DVLEAP: CUSTODY & ABUSE PROJECT

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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CUSTODY & ABUSE PROJECT

DV LEAP litigates carefully selected cases in D.C. and elsewhere on cutting edge issues in the field of custody and abuse, including child sexual abuse and domestic violence, “parental alienation,” and malicious prosecution claims wrongfully brought against protective mothers.

Click here to learn about specific cases.

Consultations

DV LEAP also consults with abused mothers and their attorneys fighting to keep their children safe through the courts. 

Custody Trainings & Presentations

DV LEAP conducts trainings and presentations around the country on custody, domestic violence, and “parental alienation.” If you are interested in a DV LEAP training, please email us at info@dvleap.org.

Selected Past Custody Presentations

• 2008 12th Annual Coalition Advocates & Attorneys Network (CAAN) Meeting:Ms. Meier gave a presentation entitled "Parental Alienation: Challeges and Strategies."
• 2008 The National Children's Bench Book Project: A Symposium On Improving Judicial Responses to Child Abuse:  Ms. Meier gave a presentation entitled "Expert Testimony in Civil-Domestic Relations Courts."
• 2008 Inspirational Spirit of the Phoenix: Ms. Liu delivered a presentation about the challenges in litigating domestic violence and custody cases and possible solutions.
• 2008 National Coalition Against Domestic Violence Conference:  Ms. Meier and Ms. Liu delivered a presenation about winning a custody and abuse case in the Supreme Court and preparing custody and abuse cases for appeals. To view this Powerpoint presentation, please click here.
• 2008 Connecticut Department of Children and Families:  Ms. Meier delived a presentation about the challenges of protecting children in custody courts.
• 2008 Battered Mothers' Custody Conference:  Ms. Liu delivered a presentation about winning a custody and abuse case in the Supreme Court and DV LEAP's 2007 Symposium.
• 2007 DV LEAP/Justice for Children Training on Litigating Custody/Abuse Appeals: DV LEAP’s first hosted training was a terrific success and attended by attorneys from around the country. 
• 2006 & 2007 Battered Mothers’ Custody Conference:  In 2007 Ms. Meier delivered a keynote speech about “parental alienation” and abuse. In 2006, she spoke about being part of the PBS documentary Breaking the Silence: Children’s Voices.
• 2007 Denver Domestic Violence and Child Protection Conference:  Ms. Meier spoke about the conflict between courts’ paradigms of child protection and custody and how that conflict undermines the protection of children by courts.
• 2006 Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence Clearinghouse Lawyer Training:  Ms. Meier spoke about parental alienation syndrome and led a discussion group about the PBS documentary Breaking the Silence: Children’s Stories.
• 2005 Muskie School of Public Service Child Custody and Domestic Violence Institute: Ms. Meier gave a presentation entitled “Parental Alienation Syndrome or Abuse? The Battle for Truth,” and co-led a workshop on the cross-examination of experts with DV LEAP consultant/trainer Julie Field.

Custody Law Reform

DV LEAP has provided comments on the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws Model Statute on Representation of Children.

DV LEAP also consults with the National Association of Juvenile and Family Court Judges on their development of judicial guidelines on custody and abuse. 

Please also see law reform under the Rights Litigation Project.

Media

Breaking the Silence:  Children’s Voices

In 2005 Ms. Meier was featured as a commentator in a PBS documentary designed to raise public awareness about young victims of parental abuse and how family courts too often fail to protect them, relying instead on the false theory of  “parental alienation syndrome” to justify rejecting protective mothers' allegations, increasing the alleged perpetrators' access to the child, and sometimes even removing the child from the mother.

Click here to see the film's trailer.

Custody Publications

DV LEAP publishes articles and research summaries for use by those seeking to advance the protection of child and adult victims of abuse.  Following are some of these publications:

• "Parental Alienation Syndrom and Parental Alienation: Research Reviews" at www.vawnet.org. To read the article, please clickhere.
• "Domestic Violence, Child Custody, and Child Protection: Understanding Judicial Resistance and Imagining the Solutions" 11 American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law 657 (2003), available athttp://www.wcl.american.edu/journal/genderlaw/11/meier.pdf
• “Research Summary, Rates at which Accused and Adjudicated Batterers Receive Sole or Joint Custody
• Research Summary, Research Indicating that the Majority of Cases that go to Court as "high conflict" Contested Custody Cases have a History of Domestic Violence
• Research Summary, Scientific and Professional Rejections of Parental Alienation Syndrome
• "A Historical Perspective on Parental Alienation Syndrome and Parental Alienation,” forthcoming, Journal of Child Custody, Symposium Issue on Domestic Violence and Custody
• “Getting Real About Abuse and Alienation: A Response to Drozd and Olesen,” forthcoming, Journal of Child Custody, Symposium Issue on Domestic Violence and Custody.
• PAS Bibliography complied by Joan Meier.

