became a source of friction between the Arnolds and the Lyons to the point where the Lyons accused him of severely bruising Jon with a belt buckle. Records show Warren was arrested on Dec. 20, 2007, and charged by State Police with felony child abuse.

Three days later, Robin Lyons filed a domestic violence protective order on Jon's behalf against Warren. Records show Kelly granted the order on Jan. 2, 2008, which barred Warren from having any contact with Jon for 90 days.

The same day Kanawha Family Law Judge Jane Charnock Smallridge granted a writ of habeas corpus Melissa filed for Jon's return from the Lyons' custody. Due to the protective order, Warren had to live elsewhere until April 2008.

A month later the child abuse charge was dropped at the request of Roane County Prosecutor Mark Sergent. In his motion for dismissal, Sergent said, "Further investigation and disclosures revealed the charge is likely baseless."

Following his return to Melissa's custody, records show Jon was interviewed by Dr. Timothy Saar, a Charleston psychologist. In the report he issued in July 2008, Saar found that not only did Jon's bruise come from vigorously playing air hockey at a friend's house, but the Lyons also "forced him to lie to the police and report that his father had hit him."

"Jon was coached by his grandparents into accusing his father of abusing him," Saar concluded in his report. "The manipulation of this cognitively impaired child by his grandparents should be considered emotional abuse and should call into question the [grandparents'] ability to care for this child."

Reversal

Armed with this information, the Arnolds on Dec. 5, 2008, petitioned Kelly to terminate the Lyons' visitation rights. In the course of two hearings, he took testimony from Ashley Hunt, one of Saar's interns, and Charleston attorney Jeff Woods, who was appointed as Jon's guardian ad litem, that based on their interviews with Jon it would not be a good idea for him to stop visiting the Lyons.

Despite also hearing from Saar during one of the hearings, who stood by his assessment that the Lyons' attempt to alienate Jon from Warren was psychologically damaging, Kelly concurred with Hunt's and Woods' recommendation "it would not be in Jon's best interest to terminate his time with his paternal grandparents" and denied the Arnold's petition on Nov. 13, 2009. Records show an appeal they filed of Kelly's decision to Kanawha Circuit Court was upheld by Judge Tod J. Kaufman on Dec. 16, 2009.

In reversing Kelly's decision, the Court said "while it is undisputed that Jon loves his grandparents and that he enjoys his time with them," their interference with the Arnold's parental decisions has created a toxic relationship between them. Because of that, the Court determined Jon's interests are best served by the Lyons forfeiting future visitation with him.

"The family court found," the Court said, "and the circuit court affirmed, 'as fact that it would not be in Jon's best interest to terminate his time with his paternal grandparents.' We find this assertion to be clearly wrong in light of the testimony of Dr. Saar, and in light of the visitation's interference with the parent-child relationship."

"It is clear that Dr. Saar testified that it was in the best interests of Jon to terminate his visitation with his grandparents and that nothing had happened to change his initial conclusions," the Court added. "We agree with Dr. Saar that such an environment is psychologically damaging to Jon and, therefore, it is in Jon's best interests to terminate grandparent visitation."

In the appeal, the Arnolds were represented by Charleston attorney Dennis R. Bailey, and the Lyons by Charles L. "Dusty" Phalen Jr., also of Charleston, and a former family lawmaster.

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals case number 35679

Fathers are as crucial to a child’s well being as a mother

False Allegations Can Terminate Rights

For reasons I’ve never understood, courts have always been loath to punish these exercises in blatant perjury. Well, now they don’t have to. Simple recognition that false allegations that tend to separate a child from a loving and fit parent themselves constitute a form of child abuse will go a long way toward better custody decisions and in the end fewer false allegations of abuse.

Posted by Children's Rights on Tuesday, October 13, 2015

The False Allegations Of Domestic Violence Epidemic ~ #DomesticViolence

The False Allegations Of Domestic Violence Epidemic

It's human nature to seek out a partner in life, and to possibly marry and have children. Unfortunately the matrimonial establishment, as we are all aware, is being methodically torn down by a demoralized society. Sadly the divorce rate is still on the rise and the foundation of marriage is being devalued and is crumbling. As adults we learn to adapt and move on when divorce attacks our lives but for children this is another story. They are the real victims of divorce and unfortunately they will suffer dearly from our selfishness and in most cases follow the same path of destruction if not worse.

As a nation we have been granted certain civil rights by our constitution. Through the years it has been amended to better the lives of many Americans. The two most notable changes have come to Women in the 1920s and with African Americans in the 1960s. These rights were long overdue for both segments of our nation but thankfully we realized our mistakes and corrected them. This was not an easy journey for either of these crusades but through dedication and perseverance the bells of liberty rang loudly and victory was achieved.

