1. Child Endangerment and Domestic Violence
Vicky O. Kimbrell
Georgia Legal Services Program
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2. “The battered mother has to worry that if she leaves, the abuser will take her children, and if she doesn’t, that the government will.” Jill Zuccardy, attorney in Nicholson v. Williams

3. Why doesn’t she just leave?
Her childhood
 Isolation
Beliefs about marriage and/or men
FEAR - #1 reason
Safety
Lack of money
Threats to children
Promises
Lack of enforcement
Frequency/Severity of abuse

4. STATE INTERVENTION IN FAMILY VIOLENCE CASES
“My three month old woke up in the middle of the night with an ear infection and temperature. My husband screamed, ‘Shut the baby up, I’m trying to sleep.’ I was trying to comfort her, but nothing worked. He got up, took her and whacked her. She had a black and blue rear end. Now what should I do? If I take her to the doctor, they’ll take her from me because I’m the mother and I allowed this. My husband told me. ‘No matter what you say, I’m going to tell them that you did it.’”
Effective Intervention in Domestic Violence & Child Maltreatment Cases – National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges, p. 11.

5. What would you Do? What would be the Consequences?
Call police.
Call DFCS.
Go to doctor.
Call your family.
Call a friend.
Call a lawyer.
Call a shelter.
Leave.

6. The Child Endangerment Statute - Cruelty to Children
O.C.G.A. Sec
Second Degree - Such person, who is the primary aggressor, intentionally allows a child under the age of 18 to witness the commission of a . . .family violence battery
Such person, who is the primary aggressor, having knowledge that a child under l8 is present and sees or hears the act, commits family violence battery.

7. Legal Requirements before Removal
Continuation in the home contrary to the welfare of the child
Reasonable efforts by DFCS to prevent or eliminate the need for the removal
Such findings shall be made at every subsequent review
Child’s health and safety is paramount (a)(1)
Parents have right to zealous and competent representation. Indigent parents have right to appointed counsel

8. Principles for an Effective and Humane CPS System -Greenbook
Safety, well-being and stability for children and families
Children in care of non-offending parent
Community service system with many points of entry
Differential response to families

9. Principle I: Courts, lawyers, child protective
Principle I: Courts, lawyers, child protective agencies, domestic violence agencies must intervene to create safety, enhance well-being, and provide stability for children and their families.
Domestic violence perpetrators do not victimize only adults.
Where women are abused, their children are also often maltreated.
Services must be provided for the parent-victim to protect children. Erom: Effective Intervention in Domestic Violence & Child Maltreatment Cases – National Council of Juvenile & Family Court Judges - Greenbook

10. Principle II: To ensure stability and permanency for children, courts and communities must try to keep children in the care of their non-offending parent.
Historically, mothers have been held responsible for batterer’s violence – failure to protect;
Shortsighted to remove children from care of their battered mothers rather than remove the batterer;
Link the safety of the children to safety of the mother;
Communities must develop a broad range of services and interventions for family violence –Natl. Assn. Of Public Child Welfare Administrators (1999) Guidelines for a Model System.

11. Principle III: Responsibility for Family Violence Must be Placed Where it Belongs – On the Abuser
Criminal Responsibility
Civil Responsibility
Financial / Economic Responsibility
Batterer Intervention Programs
Parenting Training
Supervised Visitation
Drug/Alcohol Abuse Intervention – Not excuses, not causes of abuse.

