Battered Mothers file Human Rights Violation Suit Against US to IACHR

On May 11,2007,  just before Mother’s Day weekend, ten mothers, one victimized child, now an adult,  leading national and state organizations filed a complaint against the United States with the Inter American Commission on Human Rights. Their petition claims that U.S. courts, by frequently awarding child custody to abusers and child molesters, has failed to protect the life, liberties, security and other human rights of abused mothers and their children. 

http://www.stopfamilyviolence.org/info/custody-abuse/legal-documents/petition-to-inter-american-commission-on-human-rights/full-text-of-iachr-petition

PRESS RELEASE

OVERVIEW and FAQ's in materials on the right side of this page.

Scroll down to read full petition, including case histories of several of the petitioners.  You will be horrified to learn what is happening to abused women and children in courtrooms all across this country.

Exhibit 28: Breaking the Silence: Children’s Stories
Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Tatge Lasseur Productions, 2006 Underwritten by a grant from the Mary Kay Ash Charitable Foundation.
Full length of this documentary was submitted to the IACHR. 

Full Petition to the IACHR (large file)

Table of Contents

Introduction

Petitioners

• Dombrowski KS
• Titelman GA
• K.A  Amador Co., CA
• J.H.  Amador Co., CA
• Shockome NY
• Navratil CA
• Horton NY
• Petitioners A, B, C are confidential to protect their safety.  Not included in public materials.
• Organization petitioners

Court Gender Bias - academic studies

Court Gender Bias -experiential studies

Attempts to Remedy Problem

Summary of Problem

Alleged Violations of the Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man

Compliance

Additional Supporting Organizations - list

List of Exhibits

EXHIBITS

1. Photos of petitioner Claudine Dombrowski . (graphic)

2. Affidavit and book, Let My Children Go, A Mother’s Journal , Wendy Titelman, Kinderlex Books, 2005.

3. Letter from California Protective Parents Association .

4. Affidavit from Kourts for Kids.

5. Letter from StopFamilyViolence.org .

6. EXPOSE  The Failure of Family Courts to Protect Children from Abuse in Custody Disputes:   A Resource Book for Lawmakers, Judges, Attorneys and Mental health Professionals, Our Children Our Future Charitable Foundation, Los Gatos, CA, 1999. 
( very large file - long time to load)

7. Chesler, Phyllis, Mothers on Trial: The Battle for Children and Custody,  McGraw-Hill Book Company, NY, 1986, select pages.

8. Battered Mothers’ Testimony Project:   A Human Rights Approach to Child Custody and Domestic Violence, Arizona Coalition Against Domestic Violence, June 2003.

9. Common Misconceptions in Addressing Domestic Violence in Child Custody Disputes , Jaffee, Crooks, and Poisson, 57 Juvenile and Family Court Journal Fall 2003.

10. Justice in the Domestic Relations Division of the Philadelphia Family Court:  A Report to the Community, Women’s Law Project, Philadelphia, Pa, April 2003.

11. California Protective Parents Network , national survey, September 2001 to December 2004.
          Part 1 - table
          Part 2 - report

12. Jana Bommersbach, Jana’s View, Phoenix Magazine , May 2006, p. 28.

13. Article Launched: 6/18/2006 12:00 AM , Mom termed 'parental alienator' wins rare vindication in courts , BY TROY ANDERSON, Staff Writer, LA Daily News.

14. Hoult, Jennifer, J.D., The Evidentiary Admissibility of Parental Alienation Syndrome:   Science, Law and Policy,  Children’s Legal Rights Journal, Vol. 26, No. 1, Spring 2006.

15. Navigating Custody and Visitation Evaluations in Cases with Domestic Violence:  A Judges Guide , National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, 2004, revised 2006.

16. Report on Women’s Rights in the United States under International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights in response to the Second and Third Periodic Report of the United States of America, July 2006.