Advocacy for Embattled Professionals

DV LEAP provides occasional advocacy and assistance for leading experts in the field (attorneys and mental health professionals) who are under attack by abusers and their advocates through challenges to professional licenses and standing.

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No Excuses: Deserving A Life Free From Violence And Abuse

Note: Cross posted from [blogger angelzfury] Family Court Crisis-Abusers Getting Custody..!!.

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http://blogs.courant.com/overcoming_battered_lives/2009/08/no-excuses-deserving-a-life-fr.html

 

Sharlene B. Kerelejza, MSW currently serves as the Executive Director forMeriden-Wallingford Chrysalis, Inc., a local domestic violence victim's service agency. She is contributing to the Overcoming Battered Lives blog this week.

Several years ago I presented a rape prevention program at a middle school and one of the young men was having a tough time accepting that women don't "ask" to be raped.  I was lucky to be able to silence his blame when I asked if it would be his mother's fault if it happened to her.  He was a young boy raised by a single mom he truly adored, and so for him, that was enough to know.

Sadly, it's not as easy to convince everyone that it's never the victim's fault.  And perhaps the most disturbing truth is that with domestic violence, it is the mothers and the sisters and the daughters that are being hurt most often.  How can we instill compassion for victims and fury and non-tolerance against abusers if we don't find our own mothers, sisters and daughters as deserving of a life free from violence and abuse?

So many of the comments on this blog speak to experiences of "nothing being good enough."

The cooking.  The cleaning.  The parenting.

It was told to you in words and in fists.  But these were excuses. 

The excuses to hurt are never just or right.  Yet for those of us who hear the stories of victims and survivors daily, the excuses abusers use are the same ones, over and over, for years and for decades. I am frightened that in this time of economic distress we have added one more excuse.

"I am stressed."

"I am working longer hours for less money."

"My paycheck doesn't go as far as it used to."

"I don't have a paycheck at all."

The National Institute of Health has published that in times of economic distress rates of domestic violence increase.  Domestic violence agencies can say they've seen it to be true.  I know we have.  And the new excuses become one more way that a victim blames or an abuser exonerates him or herself, "If only I contributed more to the household.  If only I."

Times of hardship bring out the very best in some, and the worst in others.  My challenge and wish is to allow today's tough times to bring out our collective best.  It is time for us to be better partners, better parents, better teachers, better people.  It is time to say enough.  Relationships and love will always be here, even when money is not.

Let us re-coin a phrase and live by it, "I found love the old fashioned way... I earned it."

-- Sharlene B. Kerelejza
Sharlene B. Kerelejza, MSW, has worked in victim's services since 1993 at Women and Families Center, Child Guidance Clinic and Safe Haven of Greater Waterbury, and her current role as the Executive Director forMeriden-Wallingford Chrysalis, Inc. In gradually increasing positions of leadership, Sharlene has worked to honor the stories and experiences of child and adult victims of violence while trying to challenge the beliefs and systems that allow such acts to continue. She earned her BSW from St. Joseph College, West Hartford and her MSW from Columbia University. She welcomes your questions and comments.
Photo courtesy of photoxpress.com

Technorati Tags: Life,Free,From,Violence,Abuse,Sharlene,Kerelejza,Executive,Director,Meriden,Wallingford,Chrysalis,victim,agency,Several,prevention,truth,compassion,victims,fury,tolerance,comments,words,money,paycheck,National,Institute,Health,times,rates,Domestic,abuser,hardship,partners,Relationships,services,Women,Center,Child,Guidance,Clinic,Safe,Haven,Greater,Waterbury,role,leadership,beliefs,Joseph,College,West,Hartford,Columbia,Photo,courtesy,agencies,teachers,systems,blog,sisters,daughters,abusersNote: Cross posted from [blogger angelzfury] Family Court Crisis-Abusers Getting Custody..!!.

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Parental Alienation Syndrome Misused in Child Custody Cases, say Domestic Violence Advocacy Groups

Note: Cross posted from [blogger angelzfury] Battered Women, Battered Children, Custody Abuse.

