This post references these two documents:
Clients involved in high conflict divorce litigation often face challenges related to critical life alterations in the areas of division of marital assets and custody in the context of an abuse complaint. Allegations of very serious interpersonal, intimate, and inappropriate behavior which may reach the level of a crime will generate defenses that blame the protective parent and create a narrative where the perpetrator of heinous acts against children are disputed.
The FCVFC has identified what we refer to as “the abuser script”. The script reads, whether for men or for women,” my partner is crazy, my partner has a very serious mental illness, saying these awful things about me, convincing the kids to lie and distort things, the children must be protected for their own welfare, the children must be in therapy, the partner must be in therapy and cannot see the kids until they admit to their lies and get help for their mental illness”.
The script has a production team, a cast, a performance, execution plan and a closing act, which ends with removing vulnerable children from protective parents and removing them into the hands of abusers through the Juvenile, Dependency and Family Courts across the United States.
The FCVFC has seen the development of the“script production team”, beginning with the “connected attorney”, who develops the team of what the FCVFC has names “predator professionals”, consisting of – the attorney, the Guardian Ad Litem, or Best Interest Attorney, and or, the attorney for the children, the evaluator. The evaluator, a court appointed psychologist, appointed from the list of court approved experts, unknown to litigants as to how to research this court appointed person, as to credentials and reputation. This is a person who is to make a confidential assessments, using testing that is of a proprietary nature, such that the interpretation of the data is confidential, even from the client, and the client’s representatives. This person is going to make an assessment of each party and the children, as to mental state, character and the veracity of statements. This person will also make a recommendation as to custody, visitation, therapy recommendations. The judge will very often listen to and follow those recommendations
Understanding the History of Child Custody Transfers
What the FCVFC has seen since the early 2000’s is a growing pattern of the development of a cottage industry of what we refer to as “Parental Alienation Assessment Experts” who present a neat protocol for good parent /bad parent, therapy, which includes individual therapy for each parent, for each child, family therapy.
The overwhelming theme of this form of intervention is the suppression of claims, evidence, witness production of heinous crimes against children. The evidence that exists is meant to be removed, suppressed, overwhelmed with the presence of the alternate reality created through the presence of a mass of conflicting, confusing information generated by the person accused of heinous crimes.
At the conclusion of family therapy, either the combative parent relents, in some manner gives up their claims. The children grow silent or adapt to the new order and say nothing in their own defense. They become depressed, or even suicidal. The alternative narrative is that the abuser remains steadfast, continues to fight for their statements and present evidence in their defense. In either case, the outcome of a contested abuse accusation in the midst of a divorce proceeding is that the Protective Parent, the accuser of abuse, who seeks to defend, will lose their children to the Predator Parent, if that parent is represented by the class of connected professionals the FCVFC refers to as Predator Professionals.
The process followed – Complaint, Response to Complaint with appointment of “the team”, followed by Evaluation, concomitant with ‘treatment” assignment, scheduling of visitation, which is usually a disaster because children do not want to be alone with the person they have named as their abuser and hoped they escaped to save their lives.
Once the evaluation is read and released by the judge, where there is a pronouncement of custody transfer into the hands of the abuser, the evaluator protocol has been to separate children from the parent designated as the “alienator’, (as per our client experience, the Protective Parent). The fate of the children tends to relate to their level of protest as to whether they are sent into the latest permutation of coercive management, “Reunification programs” which are unlicensed, meet no standard of care yet are designated th as “therapeutic programs”.
Reports from the survivors of these reunification programs anecdotally describe what occurs within the programs. Such descriptions include tightly regimented, daily routines, intensely limited contact, use of film, reading material and use of hypnotic techniques to shape thoughts and attitudes, use of forms of punitive behavior modification and thought control.
Children separated from parents who sought to protect them are isolated, sent to schools where only the now custodial parent has any contact or communication. The narrative to all who surround the child (children) is that the parent from whom these children have been rescued is crazy, the children are crazy and they may have to be sent to psychiatric hospitals.
The false narrative protecting abusers of children is headed by the attorney whose larger than the normal retainer and fees, mirror the larger than normal retainer and fees of each of the other court actors, whose bills go on and on and on. The sudden imposition of judicial orders freezing the funds of the Protective Parent, not the funds of the accused abuser, children’s financial accounts, property owned by the Protective Parent is suddenly confiscated on spurious terms without contest.
