F.A.C.T. Information: Parental Alienation

F.A.C.T. Information: Parental Alienation More great information is available through F.A.C.T. See our home page at www.fact.on.ca Some of the Literature on Parental Alienation Rather than just reading the PAS material here, there is now an opportunity to provide YOUR input into the adoption of Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) into the DSM-V. To read more about this, including a message from Dr. Gardner, please click here. We encourage all of you to write, and encourage others to write, to include PAS in DSM-V. In this section, we have used to power of hypertext to link the footnote numbers to the footnotes and, where we have the material, to the actual referenced material. It is hoped that this will allow you to follow through the material and get all the information that you are seeking. Please note, references are sometimes made to other files on this system, and sometimes to files on other systems, so you may see other files reloading. We have also made PDF files for printing if you would like hard copy. The PDF "Portable Document Format" is used by Adobe Acrobat and the program that will let you view and print these files is free and has versions for almost any type of workstation operating system in use. The free program that will allow you to view and print these files, on-line or off, is available from Adobe at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html. We also have included on a separate page a not-too-complete list of PAS and PAS related sites that we have found on the net. There are many more sites with information. Let us know of any more good ones and we will add them. We also beginning a section on legal cases in Canada and around the world that deals with PAS in the courts. This section is just starting, and is far from exhaustive. You can see them on our PAS legal page. Let us know what you think of our files, or about any problems, by emailing us at webmaster@fact.on.ca. Finally, because it is not a journal article, the article on Hostile Aggressive Parenting is located further down the list. You can get to it quickly by clicking here. Much of the material posted here was the result of the considerable knowledge, persistence and hard work of Tom in Los Angeles, USA. Thanks Tom! Parents Who Have Successfully Fought Parent Alienation Syndrome by A. Jayne Major, Ph.D. from her website www.livingmedia2000.com. This article is a FABULOUS summary of PAS that is very readable and complete. It is, seemingly, only published on her website that is providing information about her parenting course to potential instructors but, because it was so good I have reformatted it and added it to our collection. (It was so good I was ready to sign up for the course!) This document is also available in PDF format. What you do and don’t do when as a loving parent you are confronted with a severe case of PAS in your child by William Kirkendale. Mr. Kirkendale is a father with a child he has not seen for a considerable length of time, and he has put together a list of some of his DO'S and DONTS that many of us have learned too late. Some of his suggestions, especially about approaching the court or accessing the media, are not particularly appropriate in Canada but the underlying fire is right on target. This material has been reformatted from a web page on www.mall4us.com/parentnPAS.htm. Mr. Kirkendale maintans a web site at www.familycourts.com. This document is also available in PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Review of Critical Issues by Ian Turkat is available in PDF format from the Journal of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, Vol. 18-1, 2002, pp.131-176. (which is available on-line). Response to Kelly/Johnson Artilce by Richard A. Gardner from Speak Out for Children (a publication of the Children's Rights Council), 17(2):6-10, 2002. This is Gardner's response to the ``Northern California'' group of psychologists to preempt and redefine Parental Alienation (without the Syndrome). This group includes those PhDs who worked with Judith Wallerstein on her work. This is a real threat to the children who have been damaged by the PAS -- the purpose is really to ensure that the abuse of the children can continue pursuant to the ``feminist'' (and not parental) dogma. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Does DSM-IV Have Equivalents for the Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) Diagnosis? by Richard A. Gardner (Unpublished Manuscript) Accepted for Publication 2002. This is a very interesting article that outlines the similar, but not the same, disorders actually included in DSM-IV at this point. The article is quite good in explaining the reasons why PAS is indeed a syndrome, and how it is different from other conditions. As a bonus, some of the similar or contributing conditions that impact children, alientators and target parents are outlined -- this is quite important to target parents, and lawyers, involved with an alienating parent. This document is not yet available in PDF format. The Role of the Judiciary in the Entrenchment of the Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) by Richard A. Gardner, 2002. This is a great article that points out the faults and contributions of the judiciary in ensuring that alienating parents abuse their children -- all in the mistaken ``best interests'' of someone. This article and the tables referred to within it can be downloaded from Dr. Gardner's website at http://www.rgardner.com/refs/ar11w.html and http://www.rgardner.com/refs/3pastables.html. This document is not yet available in PDF format. The Empowerment of Children in the Development of Parental Alienation Syndrome by Richard A. Gardner from The American Journal of Forensic Psychology, 2002, 20(2):5-29. This article deals with the empowerment of children suffering PAS by the alienator, therapists, lawyers and the judiciary as a major component of the syndrome. Without addressing the intrinsic contribution of all these adults, supposedly working in the ``best interests of the child'' can we hope to stop the destruction of these children. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome vs. Parental Alienation: Which Diagnosis Should Evaluators Use in Child-Custody Disputes? by Richard A. Gardner from The American Journal of Family Therapy, 30(2):93-115, (2002). Gardner clears the air about the debate between the watered-down, wide ranging ``Parental Alienation'' and the collection of symptoms that identify and define the ``Parental Alienation Syndrome''. For those who think that PA has much at all to do with PAS, this is a `must read'. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Denial of the Parental Alienation Syndrome Also Harms Women by Richard A. Gardner from American Journal of Family Therapy, 30(3):191-202 (2002). The article discusses impact on children and families by the denial of the condition of PAS. Denial is found by the patient in many medical conditions, but when the practionners deny the disease, there is no hope for the victims. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Comments on Carol S. Bruch’s Article "Parental Alienation Syndrome and Parental Alienation: Getting it Wrong in Child Custody Cases" by Richard A. Gardner from Family Law Quarterly, 35(3):527-552, 2001. Gardner addresses an article by a "law researcher" in the Family Law Quarterly that really simply rehashes the same tired old "feminist" myths that are trotted out to ensure that the children are not protected from alienation. Bruch's paper is available here in PDF format only. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Current Controversies Regarding Parental Alienation Syndrome by Richard A. Warshak from American Journal of Forensic Psychology, Volume 19, No. 3, 2001, p. 29-59. An excellent article about PAS, the current attempt to redefine it to talk only of the "alienated child" and not the abuse, and about some of the strange reasons made up by others about PAS. This is a great companion to Dr. Warshak's booklet "Parental Alienation Syndrome in Court" (see the Book Section of the FACT site, or Dr. Warshak's site directly). This is an important paper to read. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Should Courts Order PAS Children to Visit/Reside with the Alienated Parent? by Richard A. Gardner from The American Journal of Forensic Psychology, 2001, 19(3):61-106. This article is an outline of the futility of not changing access or custody away from an alienating parent. In 100% of the cases that a change in access or custody did occur, the PAS either diminished or disappeared. In 91% of the cases where a change did not occur, the situation did not improve or degenerated even further. "PAS therapy" does not work alone to protect the children, despite the judges wishing it did. Make sure you give this one to your lawyer. This document is also available in PDF format. Family Therapy of the Moderate Type of Parental Alienation Syndrome by Richard A. Gardner from The American Journal of Family Therapy. 27:195-212, 1999. This article is a GREAT outline of therapy for the moderate case of PAS that deals with the very specific and knitty-gritty things that the courts and the therapists must do if the therapy is to work. This document is also available in PDF format. Questioning the Mental Health Expert's Custody Report by Ira Daniel Turkat, Ph.D. from the American Journal of Family Law, Volume 7, 175-179 (1993). This article is not specifically about PAS. However, it is an EXCELLENT article to look at when you are selecting an assessor or an expert in a legal case. I wish selecting an expert was easy - this article does give you some suggestions that are extremely relevant. This document is also available in PDF format. Dr. Richard A. Gardner, M.D., who initially derived the name Parental Alienation Syndrome put out a flyer (also in PDF format to advertise his book The Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Guide for Mental Health Professionals and Legal Professionals (available through his website at http://www.rgardner.com/). The flyer had a number of very interesting and useful attachments that contain some basic information on PAS. The attachments are: DEFINITION OF THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME (also in PDF format). THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME IS NOT THE SAME AS PROGRAMMING ("BRAINWASHING") (also in PDF format). THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME AND BONA FIDE ABUSE AND/OR NEGLECT (also in PDF format). THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME AS A FORM OF CHILD ABUSE (also in PDF format). "THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME DOES NOT EXIST BECAUSE IT IS NOT IN DSM-IV" (also in PDF format). "THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME IS NOT A SYNDROME" (also in PDF format). "PEOPLE WHO DIAGNOSE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME ARE SEXIST" (also in PDF format). THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME AND SEX-ABUSE ACCUSATIONS (also in PDF format). THE PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME AND "PARENTAL ALIENATION" (also in PDF format). DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS OF THE THREE TYPES OF PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME (also in PDF format). DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT OF THE THREE TYPES OF PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME (also in PDF format). In addition, he has put out another couple of small pieces of information: Addendum I—June 1999 which is meant to be some more up-to-date information on PAS than contained in the 2nd edition, Addendum—March 2000 which is meant to be some more up-to-date information on PAS than contained in the 2nd edition, and an updated Addendum—March 2000 which is meant to be some more up-to-date information on PAS than contained in the 2nd edition and mentions the Rachael Foundation, and Misperceptions versus Facts About Richard A. Gardner, M.D. which is another defensive piece as the result of the false accusations against Dr. Gardner made because they don't like his theory (ironic, isn't it?). Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS): Sixteen Years Later by Richard A. Gardner from Academy Forum, 2001, 45(1):10-12. This provides a summary of the issues related to PAS as they have evolved over the last 16 years. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Excerpt from Dr. Rybicki's forthcoming book on Expert Witness Testimony & Forensic Psychology by Daniel J. Rybicki. This looks like it will be a great book. The material covers a lot of material including alienation techniques, susceptable children, the negatives of the diagnosis according to the detractors, and what evaluators should be careful with. A good read. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Remarriage as a Trigger of Parental Alienation Syndrome by Richard A, Warshak from The American Journal of Family Therapy, 28:229-241, 2000. While this document attempts to deal with some of the specifics of parental alienation relative to remarriage of divorced or separated parties, there is a wealth of information about PAS in general as well, including some discussion of therapies to deal with PAS. This document is available in PDF format. "Parental Alienation" by Joel R. Brandes from the New York Law Journal, March 26, 2000 provides an interesting look at Parental Alination in New York, where it is supposed to be recognised. This document is not yet available in PDF format. This article was available through the author's website at http://www.brandeslaw.com/parental_alienation.htm, but appears to have been moved. Articles in Peer-Review Journals on the Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) by Richard A. Gardner, M.D. is a description of the nature of PAS (mostly the material in the list above) and a compilation of citations by the researcher who introduced the term. This is available through a link to his company, Creative Therapeutics at http://www.rgardner.com/. This particular paper as also been captured into a PDF format (January 6, 2001 version). On the site, Dr. Gardner also has a list of legal citations indicating times that testimony on PAS has been admitted in the courts of various jurisdictions. The site is set up to allow you to order books, including his The Parental Alienation Syndrome (2nd edition) directly. Rye Hospital Program For Treating Children Affected by Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), as published on the website "divorcedfather.com", written by Edward M. Stephens, M.D., provides some information on the diagnosis and treatment of Parental Alienation Syndrome. This article was initially available at http://www.divorcedfather.com/fathers-rights-child-custody/pas-rye.htm, but appears to have been move. The pagehad also been captured, and is available, in PDF format. Mediation and Parental Alienation Syndrome: Considerations for an Intervention Model by Anita Vestal from the Family and Conciliation Courts Review, Vol. 37, No. 4, October, 1999, p. 487-503. Excellent, and long, paper on parental alienation and mediation. Parents, lawyers and judges should read this. This article is an updated and peer-reviewed version of the article "Perspectives on Parental Alienation, Child Custody and Dispute Resolution Systems," which won the essay award from the American Bar Association (see below). This document is also available in PDF format. Guidelines for Assessing Parental Preference in Child-Custody Disputes by Richard A. Gardner, MD from the Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 1999, 30(1/2):1-9. This goes through the Michigan child-custody guidelines with Gardner's opinion and PAS comments throughout. This document is aldo available in PDF format. Parental Alienation and the Judiciary by Dr L. F. Lowenstein from the Medico-Legal JournalVol.67 Part 3, 1999, p. 121-123. This is a short piece on the problems of the judiciary in solving PAS, their reluctance to that the necessary action, and the results of their lack of judicial action. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Parental Alienation: Not in the best interest of the children by Douglas Darnall from the North Dakota Law Review, Volume 75, 1999, p 323-364. Excellent and long essay on parental alienation and parental alienation syndrome and the places that lawyers and judges need to fit into the process to help the children. Darnall's book, DIVORCE CASUALTIES: PROTECTING YOUR CHILDREN FROM PARENTAL ALIENATION, that is mentioned in the article can be purchased through the FACT book section. This document is also available in PDF format. Differentiating between Parental Alienation Syndrome and Bona Fide Abuse-Neglect by Richard A. Gardner from The American Journal of Family Therapy, Volume 27, Number 2, p 97-107 (April-June 1999). Talk about a HOT new article! The article looks at the differences in children, but most specifically adults, under a PAS situation with false allegations of abuse or neglect, and the same where there is true abuse-neglect. Truly makes one wonder seriously about the inducers of PAS. This document is also available in PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome: How to Detect It and What to Do About It by J. Michael Bone and Michael R. Walsh as published in The Florida Bar Journal, Volume 73, Number 3, March 1999, p. 44-48. This new article is meant for lawyers. It provides a higher level look at PAS, provides the indications that a lawyer or judge can use to tell if PAS is present, and deals with the absolute need of the courts to operate swiftly if PAS is detected. A quote from the article: "Any attempt at alienating children from the other parent should be seen as a direct and willful violation of one of the prime duties of parenthood". This document is also available in PDF format. Alienation And Alignment Of Children by Philip M. Stahl from the California Psychologist, March 1999, Vol. 32, No. 3, p 23ff. An outline of PAS, the his idea of the characteristics of the parents and children, and, to some degree, how treatment methods. The article includes a summary of the milder suggestions for treatment of severe PAS -- including allowing the abuse to continue (the court's general answer). This document is also available in PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) by L. F. Lowenstein as published in Justice of the Peace, Vol. 163 No. 3, 16 January 1999, p 47-50. This article is meant as a summary for justices in the UK. It concludes reminding judges that: "Any parent who practises PAS must ultimately be dealt with severely by the court. PAS is a kind of brainwashing which leads to suffering for all concerned, either in the short or long-term. Both parents must be viewed as having the right and the obligation to play a vital role on the care, guidance and love provided for their children." This document is also available in PDF format. Parental alienation syndrome: The lost parents’ perspective by Despina Vassiliou. This is her Masters thesis presented at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The thesis is a qualitative study of the alienated parent's perceptions of their experienes with PAS. This document is not yet available PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Two Step Approach towards a Solution by L. F. Lowenstein as published in Contemporary Family Therapy, Volume 20, Number 4, December, 1998, p. 505-520. This article is from the UK and talks about the advantages to all parties in mediating to prevent PAS, rather than moving straight into the adversarial system. This document is also available in PDF format. The Burgess Decision and the Wallerstein Brief by Richard A. Gardner from Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 26(3):425-431, 1998. This article addresses the problems of unrestricted mobility in cases where a parent is inducing PAS -- and the damage done to the children and non-custodial parent. This document is not yet available in PDF format. MMPI-2 Validty Scales and Suspected Parental Alienation Syndrome as published by Jeffrey C. Siegel and Joseph S. Langford in the American Journal of Forensic Psychology, Volume 16, Number 4, 1998, p. 5-14. An interesting article that looks at tying those who use parental alienation to the responses on the MMPI-2 test (a test often given my assessors to the parents). The material here is of most interest to professionals who administer and read such tests, but it does represent an early stop in identifying problem areas. This article is also available in PDF format. Alienation Revisted as presented by Mr. Paul Lodge, FCOA, at the Third National Family Court Conference October 20-24 in Melbourse, Australia. This article is conference notes that were initially taken in PDF formation from the conference site. The conference material has moved several times so that a good link is not available. This is conference material, so make some allowances for missing points and references that are not used, please. The original PDF document is available here. Intervention-guided single case-help and parental alienation syndrome (PAS) as presented by Dr. Werner G. Leitner at the XXI International School Psychology Colloquium held from 31 July - 4 August 1998 in Riga, Latvia, and published in Published in Identity & Self Esteem: Interactions of Students, Family, & Society, eds. S. Sebre, M. Rascevska, S. Miezite, pp. 253-260, Riga: SIA. This article was initially taken from Dr. Leitner's site at http://www.uni-bamberg.de/~ba2gp4/frame.htm, but it appears to have moved. This document is not yet available in PDF format. Recommendations for Dealing with Parents Who Induce a Parental Alienation Syndrome in Their Children as published by Dr. Richard A. Gardner in the Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, Volume 28(3/4), 1998, p. 1-21. This well laid-out article gives Gardners's suggested course of treatment for dealing with the various levels of PAS and in handling the inducing parent. This article is also available in PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome - A Judicial Response? as published by Dr. Susan Maidment in Family Law, May 1998, p. 264-6. This article gives a quick look at some of the success in dealing with PAS in the UK, but the problem with recognition of PAS by the lower courts despite the law that should make it important. Since PAS cases are apparently rarely reported in the reference cases, this becomes a difficult task. This article is also available in PDF format. Parental Alienation is Open Heart Surgery: It Needs More than a Band-Aid to Fix It by Kathleen Niggemyer as published in the California Western Law Review, Volume 34, 1998, p 567-589. This article is talks about parental alienation and, while rejecting the work of Garnder and Turkat (although for the wrong reasons, and generally based on the misrepresentations of others) acknowledges that parental alienation exists -- syndrome or not. The author then looks at the U.S. tort (i.e. suing) solutions that are available and indicates that there is not that much that can be done under the "alienation of affection" rules (in Canada the Supreme Court has basically rejected "alienation of affection" as ever being in the law), but indicates that there may be some ability to deal with it under "purposeful infliction of emotional distress." The auther feels that a truckload of therapists (the author is not a therapist) and reporting back to the court annually will make some sort of a difference for how the children deal with severe alienation. This article has also been put into PDF format. Identifying Cases of Parent Alienation Syndrome--Part I by Leona M. Kopetski as published in The Colorado Lawyer, February 1998, Volume 27, Number 2 p 65-68 (also available in PDF format), and Identifying Cases of Parent Alienation Syndrome--Part II by Leona M. Kopetski as published in The Colorado Lawyer, February 1998, Volume 27, Number 3 p 61-64 (also available in PDF format) These articles deal with evidence of PAS that pre-dated Gardners original work and talks about the impact of PAS on children. The final comments on the second part talks about the significance of sexual reproduction, and equivalent psychological nature of this...."If children are allowed free access to these different people, they do not need a perfect parent. It is not individual parental mistakes that harm the development of children. It is the exclusion of these different people that places them in danger....". The Emerging Problem of Parental Alienation by Caroline Willbourne and Lesley-Anne Cull, as published in Family Law, December 1997, p. 807-8. This document is meant for lawyers and provides an overview of things to look at that indicate parental alienation (though I doubt that lawyers see the children enough to tell) but also talks about the damage done to the children in leaving them in the residential care of the alienating parent.. This document is also available in PDF format. Management of Visitation Interference by Ira Daniel Turkat, Ph.D. as published in The Judges' Journal (Number 36) of the American Bar Association in the Spring of 1997. This document is meant for judges and is very strong and specific about the types of therapy and the considerations in orders that are required to handle access problems when Parental Alienation Syndrome or Divorce-Related Malicious Mother Syndrome in involved. This document is also available in PDF format. Summary of the Practice Parameters for Child Custody Evaluation as published on the website of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry as approved in 1997 and published in their Journal. Parental alienation is recognised as the serious problem that it is. This particular page as also been captured in PDF format. Perspectives on Parental Alienation, Child Custody and Dispute Resolution Systems by Anita Vestal was an award winning essay in the American Bar Association's Section on Dispute Resolution and used to be able to be found, in a less formatted form at http://www.abanet.org/dispute/comwin.html -- but no more it appears. This paper is also available in PDF format. This is a good summary of PAS meant for lawyers and discusses such things as the problems with mediation and joint custody when PAS is involved. The Spectrum of Parental Alienation Syndrome (Part I) by Deirdre Conway Rand as published in the American Journal of Forensic Psychology, Volume 15, Number 3, 1997. This came from files at Aktive Fedre, a new fathers' group in Norway (with minor cleaning by FACT) and is kept in two pieces due to the size of the HTML file. These files have also been put into a single file in PDF format. The Spectrum of Parental Alienation Syndrome (Part II) by Deirdre Conway Rand as published in the American Journal of Forensic Psychology, Volume 15, Number 4, 1997. This came from Aktive Fedre as well (with minor cleaning by FACT) and is kept in three pieces due to the size of the HTML file. These files have also been put into a single file in PDF format. These are excellent articles and deal with not only the psychological aspects of PAS, but the legal process and judicial recognition (mostly in the US) of PAS. We would strongly recommend reading them, and then perhaps distributing them to judges, lawyers, social workers, psychologists, journalists, etc. who deal with, or are interested in, the children of divorce. Parental Alienation Syndrome: An Age-Old Custody Problem by Michael R. Walsh and J. Michael Bone from the June 1997 issue of The Florida Bar Journal (p. 93-96). This is also available in PDF format. This is an excellent article for officers of the courts and parents in looking at the face of PAS, the problems with dealing with it, and their roles in protecting the children. Interference with Parental Rights of Noncustodial Parent as Grounds for Modification of Child Custody by Edward B. Borris from the Divorce Litigation, January, 1997. This is a heavily referenced, to US cases, of the handling of alienation and access denial in the United States. A good start when looking for precedents. This document is not yet avilable in PDF format. Relocation as a Strategy to Interfere with the Child-Parent Relationship by Ira Daniel Turkat, Ph.D. from the American Journal of Family Law, Volume 11, 39-41 (1996). This article talks about the unhealthy relocation of children to interfere with parental contact and identifies some of the risk factors associated with this. A good article to look at for casting some question on relocations. This document is available in PDF format. Understanding and Collaboratively Treating Parental Alienation Syndrome by Kenneth H. Waldron, Ph.D. and David E. Joanis, J. D. from the American Journal of Family Law, Volume 10, 121-133 (1996). This is an good article and attempts to broaden the discussion of the nature of PAS by examining the alienating parent, the target parent, and the family system, as well as the techniques used in and results of parental alienation. It also discusses the adversarial system, and the roles of the parties if there is truly a concern about protecting the children. -This document is also available in PDF format. Children's Alignment with Parents in Highly Conflicted Custody Cases by Anita K. Lampel discusses the personality characteristics measured for childer who aligned with a parent (the parent "the child felt provided more empathy and understood the child's age-specific concerns"), nonaligned children, and their parents. In the study about equal numbers (actually a bit more) of the children indicated that father was the "preferred parent". This study was published in Family and Conciliation Courts Review, Vol. 34, No. 2, April 1996, 229-239. This paper is also available in PDF format. A Therapist's View of Parental Alienation Syndrome by Mary Lund discusses the nature of PAS and the structure of therapy groups that could be used. It was published in Family and Conciliation Review, Vol. 33, No. 3, July 1995. This paper is also available in PDF format. Divorce-Related Malicious Mother Syndrome by Ira Daniel Turkat as published in the Journal of Family Violence, Volume 10, No. 3, 1995, p 253-264. This article takes a look at a condition involving somewhat acting like a very severe PAS inducer, but with no other mental disorder affecting behaviour. It is interesting to read. This document has also been put into a PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome: A 'Hidden' Facet of Custody Disputes by Lisa A. Cook, who was apparently a law student at the time. This is a award winning paper, the Lieff Award, of the Canadian Bar Association (CBA), a voluntary organisation of lawyers. That particular organisation has been co-opted to represent only feminist and lesbian viewpoints at this point through their LEAF group (Legal Education and