12. DV ToolKit - Tools to Effectively Intervene in DV Cases Where Children are at Risk
Do’s and Don’ts
Caseplans
TPOs
DV Shelters
Separation from Batterers
Evaluations
Counseling

13. Separation from BattererDo
Educate Victims on Separation resources -Places, shelters
Financial resources,
Child Support
Public Benefits
TANF, Food Stamps
Medicaid, Peachcare
SSI/SSD
Public/Subsidized Hsg.
PUP funds
Victims Compensation
Don’t
Make Victim Responsible for Separation
Mandate Separation - More women are killed leaving than staying. 75% of homicides during separation

14. Proposed Child Support Changes - HB221
High/Middle Income Family
NCP earns $4,500/CP earns $3,500
Two Children nights of visitation
Current - $
HB221 - $456
Low Income Family
NCP earns $900/CP earns $950
Two children
Currently - $225 per month
HB221 - $57 per month

15. Evaluations Do
Offer Services Relevant to the Safety Needs of the Victim and Children
Don’t
Order evaluations because “everybody” gets them - parenting classes won’t keep anyone safe
Drug testing, mental health - being beaten is not a mental condition

16. Joint Case Plans Put Victims & Their Children in Danger
Make each party responsible only for the actions they can control. “Ms. Jones will not participate in domestic violence.”
If he knows where and when her classes/evaluations/tests/services are scheduled, she’s in danger - and the case plan put her there.
FVIPS are never appropriate for victims

17. Temporary Protective OrdersDo
Advise Client of Options
Refer Client to Legal Services, Private Attys,Legal Advocate, Vic Asstc, SAAGs
Realistically explain benefits and risks of TPOs
Don’t
Mandate TPOs
TPOs can Anger Batterer
Mutual TPOs
Uses your authority to control victim
Victim has more information than you upon which to make decisions

18. Domestic and sexual violence
...threaten survivors’ employment and economic security, which in turn
creates and sustains women’s poverty. A cruel irony, this economic instability then becomes one of the most formidable barriers to survivors escaping abuse.

19. Economic Abuse
Court cannot use lack of economic resources as a basis for taking children from parents.
Court has held that “by harm, the court means either physical harm or significant, long-term emotional harm; we do not mean merely social or economic disadvantages.” Clark v. Wade, 273 Ga. 587 (2001)

20. What can lead to economic abuse?
Lack of child support in TPOs
Lack of property awards in TPOs
Injuries requiring medical attention
Debts - Credit abuse
Lack of Enforcement

21. Custody and Batterers
Batterers are twice as likely to seek sole physical custody for their children than are non-violent fathers.
When batterers do press for custody, they are awarded it at the same rate of non-batterers, 50% of the time.

22. Forced Joint Custody Forcing joint physical custody on unwilling
parents results in high
levels of parental
conflict and re-litigation,
leaving children with
two tense and angry
parents.

23. Standards on Awarding Custody when FV - OCGA (a)(2) – “In a proceeding awarding custody/visitation when family violence is found:”
Court shall consider as primary the safety and well-being of the child and parent who is the victim of family violence;
Court shall consider the perpetrator’s history of harming another;
If one parent is absent or relocates because of family violence such shall not be deemed abandonment of the child;
Court can order supervised visitation.

24. Visitation - OCGA (a)(2) – in a proceeding awarding custody/visitation when family violence is found:
Court shall consider as primary the safety and well-being of the child and parent who is the victim of family violence;
Court shall consider the perpetrator’s history of harming another;
If one parent is absent or relocates because of family violence such shall not be deemed abandonment of the child;
Court can order supervised visitation.
Visitation Centers
Alternatives

25. Safety Planning With the Adult With the Children
Shelter Advocates - Experts in this area
Are Advocates on Case Panels in your community?

26. How Can We Hold the Batterer Accountable for the Violence - Not the Victim?
Separate Caseplans for Perpetrators

27. Batterer Case Plans Perpetrator will: Commit no acts of violence;
Commit no intimidating acts, threats or verbal abuse
Remove all weapons
Comply with all court orders
Attend and comply with all Batterer Intervention program recommendations
Not use physical violence against children

28. Batterer case plans Acknowledge past abuse
Comply with substance abuse recommendations
Comply with mental health recommendations
Pay child support as ordered

29. “The total length of separations of mothers and children [that NY CPS] has caused is measured in years. The suffering and trauma it has caused cannot be measured.” Judge J. Weinstein, Findings of Fact, Nicholson v. Williams