JACKS LAW

National Independent Auditing of Family Courts/Courtroom protection for fleeing victims of Domestic Abuse.

Davida Sanchez
Domestic Abuse Survivor/ MOM
Abbavida3@gmail.com

Women Put in "Catch 22 from Which There Is No Escape"

"A frightening number of mothers who love their children are having to watch these children raised by the very men that society told them to leave because they were being abused....A woman who protects herself is considered selfish for not protecting her children enough, and if she protects her children, she is alienating them from their father. Women are put into a catch 22 situation from which there is no escape."
- Elaine M. Doxie, mom and blogger

It is one of the most frightening statistics in the world. 70% of men who sue for custody get it, and of those men who sue for custody, 80% to 90% of them are abusive. This means that a frightening number of mothers who love their children are having to watch these children raised by the very men that society told them to leave because they were being abused. This is a horrible injustice and needs to be addressed. 58,000 women per year are losing custody of their children to their abuser! 

These same men claim that the women raise false allegations of abuse to get a “leg up” in the divorce. However, it has been proven that only 1-2% of women who claim abuse are lying, as opposed to 15% of men who bring up abuse charges. This means that men are far more likely to lie about abuse than women are, yet it is women who get the bad reputation. Father’s rights groups, some innocently, some not so innocently claim that the mothers are alienating the children from their fathers, when the reality is often just the opposite.

Part of the problem is that the family courts do not take domestic violence into account at all if you don’t have proof of it, and it is difficult at best to come up with proof unless the woman has almost died from it. Even with proof of domestic violence, it is often considered to be irrelevant to his parenting abilities, making it a moot point in court.

Another issue that arises is that the courts fear having the appearance of being unfair to fathers, causing them to be unfair to mothers instead. They also hold women to a higher standard of parenting than they hold men to. If a woman makes any mistakes in raising her children, the courts frown upon it. If she has to hold down two jobs to make ends meet, she is not involved enough with her children. If one job cannot support her children, she is not financially responsible enough.

On the other hand, a man that goes out and works two jobs is considered incredibly responsible and a good role model for the children, even if he comes home to yell at his wife and children. A woman who protects herself is considered selfish for not protecting her children enough, and if she protects her children, she is alienating them from their father. Women are put into a catch 22 situation from which there is no escape.

Until these problems are addressed, good mothers will continue to lose custody of their children to abusive fathers. It is necessary to stop this practice in the family courts and get justice for all mothers and their children.

Our society is currently giving mothers a powerful and crazy-making mixed message. First, it says to mothers, If your children's father is violent or abusive to you or to your children, you should leave him in order to keep your children from being exposed to his behavior. But then, if the mother does leave, the society many times appears to do an abrupt about-face, and say, Now that you are split up from your abusive partner, you must expose your children to him. Only now you must send them alone with him, without you even being around anymore to keep an eye on whether they are okay.
What do we want? Do we want mothers to protect their children from abusers, or don't we?

Protective mothers are some of our societys most invisible and most important heroes, even while they are treated so often, in a bitter irony, as villains. The problem with leaving the abuser is he can then continue to attack his victims in family courts. With no accountability over the Judges or the attorneys it is pretty much anything goes if you have the filing fees. And are willing to pay an attorney hand over fist to destroy your victims in front of a biased judge. It is time to STOP the legal abuse and destruction of Domestic Abuse victims that flee with their children. They need protection and safety to pick up the pieces and heal from the damage inflicted upon them by the abusers choices and actions.

Goals
Independent State panel of legally trained auditors to oversee Family Courts
Randomly without notice to the courts or council audit Judges decisions and compare to signed orders written by council.
Full disclosure of any and all personal relationships between parties to for an unbiased decision on legal issues and the parties involved.
Proper documented education/background of all involved in , but not limited to - Psychology , Child Psychology, Domestic Abuse, Domestic Abuse Effects on children and families.
In extreme cases of abuse to the children a court appointed Child Advocate with the above mentioned education and credentials will be appointed to the children to make decisions regarding the safest and most beneficial environment.

Proper classes for all parties/guardians that educate the effects of Domestic Abuse. And a class on the rights to Self Protect along with family counseling.

With any documentation (Police reports, CPS reports, Hospital records, Counseling/therapist records, etc.) of the Domestic Abuse the Courts will employ this Encompassing Order of protection for all fleeing family members. For a minimum three year term, that can/will be renewed based upon any changes or concerns for future safety.

Specifications
Four times per year there will be an independent audit by various employees of the State organized legal team consisting of a Child Advocate and a legally trained auditor. This audit will be set by the State Bar teams that prepare calendars based on need and complaint.

A write up consisting of several failed safety concerns in any Domestic Abuse cases will be flagged for review. Upon review any write ups will be corrected and the county will be flagged for an extra random review added to the scheduled quarterly audit.
The cases can and will be handled in a legal and binding fashion within the perimeters of the overall safety of the victims involved.
The Children and victim will have the first and foremost protection of the courts from legal harassment, and a long standing RO for the fleeing family until proper safety measures have been installed by the courts.