17. Courageous Kids personal stories.
            Part 1 - Courageous Kids Network
            Part 2 - Case Studies
            Part 3 - Letter to IACHR by siblings
            Part 4 - Alana Krause, Girl, Interrupted

18. Letter from Legal Momentum to Daniel Meron, DHHS , Washington, DC dated 28 February 2007.

19. European Parliament, A6-0404/2005, Report , 9.12.2005 on the current situation in combating violence against women and any future action (2004/2220(INI)) Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality Rapporteur: Maria Carlshamre PE 364.709v02-00 2/17 RR364709EN.doc

20. Testimony to the Truth Commission , Fourth Battered Mothers Custody Conference, January 2007.

21. Examples of Injustices in NYC Family Courts , Battered Women’s Resources Center, January 2007.

22. Letter and columns from The Parenting Project , Rhode Island.

23. Letter from the Illinois Coalition for Family Court Reform .

24. Letter from Child Abuse Forensic Institute , Napa, CA.

25. Legal Momentum letter and summary of Battered
     Mother's Speak Out

26. Letter from National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

27. Letter from Justice for Children

28. Breaking the Silence: Children’s Stories , Connecticut Public Broadcasting (see above for excerpt)

29. Letters of support from additional organizations.

National organizations

• National Center on Sexual and Domestic Violence , TX
• The Leadership Council on Child Abuse and Interpersonal Violence , PA 
• Sidran Traumatic Stress Institute , MD
• National Alliance to End Sexual Violence , Washington, DC
• Domestic Violence Report , Washington, DC
• Family Violence Prevention Fund , San Francisco, CA
• National Organization for Women and National Organization for Women Foundation , Washington, DC
• National Family Court Watch Project , MI

                   State Organizations

• Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence
• California National Organization for Women , Sacramento, CA
• Colorado Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• Michigan National Organization for Women
• New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence
• Tennessee Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
• National Organization for Women – New York State, Inc .

Supporting Organizations

The following organizations have sent letters to the InterAmerican Commission in support of the petition.

Nat'l Organizations

Domestic Violence Report

Family Violence Prevention Fund

Justice For Children

Kourts for Kids

The Leadership Council on Child Abuse and Interpersonal Violence

Legal Momentum

National Alliance to End Sexual Violence

National Center on Sexual and Domestic Violence

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

National Organization For Women

National Organization For Women Foundation

National Family Court Watch Project
Sidran Traumatic Stress Institute

Stop Family Violence

State Organizations

California Protective Parents Association

California National Organization for Women

Child Abuse Forensic Institute (CA)

Colorado Coalition Against Domestic Violence

Georgia Coalition Against Domestic Violence

Illinois Coalition for Family Court Reform

Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence

Michigan National Organization for Women

New York State Coalition Against Domestic Violence

National Organization for Women - New York State, Inc.

Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence

Parenting Project (RI)

Soldier sentenced to 6 years for incest, sex assault with his TEENAGE DAUGHTER

 

http://ottawa.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100908/OTT_Soldier_Incest_100908/20100908/?hub=OttawaHome

Soldier sentenced to 6 years for incest, sex assault

Updated: Wed Sep. 08 2010 3:38:42 PM
ctvottawa.ca

A soldier who served as a master corporal at CFB Trenton will spend the next six years behind bars in connection with a string of incest and sex-related offences involving his teenage daughter.

The 36-year-old man was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to incest, sexual assault, production and possession of child pornography and careless use of a firearm.

The man cannot be named to protect the identity of his daughter. He was arrested last fall.

San Mateo: Man accused of bringing handgun to CHILD CUSTODY HEARING

 

http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Man-accused-of-bringing-handgun-to-child-custody-hearing-102372839.html


 

James Knapp

Authorities say this man went to family court with a handgun.

James Knapp, 45, of Sacramento, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges that he brought a .45-caliber handgun and a loaded magazine through the security checkpoint of a San Mateo County courthouse on July 12 — while en route to a child custody hearing, authorities said.