Action Fund for Women) with a strong conviction that women should never be accountable. The CBA itself presented its official position that access denial is not a problem, and does not occur in Canada, to the Special Joint Senate/House Committee on Custody and Access. This article takes a look at PAS, and Canadian law, as it was effective at that time. The position of the paper is very much out of sync with the current stance of LEAF and the CBA. I would note that the author concludes: Thus, to search for a solution to P.A.S. is illusory. P.A.S. is multi-faceted in terms of its onset, development, and outcomes. At this point, awareness of the existence of P.A.S. should be given optimum importance. Although this awareness may not encourage an immediate awareness in alienating parents, it may eventually create an atmosphere wherein parents will not feel the need to alienate. Perhaps this will happen when the legalities surrounding divorce become less alienating -- when the truth is not being sacrificed for 'justice" in custody battles. Only then can the parameters of P.A.S. be fully explored., Only then will custody battles have a chance of becoming custody evaluations. I would note that Ms. Cook's SIN indicates that she was likely on a student visa at the time, and there is no indication that she is currently practicing law in Canada (at least under that name). Pity. This document has also been put into a PDF format. Custody and Visitation Interference: Alternative Remedies by Joy M. Feinberg and Lori S. Loeb as published in the AML Journal, Winter 1994, Volume 12, Number 2, p 271-284 (the publication of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers). This article talks about the remedies in the court to the handling of parental alienation syndrome of varying degrees of severity, and to the kidnapping of children. Interestingly, it also talks of the (then) new recouse of tort action (suing for damages in civil court) as another action that can be taken. The article is also available in PDF format. Child Visitation Interference in Divorce by Ira Daniel Turkat from Clinical Psychology Review, Vol. 14, No. 8, pp. 737-742, 1994. This article sets the structure of the various forms of visitation interference and talks about how the courts and the lack of research have become big problems in contributing to this form of child abuse. The article has also been put into a PDF format. The Parental Alienation Syndrome: An Analysis of Sixteen Selected Cases by John Dunne and Marsha Hedrick. This was published in the Journal of Divorce and Remarriage, Vol. 21(3/4), 1994. This article looks at sixteen cases that met Dr. Gardner's criteria for Parental Alienation Syndrome. It shows that traditional interventions in these cases were ineffective, and that the only effective treatment included a change in custody of the alienated child. This material is also available in PDF format. The Detrimental Effects on Women of the Gender Egalitarianism of Child-Custody Dispute Resolution Guidelines by Richard A. Gardner from the Academy Forum Volume 38, Number 1,2 p 10-13 (Spring/Summer 1994), the publication of The American Academy of Psychoanalysis. This article discusses the history of custody over the ages and the possible reasons for the high incidence of parental alienation seen now. The article has also been put into a PDF format. Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Developmental Analysis of a Vulnerable Population by Joseph L. Price, Ph.D. and Kerry S. Pioske, RN, MS, ANP. This was published in the Journal of Psychosocial Nursing, Vol. 32, No. 11, 1994 p 9-12. This article provides an overview of PAS for nurses and some description of how it fits into psychological framework of the child and the family. This material is also available in PDF format. The Parental Alienation Syndrome: A Dangerous Aura of Reliability by Cheri L. Wood (no apparent qualifications) as published in the Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review, Vol. 29, p 1367-1415 (1994). This article is the paper usually brought up as some to supposedly "destroy" the concept of Parental Alienation Syndrome. It is interesting to read, especially in light of the collection of material on this site. It presents the concept that Dr. Gardner is the only person who believes PAS exisits. It states that there are no articles about PAS in peer reviewed publications (take a look at the site, there have been more than 50 such articles since 1988 and a number of them from Gardner himself). It purports that there is no empirical data for PAS, while a number of the articles here ARE emprical studies, and some took place even before Gardner coined the term. Well, it is a PAS paper that should be of interest if arguing in court (especially in the US). This material is not yet available in PDF format. When You Suspect the Worst: Bad-faith relocation, fabricated child sexual abuse, and parental alienation by Carol Holstein Sanders. This was published in the Family Advocate in the Winter, 1993 edition. This article looks at alienation in context of the other common conditions associated with alienating parents using children as weapons against the other parent. This article is a simple and general piece (well, it was written for lawyers) but amply indicates the tie in on Parental Alienation with many other actions often seen on relationship breakdowns. This material is also available in PDF format. Intractable Access: Is There a Cure? by Ken Byrne and Lawrie Maloney. This was published in the Australian Family Lawyer v. 8(4), 1993, p. 22. This article looks at a particular case of parental alienation syndrome, and the use of supervised transitions in order to overcome the lack of access. This article is also available in PDF format. Expanding the Parameters of Parental Alienation Syndrome by Glenn F. Cartwright as published in the American Journal of Family Therapy, 21 (3), 205-215 (1993). This is available through a link to his personal site at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. An excellent paper. He seems to have / make use of a site called "P. A. I. N." (Parental Alienation Information Network") at http://www.education.mcgill.ca/pain/ for the disemmination of material. This particular paper as also been put into a PDF format. Family Wars: The Alienation of Children, Composite case from actual examples by Peggy Ward and J. Campbell Harvey was published in the New Hampshire Bar Journal, Volume 34, No.1, March 1993. A slightly different version, but with the same title, composed all of Newletter #9 (from 1993) of The Professional Academy of Custody Evaluators (PACE) is available through a link to PACE's Web site at http://www.pace-custody.org. This is an excellent and comprehensive paper. The PACE version is available in many different formats across the Web. The PACE verson of this paper has been captured in PDF format, and the New Hampshire paper has been printed in PDF format. Mediation: Parental Alienation Syndrome by Mary Lund from the Family Law News, the official publication of the State Bar of California Family Law Section, Volume 15, Number 1, in the Spring of 1992. It provides a very brief overview of the issues with lawyers to help them not contribute to the child abuse known as Parental Alienation. This particular paper as also been put in PDF format. Le syndrome d'aliénation parentale (Parental Alienation Syndrome) by Anne-France Goldwater. This is an article that was originally published in Dévelopments Récents en Droit Familial 1991, P. 121-145, but that was made available through http://www.goldwaterdube.com/ as a Microsoft Word document. There are some other good papers there. Despite the French title, most of this document is in English. It provides a good summary from a Canadian, and specifically a Quebec, legal viewpoint. The Word version of this particular paper as also been put in PDF format. Legal and Psychotherapeutic Approaches to the Three Types of Parental Alienation Syndrome Families by Richard A. Gardner, M.D.. This article was published in the Court Review Volume 28, Number 1, Spring 1991, p. 14-21, the publication of the American Judges Association. This paper describes the three types of PAS and gives some specific pieces of information that judges, at least judges that care, need to know when coming across PAS in the courtroom. You need to read this one. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Mental Health Professionals in Child Custody Disputes: Advocates or Impartial Examiners? by Kenneth Byrne and published in the Autralian Family Lawyer, Vol. 6, No. 3, 1991, p.8. This is article looks at the differences in the functioning and conclusions of an advocate and an examiner. This article is not yet available in PDF format. Custody Disputes Fueling "Parental Alienation Syndrome written about Richard A. Gardner, M.D.. This is a news article was published in the Family Practice News, Volume 20, Number 24, December 15-31, 1990, p 7. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Preventing Parentectomy Following Divorce by Frank S. Williams, M.D.. This article was the keynote address at the Fifth Annual Conference of National Council for Children's Rights held in Washington DC on October 20, 1990. This paper describes problems with the process and motivations for separation of the children from a parent and talks about some of the preventative actions a parent can take. The paper was taken from the Men's Rights Agency site at http://www.ecn.net.au/~mra/page27b.htm and reformated slightly. This site has considerable amounts of interesting data, and can be accessed through the URL http://www.ecn.net.au/~mra/. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Brainwashing in Custody Cases: The Parental Alienation Syndrome by Kenneth Byrne, PhD.. This article was published in the Australian Family Lawyer, v. 4(3), 1989, p.1ff. This paper gives a general overview of PAS, and provides lawyers with a list of things to be aware of that may indicate that alienation is taking place. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Judges Interviewing Children in Custody/Visitation Litigation by Richard A. Gardner, M.D.. This article was published in the New Jersey Family Lawyer, Volume VII, Number 2, August/September 1987, p 26ff. This paper describes the problems that judges have in interviewing children affected by PAS directly, and gives some guidance on the approach and questions that a judge who wants to directly interview the children should take into account. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Post-Divorce Therapy With Highly Conflicted Families by Anita K. Lampel, Ph.D.. This article was published in The Independent Practitioner Volume 6 Number 3, July 1986, p. 22-26, the Bulletin of the Division of Psychologists in Independent Practice, Division 42 of the Americal Psychological Association. This paper describes the success of conventional techniques on mild cases, but indicates that conventional techniques do not work well on severe cases, and that a change in residency has a much greater chance of working. Some of the improvements are discussed. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Recent Trends in Divorce and Custody Litigation by Richard A. Gardner, M.D.. This article was published in the Academy Forum, Volume 29, Number 2, Summer, 1985, p. 3-7. This paper, in the journal of The American Academy of Psychoanalysis is the original paper that introduced the term "Parental Alienation Syndrome" and started the debate. The paper as also been put in PDF format. Understanding and effectively dealing with Hostile-Aggressive Parenting (HAP) [PDF only] is a paper published by Family Conflict Resolution Services. This paper has been of wide-spread interest. HAP as described in a pattern of parenting that encompasses a number of problematic behaviours what would be associated with an alienating parent under PAS who is purposefully seeking to disrupt contact with a parent. The paper seems to be dynamic in its form, and we cannot keep up with some of the changes. The version on this site is currently the May 2004 version. The November 2003 version and February 2003 version are also available.. You may find a more recent version at http://familyconflict.freeyellow.com/General1/RecommendationsHostile-AgressiveParenting.pdf It is interesting in its scope and relatively easy to read. A Guide to the Parental Alienation Syndrome by Stan Hayward. This is the second edition of Stan Hayward's paper. It provides much more specific information and, in particular, some good UK-oriented information (it is interesting to see how things work/don't work there too). Hayward is the Research Officer at Families Need Fathers, which maintains a website at www.fnf.org.uk. Our copy of the paper is more complete than theirs, so this is a locally stored article. This particular paper is not yet available in PDF format. A Guide to the Parental Alienation Syndrome by Stan Hayward. This is available through a link to http://www.coeffic.demon.co.uk, the UK Men and Father's Rights page. An excellent paper. This particular paper as also been captured in PDF format. The Father’s Guide: Coping with Parental Alienation by the Texas Fathers for Equal Rights (T. F. E. R.). This is is a discussion, by fathers, of some of the strategies fathers should consider in re-establishing a relationship with a child who has been alienated but is once again visiting. TFER's seems to have moved, so this page is a copy of the article. This particular paper was captured in PDF format. Dr. Douglas Darnall, a therapist, expert witness and author in Ohio, has a great collection of information on Parental Alienation - the stages that usually occur before the more serious PAS kicks at his site at http://www.parentalalienation.com/PASdirectory.htm. Information on his book is, of course, there too. There is some useful stuff to consider there. If you are interested, Dr. Parnell was the guest at an on-line chat session at Concerned Counselling on February 3, 1998, and that transcript is available here. Parental Alienation Syndrome is an article The Family Court Reform Council of America. This is is a discussion of PAS in general. Their home page can be found at http://www.familycourts.com/. This particular page as also been captured in PDF format. Some Reported Results of Access Denial and Parental Alienation Increased suicidal tendencies were found in people who had experienced the loss of the father. Bron, Strack & Rudolph, Univ. of Gottingen, Germany, 1991 Children showed the most behaviour problems if their parents were in a legal conflict and the visitation was not frequent or regular. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 1990 British researchers have found adults who suffer parent loss due to separation or divorce have significantly higher risk of developing agoraphobia withpanic attacks and panic disorder. British Journal of Psychiatry, 1989 Scandinavian research has found a significantly higher number of adults who attempted suicide had lost a parent through divorce in childhood. Acta Psychiatrica, Scandinavia, 1990, 1993 Children who were separated from their father for a period of three months or longer and between the ages of 6 months to 5 years old, suffer a higher risk (2.5 to 5 times higher) of hysteria, emotional disorders and conduct disorder than other children. Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 1988 13699 Visitors since September 10, 2000

