I am the mother of a wonderful little boy. Last year, his biological father lied to a judge and took my son away from me. His excuse? I forced him into it. How I "forced" him, I don't know, but I was NOT doing anything harmful to my little boy- no drugs, no alcoholism, no smoking, no abuse or neglect of any sort, as Family Support Division (or whatever they call themselves now) here in Missouri could tell you.
"Nial" (to protect him) is undergoing some trauma do to this horrible misuse of the law. He shows several signs of seperation anxiety not apparent before he was taken. I have tried to reason with his father, to no avail. He refuses to believe Nial might actually prefer to live with a parent he has known all his life to a veritible stranger.
I am unable to get legal assistance from the public realm. The office with jurisdiction claims to be too "backlogged" to help me. Perhaps they are, but that does nothing to help my son. I do qualify for legal aid, as well as other public assistance, but, once again, it does not help my little boy.
I have contacted too many lawyers to count, to try to find one that would take payments on the retainer. None have even considered it. All want a minimum of $2000+ just for the retainer, not counting what they will charge for services. None will consider "pro bono" that I have contacted, all saying they cannot afford to for one reason or another. (Some sound sincere, but that still doesn't help!)
The law that allowed this horrer is the one that allows for "service by publication". The biological father had numerous ways to contact me: indeed, he knew where to pick up Nial after the hearing! He just used the fact that I was travelling with family and friends as a reason to say he could not have me served papers. Despite contacting some of my family to demand to know where Nial was, he never even hinted he had moved back to the state, let alone started court proceedings to gain custody. We also spoke on the phone in early July, and he told me he couldn't see Nial because he had to go back to North Dakota. He lied to the court about being able to contact me. He also lied about other things, as I found out when I read the transcript. I am merely stating facts. There are witnesses and should be some sort of phone record of that conversation.
I even took Nial to see his paternal grandmother in August, and she never said a word about the custody hearing. She never even told me about that man moving back to Missouri! So it seems there was a conspiracy to keep it secret from me so I could not attend. I think this is because had I been there, HE would never had a chance to get custody of Nial!
That court date was October 9th, 2003. I only get every other weekend with my son, and some holidays. This is a dramatic change from his father only visiting only once every other month! My doctor has seen Nial on a few occasions since he was taken. She is concerned about his psychological health and the deterioration in his behavior. He has gone from being polite and considerate to being bossy, pushy, and whiney. He is using inappropriate language for his age, as well. It is horrific to hear some of the things he says- if he uses that language when he starts school next year, he will be in trouble all the time!
Please, if you can assist in any way, contact me at: [email protected]. If you know a lawyer who will take the case pro bono, or will work with me, or if you care to make a donation of some sort, I would be eternally grateful. Also, please pass this to anyone you know, even if you don't think they can help- they may know someone who can!
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