The weapon and ammo were found in Knapp’s backpack as it went through the x-ray machine around 1 p.m. at the Hall of Justice in Redwood City, the county sheriff said.

Knapp claimed he was unaware they were in the backpack, officials said.

Knapp also allegedly allowed authorities to search his car, where another magazine for the handgun was found in the glove compartment, according to San Mateo County prosecutors.

He was initially booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility and was later bailed out on a $50,000 bond, authorities said.

Knapp was headed to a family law court hearing in order to petition for a modification of his child custody order, authorities said.

The case is set for superior court review Oct. 13, with a preliminary hearing Oct. 26, Assistant District Attorney Karen Guidotti said.

maldax@sfexaminer.com

Read more at the San Francisco Examiner: http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Man-accused-of-bringing-handgun-to-child-custody-hearing-102372839.html#ixzz0ywPuwWJ5

American Mothers Political Party “Still Standing” Show THURSDAY 9/9/2010 5:00 PM

http://americanmotherspoliticalparty.org/

Upcoming Show: 9/9/2010 5:00 PM   

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxRm7_faGto&autoplay=&fs=1&showinfo=0&showsearch=0&rel=0&]

American Mothers Political Party  Still Standing

AMPP is a social movement seeking justice and accountability within the family court system which includes DHHS/CPS, psychologists and other so called experts. Special Guest! Barry Goldstein, attorney, teacher, author and advocate for women abused by their partner (and too often the courts) a book for women seeking to leave their abusers and for their friends, family, supporters and advocates. SCARED TO LEAVE AFRAID TO STAY Paths From Family Violence to Safety tells the story of ten women as they left their abusers seeking a better life. The book shows in these abuse cases how courts handle legal issues such as orders of protection, custody, visitation, support, marital property and criminal prosecutions.

 

A new collaboration book Domestic Violence, Abuse, and Child Custody

Co Edited  with Barry Goldstein and Dr. Maureen Hannah with more than 25 of the leading experts in the U.S. and Canada have contributed chapters to this book. These experts include judges, lawyers, psychiatrists, psychologists, sociologists, journalists and domestic violence advocates. This is a show not to be missed! Join us once again for lively discussion on family court and its treatment of abused women and children!

 

   DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, ABUSE and CHILD CUSTODY brings together experts from the US and Canada for a multi-disciplinary review of the most up-to-date research and recommendations for handling, domestic violence custody cases. The book’s 25 chapters are written by those in the know:  judges, lawyers, psychiatrists, psychologists, sociologists, journalists, domestic violence advocates, and others intimately familiar with the details of these cases.  These diverse experts approach the issue through the lens of different disciplines and professional experiences.  Although they may not agree on every point, they do agree on at least one thing: that the family court system in this country is broken.

For more than two decades, protective mothers from every state in the country (as well as overseas) have been ordered to turn their children over into the care, and even the custody, of the children's abusive fathers.  This occurs even when there is adequate evidence of child abuse, domestic violence, and other harmful behaviors on the part of the father.  Courts claim to be doing this to ensure that both parents remain involved in their children’s lives after divorce or separation, but in fact, in most of these cases, precisely the opposite happens:  mothers are denied any meaningful relationship, or even contact, with their children.  In the meantime, male supremacist groups claim unfair treatment in the family courts, seeking shared or total custody in order to avoid paying child support and to maintain men’s traditional control over their partner and their children.

We can argue about when we should have known, but today we know the custody court system is destroying the lives of thousands of children.  It will continue to do so until it adopts the reforms advocated in this well documented book.  As Rita Smith, Executive Director of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, writes in her Afterward, now that this book has been published, those who continue to use the flawed approaches and practices addressed in this book can only be construed as engaging in professional malpractice.