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According to NNEDV, DV LEAP, SFV, and NCADV, victims of domestic violence face a surprisingly uphill battle in family court to win custody of and safety for their children. All too often, courts award custody and unsupervised visitation to parents found to have committed domestic abuse. Many courts handling custody cases do not understand the dynamics of domestic violence and fail to properly factor in the impact of abuse when considering the best interests of the child.

 

Leadership Council Issues Statement

Parental Alienation Syndrome Misused in Child Custody Cases, say Domestic Violence Advocacy Groups

The National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV), the Domestic Violence Legal Empowerment and Appeals Project (DV LEAP), Stop Family Violence, and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, four of the nation's leading domestic violence victim advocacy organizations, call on the media and the courts to rectify the misunderstanding and misuse of Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) in custody cases.

"Child custody cases are among the toughest cases courts have to handle. And in custody cases where domestic violence is involved, the judges have an even higher responsibility to ensure that the safety of family members is not dangerously impaired by misleading - and legally unjustifiable - ‘parental alienation syndrome' theories," said Sue Else, president of the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

"Parental Alienation Syndrome" is a claim that has been used to suggest that some parents try to undermine their children's relationship with the other parent, typically the noncustodial parent, by making false statements about that other parent, most often in the form of abuse allegations. In fact, actor Alec Baldwin made that claim about his own child custody case in a recent interview with Diane Sawyer.

"PAS is being used by some abusers as a tactic to demonize parents' attempts to protect their children from abuse, denying victims of domestic violence justice in the courts. The fact that some parents behave badly in ordinary cases is no reason to ignore real abuse when it is presented to the court," also stated Else.

Joan Meier, DV LEAP's Executive Director, said, "PAS was invented to defeat child abuse claims - and it has been remarkably successful in misleading family courts into believing that women who are sincerely trying to protect their children and themselves from abuse, are just seeking to end the children's relationship with their noncustodial father."

According to NNEDV, DV LEAP, SFV, and NCADV, victims of domestic violence face a surprisingly uphill battle in family court to win custody of and safety for their children. All too often, courts award custody and unsupervised visitation to parents found to have committed domestic abuse. Many courts handling custody cases do not understand the dynamics of domestic violence and fail to properly factor in the impact of abuse when considering the best interests of the child.

"The most important factor judges should be weighing in making custody decisions is the safety of the mother and children, and the introduction of PAS overshadows this critical need for safety," said Rita Smith, Executive Director of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

Meier states that research has shown that children become "alienated" from a parent for a variety of valid reasons, most often resulting from the parent's own negative behavior and relationship with that child.

"The proponents of ‘parental alienation syndrome' are purveying invalid junk science is not even legally admissible. PAS has been emphatically rejected by the Presidential Task Force of the American Psychological Association and by the National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges. Leading researchers in the field of custody have agreed that PAS has no scientific validity and the only courts to address the issue have found it inadmissible," said Meier.

"With the increased media attention surrounding the release of Alec Baldwin's book, it is important to let the public know that victims of domestic violence are being silenced through the use of ‘parental alienation syndrome.' We cannot afford to consign thousands of children to unsafe custody or visitation with abusive parents because family courts have come to believe that abuse allegations mean nothing more than a campaign of alienation," said Else.

Technorati Tags: Parental,Alienation,Syndrome,Child,Custody,Cases,Domestic,Violence,Advocacy,NNEDV,LEAP,NCADV,victims,children,courts,Many,factor,impact,interests,Leadership,Council,Statement,National,Network,Legal,Empowerment,Project,Stop,Coalition,Against,nation,victim,judges,Else,president,relationship,parent,fact,actor,Alec,Baldwin,Diane,Sawyer,tactic,justice,Joan,Meier,Executive,Director,father,introduction,Rita,Smith,behavior,science,Presidential,Task,Force,American,Psychological,Association,Juvenile,Court,attention,organizations,members,theories,statements,allegations,decisions,visitation,parents,dynamics,noncustodial

Technorati Tags: Parental,Alienation,Syndrome,Child,Custody,Cases,Domestic,Violence,Advocacy,NNEDV,LEAP,NCADV,victims,children,courts,Many,factor,impact,interests,Leadership,Council,Statement,National,Network,Legal,Empowerment,Project,Stop,Coalition,Against,nation,victim,judges,Else,president,relationship,parent,fact,actor,Alec,Baldwin,Diane,Sawyer,tactic,justice,Joan,Meier,Executive,Director,father,introduction,Rita,Smith,behavior,science,Presidential,Task,Force,American,Psychological,Association,Juvenile,Court,attention,Technorati,organizations,members,theories,statements,allegations,decisions,visitation,parents,dynamics,noncustodial

Note: Cross posted from [blogger angelzfury] Battered Women, Battered Children, Custody Abuse.