The Motivation for Custody Transfers
The FCVFC poses that the motivation for the use of children as pawns is to gain access and control of all valuable marital assets, eliminate financial responsibility to the parent who has become a liability and an enemy and to quash all allegations of abuse or potential criminal charges against the parent accused as the abuser. To support this end, the media blitz of “poor me / crazy other parent / must protect children” is released and trumpeted far and wide and loudly. To this end,the repetitive verbiage of global empty, defamatory statements against a former partner, by the abuser, to all who will listen, in the community, on social media, in contact with friends ad family are part of the protocol. The in hand presence of confidential, sealed documents, always in reach for the predator claimant, to back up claims to any who will take time to read court documents, evaluations, police report, to support claims is part of the performance drama. The Protective Parent rarely if ever has access to these documents easily in reach of the parent awarded custody.
The expenditure of fees for an array of experts with questionable credentials, questionable reputations and fees beyond the norm are part of the arsenal deployed by a parent with bad acts to hide and funds to invest for their reputation/ asset protection. The experts that make up the custody team are part of an approved court list of those who produce predictable outcomes. Their licenses are protected from lawsuits by qualified immunity, protected from licensing board review because court will not share court files with licensing boards (confidential court testimony). Those who would sue them have had their reputations damaged by smear campaigns inside and outside of the court litigation. Often, a judge who knows in advance of proceedings, what needs to be hidden with gag orders for the Protective Parent and files sealed from prying eyes.
When Child Testimony is Discredited
The minimization of the seriousness of violence and abuse of children within the context of a marital relationship tends to exaggerate family privacy issues and minimize the seriousness of potential crimes committed within a family relationship.
Often complaints that arise within the context of a domestic relationship are too often treated by the police and the courts as a “he said / she said “ dispute, where one person seeks an advantage over another, persuaded by the drama of the complaint and the character assault on one party or the other. Courts fail to come to grips with the reality that home and family are the nest for the most primitive and dangerous crimes because power, wealth, and control combine with dependency, neediness and vulnerability. When children bring attention to crimes committed against them, they are most likely to be dismissed as derivative complaints expressed by a bitter, manipulative parent. It is more likely that a child will be seriously maimed, inured or murdered, than their complaint will be honestly addressed. The honest, forthright statements of children in their own words, in their own terms are unmistakable. They are clear to those who listen and for those who are not engaged as hired guns to protect bad acts through manipulation, alteration of data, misinterpretation of technical, clinical material.
When power balances shift, mediated dispute efforts fail and outside intervention is required to restore order, expectations of lawfulness, fairness, equitable distribution must be viewed with the cautious eye of trust but verify
Facing the Challenge of Resilience
The need to maintain emotional equilibrium, judgment and reality testing in the midst of what often evolves into very serious crises within the vortex of challenges posed in the arena of family court custody litigation is a critical functional element for the protective parent.
The choice of seasoned experts who maintain an independence in their practice, expertise and a moral, ethical compass in their dealings with vulnerable clients is a challenge to the litigant who, at this time, must more than ever live by the trust but verify dictate.
The cost of a misstep in judgment, failure to be alert to questionable advice, or rulings that do not make sense or are fundamentally courter intuitive, can lead to lost advantages or missed opportunities.
Furthermore, attention to court procedures, and deadlines for discovery, subpoenas, and witness lists present the challenge of making decisions, rapidly, decisively, with the best judgment at hand, and with bravery.
Reticence in the face of authority, unwillingness to challenge authority to recognise abuse of authority in all of its many forms, may have terrible consequences. Judicial Orders may be challenged, modified, disputed.
Contempt Orders may be challenged, seeking modification of underlying Orders. One must follow court rules and procedures but not be ruled by court rules which must follow the rules of law and Due Process. One must think creatively, think outside of the box, but most importantly, one must think and continue to seek advice.
A TALE OF TWO STATES
Why Is The Narrative And Process Exactly The Same
In the spirit of such admonition, we present two clients accepted by the FCVFC to represent the issues that the FCVFC has identified as to fact patterns and court processes played out over time, in and outside of judicial proceedings. These clients, who, despite horrific, dangerous circumstances chose to stand their ground, assert their rights and live to fight another day, represent the core struggles of numerous protective parents seeking to protect their children or restore custody illegally removed. Had these clients not taken the extraordinary steps, under the direction and expert support of the FCVFC, their lives and their children’s lives would have been destroyed at that juncture. Each client accepted by the FCVFC must speak and publish the material facts of their cases, the preservation of evidence, through testimony and unwavering confrontation of the truth of the crimes to which they have been subject,. Each client is part of the mission to confront the miasma of lies and criminal collusion that are destroying lives of children and all who love them
Having taken the steps, they are stronger, wiser, better prepared for next. Having taken the necessary steps, the next confrontations are taken as a matter of course and the path to justice is closer as their reputations precede them
Case #1: LIES AND LARCENY IN A SARASOTA, FLORIDA FAMILY COURT
#1 A Florida mother of four little children, homemaker, stay at home mom found herself childless, penniless and homeless when her husband’s message to her was “My Way or the Highway” as he absconded to parts unknown with her four little children
The Fla. State’s Attorney put him in jail for kidnapping (Custodial Interference) An arraignment judge released him in his own recognizance.
