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General News    H3'ed 5/30/10

Why Have Courts Ignored The Evidence

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Message Gail Lakritz

Child rape is serious enough, an accusation alone can ruin the life of a person. What if there were a test that can exonerate a man from such a charge? Well there is, and no one is using it. Why? It could also prove, when a child discloses, that the person they are naming has the required predetermination towards pedophilia or the accused is not telling the truth.

I am currently in touch with a woman, Karen, who lives in the Boston area. She has two young sons who disclosed that their father was sexually molesting them. The case is in a Pennsylvania court, near the same courts that were found to be jailing children for money.

The boys were in the custody of their father and living in Pennsylvania. The mother had fled the abusive marriage. Father is an airline pilot and mother is an à ©migrà © from another country. She entered this country legally after meeting the father. He had promised to sponsor her for citizenship, but once married, refused to sign the papers. Her passport has now expired and she is forced by the courts to remain in this country illegally, unable to work and support herself or her sons. "The U.S. Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect suggests that domestic violence may be the single major precursor to child abuse." [i]

The suspicion of sexual assault was first raised by teachers in their preschool while in the primary custody of the father. The boys were displaying behaviors consistent with knowledge of sexual activities far beyond their ages. The older boy would grab two male dolls and emulate anal sex. The other, younger one, had an prostrate infection at just over one year of age, a condition consistent with sexual abuse. It was only after the attention of the teachers was raised, that the boys, first the older, more verbal one, disclosed to their mother and her new husband. Some time would pass before the younger boy would disclose.

The mother's first reaction was one of disbelief. Surely a father would not harm their own child. She, like most people facing a situation of this type thought these sort of things were done by strangers or near strangers, not by a biological father. Research indicates that 30% of child molesters are an immediate family member.[ii] When the indications from other sources became known to Karen, she did everything right.

She contacted Child Protective Services in Pennsylvania and filed for a change of custody. Child Protective Services investigated the claims of the children and concluded there was enough evidence to substantiate the claims of the boys and recommended to the courts that the children be placed with the mother. The court agreed and that should have been the end of the matter, but it is not.

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Survivor of and activist against violence on women. In America, only 5% of rapists are convicted. 32% of women live in domestically violent situations with no way out. Courts are less likely to believe charges of sexual abuse of children made by (more...)
 
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