Alameda County

Hayward Municipal Court
Family Law
Commissioner

Psychological Trauma

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_trauma Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a sudden, quick traumatic event. When that trauma leads to posttraumatic stress disorder, damage may involve physical changes inside the brain and to brain chemistry, which changes the person's response to future stress.

Social Undermining

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_undermining

The "Other Person" Victim Emotional Abuse Manipulation by Infidelity Betrayal

The fatal trickery of using an innocent person to obtain revenge on another person. Most likely a Husband or Boyfriend is betrayed to get them to "change" or just a malicious intention to cause emotional distress. Most often the one who is really betrayed is the "Other Person" being used and tricked into thinking they are loved and cared about, and then overnight are dumped insensitively like being kicked out of a speeding car by your best friend and they don't even look back. Cruel to say the least.

Feminist Fraud Factions That Cover-Up the Tyranny against Fathers in Family Court


by Shane Flait (2011)

 Fathers are being destroyed under the tyrannical feminist policies of family

court. A massive state industry is based and funded on its anti-father court

judgments. This article overviews the various factions in this industry and

within society that help cover up this tyranny against fathers, family and

freedom.  

 The tyranny

Family court processes and judgments, under divorce and paternity suits,

overwhelmingly deny fit fathers their parental rights to care for and directly

support their children. All constitutional due process is ignored while the state

and the mother virtually kidnap the children from the father and then extort

debilitating and destructive payments - euphemistically called child support –

from him for up to 22 years and for whatever the mother wishes.

This puts the father in a virtual slave position without constitutional rights and

easily thrown in jail if he can’t pay everything demanded by the court. Any

accusation of abuse the mother makes against the father will guarantee this

situation too. It’s a criminalizing process that is also extortive and devoid of

constitutional due process.

 The courts use ‘greater good’ excuse laws – specifically, the best interest of

the child, and the safety of women abuse excuses – pushed, supported, and

maintained by feminist and women’s rights adherents. These laws

unconstitutionally override the fundamental rights and protections that our

constitution is supposed to guarantee to each of us. ‘Greater good’ laws are

always the excuse of tyrannies. Our individual fundamental rights and

protection are supposed to be freedom’s greater good.

 A state-based industry, I call the divorce and domestic violence industry

(DDVI), has exploded over the last 40 years whose funding, directly or

indirectly, relies on the denial of fundamental rights that fathers face in family

court. The DDVI includes the judicial, executive and legislative departments, at

both state and federal levels, and all affiliates that help adjudicate, prosecute,

extort money from, and punish fathers subjected to these tyrannical family

courts. State and nationwide child support payments and the enormous funding

by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) trigger enormous fees,

commissions, penalties, and job security for all components of the DDVI.

 The Feminist Fraud – a wolf in sheep’s clothing

Feminist ideas and adherents have pervaded all aspects of society – education,

business, government, and media. In fact it’s popular for many politicians -

including men – to consider themselves feminists. That’s because they’re for

‘equal rights’ or equal opportunity’ for women.

 But the feminist fraud is the misconception that feminism simply means equal

opportunity for women when, in fact, state-imposed feministic policies,

especially in the judicial processes, have forced feminist sexism against men

and denial of fundamental rights and protections to men and fathers.  A great

deal of feminist-based propaganda had distorted facts to push their agenda of

privileges for women – often called women’s rights – but at the direct denial of

constitutional rights of men.

 It’s based on phony propaganda that men are bad and women are good. It’s a

‘divide and conquer’ strategy. The perversion of our laws and policies has used

propaganda and obscuration of these denials of most fundamental rights.

 True liberty means the protection of individual rights – the unalienable rights

the U.S. was formed to secure for each of us. Communism and Nazism, the 20th

century tyrannies, professed other rights – social rights – as more important

than individual rights. They, of course, needed to impose their ‘rights’ and

‘views’ since they’re ultimately unnatural rights and undermine our natural

liberties. Socialism is the handmaiden of such tyrannies – and more so the

greater socialist policies and mandates pervade society.

 The feministic ‘PC’ intolerance we’ve all come to know reflects the

suppression of any criticism of whatever feministic/women’s policy is being

pushed or imposed. It reflects the mindset that underlies most feminism. That’s

why it’s better characterized as feminazism.

 The fruit of state-imposed feminism is most evident in family court where fit

fathers under complaints from women are virtually criminalized and enslaved

without constitutional due process. No equal opportunity - nor equal outcome -

is allowed to occur in these courts - as feminism in any other circumstance

would demand!  And all procedures are arranged to suppress awareness of this

unjust circumstance.

 Taking place through the family court judgments is the most dramatic re-

engineering of society into a matriarchal tyranny based on enslaving fathers to

perform their (slave) responsibility devoid of their fundamental parental rights,

benefits, and other constitutional protections. The enormous fallout from these

feminist-instigated and maintained policies is shown in the social pathology

children face today and the destruction of fathers and family – and, of course,

freedom.

 The feminist fraud factions that maintain this tyranny against fathers

Imposing state-feminism that denies fathers their parental rights while

propagandizing the ‘divide and conquer’ men-bad / women-good strategy are

three major factions of society. Together, they wield enormous power to

implement this tyranny but at the same time cover up the effective denial of

rights this tyranny relies upon.