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He does not remember hitting Rihanna, he says and I still love her (they ALL say that) Larry King

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Battered Mothers Rights - A Human Rights Issue.

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http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Music/08/31/chris.brown.interview/

• STORY HIGHLIGHTS (I am so sick of this shit)
• Chris Brown pleaded guilty to felony assault for attack on his girlfriend Rihanna (sigh- he should be imprisoned- but it was only DOMESTIC VIOLENCE right?)
• He was sentenced to five years probation and six months of community labor( Oh yeah that oughta CURE him)
• Brown calls the sentence fair, says nobody taught him how to control his anger (What the fuck ever!! TEACH to be Human good god)
• He does not remember hitting Rihanna, he says (Now we do the Therapeutic Jurisprudence thing- $$$$ cure him$$ Pyscho whacko profit blood therapy)

Chris Brown says he still loves Rihanna

(oh but of course- That's what they ALL say- I love you to DEATH baby)

By Amy Huggins
CNN's Larry King Live

Editor's note: R&B singer Chris Brown spoke exclusively with CNN about his arrest and sentence for assaulting Rihanna. You can watch the full interview on Larry King Live, Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.

Chris Brown opens up to CNN's Larry King in his first television interview since his arrest.

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Pop star Chris Brown has admitted guilt and apologized for assaulting his then-girlfriend Rihanna in February, but he does not remember hitting the singer, he told CNN's Larry King.

Looking at police reports about the incident makes him feel like he's reading about a stranger, Brown said in his first television interview since the arrest.

"I'm in shock, because, first of all, that's not who I am as a person, and that's not who I promise I want to be," he said in an exclusive interview that airs Wednesday night.

"I just don't know what to think. I'm just like, wow," Brown said. "It's crazy to me."

Brown, 20, said he still loves singer Rihanna, whose full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty.

But, he added, it is tough for him to look at the photo showing Rihanna's battered face, the one image that might haunt and define him forever.

Chris Brown Exclusive on "Larry King Live"

R&B singer Chris Brown breaks his silence. The interview you won't see anywhere else.
Wednesday, 9 p.m. ET

see full schedule »

"When I look at it now, it's just like, wow, like, I can't believe that that actually happened," Brown said.

He now has to keep his distance from Rihanna, because of a judge's restraining order.

"We have to be like 10 yards away from each other," Brown said. Watch Chris Brown and his mother discuss Rihanna's assault »

The February argument began over an incident at a Beverly Hills party, according to Brown's probation report.

An earlier, sworn statement by Los Angeles Police detective DeShon Andrews said the incident began when Rihanna found a text message on Brown's cell phone from "a woman who Brown had a previous sexual relationship with."

The pair argued while in a sports car driven by Brown, the police statement said.

It went on to describe the assault in great detail, saying Brown punched Rihanna -- identified in the statement as Robyn F. -- numerous times and put her in a head lock, restricting her breathing and causing her to start to lose consciousness.

Don't Miss

• Larry King Live blog
• Brown sentenced for assault; other incidents surface

He threatened to beat her and kill her, according to the statement, and he bit her ear and her fingers.

The detective said Brown sent a text message nine days later, apologizing.

Rihanna's injuries included cuts and bruises inflicted by a large ring on Brown's right hand, which he used to punch her, the probation report said.

Brown pleaded guilty to felony assault on June 22. A plea deal kept him out of jail. A second felony charge, making criminal threats, was dropped. He was sentenced to five years probation and six months of community labor.

"It means he walks the straight and narrow for five years," said Mark Geragos, Brown's attorney.

"I've grown to love this kid like a son or a nephew. I have a high degree of confidence -- I'll say it now so that you can play it back if he ever does anything -- but a high degree of confidence that he's not going to do anything like this in the future."

Brown called the sentence fair and agreed that everything comes with consequences.

"They want me to pick up trash, remove graffiti," he said. "I'm a hard worker, it's something I'm willing to do."

Why did it happen? How did it happen?

Those are questions Brown and his mother, Joyce Hawkins, have been asking.

"Chris has never, ever been a violent person, ever," Hawkins said.

However, CNN obtained a probation report for Brown last week that said he and Rihanna were involved in at least two other domestic violence incidents before the February attack for which Brown was sentenced.

"The first incident occurred in Europe about three months before the present offense," the report said.

"The victim [Rihanna] and the defendant [Brown] were involved in a verbal dispute and the victim [Rihanna] slapped the defendant [Brown]. He responded by shoving her into a wall."