He thought he found the perfect judge as she supported his manufactured, false narrative, until Judge Donna Padar Berlin was removed from the case. Following the Recusal document and complaint that removed her from presiding over the case, complaints being filed against Judge Berlin, seek to remove her from the bench and her law license, because she is a menace to the public welfare.
The Judge who replaced Judge Berlin offered a new opportunity for a fair hearing, treated our client with respect and dignity, as he communicated that he “read everything” and understood the situation”.
Case #2: LIES AND LARCENY IN AN ARIZONA COURT
A mother of two adolescent children in AZ. must fight to save her daughter from her son as a result of multiple forms of bias and malfeasance present in the divorce court proceedings presided over by Judge Kottke.
Under the custody of her estranged husband, her son has developed into a prospective next public shooter. His social media presence depicts an ardent racist, white nationalist with seriously concerning antisocial views and behavior. Serious threats and aggressive / violent behavior toward his sister are ignored, as is other evidence, suppressed, within the AZ Supreme court trial proceedings. The Judge presses for “Reunification therapy” for a daughter who fears her brother and distrusts her father as he has encouraged her brother’s antisocial documented behavior.
There is total disregard for her feelings and personal goals as myscogenist, coercive demands for total obedience are the sole rule.The mother is named as an “alienator” as the AZ court seeks to separate mother and daughter, dividing children and marital assets in favor of the father. If such action was allowed to go forward, there is clear and convincing evidence of the most serious possible consequences for daughter and mother.
The FCVFC at work … for YOU!
There is no simple, concise answer to the manner or process by which to describe the multitude of services and supports provided to our clients, except to say it begins with an evaluation of the material facts of the case.
Assessment of material facts are broken down into specific categories, dealing with legal, psychological, financial, educational content. This material is then further broken down into the association of institutions, institutional policy and personnel associated with actions that are harmful or hurtful to our client. Focus on the cast of characters from family members, service providers, court actors, community members, their role in the case, in relation to our client are reviewed and assessed.
We look to define the narrative of the case, to establish a position, to challenge the legitimacy, authenticity, neutrality of experts, to develop and protect evidence and witness testimony, thereby developing a defense for litigation, or creating grounds for settlement. Toward this end, we assist clients in retaining experts in relevant areas and then we assist the support services in their understanding of the full context of the case.
Our timeline for review is past, present and future; past to develop patterns, present to define current parameters and future to seek damages for repair, rebuilding, and accountability of those responsible perpetrators of harm. As each case must speak for others suffering similar challenges, we focus on clients who have preserved records and are willing to face harsh circumstances in the course of contesting high conflict custody litigation.
Let’s Work Together!
The Staff of the FCVFC encourages litigants in all court situations to know their rights, to understand the nature of their complaints, the court rules and procedures and to review any and all filings, whether or not represented by an attorney. Every litigant should treat themselves as if they were their own attorney and be familiar with their case. They should review documents before attorneys release such filings and know what they are filing and why.
Further, we recommend that clients think carefully about attorney recommendations and court orders to comply with directions that infringe upon personal privacy, that are coercive for compliance with psychological engagement in what courts are referring to as “treatment,” or the appointment of those oversight court actors that take the place of providing actual witnesses and evidence.
The GAL’s, BIA’s, Attorneys for the Children have become the new layer of something between mini me judges and parenting police. They enforce rules that have never before existed and should not ever exist, pretending an authority and competence they do not have, and exerting the power of the purse in the pay to play game of America’s Kangaroo Family Courts.
Litigants who are passive, trusting, naive are at grave risk of receiving an education they never wished to receive in the course of losing children, family and property.
The FCVFC stands as the voice and the authority to challenge abuse of power, court corruption, imposition of coercive psychological interventions, children’s rights and parents rights.
Please feel free to contact us so that we can help you to make sense of the implausible and gain control of the confusion.
