What Is Supervised Visitation and When Is It Used?

When parents separate or divorce, a priority for many is making sure they see their children on a regular basis. Frequent parent/child contact is essential for a healthy relationship and the child’s overall development. Consequently, securing sufficient visitation, often called parenting time, is of particular importance to the parent that does not have primary custody. Florida law favors awarding parenting responsibility to both parties equally, but parenting time can quickly become a hotly-disputed issue if a party claims the other parent poses a risk to the child’s safety or health. The best interests of the child is always the pivotal concern and driving factor behind custody and visitation decisions, and evidence of domestic violence, child abuse, child neglect, child abandonment or sexual violence is likely to result in limited, if not a denial of, visitation with the child. One mechanism courts use when they want to allow some contact between a parent, but need to ensure the environment is safe, is to impose supervised visitation. A recent news story out of Pasco County illustrates another situation that could persuade a court to restrict visitation. An Amber Alert was issued when a father embroiled in a custody dispute drove up and snatched his two-year-old away from the mother. The man took this action after emergency efforts to see his son via court order were denied. A discussion of how supervised visitation works will follow below.

The Purpose of Supervised Visitation and Basic Setup

As noted above, supervised visitation is designed to give a parent viewed as posing a risk to the child and/or the other parent an opportunity to exercise some degree of visitation with his/her child. It also offers the child the important benefit having two parents in his/her life. In addition, this structure is used if there is a concern about possible parental kidnapping, and to prevent improper interaction between the parent and child. This kind of visitation involves conducting the interaction between the parent and child at a neutral site and in the presence of a visit monitor who is tasked with ensuring the contact remains safe for the child.

The Process/Programs

Typically, parents are ordered into these programs in connection with divorce/child custody proceedings, domestic violence cases and criminal cases. While in-person supervised visitation is an integral component of these programs, other types of monitoring are also possible, including:

• monitored parental exchanges of the child;
• telephone monitoring; and
• therapeutic monitoring.

The monitor is present first and foremost to protect the child, but also to perform the following duties:

• keep the nature and content of the visits confidential and remain neutral;
• check that all instructions from the court are followed;
• pass on information between the custodial and non-custodial parent related to the child’s welfare;
• keep records of observations from every visit;
• provide instruction and feedback to the parties when necessary; and
• suspend or end a session if the safety of all participants cannot be guaranteed.

In order to fulfill this role, visit monitors receive specialized training on how to respond, recognize and control interactions that involve families dealing with domestic violence, child maltreatment and post-traumatic stress disorders.

Talk to a Family Law Attorney

There are few issues more important than seeing your child, and if you have questions or concerns about visitation or custody issues, talk to a family law attorney about your rights. The Tampa Bay law firm All Family Law Group, P.A. focuses on family law matters, and can assist you with obtaining the best possible resolution in your case.  Contact the Tampa divorce attorneys and family lawyers at All Family Law Group, P.A. in Tampa Bay at 813-816-2232 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

by Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+

When a Parent Becomes a Kidnapper

Police in Massachusetts are searching for a Quincy-area mother for allegedly “kidnapping” her five children. Unfortunately, this mother is neither the first nor will she be the last parent to face accusations of “kidnapping” their own children. Although it may seem counterintuitive, Florida and other states allow a parent to be charged with kidnapping his or her own child. According to the U.S. Department of Justice and a 2002 study from its Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, an estimated 203,900 children were the victims of parental kidnapping in 1999. Fifty-three percent of these children were abducted by their father, while 25 percent were abducted by their mother. Twenty-one percent were missing or gone for one month or longer.

What Constitutes Parental Kidnapping?

While some divorcing parents are able to put aside their differences and feelings for one another and cooperate for the benefit of their child or children, other parents use children as a means of controlling or punishing the other parent. In general and regardless of the reason, any attempt by one parent to deny the other parent reasonable parenting time with the childwithout either an emergency or court order can be considered “parental kidnapping.” Common parental kidnapping scenarios include:

• Failing to follow a court-ordered parenting plan by failing to return the child at the conclusion of the parent’s parenting time;
• Moving out of state (or to another country) with the child without the approval of the other parent and/or the court;
• In the absence of a court-approved parenting plan, refusing to allow the other parent to exercise reasonable parenting time with the child.

Not all actions by a parent that deprive the other parent of parenting time will result in criminal sanctions. For instance, a parent charged with parental kidnapping can show that he or she deprived the other parent of parenting time because doing so was necessary to protect the welfare of the child.

What Should I Do if I Believe the Other Parent Will “Kidnap” Our Child?

If you believe that the other parent is likely to abduct or kidnap your child, you must be proactive. You do not necessarily need to wait for the other parent to actually kidnap the child in order to act; however, you may find a court is not able to help you if there is no evidence a kidnapping is about to take place. For instance, the fact that the other parent has relatives that live in another country may not be enough to convince a court to enter protective orders or award you sole custody. Conversely, relatives who live in another country coupled with texts, e-mails, or phone messages in which the other parent threatens to take the child away can influence a court to take protective measures.

As with any other custody-related issue, an experienced Tampa divorce attorney is useful in ensuring the proper motions are timely filed and decided in order to protect your child. At the All Family Law Group, P.A., we are here to help you. Contact our offices in Tampa Bay at 813-321-3421 for a consultation at no charge or email us.

By Lynette Silon-Laguna Google+