Unfortunately we have reached yet another fork in the road and with that comes another challenge to the American people. "We've worked hard for women's rights, but we have to watch out that the pendulum doesn't swing the other way" says Ruthie J. of the Reach FM. Ironically the pendulum has already swung far to one side and this time the male gender is being demonized by erroneous and fraudulent information. Males are being portrayed as callus, uncaring, and without emotion. We are being taught that men represent 95% of abuse in this nation against women. These and many other false statistics are being recklessly strewn throughout society and none of it is true. Yes, women are being abused by men that is a fact. striking a woman is abhorrent to the highest degree and should be dealt with appropriately but men are abused at an equal rate and they are being ignored. According to a study by the Center for Disease Control men represent 38% of domestic violence related injuries. Compound that with the fact that only 0.9% of men report abuse verses 8.5% of women and I think we have a pretty equal degree of violence between partners.

The cornerstone of this "abuse" is VAWA the Violence Against Women Act. It was passed into law by Bill Clinton in 1994 and has been extended by every subsequent President. This law funnels Billions of dollars into discriminatory education and propaganda that violates men's civil rights. Many times DVIs or Domestic Violence Injunctions are used as a tool in divorce, child custody or just vengeance against a partner, most often against males. This is because the system of acquiring a DVI is simple and requires no evidence, witnesses or prior police reports. Just the word of an alleged victim making a claim of abuse. The repercussions of these orders are devastating and many times result in a violation, arrest and complete destruction of one's life. Even in cases when they are dismissed, a serious blemish remains on the falsely accused forever; how does that look to potential employers who almost always perform background checks prior to employment? This must be stopped and a better system of protecting all victims of domestic violence should be put in place.

I hope to help bring awareness to gender discrimination and help provide support for men who are abused. There are programs to help women of abuse but nothing for men. My website will provide more information on the facts, my personal experiences and the stories of those who have been victims of this heinous tactic of relationship vengeance. Men and women should truly have equal rights and currently the scales are unjustly tilted. Let's work together to end domestic violence and not vilify one gender as inherently abusive. "United we stand, divided we fall" A powerful statement that we must never forget.

Thank you,

Tom Lemons

Founder, www.falsedvireports.com

Posted by American Fathers Liberation Army on Friday, August 28, 2015

False Allegations The Gordon Smith Story 

Gordon Smith, False Allegation Victim | False Allegations Summit 

THE REAL STORY: THE INEQUITIES OF THE FAMILY COURT SYSTEM. 

Where's the Justice? The Miami Herald Reports False Allegations Of Domestic Violence

Language and the Law - Simple Doesn't Mean Stupid

Excerpt from article:

Researching Reform: ~




Whether you take the view that legal jargon is an integral part of the culture inside the justice system, or offers an efficient labelling tool for the speedy processing of information, law is no longer a selective world but a communal one; and everyone wants to speak the language.

Blame the internet and a growing social conscience online, but simplifying language in law has been one of the defining phenomena for the UK justice system in the twenty-first century. For Family Courts at least, coming into contact with parents, children and extended family members who are not trained to deal in family law jargon, pressure to change the way we use language has contributed to wide-scale reform. The most notable to date, Mr Justice Ryder's recommendations for modernising the family justice system, included looking at the way terms and phrases were being used and seeing how we could break those down and make them easier to understand. Despite this, much of the language still used in court and by lawyers and other professionals inside the justice system remains unnecessarily complex.

Litigants in Person (LIP) continue to struggle with terminology inside the courts, with judges reportingdelays inside their courtrooms as a result, and more time spent explaining phrases and processes. Sadly, the current guidelines seem to have done very little to address this problem, perhaps in large part due to the fact that legal jargon exists before and after the court process, with very little help for LIPs during those in-between moments when they are effectively without support.

Related Articles

• Book review – Children Act Private Law Proceedings: A Handbook by Judge John Mitchell >
• Researching Reform: Will the new government be the final nail in the coffin for child welfare? >
• A day in the life of ... Natasha Phillips (Legal Researcher) >

Alabama Family Rights Association Spreading Family Law Reform Message

Posted: Aug 18, 2015 8:47 AM EDT   ---   Updated: Aug 18, 2015 9:34 AM EDT

The Alabama Family Rights Association continues efforts to spread its message on family law reform.  ALFRA will discuss a number of topics related to this Tuesday, August 18, in West Tuscumbia.

ALFRA representatives will talk about how they want to see the Alabama child custody law changed "to guarantee that no child is put at risk.. All children have a fundamental right to each fit parent regardless of the parents' marital status."  They hope to pursue these changes in the 2016 legislative session. 

