Anyone who has ever had anything to do with Family Courts or has ever gone through a divorce or custody battle knows the term Parental Alienation.
Parental Alienation is defined as: when one parent discredits the other parent to a child or children the two share. For example, perhaps mom tells her child that their dad doesn’t love them or want to see them. Or a dad tells his child that their mom prefers her new family (and kids with a new partner) to them. This definition comes from Healthline Parenthood.
South Carolina Attorney Lauren Taylor Law Firm also defines it as such: How is Parental Alienation Defined in South Carolina? Parental alienation refers to the loss or damage of a relationship between a parent and child. … The intent is typically to sever the child’s relationship with the other parent by: Saying negative things about the other parent in front of or to the child.
In many cases that involve Family Courts it’s sad to say that children are the main victims. Several experts have stated that Family Court Judges lack the knowledge or experience to truly decide the fate of children. Dr. Mark Roseman, who operates the Toby Center in Florida stated that the mental effects of separating a child from a loving and fit parent lasts with that child into 6 generations.
Guardian ad Litem’s who are assigned to be the voices of these children also lack the necessary training to truly represent a child in Family Courts. The true voices of these children are often never heard.
The Daily Counter has written several stories pertaining to Family Court and it’s questionable practices when it comes to children. We began asking the question…
“WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN IN THESE CASES?”
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One of the first stories we ran was on Clint Doran and his fight for his children Connor and Liam. Doran showed us several videos dating back to their birth to the pick ups and drop off on his court ordered visitation. When it came to the videos of his visitation with his children that was Court Ordered for 9 Hours a week, even though he had been the primary care giver the last 3 years of his marriage, our hearts went out to these children.
Mr. Doran gave us a copy of a video that his oldest son Connor had made thinking he was on facebook. In this video Connor begs for his father to come home and for his parents to get counseling in order to save his family. We must warn you this video is heartbreaking to watch.
This video was never shown in the court room. Nor did the Guardian ad Litem ever make reference to the wishes of Connor and Liam.
Mr. Doran according to the Divorce Decree was given the standard every other weekend visitation, until he chose to fight for his children. His visitation was halted and he was ordered to pay for Parental Alienation sessions. It was at this point Mr. Doran was taken into custody for non-payment of his wife’s attorney fees and past Guardian ad Litem fees, which were stayed due to his filing of an Appeal of the Divorce Decree. Mr. Doran even showed us an Order signed by Judge Dana Morris stating the GAL fees were stayed.
A Criminal Court heard a Habeas Corpus filing by Mr. Doran on this matter and stated the Family Court made factual and legal errors, but Mr. Doran remained incarcerated for the 6 month sentence.
Mr. Doran has not seen his children for nearly 2 years and continues to fight for them.
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Another such story is Matt Younger. Mr. Younger’s two children stated they wanted to stay with their father, but were Court Ordered to attend Parental Reunification Therapy in Montana. One common denominator in these two stories is they both had the same Family Court Judge, Monet Pincus. Mr. Younger had to pay over $30,000 for this therapy before having this decision reversed and gaining his children back.
At the reconfirmation hearing for Judge Monet Pincus, Mr. Younger and his children were there to speak out against this Judges reconfirmation. Mr. Younger had documentation that was presented to the committee showing this Judges violations of law. The hearing was continued and at the second hearing Mr. Younger was ignored and not allowed to speak out with the requested documentation that the committee had requested from him.
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Dr. Mark Roseman, a renouned psychologist and CEO and Founder of the Toby Center in Florida gave an interview on Parental Alienation and its effects on children:
These are just a few of the stories of how children are ignored and traumatized by untrained individuals who profit from the tears of children.
Legislation is being blocked by Attorney/Legislators in the South Carolina State House who wish to continue the cycle of abuse on our children. Many organizations such as The Father’s Rights Movement, The FCLU, American’s For Equal Shared Parenting and many others are fighting to protect children’s rights and prevent the further profiteering of children in the Family Court system. All these organizations request Citizens contact their State Legislators and demand Shared Parenting be placed in South Carolina. Over 20 other States in the U.S. have already instituted Shared/Equal Custody as the Best Interest for Children.