Another incident happened in January, three weeks before the Hollywood incident, when Brown and Rihanna were visiting her home country of Barbados, the report said.

"The defendant [Brown] and the victim [Rihanna] were visiting Barbados and were driving a Range Rover loaned to them by a local dealership," the investigator wrote. "They had an argument inside the car. The defendant [Brown] exited and broke the front driver and passenger side windows of the car."

Brown's mother remembers being shocked and upset when he came to her after the attack in February and told her about it.

She said her husband was abusive -- and Brown knew it. "I used to be scared to go to bed," the pop star said.

Brown said he is not blaming that history for the attack on Rihanna. But, he added, nobody taught him how to control his emotions and anger.

Rihanna calls Brown's mother "Mom." The two have spoken and seen each other periodically since the incident. The court order that prevents her son from seeing Rihanna does not extend to Hawkins.

"I let her know that I was very, very baffled, what had happened and apologized for my son, along with I'm so sorry what happened to you," Hawkins said.

"And I didn't know what -- I didn't know what else to say, and I gave her a hug and she hugged me as well." Hawkins started sobbing at this point in the interview.

The singer has not seen Rihanna for a couple of months, and said the separation has been difficult, especially when it comes to her dating others.

 

"I definitely would be affected by it, but at the end of the day, I mean, we're not together, so if she's happy, I'm cool."

But they will always be friends, Brown said.

All About Chris Brown • Rihanna

 

Technorati Tags: Rihanna,Larry,SHOWBIZ,Music,STORY,HIGHLIGHTS,Chris,Brown,felony,DOMESTIC,VIOLENCE,probation,CURE,TEACH,Human,Therapeutic,Jurisprudence,Pyscho,therapy,DEATH,Huggins,Live,Editor,singer,television,ANGELES,California,guilt,February,reports,incident,stranger,person,airs,Robyn,photo,image,Exclusive,Watch,argument,statement,Police,detective,DeShon,Andrews,text,message,cell,woman,relationship,sports,times,Miss,June,plea,threats,Mark,Geragos,attorney,degree,consequences,worker,Joyce,Hawkins,Europe,victim,Another,January,Hollywood,Barbados,Range,Rover,investigator,passenger,husband,history,separation,friends,About,yards,Hills,incidents,injuries,emotions,girlfriend,five,months,three,defendant,didnNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Battered Mothers Rights - A Human Rights Issue.

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Women more likely to be arrested for domestic violence, research finds

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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http://www.familylawweek.co.uk/site.aspx?i=ed38934

New research published by the Violence Against Women Research Group at the University of Bristol

Women perpetrators of domestic violence are three times more likely to be arrested than male perpetrators according to recently published research from Professor Marianne Hester of the University of Bristol. The research, titled "Who Does What to Whom? Gender and Domestic Violence Perpetrators", reveals that over a six year period male perpetrators were arrested in every ten incidents while women perpetrators were arrested in every three incidents.

The findings were based on a studies of 96 cases reported by the Northumbrian police, divided equally between cases involving male perpetrators, female perpetrators and incidents where both genders were perpetrators. The report also concluded that

• A vastly greater number of incidents were attributed to men, as either sole or dual perpetrators.
• The number of women recorded or arrested as domestic violence perpetrators had increased slightly over time.
• Cases where men and women were both recorded as perpetrators were more varied than those involving sole perpetrators, and included the largest number of repeat incidents.
• The majority of the perpetrators appeared to abuse alcohol to some degree, especially men, and more often in cases involving dual perpetrators. Abuse of alcohol was also more likely to lead to arrest.
• Children were present in the majority of incidents, and some incidents were related to child contact.
• Women were more likely to use weapons, and often in order to protect themselves.

The research was funded by the Northern Rock Foundation so the full report can be found on their website here.

Technorati Tags: Women,violence,Against,Research,Group,Bristol,times,male,Professor,Marianne,Hester,Whom,Gender,Domestic,Perpetrators,period,findings,cases,Northumbrian,degree,Abuse,Children,weapons,Northern,Rock,Foundation,incidents,genders,three,alcoholNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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Domestic Violence Needs to Be Kept in Criminal Courts Because it is a Crime

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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Remove

Claudine Dombrowski

Domestic Violence Needs to Be Kept in Criminal Courts Because it is a Crime « RightsForMothers.com

Source: justice4mothers.wordpress.com

Filed under: Activism, Assault on your children's mother, Children and Domestic Violence, Children who witness abuse, Domestic Abuse, Domestic Relations, Domestic Violence, Family Court Reform, Family ...

