Enforcement of Child Custody Orders: Contempt of Court
When parents engage in parental alienation and/or custodial interference, it can be very destructive to not only the targeted parent, but the children involved as well.
Enforcement of parenting agreements and orders helps parents (in particular – non-custodial parents) who are denied access to the children by the high-conflict parent, get their parenting time restored. Sadly, custodial interference is another method of parental alienation and is usually accompanied by “justification” to the children via bad-mouthing the targeted parent.
Enforcement of these order most often involves the family court system. It’s treated primarily as a civil matter and that’s the venue where the matter is likely going to be heard and addressed. However, if the custodial interference is more serious and is a parental kidnapping, criminal authorities, up to and including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will eventually become involved.
Once a parenting plan is developed and approved by the court (or the court issues a custody order), all parties are bound to its provisions. Violations of the order/agreement are punishable in a variety of ways and are generally heard through contempt-of-court proceedings. If the violation is serious enough – criminal proceedings involving serious federal kidnapping charges may be pursued.
A question that invariably comes up involves child support. We’ve often heard or have seen parents want to tie the two together. “Can I withholding visitation or parenting time if my ex hasn’t paid their child support?” The answer is a resounding NO! The family legal system maintains a separation of visitation and child support issues. Therefore, even if the non custodial parent (NCP) or child support obligor fails to pay child support, parental rights cannot be denied. On the flip side of the equation (and some would say “unfortunately”), even if parental rights are denied a child support obligor cannot legally withhold child support payments. The law exists to “protect” both custodial parents who have not received child support payments and non custodial parents who are denied their parental rights. Unfortunately, the children are the ones who suffer no matter what negative actions either parent may illegally take in situations like these.
Enforcement of parenting plans is generally done at the state level, though there are federal programs designed to facilitate state-level child visitation enforcement. The 1996 Federal Welfare Reform Act created the Federal Parent Locator Service (FPLS) to supposedly help states conduct child visitation enforcement efforts in addition to child support enforcement actions:
The FPLS is an assembly of systems operated by OCSE, to assist States in locating noncustodial parents, putative fathers, and custodial parties for the establishment of paternity and child support obligations, as well as the enforcement and modification of orders for child support, custody and visitation.
However, the reality of the situation is that FPLS is far more often, if not always, used to locate a non-custodial parent so that child support orders can be enforced and money collected. Still, as long as there are domestic violence or child abuse issues involved, this law is supposed to also allow the government to provide information to the non-custodial parent about the child’s whereabouts.
Despite all that you have read here, the sad reality is that enforcement of child custody orders pales in comparison to enforcement of child support orders. It’s common knowledge that when child custody orders are in place and followed, child support payments and compliance remains high. When custody orders are not followed, NCPs often do what they believe will have the maximum impact – withhold child support. Unfortunately, the punishments for custodial interference is not nearly as punitive as those for failure to pay child support. In our minds, this makes no sense given all of the available data that demonstrates high custody order compliance means high child support order compliance.
Until the financial incentives to the states for child support enforcement are eliminated or are shifted instead to custody order enforcement, we’re unlikely to see meaningful changes on these issues in the near term.
This is unfortunately the truth. Although child support has not been an issue, there has been sufficient & excessive custodial interference,horrible acts of parental alienation, along with negative coaching of the children ( thus if they do not agree with Mother’s negative view of their father they are punished to keep them “in check” with her warped way of maneuvering). Although she is in a position of being watched by the courts and did not fare well on her psych eval, she has not received ANY consequences for the emotional damage she has done to the children, nor has she been given any reprimands for multiple counts of contempt of court while in court and via the parenting plan. I wish the courts would pay as much attention to the children’s emotional and psychological well being when there is a high conflict ( and mentally unstable) parent involved as they do the financial side of things. It is sad, and these laws should most definitely be changed. My husband’s ex has caused so much unjust emotional trauma for everyone in our family– I could write a book about it– it can be very frustrating to watch her and others like her virtually get away with it at the children’s expense. It’s not right and in my opinion the emotional damage that she has done is equal to that of physical abuse. Hopefully one day the courts will get it right.
[...] the article Enforcement of Custody Orders, we spoke briefly of how there are Federal Laws that are supposed to be used to enforce both child [...]
[...] Contempt of Court – much like it sounds, when a party willfully fails to follow the terms of the court’s order, they are showing “contempt” for the order and therefore the contempt for the court. They are in contempt of court. This is the name given the petition/proceedings to address a party’s failure to abide with the court’s lawful order. [...]
[...] Enforcement of Child Custody Orders – Contempt of Court [...]
I just don’t understand how PAS is tolerated because it is a form of mental abuse to the children which causes irreperable damage to the children. We have for the past 3 years been documenting my husbands baby mama’s constant interference with visitation and outright lack of cooperation not to mention the hostility generated from it with the kids and we are ready to call an end to it in court. It’s just out of control but it has taken my husband 3 horrible years to get his head out of his butt and say enough is enough! In that time she has managed to alienate the children whenever things don’t go her way which of course is causing the kids to feel torn between their loyalty to her and their love for their father and myself. I refuse to put them in that position so I refrain from commenting other than to say well why do you think that is when the kids ask me why mom calls you names. They honestly don’t know because it makes no sense to them either. I usually say after they finish what they have to say well I don’t do that kind of thing because it just hurts you guys and you are too important to me to put you in the middle of an adult situation just be kids and know I love you no matter what. Sooner or later it will backfire on her and I know that the resentment they will someday feel will be toward her not me or my husband because we do our best to make their world a safe and comforting place to be. She has refused meetings to iron out the hot button issues and tries to rule my home from afar by telling us what to do with girls on our time via the girls commentary. I think there should be a reduction of child support to combat this issue for all non custodial parents and we are pursuing that venue when we take her to court and fighting for 50/50 placement due to contempt of a court order for visitation.