 They are:

Government branches led by judiciary by its anti-father and unjust family

court orders. It imposes the greater good excuse laws against men and fathers.
Rights-related Organizations which enforce their view on society through

women's rights and safety of women. These include national and international

nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).  They imposed the same type of

‘greater good’ excuse laws and policies that deny to fathers what we consider

as fundamental rights. They ignore fundamental rights of fathers where they

confront feminist/women’s rights issues.
the PC media, which constitutes most of the media, press and TV. They spin

events to to favor a feminist prospective or simply ignore or suppress anything

that exposes the horrendous injustice taking place against fathers especially.
What type of people would cover up such injustice

Three categories of people exist within these factions that keep this tyranny

going – and hidden. They are

1.     Those who work to put the feminist agenda in place - they are willing to

walk over men's and fathers' fundamental rights. They're out there in large

numbers hiding under the feminist fraud - i.e. the lie of 'equal opportunity' or

'equality'.

2.     Those who know that something is very wrong. They can see it and are

afraid to speak up. They don't want to be ostracized, lose a possible promotion,

or lose their jobs for being 'unsensitive' to the propaganda about women's

plight.

3.     Those who are not clear what's happening or don’t want to think about it

- or are simply brainwashed on feminism and can’t or refuse to see the clear

injustice. They just leave it to others and collect their $200 for passing go in

the process.

The first category of people represents the ideologues of feminazism. They are

the leaders and key workers that brought this tyranny into existence and now

enforce its malicious ways. They pervade all three of the feminist fraud

factions listed above.

The last two classes of people are the cowards necessary for any tyranny to

prevail. Such types flourish as the moral character of a society degenerates

and the tyranny grows.

False Reporting
Penal Code § 11172(a)

Any person reporting a known or suspected instance of child abuse or neglect shall not incur civil or criminal liability as a result of any report unless it can be proven that a false report was made and the person knew that the report was false or was made with reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the report.

Any person who makes a report of child abuse or neglect known to be false or with reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the report is liable for any damages caused.

http://thomasjnixon.blogspot.com/

http://thomasjnixon.blogspot.com/

How Sociopathic Parents Use Police Reports for Defamation

How Sociopathic Parents Use Police Reports for Defamation

Written by: Rob    

 
A common problem that many parents in child custody battles experience is the malicious false police reports generated by the nasty ex exhibiting sociopathic behaviors. Such people may suffer from a personality disorder associated with pathological lying such as BPD or NPD, but not all people with BPD or NPD will resort to filing false police reports.

You might think that when the police investigate and find that the ex lied or can’t keep her or his story straight, that will be the end of it. But for many target parents, that is not the case at all. Instead, the nasty ex takes those reports and uses them as the basis for spreading defamation that looks very official and credible looking to the average naive person on the street. With a little effort, she or he can have dozens or more people believing the lies by using the police reports to deceive and manipulate them.

Sometimes, false police reports even get people arrested wrongly. Look at what happened to the father in the article Ben Vonderheide Exposes Pennsylvania’s Abusive Child Profiteering Racket. He was falsely arrested and his son taken from him. Later, his falsely accusing ex and her new boyfriend were convicted of filing false police reports in a criminal court with its far higher evidentiary standards than family court. But he is still suffering from the damage caused by the false police reports even years later.

More often, false police reports and the resulting “official looking” papers generated are used to defame and harass the target parent. This is a common element in the distortion campaigns practiced by Borderlines, Narcissists, and other abusively dishonest personalities.

What Police Reports Contain

Police reports do not have a standard format. Not only do they vary from department to department, there can even be multiple versions of a police report for a single incident.

A typical police report contains several informational sections. These include data such as the following:

Name(s) and identifying information on alleged victim
Name(s) and identifying informaton on alleged perpetrator
Incident location
Date and time of incident
Name(s) of witnesses
Alleged crime expressed as possible charges, usually expressed in terms of legal code
Alleged victim’s description of alleged crime
Initial statements of police officers
Lists of evidence collected or seized
Interviews with witnesses
Follow-up interviews with alleged victim
Interview with alleged perpetrator
Follow-up interviews with other parties
Results of field tests
Results of lab tests
Sections 1 to 8 are found in nearly every report. Depending upon what happened, the police may never get around to creating or adding the rest. Furthermore, it is not unusual for the police to start circulating a report without the later sections even if they have them or are working on them. “Victim’s reports” are often reports handled out to people claiming a crime was committed prior to investigation without any verification whatsoever of accuracy. Yet because they are on “official” paper, the average naive Jane or Joe might actually believe they are accurate and truthful when neither is even remotely certain.

For instance, see the arrest report for Henry Gates, President Barack Obama’s professor friend who works at Harvard University. There is no indication of follow-up investigation whatsoever. You only see the first few sections reflected on that report. Gates comes off looking like he might be a burglar resisting arrest.

But that’s not the only version of the report circulated. See a second version of the Henry Gates police report. Now he looks like a guy who is overly accusatory about racism and mean to cops.

Notice the differences? One has a booking record reflecting an arrest, the other has a much more extensive description of the incident. The first was circulated by FOX News. The second was circulated by a website called A View From the Right.

Police reports don’t determine guilt. But if you didn’t already know about this case from the news and a friend of your showed you the first report and said this man is a robber who resisted arrest, would you believe it? There isn’t anything to contradict it, in fact it looks like it might match what your friend is saying.

Now if you got the second report, that one shows that Sergeant Crowley thinks the man lives in the house but is acting very aggressively. If your police hating friend showed it to you after expressing an opinion, you might think it appears that Crowley intentionally lured an upset Gates outside his home so he could arrest him for being disorderly in public. If your cop friend showed it to you, you might think Gates is a raving nut and deserved to be arrested.

What’s the truth? Whatever it is, it certainly isn’t entirely captured in the police reports.

Various news organizations published and then hid different versions of these police reports. Others have speculated they were trying to hide the behaviors of Gates for various reasons. When the mainstream news media with experienced reporters can’t even keep the police reports straight, do you think you will be able to understand and detect an inaccurate or false police report? The odds are good that you will be unable to do so.

How Sociopaths Alter Police Reports for Defamation Purposes

Police reports don’t tell the whole story, but they can be incriminating and misleading. This is exactly why sociopathic parents like to file false police reports and then use them to defame and harass their victims.

It is a common trick for a sociopathic parent to spread around incomplete versions of police reports that omit the investigative sections that reflect what the police found when they interviewed witnesses, collected and tested evidence, and tried to piece together what really happened.

The first sections typically identify the alleged victim and alleged perpetrator. But they don’t say “alleged” on them. All it takes to get a police report naming somebody as a perpetrator, offender, or some other incriminating term is to lie to the cops. They will gladly hand a copy of the false police report on request to the false accuser, thereby providing her or him with ammunition to attack the actual victim. Now the real perp, the sociopathic parent, has a document that has the police falsely calling the real victim out as a perpetrator. She or he may start showing this to teachers, principals, doctors, nurses, pastors, neighbors, family members, and more to destroy the reputation of the target parent and to incite these people to help them attack and ruin the target parent and keep the children away.

Later sections include statements by the alleged victim. Often the police will talk with this person more than once. Sociopaths often have trouble keeping their “facts” (really lies) straight. So if there are two or three different interviews with police, there will likely be two or three (sometimes even more) variations of the lies with significant differences. How can they fix this? Simple, leave out all but one version. Often it simply takes not copying the entire report to turn a complete report that clearly looks like a nutcase’s ravings into convincing looking abridged report.

If somebody shows you a police report to try to convince you that her or his ex is a psycho abuser, be very skeptical. If you don’t see all or nearly all the sections I mentioned above in the report, particularly repeated interviews with the alleged victim and with other witnesses, you are probably looking at an incomplete report. You should strongly consider that the person is trying to deceive and manipulate you. This is all the more likely if you have never spent significant time with the accused person. Pathological liars are adept at identifying gullible people who lack sufficient insight to resist their deceit and manipulation. Having little direct knowledge of the accused means you are likely to be gullible.

If all the sections are there, read them all and see if it makes any sense. Look for inconsistencies, particularly in the accuser’s story. Often these people are such liars that they can’t remember what they said from day to day. Every time they tell their victimhood story, it will be different. That’s likely because it didn’t happen like they said.

Look for motivations. Why is this person showing you the report, anyway? If it seems the person is trying to get you to take sides, play the victim, solicit you for money to help, or otherwise get something from you, the odds are high that she or he is trying to deceive and manipulate you.

Ultimately, if somebody was never charged with a crime, you should be extremely skeptical of the police report. Except possibly for the well-connected, that generally means the case was so weak that the prosecutor’s office thought they would lose.

Be Somewhat Skeptical Of Convictions, Too

Sadly, in this era of government tyranny and routine violations of people’s rights, a conviction doesn’t always mean actual guilt, either, even if the accused person “confessed” to the crime.

Prosecutors like to scare people with extreme scenarios to force them to plea-bargain so they can claim another “win” when running for re-election without having to spend much time on the case. Go after an accused shoplifter with accusations of murder (somebody died in the store, they must have caused it even though there are no witnesses or evidence!), trumped up threats of 50 years in prison and then offer to plea down to a 1 year sentence with full probation. Many innocent people will take that “deal” and admit guilt or plead “no contest” even if they didn’t commit a crime because they can’t accept the risk, no matter how slight, of spending the rest of their lives in prison, especially for a crime they didn’t commit.

