AU: Act aids abusive fathers, imperils children

Really?  Hmmm, finally someone see it!  Hat tip to Annie for this one!

http://www.theage.com.au/national/act-aids-abusive-fathers-imperils-children-20100623-yz3u.html

Act aids abusive fathers, imperils children

ADELE HORIN

June 24, 2010

THE Family Law Act is failing to protect children from ongoing trauma at the hands of abusive and violent fathers, a study has found.

The act's aims of protecting children from violence and giving them ''meaningful involvement'' with both parents was being resolved in favour of contact even in cases of severe domestic violence, the study reveals.

Sydney University education and social work senior lecturer Lesley Laing, the report's author, said more thought needed to be given to what formed a ''meaningful relationship'' when a parent had traumatised a child through domestic violence. ''There is no requirement that a parent who has harmed a child in this way must demonstrate they can offer a safe and meaningful relationship,'' she said.

The report is based on interviews with 22 women, contacted through domestic violence services, who were negotiating parenting arrangements in the family law system. It is the first study that has allowed women experiencing domestic violence to speak about the impact of the 2006 legal changes that put greater emphasis on shared parenting while still maintaining protection in cases of violence.

The women describe a situation where they are discouraged by legal advisers and others from raising violence issues in the Family Court for fear of being seen as an ''unfriendly'' or ''alienating'' parent unwilling to support contact with the father.

''Anything that you do to try and advocate for your children is somehow twisted into being high conflict and parental alienation,'' one woman said. ''So you are basically silenced. And the children are silenced.''

Another said she had agreed to the children having sleepovers at their father's place because she felt she had no choice. Her lawyer had convinced her that if she objected the judge would give the father even more contact.

Dr Laing said some women felt guilty they had escaped violent men but their children had not. ''Forty years ago some women could only escape domestic violence by leaving the children behind, and they were pilloried,'' she said. ''Now there is a new form of child abandonment, at least part time. It's a terrible thing we are asking women to do.''

The report shows the women are battling a complex and unco-ordinated system that often sees state child protection services shunting matters to the Family Court though the court with no powers of investigation.

As well, the women battled community attitudes that regarded them as liars who misused the system. Professionals constantly stressed to the women the importance of fathering, without regard to its quality. It was commonly assumed that at least some contact was inevitable, no matter what violence had occurred, and that supervised contact would eventually move to unsupervised contact.

The study, No Way to Live, will put further pressure on federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland to amend the Family Law Act. An earlier review he commissioned recommended amendments to provide greater protection.

The Lesser Known Form of Child Abuse – Neglect

There are many crimes that are heinous and wicked, but none as bad as the ones committed against children who don’t even understand them. An adult who takes advantage of a child and abuses him/her because of their insecurity and self-confidence issues is the lowest kind of human being, the very dregs of society. Child abuse takes various forms – the child is physically abused as in he/she is hit or hurt in various ways, the child is sexually abused either by touch or more, the child is mentally tortured with words or actions, and/or the child is neglected and not cared for properly.

While the first three forms of child abuse are generally visible offences, not many people consider neglect to be a serious issue. They feel for children who have been abused physically, sexually and emotionally because the scars are either visible or have manifested themselves in other forms (like disrespect, disobedience, belligerence, depression, withdrawal, and many more). But neglected children seem almost normal, except that their needs are not being met.

But just because the signs of neglect are not readily visible immediately or otherwise, that doesn’t mean that neglected children are better off than those who have been abused in more serious ways. Parents who neglect the physical and/or emotional needs of their children are not fit to be parents – when they fail to ensure that their child is well-fed, in good health, clothed and educated, they are neglecting their responsibilities as parents.

Neglect is a curious form of child abuse in that some parents cannot help neglecting their children because of their circumstances – they are too poor to provide them with regular meals and adequate clothing, leave alone ensure their good health and send them to school. When poverty becomes a cause for neglect, the children tend to migrate to the wrong side of the law – they steal, get into street fights, and sometimes even sell drugs or themselves for money. This makes poverty-induced neglect a very sensitive issue because it becomes a danger to society at large.

But even with poverty being a millstone around their necks, some parents are determined that their children will lead better lives than they have, and so they strive to keep their kids in school and out of the streets even though they live in unsavoury neighbourhoods. Their efforts are augmented by free education initiatives and healthcare schemes for minorities and people who are considered the lower strata of society. If more parents gave the idea considerable thought before having children, the issue of neglect would never arise.

