MOTHER WHO ABDUCTED CHILDREN NOW FIGHTING FOR CHILD CUSTODY

An international custody dispute is usually filled with uncertainties. One reason: the laws and cultures of different countries may differ on what is a just resolution. It’s even more problematic when there are accusations of child abduction and sexual abuse. In one case, a woman originally from Michigan is in a child custody trial where one issue is the impact that her abduction of the children from another country will have on her desire to obtain legal custody of them.

The woman fled with the children from their country of residence several years ago and eventually ended up residing in this country. She stated that she took the children because she believed that their father, then her husband, was sexually abusing them. She testified to seeing her husband sexually aroused several times when holding their 2-year-old daughter; she also claims to have heard from her grandmother that he sexually fondled the child while changing her diaper.

The trial is in a federal court in New Hampshire. The father, who is from Turkey, claims that a Turkish court decided the abuse charges were unfounded and gave him legal custody in 2006. He claims also that his former wife violated the International Child Abduction Convention of The Hague by taking the children in 2007.

The federal judge hearing the case called the woman’s actions illegal. He also heard her admit to not telling Turkish authorities of the abuse and to being uncertain about whether there was abuse. However, under The Hague rules, the judge can give legal custody to the mother on the basis that there would be too much additional disruption to the children by now returning them to Turkey.

The judge’s discretion is indicative of the universal rule that child custody is determined by what is now in the best interest of the child or children. That consideration allows a parent to possibly get legal custody despite prior bad actions. In Michigan, the same principles apply, and it is the best interests of the child that is the controlling standard in a child custody dispute.

Source: The Detroit News, “Ex-Michigan woman in custody fight,” Lynne Tuohy, Jan. 23, 2013