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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“If I Killed You, I’d Get The Kids”: Women’s Survival, Child Custody, and Abuse

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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August 28, 2009  by RightsForMothers.com (another BADASS)

 

“If I Killed You, I’d Get The Kids”: Women’s Survival, Child Custody, and Abuse

 

Here is an important paper by Colleen Varcoe and Lori G. Irwin titled “If I Killed You, I’d Get the Kids”: Women’s Survival and Protection Work with Child Custody and Access in the Context of Woman Abuse.” I am constantly amazed by men’s rights advocates, father’s rights folks and shared parenting people that “claims” of abuse by women in a relationship are generally false when so there so many women and children dying. They want to make it a “women’s” or “feminist” issue, when it is really a human rights issue. They try and draw the attention away from all the abusive fathers getting custody of children from moms with claims of so-called “parental alienation syndrome” and claim that it is the “radical” women’s groups that are debunking it. I find that interesting and their credibility lacking if they call the American Judge’s Association, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National District Attorney’s Association “radical women’s groups.” They have all discredited claims of “parental alienation” and “parental alienation syndrome.”

Here is an except of Varcoe’s and Irwins’s paper:

Child custody and access was the central concern for women with children who participated in Project Violence Free (PVF), a three-year study of formal systems’ (criminal justice, social assistance, and health care) responses to abuse by intimate partners. Although we proposed to study women’s experience with these specific “systems,” the women saw their experiences as similar across services, and talked about “the system” as a monolithic entity. The overarching theme identified through analysis of interview and documentary evidence from the women was that women struggle continuously to limit the violence in their lives and to “make the system work.” We identified four critical sites in which women did most of this work.

For all the women, economic survival was a central part of their struggle. For most women, seeking protection, particularly, but not exclusively, from the justice system, was part of their experience. For women new to Canada, working with issues of immigration overshadowed their other efforts. For the women with children, issues of child custody and access dominated and shaped their experiences.

This article focuses on child custody and access as one of the sites of women’s work in dealing with intimate partner violence. It is based on interview data from the women who were mothers and focus group data from service providers who work with such women as background. The interviews revealed a pervasive tension between obligations to maintain contact between children and their fathers, and obligations to protect children from harm. The purpose of this article is to describe how women work to negotiate formal systems in relation to child custody and access in the context of woman abuse, and how aspects of such systems are problematic. Our argument is that child custody and access processes provide opportunities for abusive partners to exert power and control over their partners and children, and that these opportunities are often supported by policies and practices of service providers.

To read the rest of “If I Killed You, I’d Get the Kids”: Women’s Survival and Protection Work with Child Custody and Access in the Context of Woman Abuse” by Colleen Varcoe and Lori G. Irwin, please click here.

Filed under: Child Custody, Child Custody Battle, Domestic Abuse, Domestic Relations, Domestic Violence, Family Court Reform, Family Courts, Family Rights, Human Rights,Husbands who murder wives, Intimate Partner Assault, Murdered Mothers, Parental Alienation Syndrome, parental alienation — justice4mothers @ 11:16 am

Technorati Tags: Kids,Women,Survival,Child,Custody,Abuse,August,RightsForMothers,BADASS,Here,paper,Varcoe,Lori,Irwin,Protection,Work,Context,Woman,rights,father,folks,relationship,children,human,attention,alienation,syndrome,American,Judge,Association,National,Council,Juvenile,Court,Judges,Medical,Psychological,District,Attorney,Irwins,Project,Violence,Free,justice,assistance,health,partners,Although,services,system,theme,analysis,Canada,immigration,efforts,article,data,background,tension,purpose,relation,argument,Battle,Domestic,Relations,Reform,Courts,Husbands,Intimate,Partner,Assault,Parental,fathers,systems,responses,providers,obligations,aspects,policiesNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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Wear RED Stop the Violence Against Women of Color October 31, 2009

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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Why Are You Wearing RED?

The Color Spectrum Teaches Us About Justice

 http://documentthesilence.wordpress.com/wear-red/

 

 

On September 20^th, I wore black. I wore black, as many Black people did, in solidarity with the Jena 6, who are quickly becoming the 21^st century’s Scottsboro Boys. I am wearing black, even though I have the profound urge and desire to wear red, a Maoist, seductive, bold red – on this, the possible new dawn, of what Al Sharpton has begun calling the “Civil Rights Movement of the 21^st Century.” I am wearing black, even as I have conflicting thoughts and emotions. I am eager for this moment of solidarity – a chance to acknowledge the injustice of inequitable sentencing. So, for today, it is my lipstick that is crimson.