If they have seen public defenders in action, they know many of them are so incompetent, lazy, or unethical that they won’t even bother to try a serious defense against a weak prosecution case. Thus the falsely accused may believe that a conviction with probation is way better than exhausting one’s life savings on lawyers with no reimbursement possible even if they are sure they would be able to prove their innocence. When you consider the full implications of fighting false criminal charges via an expensive trial, it is clear why some people plead “no contest” or “confess” to a crime they didn’t do.

suemypsychologistSue My Psychologist About Archives RSS Feed CASA, court psychologist, custody evaluators, guardian ad litem, parenting coordinator Sue and/or prosecute court psychologists whose negligence/incompetence harms families In Divorce and custody, psychologist on January 14, 2010 at 11:54 am “Dr. Brown did not review…records related to the family. Dr. Brown didn’t see any of the children in either of the parties’ homes. Dr. Brown didn’t talk to any school personnel. Dr. Brown’s report didn’t mention one party’s criminal conviction. Dr. Brown didn’t initially provide all of his file to [another doctor hired by one of the parties], despite court directives to do so. Had the second party not hired another doctor and pursued review of Dr. Brown’s underlying files, the Court would have been led to believe that…his report was fairly comprehensive. That is not our conclusion.” – Kansas District Court Judge, quoted in a disciplinary document issued by the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board in its case against psychologist J. Scott Brown, October 11, 2005 - – - – - Lying. Ignoring court orders. Rendering opinions not based on observation. Psychologists and other mental health counselors employed or assigned by our family courts have the power to affect the lives of parents and children for better or worse. As demonstrated by both the case above and in the following cases—which were uncovered by or reported to Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR) in the past few years—these servants of the court frequently show themselves to be reckless and incompetent, making extremely questionable decisions, basing their decisions on second-hand observation or basing it on no observation at all. Such destructive carelessness, which imperils the already damaged integrity of a broken family, should be fully prosecuted and/or civil remedy should be sought. Individuals and families wronged in this way by a mental health practitioner should file criminal charges for “perjury,” “false swearing” or “filing a false report,” where applicable and should at the very least file a documented complaint with the practitioner’s licensing body (state medical or psychology board). EXAMPLES May 14, 2009: Colorado clinical social worker JOANNE BAUM was placed on probation for one year, having been found by the state to have acted in a manner that does not meet generally accepted professional standards of practice by writing a letter that contained judgments concerning a person she had never met and published recommendations regarding child custody issues without having full knowledge of the facts necessary to make such recommendations.1 October 16, 2008: the California Board of Psychology revoked DIANA M. ELLIOTT’s license for failure to comply with the terms of an earlier probation order against her. In March 2004, the Board charged Elliott with gross negligence, dishonesty and repeated negligent acts related to her testimony in a divorce matter in which she reported the results of psychological tests according to her memory, which was later discovered to be faulty (did not correspond to the actual answer sheets she had on file) and that in response to the trial court’s order for her to send the original answer sheets to the father’s expert, she sent copies which were altered to make the father look more disturbed and mother look healthier than the actual answer sheets did. Elliott has changed the test score answers. Lastly, Elliott failed to inform the court that the father was administered the test via an interpreter and failed to inform the court that her testimony was based on inaccurate information; her inaccurate testimony adversely affected the ability of the court to make an assessment of the child custody issues. As a result, Elliott was placed on probation for three years with terms and conditions.2 August 6, 2008: The Colorado State Board of Psychologist Examiners publicly admonished E. ROBERT LACROSSE for making custody recommendations without doing complete evaluations or interviewing all parties.3 June 21, 2008: The California Board of Psychology placed JANIS FOOTE on five years probation for negligent acts and general unprofessional conduct. Foote provided a custody recommendation to the court after having interviewed her patient’s three children without the knowledge or consent of the other parent (who shared joint custody of the children) and made evaluations against the other parent without ever having met him or observed him directly.4 In March 2008, Ohio psychologist MERYL A. ORLANDO was suspended for 30 days and placed on 24 months of restricted practice, during which the court prohibited her from providing testimony in any cases involving custody or parental rights in any Ohio court or other adjudicative body. Orlando was found to have engaged in negligent conduct by rendering a legal opinion regarding a father’s continued involvement with his children, despite having not observed the father’s interaction with the children and for recommending that the father be named legal custodian of the children, based in part on her opinion that the mother had sabotaged the childrens’ relationships with the father, among other things.5 January 31, 2008: The Oregon Board of Psychologist Examiners found that GARY L. GREGOR committed unprofessional conduct in a custody evaluation that included failing to take reasonable steps to avoid harm in regard to the child and mother; failed to recognize his own possible bias and failed to resolve the matter with due regard for the best interests of the mother and father (both clients) and the child. Gregor surrendered his license while under investigation (not a final decision) and the Board has proposed restricting him from performing child custody evaluations or parenting plans, among other conditions.6 October 25, 2007: The Virginia Board of Psychology put JOSEPH CONLEY, JR. on indefinite probation of no less than 18 months. Conley was found to have violated several state regulations while conducting evaluations in a child-custody case when he made an “inflammatory appraisal” of the mother (who he had never met) as well as a written evaluation that demonstrated “a bias against the mother, without substantiation by corroborating evidence.”7 July 20, 2007: The Ohio Counselor, Social Worker & Marriage & Family Therapist Board suspended social worker JOANN KUREK for three months. Board documents state that Kurek “failed to maintain the appropriate standards of care…by rendering a biased opinion about a minor client’s father without ever performing as assessment of him” but based on the opinions of the minor’s court-appointed guardian.8 November 27, 2006: The Pennsylvania Board of Psychology reprimanded PHILIP J. KINNEY and assessed him a $2,500 civil penalty. The Board found that Kinney’s findings in forensic child custody evaluations were not based on sufficient techniques or information. For instance, he made statements about a mother and her ability to parent without having conducted any examination of her; failed to maintain an objective and impartial stance in his evaluation of the child; failed to obtain informed consent from all adult participants prior to performing a custody evaluation on the child and over-interpreted or inappropriately interpreted clinical assessment data.9 July 20, 2006: The Idaho Board of Psychologist Examiners disciplined CHARLES W. GAMBLE for several counts of failure to provide a proper child custody evaluation in a divorce dispute. The Board put his license on 12 months probation and ordered him to cease providing such evaluations.10 June 29, 2006: New Hampshire mental health counselor BRENDA DESMARIS was disciplined by the state Board of Mental Health Practice for sending the court a report on a child’s condition without first getting a release from the child’s parents and advocated that the child’s visitation with the father be suspended. She was placed on practice monitoring for one year, as well as continuing education in divorce and custody, risk management and role confusion.11 June 20, 2006: South Carolina psychologist ANDREW B. MCGARITY voluntarily surrendered his license to the state psychology board, following an earlier disciplinary action which he failed to comply with. The earlier action was the result of 2003 board findings that McGarity had performed a custody evaluation that “failed to meet the generally accepted standard of care normally expected of clinical psychologists….” In a custody evaluation incident to a divorce proceeding, McGarity failed to evaluate the children or the individual parents’ interactions with them before recommending which parent should be awarded custody. Additionally, in December 2005, the State of California revoked his license to practice psychology.12 February 10, 2006: The Arizona Medical Board found psychiatrist HOWARD L. MITCHELL guilty of, among other things, ignoring data when evaluating a patient; making a custody recommendation without an appropriate evaluation and making false statements in a patient evaluation. Specifically, Mitchell conducted a psychiatric evaluation and made custody recommendations that neglected to consider domestic violence findings and made his recommendations after interviewing only the father—not the mother or the child. He was put on one year of probation with conditions.13 January 2, 2006: The Psychology Board of Ohio suspended JOSEPH JOHN BENDO for one year (60 days active suspension and the remainder stayed). The board found that Bendo had testified in a divorce/custody dispute involving a married couple he had counseled two years earlier. In the court setting (for which he “agreed that his conduct…reflected a lack of a fundamental…understanding of the legal and professional standards of care that govern the participation of psychological experts in legal proceedings”), Bendo released confidential information on one of the patients to the attorneys of the opposing patient, despite never having secured express written permission from the former patient to reveal such data, in an effort to “influence the legal system” in favor of the opposing party. In addition to active suspension, Bendo was permanently “prohibited from rendering in writing or by testimony any hypotheses, impressions, diagnostic suppositions, or other professional opinions to any adjudicative body, including administrative agencies and any court or agent of any court in the State of Ohio, relative to parenting, parenting time, or the allocation of parental rights and responsibilities.”14 November 2005: Psychologist MICHAEL CARLIN was suspended for two years by the British Psychological Society. Carlin, who did not have the two years’ supervised experience needed to act as a forensic psychologist, was found guilty of professional misconduct for having submitted forensic reports in two instances, including a child rape case.15 February 2003: Ohio psychologist ROGER H. FISHER surrendered his license while under investigation by the State Board of Psychology for acts of negligence and incompetence in the conduct of psychological services to children, couples and families involved in domestic relations matters. In June 2001, Fisher was placed on permanent restriction from rendering services as an expert or evaluator in domestic relations courts, regarding custody, parenting or visitation, based on a complaint filed by a mother alleging that Fisher authored a report strongly biased against her based solely on a single session evaluation of her 5-year, 9-month-old son, at the father’s behest. The report, which questioned the mother’s fitness to parent and commented on her “personality changes,” “mood swings,” and allegedly bizarre behavior, was based only on the son and father’s information. Between March and June 2002, the Board received four separate additional complaints of negligence and incompetence from parents to whom Fisher had rendered forensic psychological services in domestic matters. The surrender was deemed a permanent revocation.16 PARENTAL ALIENATION SYNDROME (PAS) PAS is an alleged (and thoroughly discredited) “mental disorder” applied to one parent in a divorce-custody matter by the opposing party’s psychological expert in the following manner: “The child(ren) are fearful of or angry at Parent B (my client). It appears that Parent A has been telling the child(ren) negative things about my client in an effort to make the child(ren) fear my client, refuse visitation with him, etc. These efforts are proof that Parent A has PAS and so should not have custody of the child(ren).” Use of this “diagnosis” sometimes obscures the fact that there may be documented reasons or logical foundations for the child(ren)’s fears or the parent’s concern, such as actual sexual abuse, domestic violence or the opposing parent’s criminal record. PAS has never been validated by any official body and, on the contrary, has been invalidated by numerous authorities, including the American Psychological Association, which stated: “Custody and visitation disputes appear to occur more frequently when there is a history of domestic violence. Family courts often do not consider the history of violence between the parents in making custody and visitation decisions. In this context, the non-violent parent may be at a disadvantage and behavior that would seem reasonable as a protection from abuse may be misinterpreted as a sign of instability. Terms such as ‘parental alienation’ may be used to blame the women for the children’s reasonable fear or anger toward their violent father.”17 Dr. Paul Fink of Temple University’s School of Medicine, called the theory dangerous: “It was made up by one guy who spread it around. No investigation was done, there was no research, and it’s hurt a lot of women and children.”18 CASES March 3, 2008: The Psychologists Board of Queensland (Australia) disciplined WILLIAM WRIGLEY, declaring that he acted unprofessionally in giving evidence about “parental alienation syndrome” to the court. An investigation of Wrigley found that his evidence in a case three years earlier, which led to a mother losing custody of her two children, constituted “conduct that demonstrates incompetence or a lack of adequate knowledge, skill, judgment or care.” The judge in the case stated, “It has to be said that in terms of objectivity, professionalism, fairness and balance, his reports are in stark contrast to those provided by (other professionals).” The board advised Wrigley of its unanimous decision that he had “acted in a way that constituted unsatisfactory conduct” for “referring to an unrecognized syndrome in his reports. It was inappropriate for [Wrigley] to either diagnose the children or state there was a likelihood the children could develop parental alienation syndrome, as it is not a recognized syndrome. To diagnose a patient as suffering from or demonstrating a potential to develop an unrecognized syndrome is contrary to the code of ethics.”19 In December 2003, the Ohio State Board of Psychology filed 11 allegations against DOUGLAS C. DARNALL, in addition to complaints filed against him in 2002 by five former clients. Many of the complaints accused Darnall of using the diagnosis of parental alienation syndrome to classify parents’ behavior and using a non-published test—the “parental alienation scale”—to form conclusions in psychological assessment, which the state says contradicts the standards for psychological testing. One of the complaints alleged that Darnall conducted an evaluation of a client and her ex-husband to provide the court a child visitation recommendation without ever meeting the children, according to the state’s document. The state charged Darnall with requiring clients to complete his nonvalidated “parental alienation scale” as part of their evaluation; warning parents that their evaluation would not be completed if they did not fill out the scale and that the judge would be notified and making at least one custody recommendation without adequately gathering information from clients, among others. The board issued a disciplinary action against Darnall in April 2005, which was appealed. The board ultimately voided its disciplinary decision and dismissed the charges against him in an August 2005 settlement that required him obtain 15 hours of continuing education in forensic psychological practice and tutorial direction from a board-approved supervisor in identifying risk factors/avoiding loss of objectivity in litigation-related evaluations of children. 20 _ _ _ _ _ Parents who have been wronged, their children’s safety and their family’s stability further damaged by the “work” of a careless or incompetent psychologist or psychiatrist, can contact CCHR for possible assistance with their complaint. Attorneys and others are also welcome to contact CCHR for additional data on PAS, bogus psychiatric diagnoses in general and other data pertinent to civil or criminal matters involving psychiatric abuses. Please contact Steve Wagner, Director of Litigation & Prosecution, 800-869-2247 or swagner@cchr.org. Article was used with permission of Citizens Commission on Human Rights International. Advertisement Like this:LikeBe the first to like this post. ? 2 Responses Janelle Burrill – “QUACK” without a license to practice psychology We spoke to the board extensively and the enforcement division recommends us to file a complaint against Janelle Burrill because practicing psychology without a licence is a crime. Please take a few minutes and file a complaint online . https://app.dca.ca.gov/psychboard/complaints.asp Janelle Burrill presented to her victims as an expert in psychology. She assessed, diagnosed and determined many of her victims as psychotic, sociapath, impulse control freaks, suffering from bi-polar disorders and doles out DSM-V diagnosis and prescribes psychiatric medicine as candies after talking to them for a few minutes. She had a registration to work under the supervision of a licensed psychologist for a couple of years which was terminated in 2006. PSB30484 (Mar 18 2004 – July 21 2006). If she engaged in the practice of psychology from 2006 onwards – which we believe, she did then she committed a crime. The practice of psychology is defined as rendering or offering to render for a fee to individuals, groups, organizations or the public any psychological service involving the application of psychological principles, methods, and procedures of understanding, predicting, and influencing behavior, such as the principles pertaining to learning, perception, motivation, emotions, and interpersonal relationships; and the methods and procedures of interviewing, counseling, psychotherapy, behavior modification, and hypnosis; and of constructing, administering, and interpreting tests of mental abilities, aptitudes, interests, attitudes, personality characteristics, emotions, and motivations California Board of Psychology Rules and Regulations #2903 Licensure Requirement; Practice of Psychology; Psychotherapy; Fee § 2903. No person may engage in the practice of psychology, or represent himself or herself to be a psychologist, without a license granted under this chapter, except as otherwise provided in this chapter. The practice of psychology is defined as rendering or offering to render for a fee to individuals, groups, organizations or the public any psychological service involving the application of psychological principles, methods, and procedures of understanding, predicting, and influencing behavior, such as the principles pertaining to learning, perception, motivation, emotions, and interpersonal relationships; and the methods and procedures of interviewing, counseling, psychotherapy, behavior modification, and hypnosis; and of constructing, administering, and interpreting tests of mental abilities, aptitudes, interests, attitudes, personality characteristics, emotions, and motivations. The application of these principles and methods includes, but is not restricted to: diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and amelioration of psychological problems and emotional and mental disorders of individuals and groups. Psychotherapy within the meaning of this chapter means the use of psychological methods in a professional relationship to assist a person or persons to acquire greater human effectiveness or to modify feelings, conditions, attitudes and behavior which are emotionally, intellectually, or socially ineffectual or maladjustive. Reply Victims of "QUACK" corrupt fraud Janelle Burrill 1 April 2010 at 2pm It should be noted that, regardless of her standing as a psychologist, Janelle Burrill holds a clear (active and without disciplinary actions) license to practice clinical social work: Board of Behavioral Sciences 1625 North Market Boulevard, Suite S 200 Sacramento, CA 95834 Main Line Phone Number: (916) 574-7830 Licensee Information Licensee Name: BURRILL JANELLE LEE License Type: LICENSED CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER License Number: 16216 License Status: CLEAR Definition Expiration Date: July 31, 2011 Issue Date: July 31, 1992 Address: 915 UNIVERSITY AVE City: SACRAMENTO State: CA Zip: 95825 County: SACRAMENTO Actions: No Reply suemypsychologist 5 April 2010 at 8pm Leave a Reply Cancel reply Enter your comment here... Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: Email (required) (Address never made public) Name (required) Website You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. 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Visitation Rights of Non-Custodial Parents