            When the court system, like other entities, began to respond to domestic violence as a public health concern back in the mid-to-late 1970s, there was little if any research on the effects of, or the proper societal response to domestic violence.  At the time, many believed domestic violence was caused by mental illness or substance abuse or was provoked by the victim's actions.  Domestic violence was equated with physical abuse, and it was believed that children were unaffected by it unless they, themselves, were directly assaulted.  In recent years, these and other assumptions that the courts have long relied on have been exposed as the myths they are.  Nevertheless, to this very day, the courts are operating according to these same outmoded ideas.  It’s business as usual, with the courts continuing to churn out another generation of damaged children and traumatized mothers.  This is the inevitable outcome of using outdated and discredited approaches to making custody decisions when domestic violence and similar factors affect the case.

One of the findings you'll learn about in this book is that, of the small fraction (5%) of child custody cases that are contested to trial and often beyond, perhaps 90% involve abuse allegations against the father.  These are not good guys sincerely wanting to raise their children—these are, for the most part, batterers who want to punish, hurt, and control their exes.  Another factor contributing to the surge in men’s filing for custody of their children was the federal child support enforcement law that was put into place in 1993.  In the decade prior to that, male supremacist groups had begun to encourage abusers who had little involvement with the children during the relationship to seek custody as a vindictive tactic against their partner. (We cannot count how many women have told us that their abuser had threatened them with some version of, “If you leave, you’ll never get the kids!”)  Courts who are certain that children do better with both parents in their lives (regardless, apparently, of how sociopathic,  addicted, or mentally deranged the parent may be), are delighted to see fathers who appear to be so devoted to their children that they will fight for them in court.

            Contrary to what many might assume, the people who staff our nation’s custody courts have no real expertise about topics related to children’s best interests—children's developmental needs, the mother-child attachment bond, the benefits of long-term nursing, the harms of maternal-child separation, and so forth.  Judges usually aren’t required to have any education whatsoever on the major issues affecting the litigants who appear in front of their bench.  Although there is plenty of  published literature on such topics, such as on the effects of domestic violence on child witnesses or the developmental impact of lengthy mother-child separations--it’s hard to find anyone in the legal system, including custody evaluators, who bases recommendations on the generally accepted research on children's mental health and developmental requirements.

            The information provided by this book isn’t necessarily new, but it is all up to date. We also believe that the findings in this book are conclusive.  Still, we want to be clear that our interest isn’t in attacking the court system; rather, what we wish to do is to work with the system.  We hope to form a genuine collaboration with the courts and others charged with protecting our nation’s most vulnerable citizens. Our only agenda is for courts to use the most up-to-date research available to inform their decisions and make the safety of children the highest priority.  We would like to work with judges and other court professionals to provide them with the information that was unavailable thirty years ago, when many of the current practices were first developed.

            We must also say a word to the media.  One of the chapters is written by Garland Waller, an award winning documentary film producer and professor of communication at Boston University.  Her chapter speaks about the failure of the media to expose a crisis that has endangered so many of our children.  Domestic violence experts emphasize the importance of looking for patterns and remembering the context of information.  Journalists have been reluctant to publicize individual cases because it is hard to know the truth when the facts are disputed and when court findings are so often wrong.  It is difficult to detect these patterns in a single case, but it is easy to see the patterns when we look at hundreds or thousands of cases and see obvious mistakes leading to dangerous outcomes.

            Now that we have the evidence to prove that the United States family court system is broken, will the media do its job by picking up the story and making the public aware of what is going on?  Of course, any one case can be called “controversial,” since it’s assumed that both parties have equally valid arguments to make.  But domestic violence is hardly a controversial topic, and there is but one valid position to take on it, which is that it is harmful and unacceptable and must be stopped.  In fact, every courthouse and every state legislature claim to work on behalf of victims of domestic violence.  Now that we’ve proven the existence of these problems, will the media use its might to enlighten the public about this national scandal, compared by many to the investigations of sexual abuse among clergy to educate the public about these tragic outcomes?  If the children whose lives have been ruined through bad decision-making by a family court judges had instead been made deathly ill by a bacteria living inside the cream of Oreo cookies, the media would have been all over the story.  There would be public outrage, and rightly so, especially if it were then discovered that the FDA had known the cookies were bad but allowed them to be consumed in school lunchrooms across the country.