Suggestions - 
Utilizing Law students and Psychology/Child Psychology students from nearby colleges would be a great resource for this to run smoothly. As both students are bright and properly trained to do this type of work. This could be considered for a non profit humanitarian public service. And could help reduce student loans for students willing to take on this statewide project throughout our nation. Or grants for furthering their education.
Overseen by Law/Psychology professors for quality control.

Milestones -
Correct our legal system
By holding our Family Courts to a higher system of accountable behavior we will become a better run legal system. Without anyone overseeing decisions being made there is far too much room for personal error and extreme manipulation of our courts.
Proper handling of misconduct within these cases should be reported to the Bar Association for their review as well.
Education of the overall effects domestic abuse causes.
Education is a truly useful tool in stopping future abuse of our legal system and future domestic abuse. Or worse, using our legal system to continue to abuse victims.
Ongoing counseling for all involved should be court ordered for avoiding any future effects of the abuse. And for the overall healing process to begin within the family unit.
Domestic abuse counseling for one full year. And ONLY after individual recovery Counseling for each family member has been completed. If it is SAFE and HEALTHY, Visitation may be supported and assimilated into the family. A reevaluation should be done to gauge the overall safety and well being to the children * By an educated and qualified Therapist/Psychologist

NOTE:
Incorporating Right to self protect counseling in our school system would be a great start to heal and protect families from future damage from many forms of abuse. We need to address this at an earlier satge to stop it from continueing in the future actions of our youth. Education is key.

NATIONAL STATISTICS
Every 9 seconds in the US, a woman is assaulted or beaten.
On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. During one year, this equates to more than 10 million women and men.
1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have been victims of [some form of] physical violence by an intimate partner within their lifetime.
1 in 5 women and 1 in 7 men have been victims of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
1 in 7 women and 1 in 18 men have been stalked by an intimate partner during their lifetime to the point in which they felt very fearful or believed that they or someone close to them would be harmed or killed.
On a typical day, there are more than 20,000 phone calls placed to domestic violence hotlines nationwide.
The presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation increases the risk of homicide by 500%.
Intimate partner violence accounts for 15% of all violent crime.
Women between the ages of 18-24 are most commonly abused by an intimate partner.
19% of domestic violence involves a weapon.
Domestic victimization is correlated with a higher rate of depression and suicidal behavior.
Only 34% of people who are injured by intimate partners receive medical care for their injuries.
RAPE
1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men in the United States has been raped in their lifetime.
Almost half of female (46.7%) and male (44.9%) victims of rape in the United States were raped by an acquaintance. Of these, 45.4% of female rape victims and 29% of male rape victims were raped by an intimate partner.
STALKING
19.3 million women and 5.1 million men in the United States have been stalked in their lifetime.1 60.8% of female stalking victims and 43.5% men reported being stalked by a current or former intimate partner.
HOMICIDE
A study of intimate partner homicides found that 20% of victims were not the intimate partners themselves, but family members, friends, neighbors, persons who intervened, law enforcement responders, or bystanders.
72% of all murder-suicides involve an intimate partner; 94% of the victims of these murder suicides are female.
CHILDREN AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
1 in 15 children are exposed to intimate partner violence each year, and 90% of these children are eyewitnesses to this violence.
ECONOMIC IMPACT
Victims of intimate partner violence lose a total of 8.0 million days of paid work each year.
The cost of intimate partner violence exceeds $8.3 billion per year.
Between 21-60% of victims of intimate partner violence lose their jobs due to reasons stemming from the abuse.
Between 2003 and 2008, 142 women were murdered in their workplace by their abuser, 78% of women killed in the workplace during this timeframe.
PHYSICAL/MENTAL IMPACT
Women abused by their intimate partners are more vulnerable to contracting HIV or other STIs due to forced intercourse or prolonged exposure to stress.
Studies suggest that there is a relationship between intimate partner violence and depression and suicidal behavior.
Physical, mental, and sexual and reproductive health effects have been linked with intimate partner violence including adolescent pregnancy, unintended pregnancy in general, miscarriage, stillbirth, intrauterine hemorrhage, nutritional deficiency, abdominal pain and other gastrointestinal problems, neurological disorders, chronic pain, disability, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as noncommunicable diseases such as hypertension, cancer and cardiovascular diseases. Victims of domestic violence are also at higher risk for developing addictions to alcohol, tobacco, or drugs.

                 WE JUST PASSED A SIMILAR LAW IN HAWAII

                                         House BILL 1701                  

                   WE NEED THIS TO BE A NATION WIDE LAW!

In closing, if we can put so much effort and consideration into auditing our fast food chains; WE OWE OUR CHILDREN FAR MORE! Let us stop helping the abusers continue to destroy their victims by abusing their children by proxy and in our courtrooms! Let us help our victims and their children be survivors with our help, resources and protection!