The ALFRA presentation is from 6-7 PM in the conference room at the Coldwater Inn, located at 712 Highway 72 in West Tuscumbia.  By Ebony Hall

CONNECT

 

ALFRA to talk about family law reform - ABC 33/40 - Birmingham News, Weather, Sports 

Related Posts:

Re-abusing children in court Abusers are given children to abuse Kids Speak Out

Posted by Children's Rights on Thursday, August 20, 2015

Parental Alienation and the DSM-5 ~~ Courts vs. Kids ~~ Stop Family Court's Judicial Abuse

In contrast, Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) was concocted by Richard Gardner, based on no research, only his...
Posted by Denounce discredited parental alienation theory on Tuesday, September 8, 2015

"For those who are concerned about Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), two immeasurably significant points can be interpreted from the Scientific American article regarding the DSM-5." ~ Linda J. Gottlieb Kase, LMFT, LCSW-R is owner and founder of End Parental Alienation

Post by DSM-5: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

Dr. Bill Bernet, lead a group of interested professionals in encouraging the DSM 5 editing group to include Parental Alienation Disorder. The new DSM  was published on May 18, 2013 and is the reference book for psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health providers  Here is Dr. Bernet's unedited analysis of the result.

Finally, DSM-5 was published today.  The DSM-5 Task Force told us 2 or 3 years ago that they did not want parental alienation to be a separate diagnosis in DSM-5, but they thought that parental alienation could be considered an example of other diagnoses that are in DSM-5.

The actual words "parental alienation" are not in DSM-5, but there are several diagnoses that can be used in these cases.  I would say the "spirit" of parental alienation is in DSM-5, even if the words are not.

Parent-child relational problem now has a discussion in DSM-5, not just a label.  The discussion explains that cognitive problems in parent-child relational problem "may include negative attributions of the other's intentions, hostility toward or scapegoating of the other, and unwarranted feelings of estrangement."  That is a pretty good description of a child's view of the alienated parent, although it is an unfortunate use of the word "estrangement."

Child psychological abuse is a new diagnosis in DSM-5.  It is defined as "nonaccidental verbal or symbolic acts by a child's parent or caregiver that result, or have reasonable potential to result, in significant psychological harm to the child."  In many instances, the behavior of the alienating parent constitutes child psychological abuse.

Child affected by parental relationship distress is another new diagnosis in DSM-5.  It should be used "when the focus of clinical attention if the negative effects of parental relationship discord (e.g., high levels of conflict, distress, or disparagement) on a child in the family, including effects on the child's mental or other physical disorders."  That is also a good description of how parental alienation comes about.

Factitious disorder imposed on another is the DSM-5 terminology for factitious disorder by proxy or Munchausen disorder by proxy.  Its definition is "falsification of physical or psychological signs or symptoms, or induction of injury or disease, in another, associated with identified deception."  In some cases, that would describe the behavior of the alienating parent.

Delusional symptoms in partner of individual with delusional disorder is the DSM-5 terminology for shared psychotic disorder or folie a deux.  The definition is: "In the context of a relationship, the delusional material from the dominant partner provides content for delusional belief by the individual who may not otherwise entirely meet criteria for delusional disorder."

In discussing this topic, I would say that the concept of parental alienation is clearly in DSM-5, although the actual words are not.  This is a great improvement over DSM-IV-TR, especially with the addition of the new diagnoses, child psychological abuse and child affected by parental relationship distress.

Dr. Bernet is currently working with PAAO to present a webinar on this subject in the next 2 - 3 weeks. We will notify you of the details shortly.

This beautiful animation above was created especially for Bubbles of Love Day on behalf of Kids Aiding the PAAO (KAPAAO). 

Thank you to the very talented Bronwyn Coveney, from the United kingdom for volunteering her time and talent on behalf of children around the world. Bronwyn is the original visual creator of the PAAO and KAPAAO's,  Mascot Panda Abuzz. 

Memories of a Monster: A closer look at Parental Alienation
Using a storyline from an episode of Desperate Housewives, "Always in Control" (S08-Ep7), Joe Barrow walks us through the insidious brainwashing of a young daughter, Penny, by her mother, Lynette. When Lynette's ex-husband (Penny's father) begins dating a new woman and a relationship begins to flourish between the new girlfriend and their daughter, Penny, the mother is determined to drive a wedge between the loving relationship of her daughter has with her ex-husband, and the new girlfriend. Using a child as a pawn always has tragic consequences. The Parental Alienation tactics used and the manipulation by the mother mirrors the nightmarish reality that hundreds of thousands of parents and grandparents live through today. If you are dealing with this tragedy this mini -documentary will hit you, perhaps, too close to home. Watch in HD. Desperate Housewives is the property of Cherry Productions (Touchstone Television (2004-2007), ABC Studios (2007-2012), and DISNEY. No copyright infringement intended. This video may contain copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are using this video to help raise awareness of Parental Alienation as a form of psychological child abuse. This video is not-for-profit use and for informational and educational purposes only and constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in Section 107 of the US Copyright Law.We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of social issues of parental alienation as a form of emotional and psychological child abuse. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.
Posted by Joe Barrow on Wednesday, July 1, 2015