In This Guide Custodial vs. Non-Custodial Parent "Reasonable" Visitation Schedule Grandparents Visitation Interferance with Visitation Supervised Visitation Child Custody Guide Topics Introduction to Child Custody Types of Child Custody Who Gets Custody? Going to Court Out-of-Court Custody Agreement Modifying a Custody Agreement Custody Between States Emergency Custody Issues Hiring a Child Custody Attorney Adoption In a divorce where one parent is awarded physical custody of the child, the non-custodial parent is usually awarded visitation rights. Child visitation rights are considered a privilege, rather than an automatically granted right. In cases where child visitation rights are denied, the non-custodial parent may still be ordered to pay child support to the parent with physical custody. Child support responsibilities and child visitation rights are two separate matters in the eyes of the family court of law. Visitation rights may be determined by the agreement of the parents or by a court order if the parents cannot agree. Courts will generally consider the wishes of the child, if age appropriate, when reviewing custody and visitation issues. Visitation rights are important; not only to the parent, but to the children as well. The length and type of visitation may be decided according to the age of the child. In order to avoid conflicts, a parenting plan can cover how the visitation will be carried out. The parents can draft a specific agreement which may include: Specific weekends Overnight visits Pick up and drop off times and locations How the exchange will be made A schedule for birthdays, holidays and special occasions Supervised visitation may be ordered when the children’s safety and well-being require that visits with the other parent be supervised by another adult, or a professional agency. In situations in which contact with a parent would be physically or emotionally harmful to the children, the court may order that the parent be allowed no visitation with the children. If needed, the court can appoint an attorney to represent the child. This type of attorney is known as a Guardian Ad Litem. Custodial Parent vs. Noncustodial Parent The custodial parent is the individual that has primary physical custody of the child. The child does not reside with the non-custodial parent except during the time that the non-custodial parent has visitation. The courts generally encourage frequent and regular visitation when the parents live in the same locality and when it does not interfere with a child’s school schedule. If the parents live a long distance from one another, liberal visitation is usually provided for school breaks and summer vacations. Who Determines the Visitation Terms? Many states have adopted new laws which require the parents to draft a parenting agreement. This allows the parents to work out a reasonable visitation plan at their discretion so long as the plan is in the best interest of the children. Negotiating child visitation rights can be done independently or with the help of a neutral third party mediator. A mediator can facilitate discussion of each parent’s needs with the goal of reaching a mutually acceptable agreement without having to go to trial. If an agreement cannot be reached by the parents, the court may intercede. When the court determines child visitation rights, it will develop a schedule that both parents and the child are bound to abide by. Visitation Schedule Child visitation can take a variety of forms or schedules. The term “reasonable visitation” leaves it up to the parents to specify dates and times for the visitation. Having a “scheduled visitation” agreement outlines a specific and fixed schedule of when the visitation will occur. Whether you are the custodial or non-custodial parent, a basic visitation schedule may include the following: Alternate weekend visitation with the non-custodial parent, including any three-day holidays Mid-week visitation with the non-custodial parent Sharing of the child during periods of school breaks; winter, spring and summer New Year’s Eve, Easter, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are the types of holidays spent with one parent one year, the other parent the following year Mother’s Day is spent with the mother and Father’s Day with the father Parents alternate the children’s birthdays Telephone and email contact by the parent who does not have physical custody Exchange of a few days of visitation on occasion as schedules permit that are mutually agreed upon without the need for a modification of the court order Emergency situations that may require the other parent to take temporary physical custody of the child When creating a parenting plan and visitation schedule, you should define the schedule according to age and gender. Keep the child visitation schedule flexible, workable, and feasible. As children get older, they may want to spend more time with their friends or participate in after school activities. Children are the real victims of the conflict between their parents. Therefore, it is critical for each parent to show respect for each other and behave as adults in front of their children. Cooperation and a positive attitude will go a long way in making your children feel less stressed about their changing situation. Grandparents’ Visitation Rights All 50 states currently have some type of grandparent visitation statute. However, there may be limitations under which grandparent visitation is considered. They may have to prove to the court that harm will occur to the grandchild in the absence of visitation. Establishing visitation for a grandparent can be emotionally difficult and legally challenging. Those who face parental resistance to their contact with their grandchildren might be best served through a mediation process. Grandparent visitation rights are not intended or designed to supersede parental authority. Their right to visitation is governed by the state where the child resides. What Happens if One of the Parents Attempts to Interfere with Visitation? Interference by one parent in the relationship of a child with the other parent is never in the child’s best interest. Most courts and experts agree that it is important for a child to have a strong relationship with both parents. The courts will typically award custody to the parent who is most likely to foster a relationship between the child and the other parent. Courts in some jurisdictions have held that interference with the non-custodial parent’s right could be grounds for a change of custody.