By-line:

This guest post is contributed by Brooklyn White, who writes on the topic of Forensic Science Technician Programs  . She can be reached at brookwhite26-AT-Gmail.com.

Child Abuse...

 

There have been three recent cases where child abuse has either been accused, or parents have been convicted; that just really gets to me when there are many kids that are really being abused.  We, as a society, focus on the petty and let the horrendous continue. 

Wrote a blog post about it.  Like to read it? Here it go....

First we have the couple that used soap to wash out their daughters mouth, she then had an allergic reaction, so they took her to the hospital.  Ok, so I admit, if the account that I read of that incident was correct, leaving the soap in her mouth ten minutes for a bad word was overboard.  I got my mouth washed out with soap as a child, and I threw up from it as well, and was made to clean up my own mess...

But, I have a hard time meshing the fact that they were charged with child abuse and parents who are doing horrendous things, like raping their own children, are not even being charged.

Then we have the family that pulled the publicity stunt of faking that their 6 yr old had accidently flown off in the hot air balloon.  Ok, now they apparently are risk takers and media whores, so it is not surprising that people are not concerned about the well being of their children.  Apparently they take them on storm chases and dangerous outings, ok that I get!

What I don’t get is that their lawyer, David Lane, stated; 

"Do not do the perp walk for media consumption and arrest these people in full view of their children. That's child abuse. That's traumatic for kids."

Ok, I get that having the parents arrested in front of the kids is traumatic, but did he have to go as far as to say it is child abuse?

Again, I have a hard time meshing the fact that having parents arrested in front of their kids, in any situation, could be considered child abuse; when we have parents abusing their kids to death...literally.

I read today that ‘Nearly half of all Texas kids killed by abuse were in families with CPS histories’.  Yes, I do realize that is only one state; but with all the child deaths in the news all over the country, I wouldn’t be surprised if there are more states with a percentage in the same range.

Which leads me to the final case that has gotten alot of media attention, while those of children being horribly abused are still suffering.  Apparently the social service workers in Italy had nothing more pressing to do, because they charged a mom with child abuse for being overly protective.  Well, they charge the grandparents as well.

This mom didn’t beat her son, or put cigarette’s out on his body, or scald him with water.  She didn’t let grown men come to her house to rape her son.  So, what did she do?  She cut his school snacks into bite sized pieces.  He is 12 years old, so that is going a bit too far, in my opinion.  But, is that really child abuse?  Why were they even investigating her one would wonder.

According to the article:

The parents divorced soon after the boy's birth and the father claimed that he wasn't permitted to see his son for nine years. Concerned about the child's welfare, he finally contacted social services and prosecutors opened an investigation into the mother and grandparents.

Ah ha!  So, there we have it, his father was concerned.  Ok, I buy that.  But, didn’t the social service workers have more pressing cases?  Maybe not, I don’t live in that country so I can’t speak with any first hand knowledge of what their child abuse rates are.

What is getting me with this is the media circus surrounding these three cases, when we have so many horrific cases going on that are not being reported.  In WI there is a current case of a daughter not wanting to visit her father, presumably because he is abusive and neglectful of her basics needs; such as a bed at his house. 

She has also disclosed sexual abuse, and was with her father when he was arrested for a DUI (which he went to jail for the DUI).  But he isn’t in jail or being charged with child abuse like the parents in the stories above.

Where’s her media circus?  Better yet, where is her JUSTICE?  She can do without the circus.

Oh, and there is another case that I have mentioned here before.  The daughter was taken from her mother and custody was granted to her father; this child isn’t even allowed to visit her mom.  That mothers name is Kristin Hanson, I will not publish the child’s name.  Why did this mom loose custody?

When her daughter was 8 years old she (the daughter) disclosed that she was being sexually abused.  Her daughter refused to go visit her dad because of this (understandably so), her mother felt she could do nothing else to protect her besides run with her.  She was caught.

That girl, now 14, is still after six years living with her father. 

Again, I can not mesh these stories to the ones above.  After having spent several days fuming over all of this, I think I have figured out a portion of why CPS fails to do their job in some of the worst cases, yet in others tend to over-charge parents for doing lesser offenses.

Could it be that CPS workers are afraid of the REAL child abusers?