But on Wednesday October 31, 2007 I will be wearing red; that uncomfortably womanish shade of scarlet that suggests a certain looseness, appreciation of blues, likelihood to walk the streets at night, willingness to be loud, dedication to self, and a deep refusal to be rendered invisible. Red, the color so many of us are told to avoid, because of its Western association, with the marked, fallen woman; red, that rich, rapturous, full, so-bright-it-looks-as-if-it’s-had-a-good-meal ruby color, red so intense, it’s nearly purple. Yes, that color – that’s the one I want to mark my outrage at the rape and torture of Megan Williams, a 20-year old woman in West Virginia; the sexual assault of a Haitian woman and her son in West Palm Beach, Florida; and the continued violence visited upon women of color.

Red is the color I choose, because I am not interested in being invisible. I am not interested in being forgotten. I am not interested in being a sidebar conversation. I am not interested, because I will be the women, who walks into the room wearing the color red, who makes the conversation stop, and gently suggests another topic – the role of violence and abuse in women’s lives perhaps? I am interested in being seen. I am interested in hearing what communities of color, so recently outfitted in black to mark the injustice done to the Jena 6, will do to mark the violence and injustice done to Megan Williams.

For me, the color red is about boldness. It is a vibrant color that cannot be ignored. Beyond the pink of feminism, and even the purple of womanism, red is a color that says, “stop and see.” On October 31^st, we ask women of color and their allies, to break the silence and invisibility surrounding violence against women of color, by choosing to be seen. By choosing to be vocal, to be brave, to be bold and work to stop violence against women.

 

wear_red_flyer.pdf

Technorati Tags: Wear,Stop,Violence,Against,Women,Color,Octber,Spectrum,About,Justice,September,Black,Jena,Scottsboro,Maoist,Sharpton,Civil,Rights,Movement,Century,moment,injustice,lipstick,October,blues,dedication,self,refusal,Western,woman,meal,Megan,Williams,West,Virginia,Haitian,Palm,Beach,Florida,conversation,room,topic,role,Beyond,allies,emotions,streetsNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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ACTION ALERT! Need New York Court watchers (another court napped child) October 19, 2009

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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http://documentthesilence.wordpress.com/

 

If you are in the New York  Area, please show your support for Angeline’s case by coming to her next family court hearing on October 19, 2009:

The hearing will be held on October 19, 2009 at 11:00 am.

Location: Courtroom E-123, Annex Building
Justice Fernando M. Camacho
125-01 Queens Boulevard
Kew Gardens, NY 11415

Click here for directions!

If you can make it to Angeline’s next court hearing on October 19, 2009, please let us know by emailing us at:

WheresAniysah_Campaign@yahoo.com

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AybEcaiR_DI&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&feature=player_embedded&fs=1]

Where’s Aniysah?

In Uncategorized on July 26, 2009 at 9:19 pm

On March 3rd, 2009 Aniysah was taken from her mother’s arms and has only seen her one time since!  This is a story about the (in)justice system and how it fails brown women and children daily. Please help Angeline get her daughter back. Please help this story be but a painful memory.

Where’s Aniysah? Facts

Where’s Aniysah? Updates

Where’s Aniysah? Timeline

Where’s Aniysah? What You Can Do to Help!

Technorati Tags: ACTION,ALERT,York,Court,October,Area,Angeline,Location,Courtroom,Annex,Justice,Fernando,Camacho,Queens,Boulevard,Gardens,Click,WheresAniysah_Campaign,Where,Aniysah,March,system,children,daughter,memory,Facts,Timeline,HelpNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] A Human Rights Issue-Custodial Justice.

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Custodial dad charged with trying to drown daughter (Conway, Arkansas)

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Battered Mothers Rights - A Human Rights Issue.

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Well thank goodness she lived. And went home to Mom.

 

http://ozarksfirst.com/content/fulltext/?cid=179932

Father Charged With Trying to Drown Daughter
Reported by:

Thursday, Aug 27, 2009 @04:07am

(Conway, AR) -- A man from Clinton, Arkansas is out on bond after allegedly almost drowning his eight year old daughter.

He claims God asked him to do it.

Van Buren police say Samuel Merryman's daughter was held under water until she blacked out.

He is charged with endangering a minor, kidnapping and battery.

"I just can't imagine that your dad holding you down by your neck under water somebody that's supposed to protect you. I just can't imagine the way that felt," said Kristy Merryman, the girl's mother.