            Is this ever-growing phenomenon of childless mothers and motherless children no less worthy of our intense collective scrutiny?   Will anyone listen?  Will you?

Now that we know that the custody courts are broken, what are we going to do about it?                                                          

- By Barry Goldsten, Co-editor, and

- Mo Therese Hannah, Co-editor

In a trend that started in the 1980s, and increasingly since then, family court judges across the U.S. have ordered thousands and thousands of children into unsupervised visitation with abusive biological fathers.  In many cases, mothers have been denied any form of custody, with some losing all contact with their children. In the last few years, attorneys and social service advocates have met to address this issue at the annual Battered Mother’s Custody Conference.  This book brings together the expertise and perspective of more than thirty contributors to BMCC in a comprehensive resource that arms advocates with the best thinking and most effective legal strategies in the battle to protect mothers and families from a system that often fails to address abuse and sometimes actually worsens the problem.

Domestic Violence, Abuse, and Child Custody presents insights and hands-on practice guidance from the leading experts on child custody cases that involve intimate partner violence and child abuse. Chapter authors address the prevalence of these problems, the complex reasons why protective mothers lose custody of their children, the things court agents and other professionals often do that contribute to bad outcomes, and the corrective measures that must be put into place to ensure legal protections for abused women and their children.

• Understand the harm caused by all types of abusive behavior, whether physical, verbal, financial, legal, or other forms.
• Guide the representation of protective mothers through research, case law, and consultation to improve case outcomes.
• Establish the paramount importance of children’s safety beyond all other priorities that may emerge in a child custody case.
• Provide judges with new insight into the dynamics of violence, recognize when experts and other types of witnesses are providing testimony based on myths, stereotypes, and discredited theories, and provide an empirically based, real-world rationale for orders emphasizing the safety of protective mothers and the accountability of batterers.

Written with the expressed goal of helping battered mothers assert their rights to a safe family life free from violence, the contributors to this book take a firm stand against so-called “balanced” points of view that attempt to explain or justify abusive behavior.  This book is grounded in the belief that battering is never justified, and batterers are not entitled to “equal rights” to custody when the safety of a child is in question.  Advocates who share that view will find this book a uniquely compelling ally in protecting and defending the rights of battered mothers.

©Civic Research Institute • P.O. Box 585, Kingston, NJ 08528
Tel: 609-683-4450 • Fax: 609-683-7291
Email: order@civicresearchinstitute.com

Murder/Suicide 2010 Google MAP

Murder/Suicide 2010 NOTE: All incidents are listed in reverse chronological order (newest first). Most addresses are approximate. A map for 2009 can be found at http://murder-suicide.blogspot.com
View Murder/Suicide 2010 in a larger map

DADDY SEX OFFENDER CHARGED WITH CAPITAL MURDER OF 5 MONTH OLD DAUGHTER (performing 'acts' leading to her death)

“Hat tip to Tiffany for this find”

By Holly WiseThe Cove Herald

Five years after young Jade Allsop was pronounced dead at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center on Jan. 27, 2005, her father, Joseph Allsop, confessed to performing sexual acts on the 5-month-old that resulted in her death.

Allsop, 27, was arrested Aug. 27 in Pierce County, Wash., on charges of capital murder in connection with a complaint filed Aug. 20 in Coryell County Justice of the Peace Judge John Guinn's office.

Allsop is being held in the Pierce County Corrections facility. He was arraigned Monday in the Pierce County Superior Court and is waiting extradition back to Texas.

According to a press release from the Guadalupe County Sheriff's Office, Allsop is in the Army. Lt. Gregg Hastings, Oregon State Police public information officer, confirmed that Allsop is a registered sex offender but, according to information from the Copperas Cove Police Department, Allsop never registered in Texas.

Hastings said Allsop was convicted in 1997 when he was 14 years old.