YouTube - KRISTIN HANSON

 

YouTube - Kristin HANSON # 3

 

Judge Elliott gave child custody to pedophile

 

Another Anony- Anonymiss- We are Every Where

Note: Cross posted from (blogger angelzfury) Anonymoms (we are everywhere).
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Welcome to Anonymiss

Posted September 23, 2009

Hi All, and Welcome to Anonymiss!

Anonymiss is a collective of individuals who value the lives of women and children.  Our intended goal is to provide resources and information to help women and children to lead lives free from all types of abuse.   We respect that men may also encounter some of the issues contained on our site and welcome them to share in the information that is provided; however we are not geared towards males.

Links provided here do not mean that Anonymiss is affiliated in any way with those organizations.   We are providing links to sources that may or may not be able to help you, and we will not be held responsible for information that you gain from or share with these sources.

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We welcome any and all feedback that you provide either through the contact form or through comments on the blogs.

Thank you for stopping by, please share our link with others that may find something useful here.

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Note: Cross posted from (blogger angelzfury) Anonymoms (we are everywhere).
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Filed under: Child Custody Issues Battered Women

What a mother goes through to save her child from neglect and abuse

I received this email from a mother that is desperately trying to free her daughter from an abusive father... I posted yesterday on this case as well:  Butterflies & Hurricanes

I have done nothing wrong, but try to protect my daughter against a flawed system and now I am prepared to be possibly jailed for my crime,  "protection". If I am incarcerated for this I want to bring awareness to the Family Court system by standing up against it, I need help.

I have been involved in several groups of other mothers who have been in my same situation and some that have lost more horribly than I, with their children dying at the hands of their father. We have a common thread of nightmares of cold, uncaring court officials.

Family Court throws women and children off of the sinking ship of custody disputes with an abusive man. They continue to make the wheels of abuse go round and round. I have been ignored, chastised, intimidated and now I am not going to take it anymore. I will not allow my daughter or I become a statistic.

All my friends and family will agree with me that the characteristic I most employ is strength and the will  to do what is right.

I am a mother who is helping her child in pain, to comfort my child and keep her safe, I am no different than any other loving mother who would also never allow their child to be hurt  or tormented by a man who is suppose to love and protect her or anyone else for that matter.

I have been stalked in Family Court by my ex abuser, Craig Hensberger. His court actions against me have escalated since I met and married my best friend, the man of my dreams, my husband, Chad Tipton. Now that I have found true happiness I am certain that my ex abuser is not as happy and since he can no longer abuse me the way he use to, he now resorts to several devious tactics towards our daughter, Michaela.

My ex abuser has now taken another action to  have me jailed for contempt as our daughter does not want to live with him and his mother. My child has admitted that they make her sleep on the floor in the living room or the basement. My daughter is 11 yrs old who is leaving adolescence, she is a pre-teen, she is a young woman who needs to have her own room and bed, like she does here. 

My ex abuser continues to accuse that I have "brainwashed" our daughter against him. That all the abuse she witnessed against her and myself are a distant memory. That the time that she was videotaped by a child advocacy center and told about the way that he would touch her inappropriately and where and how many times is just a lie.

This man has done nothing but lie, cheat and steal to make my life and his daughter's living hell. Including fraudulently signing her up to win money in a fishing derby.

I intend to stand up once again in Marinette County Family Court with presiding Judge David Miron. I am hoping that my plea for the court to help protect my child from the ongoing harassment and abuse.

She does not want to be forced to live with her abuser, I do not blame her, I've been there.

I intend to expose the insanity of Family Court and how a mother can be jailed or punished for allowing my child to stay in a stable, sober, loving environment.

All that know me I mean what I say and I say what I mean. If on September 24, 2009 at 10:00am I am required to appear before Judge Miron to answer why my daughter has once again refused visitation I will, with dignity and respect, fight for what is right.

If this judge follows through with his threat that the next time a motion of contempt was brought before him I would be "put in jail" and that if our daughter was so stressed and having emotional problems that maybe she does need to be placed in foster care.

If jailed I will not take food until the judge releases me, I will hunger strike for justice.

I hope that my family, friends, and other advocates will also help expose by contacting local Green Bay TV media as well as national.