Merryman had custody of his children when the incident occurred.

His ex-wife has now been granted temporary custody.

Technorati Tags: Custodial,daughter,Conway,Arkansas,Father,Drown,Clinton,Buren,Samuel,Merryman,battery,neck,somebody,girl,custody,children,incident,wifeNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Battered Mothers Rights - A Human Rights Issue.

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The blood money trail in the name of “Responsible Fatherhood Initiatives”. Pedophiles, abusers and felons getting sole custody; with Govt.$$

Note: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Family 'Lawless' Court Whores.

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MamaLiberty’s Weblog

BADASS BLOGGER

FATHER HOOD

by mamaliberty

Pedophiles, abusers and felons getting sole custody,because everyone in Family Court gets a suckle from the teat of the grants. I’ve followed the blood money trail in the name of “Responsible Fatherhood Initiatives”.

Access and Visitation Grants:

Federal Allocation and State Match

Number of parents that received each service type and the number of States that provided these services in FY 2006

 

State	Federal Allocation	State Match	Total Funding
Alabama	$142,610	$15,846	$158,456
Alaska	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Arizona	$179,474	$19,942	$199,415
Arkansas	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
California	$988,710	$109,857	$1,098,567
Colorado	$130,679	$14,520	$145,199
Connecticut	$101,505	$11,278	$112,783
Delaware	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
District of Columbia	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Florida	$519,757	$57,751	$577,508
Georgia	$272,041	$30,227	$302,267
Guam	$100,000	$0	$100,000
Hawaii	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Idaho	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Illinois	$329,141	$36,571	$365,712
Indiana	$164,289	$18,254	$182,544
Iowa	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Kansas	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Kentucky	$115,835	$12,871	$128,706
Louisiana	$175,073	$19,453	$194,525
Maine	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Maryland	$176,152	$19,572	$195,724
Massachusetts	$171,937	$19,104	$191,041
Michigan	$289,707	$32,190	$321,897
Minnesota	$123,675	$13,742	$137,417
Mississippi	$113,215	$12,579	$125,795
Missouri	$171,130	$19,014	$190,144
Montana	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Nebraska	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Nevada	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
New Hampshire	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
New Jersey	$217,628	$24,181	$241,809
New Mexico	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
New York	$605,368	$67,263	$672,631
North Carolina	$272,566	$30,285	$302,851
North Dakota	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Ohio	$334,160	$37,129	$371,288
Oklahoma	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Oregon	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Pennsylvania	$341,055	$37,895	$378,950
Puerto Rico	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Rhode Island	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
South Carolina	$142,481	$15,831	$158,312
South Dakota	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Tennessee	$178,061	$19,785	$197,845
Texas	$646,627	$71,847	$718,474
Utah	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Vermont	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Virgin Islands	$100,000	$0	$100,000
Virginia	$192,500	$21,389	$213,889
Washington	$171,388	$19,043	$190,431
West Virginia	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Wisconsin	$133,236	$14,804	$148,040
Wyoming	$100,000	$11,111	$111,111
Total	$10,000,000	$1,088,889	$11,088,888

 

 

Posted in activism | Tagged abused children, bad fathers, battered women, corruption, court whores, CPS, custody, cyber stalking, domestic abuse, family court, family court corruption, government corruption, Judges, maternal deprivation, misogynists, mothers, pedophiles, protective parent, restraining orders, violence against women | 1 Comment

Technorati Tags: money,Responsible,Pedophiles,custody,Govt,Weblog,BADASS,BLOGGER,FATHER,June,Court,Visitation,Federal,Allocation,State,Match,Number,services,Total,Alabama,Alaska,Arizona,Arkansas,California,Colorado,Connecticut,Delaware,District,Columbia,Florida,Georgia,Guam,Hawaii,Idaho,Illinois,Indiana,Iowa,Kansas,Kentucky,Louisiana,Maine,Maryland,Massachusetts,Michigan,Minnesota,Mississippi,Missouri,Montana,Nebraska,Nevada,Hampshire,Jersey,Mexico,York,North,Carolina,Dakota,Ohio,Oklahoma,Oregon,Pennsylvania,Puerto,Rico,Rhode,Island,South,Tennessee,Texas,Utah,Vermont,Virgin,Virginia,Washington,West,Wisconsin,children,corruption,government,Judges,deprivation,parent,orders,violence,Comment,felons,Islands,fathers,blood,abusers,womenNote: Cross posted from [wp angelfury] Family 'Lawless' Court Whores.

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