According to the complaint filed in Guinn's office, at approximately 12:45 a.m. on Jan. 27, 2005, emergency medical personnel were dispatched to 406-C N. Main St. in reference to an infant who was not breathing.

The subsequent investigation determined that Jade was placed in her crib at approximately 11:30 p.m. and at 12:45 a.m. Allsop discovered her not breathing.

The body was sent to the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Technology for an autopsy. According to the complaint, the medical examiner ruled the cause and manner of death were "undetermined."

The autopsy report is not available, pending a judge's release.

More than five years later, on June 3, Shaina Allsop, Jade's mother, reported to the Guadalupe County Sheriff's Department that her now 8-year-old son told her Allsop touched his genitals three years ago.

Allsop was stationed at Fort Lewis, Wash., and Guadalupe County Sheriff's Department Investigator Scott Humphrey requested that he be questioned by the Army's Criminal Investigations Division.

Allsop was questioned Aug. 17 and confessed to sexually abusing numerous young children, according to the complaint.

When the investigator questioned Allsop about the events surrounding Jade's death, Allsop confessed to performing sexual acts on the infant the night of Jan. 27, 2005. When he returned to the infant from the bathroom, he found her not breathing and staged her in bed with a bottle so Shaina would not suspect something was wrong.

Allsop told Shaina the baby was sleeping and when Shaina checked on her, she didn't notice the infant wasn't breathing. After Shaina left to go to a friend's house, Allsop grabbed Jade and ran outside yelling that she wasn't breathing.

"This case came together as a result of like-minded professionals working together as a team," Humphrey's supervisor, Sgt. Craig Jones said. "While the sad loss of innocence and life can never be restored, Humphrey would tell you the true warriors in cases like this are the victims and the families willing to make a stand against people who prey on children."

Coryell County District Attorney David Castillo said once it is proven that Allsop is the individual being charged, he will be transported to Coryell County where he will face indictment.

Contact Holly Wise at hwise@kdhnews.com or by calling (254) 501-7474. more here: http://www.kdhnews.com/news/story.aspx?s=44089

History of Domestic Violence in Double Murder-Suicide Leaving Entire Family Dead

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0PgquE8DZY?hl=en&fs=1]

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla.- WINK News is tracking brand new developments to a disturbing discovery in Lehigh Acres.

It's a story you saw first on WINK- a double murder-suicide leaving two adults and a baby dead inside their home. We learned Friday the deceased husband was no stranger to authorities.

From the outside looking in, neighbors say the Forde family was about as normal as you could get. Lisa worked with Lee County EMA, and they were new parents of a one-year old baby boy. But a second look at the husband's past reveals troubling signs leading up to the horrific tragedy taking place behind closed doors.

"She was trying to make this relationship work, and you can't really blame her. It happens a lot. Maybe it was a one time thing, and she hoped that it would change," neighbor Alice Agness said Friday.

Reports show Alex Forde had a history with the Lee County Sheriff's Office. He was booked in 2007 for possession of cocaine. But the most eery charges date back to April of last year. Alex was arrested for domestic violence, after allegedly throwing Lisa to the ground when she was 12 weeks pregnant.

"They'd come around and stuff but he really just didn't like to talk much. He would just put his head down. Basically he just wanted to say hey and go about his business," Agness said.

But the quiet couple, and their young son Caleb are dead, sparking a double murder-suicide investigation. Lee County Sheriff's Deputies swarmed the house and shutdown part of the neighborhood for two days straight.

"It's a nice neighborhood. And you don't think those things can happen."

Friday evening, WINK News talked to the Forde family's pastor at New Image Ministries church here in Lehigh. He said they were a very spiritual family, and Alex in particular was very dedicated to his faith. We'll continue updates as more information becomes available.

Lee County Sheriff's Office says they'll release more information once an autopsy is complete.

Read more: http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2010-09-03/New-developments-in-double-murder-suicide-leaving-entire-family-dead#ixzz0yrmlkP6a