BM Witholding access - can anything be done while waiting for hearing on contempt?
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DH's motion for contempt will not come up for another few months as they ran out of time the other day at court. Judge decided to deal with her motion for temporary relief first. Three motions and one hour, they didnt get very far. Nothing was decided on other than the Judge agreeing to appoint a GAL. Anyhow, here we are another weekend with BM not letting the kids come over. We are in Florida. Does anyone know if we can do anything or stand helplessly by until the next court date?
It depends. In some cities,
It depends. In some cities, the police won't get involved. In other cities, if you have a copy of the CO, the police will make BM give them up for the visitation.
I'd look into state laws on
I'd look into state laws on custodial interference.
Police will not get involved
Police will not get involved it is a civil matter. Which means wait for court. In Florida they can not get involved with 'taking the kids' unless DCFS requests them to, or they have a signed judicial order stating find and take into custody "these" kids and give them to " named parent'.
While your waiting: Go right back down to family court and file the paperwork that Dad wants his kids the full 50% of the time allowed to him based off new laws that just went into effect as of 07.01.2013.
Any father who wants 50% custody of his kids, who currently reside full time with mother, only has to file asking for his rights to equal access.
So you pay the court filing fee, significant change in circumstance is change in Florida law.. and BM SHITS herself has dad gets half custody and her CS goes to 0.00 or a very nominal amount.
BM has them 60% of the time
BM has them 60% of the time and DH 40%. There does not seem to be much he can do but wait for the court date and hope to get the time back with his kids at that point. And document it of course, he has let his attorney know.
Florida
Florida Statutes:
http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&S...
(c) When a parent refuses to honor the time-sharing schedule in the parenting plan without proper cause, the court:
1. Shall, after calculating the amount of time-sharing improperly denied, award the parent denied time a sufficient amount of extra time-sharing to compensate for the time-sharing missed, and such time-sharing shall be ordered as expeditiously as possible in a manner consistent with the best interests of the child and scheduled in a manner that is convenient for the parent deprived of time-sharing. In ordering any makeup time-sharing, the court shall schedule such time-sharing in a manner that is consistent with the best interests of the child or children and that is convenient for the nonoffending parent and at the expense of the noncompliant parent.
2. May order the parent who did not provide time-sharing or did not properly exercise time-sharing under the time-sharing schedule to pay reasonable court costs and attorney’s fees incurred by the nonoffending parent to enforce the time-sharing schedule.
3. May order the parent who did not provide time-sharing or did not properly exercise time-sharing under the time-sharing schedule to attend a parenting course approved by the judicial circuit.
4. May order the parent who did not provide time-sharing or did not properly exercise time-sharing under the time-sharing schedule to do community service if the order will not interfere with the welfare of the child.
5. May order the parent who did not provide time-sharing or did not properly exercise time-sharing under the time-sharing schedule to have the financial burden of promoting frequent and continuing contact when that parent and child reside further than 60 miles from the other parent.
6. May, upon the request of the parent who did not violate the time-sharing schedule, modify the parenting plan if modification is in the best interests of the child.
7. May impose any other reasonable sanction as a result of noncompliance.
(d) A person who violates this subsection may be punished by contempt of court or other remedies as the court deems appropriate.
As an after thought: What is
As an after thought: What is stopping Dad from just going to the school and getting the kids for his time?
What is the time split? I know you said 60/40. What days/times?
DH has the kids Thursday
DH has the kids Thursday through Monday EOW and a 50/50 split during the summer school holidays. BM is very manipulative and signed them up for the gym every Thursday without his permission. The skids were insisting that they want to go (at this point they are PAS'd) in order to keep BM happy. Or perhaps they actually enjoy three hours of intensive training at Crossfit twice a week and like throwing up with BM screaming at them to keep exercising. BM is into excessive exercise and their muscles have to hurt, "to feel the pain" to stay healthy.
DH has gone along with this to keep the skids happy and BM promised to bring them over to our home after the gym. This has not happened, each week she makes all sorts of ridiculous excuses to keep them on the Thursday night. Wanting them on Thursdays nights is the topic of her motion for temporary relief because of the "hardship" on them. We live five minutes away and they have a lovely home with us! So every other Thursday has turned into a drama with DH very upset and venting to me. I have tried to stay out of it but also want to support him. He now says he will pick them up next Thursday after school and to hell with the gym. But of course BM has already told the skids that he won't let them go to their gym and is mean, a bully blah blah blah.
If these were my children I would handle this very differently however they are not mine and I have no say. DH just gets angry with me if I make suggestions differently than his ideas. Maybe the GAL assigned will take note of their excessive obsession with exercising and their refusal now to eat anything other than plain chicken and fruit. No carbs.......skids are 15 and 11 and already too small for their ages.