My husband, Chad, can be reached at ottobooboo@yahoo.com or (920) 785-0328. He is in possession of several documents and recordings proving the corruption of a small county with a God Complex, which is also a non-clinical term that does not appear in the DSM but neither does the pseudo scientific theory, Parental Alieanation Syndrome (PAS) or "brainwashing" from which I am accused.

I thank each and everyone of you that have advocated for me in the past and hope for your continued support as I face a fight for life, me and my daughters'.

With Good Grace,
Lorraine Tipton
a.k.a. Mama Liberty

Oconto County Case #99-PA-06
Judge David G. Miron
1926 Hall Avenue
Marinette, WI 54143-1717
(715) 732-7655

BUTTERFLIES & HURRICANES

Cross-posted from Mama Liberty 

“Children say that people are hung sometimes for speaking the truth.” St. Joan of Arc

“I AM NOT AFRAID, I WAS BORN TO DO THIS”

St. Joan of Arc & Mama Liberty

“My child and I have been threatened and intimidated by the possibility that I may go to jail and be held in contempt due to my child refusing to have visitation with her abusive father and she may go to foster care.” Her father has told her this over and over again, as well as Judge David Miron.

This is not the first time that this mother has had to protect her child from the father. Oconto County CPS did substantiate sexual abuse allegations against the the father, he found a loop hole and had the recused Family Court Commissioner, Frank M. Calvert unsubstantiated the sexual abuse allegations.

The system has failed my child, from Oconto County and its CPS worker, Carrie Silbernagel-Burke to Marinette County Circuit Court Judge, David Miron.

This father does not have the means to care for her. She has no bed or a bedroom due to the fact he lives with his mother who only has two bedrooms.

The 11 yr old child is given the choice to sleep either on the floor in the living room or down in the basement. She has no privacy or space to call her own while she is in her fathers care. She is continually tormented and tortured by both her paternal grandmother and father, this is nothing new.

This child has been exposed to domestic violence by her father towards her mother several times. She was also a passenger in his car when he was arrested for driving drunk in the middle of the day. The CPS worker, Carrie Silbernagel-Burke told the mother:

“drinking and driving with his daughter did not make him a bad father, he made a bad choice.”

This was nothing compared to the sexual abuse my child endured and other court ordered abuse.

My child has taken her stand against her abuser, the court ordered abuse and threats of foster care by Judge David Miron.

My child is not an empty vessel, she KNOWS where she is safe. She has not lied to social workers, even with her father prodding her to.

All her needs are provided by her loving Mother and she knows that

“I am not going to shut up, give up or go away!”

“My only wish is for my daughter to be safe and sane.”

If this mother is jailed for doing what any mother would do for her child

the consequences to my accusers and judges will be as follows.

There will be a hunger strike (Troscadh), and all the battles up until now were training for we intend to win the war and expose the dirty little secrets of family court and the criminals that run it.

Change
Everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called
Fights, battles have begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead
Best
You’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is nowChange
Everything you are
And everything you were
Your number has been called
Fights and battles ‘ve begun
Revenge will surely come
Your hard times are ahead

Best
You’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

Don’t
Let yourself down
Don’t let yourself go
Your last chance has arrived

Best
You’ve got to be the best
You’ve got to change the world
And use this chance to be heard
Your time is now

BUTTERFLIES & HURRICANES « MamaLiberty’s Weblog

Dastardly Dads: Recent Studies on Child Abuse and Neglect

Silverside over at Dastardly Dads has done an excellent article on studies of child abuse and neglect.  Here’s part of it...please go to the link after the excerpt and read the whole thing...it is well worth it!

Recently, a fathers rights guy reemed me out for taking another look at The Third National Incidence Study of Child Abuse and Neglect (NIS-3), because that's just "old" data.

http://dastardlydads.blogspot.com/2009/09/another-look-see-at-nis-3-or-what-do.html

I know that often these guys don't have the best reading comprehension skills, so I'm not surprised that he missed the fact that I acknowledged the age of the data right from the beginning (the study itself is 13 years old; the raw data older than that). I also mentioned specifically that:
1)That NIS-4 is not available yet
2) That NIS-3 is still widely quoted all across the political spectrum, even though most bloggers never appeared to have looked at anything but the inco...More here:  Dastardly Dads: Recent Studies on Child Abuse and Neglect: The Role of Fathers in Risk for Child Abuse and Neglect (2005)