I have strugggled as a father dealing with my ex-wife for 4 horrifying years. My ex has used our children as pawns. She had ran away with them approximately 95 mi away for one year before ever finding my children. I have lost my home and everything in order to finding my children. Upon bringing her back in court, the court order me to have more visitation time which went real well for about one year. She has now done it again 2x since then and I have lost a total of 2 years of my daughter’s lives. I am still fighting this issue but don’t have the financial means to bring her back in court. I pray each day for our daughter’s lives and their wellfare until retaining full custody for mental abuse. I have filed complaints with their local sherriff’s dept and also CPS and have very limited luck. It is not fair to us fathers’ for the abuse that we have to lay aside until hopefully one day it can be resolved. I pray to our justice system that soon the laws will be more punishable to the defendant and hopefully my daughter’s will not be scarred for life. I wish all of the father’s and mother’s who face such a treacherous torment to those of us who suffer such a mental impact while waiting on a resolution. My heart goes out to each parent who faces such a dilemma. If anyone that reads this can be of any assistance to me, please feel free to write to me and maybe we can petition across state wide to have this changed for the benefit of our dear children.
michael_ross8517@yahoo.com
I am struggling with my ex-husband at this time with several issues regarding our divorce & custody orders. We were legally divorced & the custody order filed in Nevada in the spring of 2008. After staying in NV for apx 8 months after the final divorce, I moved to New Mexico with our 3 children. I did not put anything in writing but discussed this with my ex-husband and all were in agreement. The children lived with me & attended school(s) in New Mexico & Texas, in a safe & successful home from November 2008 until March 2011. My ex-husband did not pay the ordered $1200.00 a month for child support. He did pay $400.00 a month when he deemed it appropriate. If he had them for summer visitation etc, he did not pay and there were other months that he did not pay as well. He tried to tell me he did not make the same kind of money he made while we were married and that we had bills from our joint business that he needed to pay off first. I tried to work with him & keep a good relationship with both parents & the children. In March 2011 the children asked that they try living with their father for a trial period. Due to personal dealings in my own life I told them we (all of us) would try moving back to NV for one month. This was a difficult transition as their father had agreed to help find us housing and me a job. The job came through but the housing he had promised never came to be. He had plans of putting our family back together. After 6 weeks and numerous confrontations with their father I left and went back to NM with the agreement they could finish out that school year. It was supposed to be discussed that the children, part or all, would decide where they wanted to live for 2011-2012 school year. The father took it upon himself to judge me tell the children and myself that they would never live with me again. I again agreed they could stay for one more school year and he’s now telling us they can not come back to NM again for the next year. I have to stop this cycle. I need to know where to start. There’s the past child support issue & now the fact that he’s trying to make his own parenting plan or custody orders. I can no longer think I can keep this out of some sort of legal proceedings. Our oldest daughter will be 15 in April, can she choose? I’m ok with her making a choice. Our 2 boys are 11 & 8yrs. I feel they need to be with me as originally decreed due o their age & their father’s lack of structural parenting. All 3 children are having different behavior & or attitude problems and their school grades are slipping. Please help me know where to start. Thanks, Terri
dcs took my children in october and lied to me telling me if i had done certain things i would get them back…. I have complied with everything they have asked of me and dcs has closed my case giving custody to my oldiest daughters father and step mother of both my girls. They have been in violation of court orders since day one not letting me have my court ordered phone calls,visitation and also step mother and father have been physically assualting my children. they seem to have dcs in the state of tennesssee bambuzzled and then abandondened them for a period of 3 days with no clothes and my oldest daughters medication… I have very good children and they nor does any child deserve what they have had to endure. Espessially from the oldiest daughters father being told they are not welcome in the home because of the step mother.. signed desperate for my children and don’t know what to do!
My ex husband is doing what Michael Ross’ ex wife did to him. He has moved out of state without notifying me or the court. He has turned off my daughters phone that I pay for. He won’t tell me where they are. Haven’t seen her in 2 years or spoke to her in 3 months. I’m scared he will turn in around with his manipulative ways and make it seem like I abandoned her. I’m scared to file for contempT because he is such a out right liar and manipulator and I’m scared the judge will believe him again. Just like the false allegations of neglect and abuse he made when we began our divorce. ALl to make me look bad and it worked.
My ex and I have a schedule for visitation through court. It is for ev other Holiday, 4 weeks in summer, etc. We live in separate states. However, he agreed verbally with me he would only have her for 2 of the 4 weeks on the schedule during the summer. He has become extremely emotionally abusive towards her to the point she is crying and hyperventilating on the phone to come home to me. I have been told the police would just do a routine visit if I asked, and leave if there are no bruises. It is EMOTIONAL abuse we are talking about here. He says she is staying the 4 weeks or I will be in direct violation of the court ordered visitation. I need to get her away from him til I can afford a lawyer and get it reduced.. in the meantime. Would I be in violation if I go to town, have police meet me, and have her removed from his home? I really am desperate.
Lisa – given that there is a court order in place for visitation, I have little hope that there is anything that you can do until a court order changes that 4 weeks of parenting time with dad. You may very well be stuck with the situation as it currently is. I don’t see the police taking the child from him and giving her to you, even under the circumstances you describe.