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Malicious Mother Syndrome JOURNAL OF FAMILY VIOLENCE, VOLUME 10, NUMBER 3, p 253-264, 1995 DIVORCE RELATED MALICIOUS MOTHER SYNDROME Ira Daniel Turkat, Ph.D. With the increasing commonality of divorce involving children, a pattern of abnormal behaviour has emerged that has received little attention. The present paper defines the Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome. Specific nosologic criteria are provided with abundant clinical examples. Given the lack of scientific data available on the disorder, issues of classification, etiology, treatment, and prevention appear ripe for investigation. INTRODUCTION A divorced man gains custody of his children and his ex-wife burns down his home. A woman in a custody battle buys a cat for her offspring because her divorcing husband is highly allergic to cats. A mother forces her children to sleep in a car to "prove" their father has bankrupted them. These actions illustrate a pattern of abnormal behavior that has emerged as the divorce rate involving children has grown. Today, half of all marriages will end in divorce (Beal and Hochman, 1991). The number of children involved in divorce has grown dramatically (e.g., Hetherington and Arastah, 1988) as well. While the majority of such cases are "settled" from a legal perspective, outside the courtroom the battle continues. The media has spent considerable effort raising public awareness about the problem posed by divorced fathers who do not provide court ordered child support payments. Hedges (1991) has noted that less than 20% of divorced fathers provide child support payments three years after their divorce. Research on the decline of women's economic status following divorce (e.g., Hernandez, 1988; Laosa, 1988) has contributed to recent legislation to address the "Deadbeat Dad" problem. While the media correctly portrays the difficulties imposed upon women and children by the "Deadbeat Dad" phenomenon, the cameras have yet to capture the warfare waged by a select group of mothers against child support paying, law abiding fathers. Every day, attorneys and therapists are exposed to horror stories in which vicious behaviors are lodged against innocent fathers and children. Unfortunately, there are no scientific data on the subject. Similarly, the clinical literature has relatively ignored the problem. A notable exception can be found in the clinical writings of Gardner (1987, 1989) who has provided excellent descriptions of the Parental Alienation Syndrome. Here, a custodial parent successfully engages in a variety of maneuvers to alienate the child from the non-residential parent. Once successfully manipulated, the child becomes "...preoccupied with deprecation and criticism of a parent-denigration that is unjustified and/or exaggerated" (Gardner, 1989 p. 226). In the typical case of Parental Alienation Syndrome, both mother and child engage in an array of abnormal actions against the rather. Gardner views "brainwashing" as a concept "too narrow" (Gardner, 1989) to capture the psychological manipulation involved in turning a child against his/her non-residential parent. While Gardner's pioneering descriptions of the Parental Alienation Syndrome provide an important contribution to our understanding of divorce related child involved hostilities, the present paper is concerned with a more global abnormality. As noted in the examples provided in the beginning of this manuscript, serious attacks on divorcing husbands take place which are beyond merely manipulating the children. Further, these actions include a willingness by some mothers to violate societal law. Finally, there are mothers who persistently engage in malicious behaviors designed to alienate their offspring from the father, despite being unable to successfully cause alienation. In sum, these cases do not meet the criteria for Parental Alienation Syndrome. Nevertheless, they portray a serious abnormality. The purpose of the present paper is to define and illustrate this more global abnormality with the hope of generating increased scientific and clinical investigation of this problem. DEFINITION The present section provides a beginning definition of the Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome, which has been derived from clinical and legal cases. As in all initial proposals, it is anticipated that future research will lead to greater refinement in the taxonomic criteria. The proposed definition encompasses four major criteria, as follows: A mother who unjustifiably punishes her divorcing or divorced husband by: Attempting to alienate their mutual child(ren) from the father Involving others in malicious actions against the father Engaging in excessive litigation The mother specifically attempts to deny her child(ren): Regular uninterrupted visitation with the father Uninhibited telephone access to the father paternal participation in the child(ren)'s school life and extra-curricular activities Tile pattern is pervasive and includes malicious acts towards the husband including: Lying to the children Lying to others Violations of law The disorder is not specifically due to another mental disorder although a separate mental disorder may co-exist. CLINICAL ILLUSTRATIONS In this section, I will provide clinical illustrations for each criterion using the reference numbers provided above. As criteria 1-3 are behavior specific to the Malicious Mother Syndrome, I will provide a series of clinical examples. The fourth criterion which addresses the relationship of the proposed syndrome to other mental disorders, will be discussed more generally. Criterion 1A: Alienating the Children The range of actions taken by a mother to attempt to alienate her children from their father is impressive. For example: One mother lied to her children that she could no longer buy food because their father had spent all of their money on women at topless bars. A doctor's wife forced her 10 year old son to apply for federally funded free school lunches to delude the boy that his "daddy has made us poor." A woman who for years was very close to the children in a custody battle, was asked by their mother to give up neutrality and join her campaign against the father to "dance on his grave." When the friend refused to give up her neutrality, the mother falsely informed her children that their father was having an affair with this woman. These behaviors, if successful, could lead a child to not only hate the father but perhaps go years without seeing him. As Cartwright (1993) has noted: "The goal of the alienator is crystalline: to deprive the lost parent, not only of the child's time, but of the time of childhood" (p. 210). Criterion 1B: Involving Others in Malicious Actions The second component of the first major criterion where the mother attempts to punish the husband, involves manipulating other individuals to engage in malicious acts against the father. Examples of this kind are as follows: During a custody battle, a mother lied to a therapist about the father's behaviour. The therapist, having never spoken with the father, appeared as an "expert" witness to inform the Judge that the mother should be the primary residential parent and that the father needed to be in therapy. One angry mother manipulated teenagers to leave anonymous threatening notes at the ex-husband's home. A mother who had lost legal custody of her child, manipulated a secretary at the child's school to assist in kidnapping the child. In the above examples, it is important to note that the person manipulated by the angry mother has, in a way, been "alienated" against the divorcing husband. Typically, the individual "duped" takes on a righteous indignation, contributing to a rewarding climate for the mother initiating malicious actions. Criterion 1C: Excessive Litigation There is little question that either party in a divorce or custody proceeding is entitled to appropriate legal representation and action. Individuals suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome, however, attempt to punish the divorcing husband by engaging in excessive litigation. A belligerent and unreasonable mother verbally attacked her ex-husband whenever she saw him. Over time, his response was to ignore her. She then took him to court, asking the judge to require the ex-husband to talk with her. One mother told a judge that her daughter was not really her divorcing husband's child. One woman refused to stop attacking her ex-husband through the courts despite numerous attorneys being fired or voluntarily leaving the case. Over a three year period, seven different attorneys were utilized. Data exist which can help in determining the range of excessive litigation. For example, Keel et al. (1988) report on the frequency of post-divorce litigation in a sample of 700 families. Their data indicate that only 12.7% of families file one post-divorce petition to the court, whereas less than 5% file two or more petitions (Keel at al. 1988); less than 1% file four or more petitions. Criterion 2A: Denying Regular Visitation Experts are in relative agreement that regular and uninterrupted visitation with the non-residential parent is desirable and beneficial for children, except in extreme circumstances (Hedges, 1991). In fact, some states, such as Florida, have laws written to reflect this view (Keane, 1990). Unfortunately, even when the father and children have legal rights to visitation, individuals with Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome continue to interfere with it. A mother who previously attacked her ex-husband physically during visitation transfers of the children, refused to provide the children when the ex-husband had the police attend to monitor exchanges. When one divorced father arrived to pick up his children for visitation, the mother arranged for her and the children to be elsewhere so that the father could not visit with the children. One mother had her physically intimidating boyfriend assault her ex-husband when he came to pick up his children for visitation. The President of The Council for Children's Rights (Washington, D.C.) notes that such alienation is considered a form of child abuse (Levy, 1992). Unfortunately, the police typically avoid involving themselves in such situations. Furthermore, unless a victimized father is financially capable of returning to court on an ongoing basis, there is little that can be done to prevent such mothers' behavior. Finally, even when such cases are brought to trial, the courts are often inadequate in supporting fathers' visitation rights (Commission on Gender Bias in the Judicial System, 1992). Criterion 2B: Denying Uninhibited Telephone Access Given the physical absence of one parent, the telephone plays an important role in maintaining the bond between child and non-residential parent. Individuals suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome engage in an array of actions designed to circumvent telephone access. A father called to speak to his children and was told that they were not at home when in bet he could hear their voices in the background. When one father called to speak with his children, the mother put him on "hold," informed no one, and then left him there. Knowing that the children's father was away on vacation, one mother encouraged them to leave several messages on his answering machine to call back immediately only if he would like some additional visitation time with his children. Some fathers find the alienation attempts so painful and fruitless that they eventually are extinguished from calling their children; they simply "give up." Placed in a no-win scenario, the father's "abandonment" (Hedges, 1991) unfortunately achieves the precise result aimed for by the individual suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome. Criterion 2C: Denying Participation in Extra-Curricular Activities An integral part of the process of maintaining one's bond with one's child is to participate in activities that one did before the parents separated. School plays, team sports, and religious events are just some of the types of activities of importance. Malicious Mothers frequently engage in maneuvers designed to prevent participation in these activities. One father was deliberately given the wrong date and time for an important event for the child. The child was asked by the mother, "I wonder why your father didn't want to come to see you today"? One mother refused to provide the father with any information about any extra-curricular activities in which the children were engaged. Prior to a child's soccer game, one mother told many of the team parents disparaging falsehoods about the visiting lather. When he came to watch his son's soccer game, many of these parents looked at him with angry eyes, refused to talk with him, and walked away when he moved toward them. Malicious Mothers who engage in such behaviors rarely have to face penalties for such actions. Judges, attorneys, and policemen cannot involve themselves in every instance of blocked paternal access. Furthermore, most fathers cannot afford the financial requirements involved. As such, the cycle of access interference perpetuates itself. Criterion 3A: Malicious Lying to the Children Given their developmental status, children in a disputed divorce situation are quite vulnerable. When one parent decides to attack the other by lying to the children, examples of this type of malicious behavior may include some of the following. One divorcing mother told her very young daughter that her father was "not really" her father even though he was. An eight year old girl was forced by her mother to hand unpaid bills to her lather when he visited because the mother had falsely told the daughter that the father had not provided any economic means of support to the family. One mother falsely told her children that their father had repeatedly beat her up in the past. These examples of malicious lying can be contrasted with the more subtle maneuvers typically seen in Parental Alienation Syndrome, such as "virtual allegations" (Cartwright, 1993). Here, the mother setting up a Parental Alienation Syndrome may hint that abuse may have occurred, whereas the individual suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome falsely claims that abuse has actually occurred. Criterion 3B: Malicious Lying to Others Individuals suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome may engage a wide range of other individuals in their attacks upon the ex-husband. However, with this particular criterion, the individual with Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome specifically lies to other individuals in the belligerency against the father. Some examples include the following. One furious mother called the president of the (1500 employee) workplace of her divorcing husband, claiming falsely that he was using business property for personal gain and was abusing their mutual children at his work locale. One woman falsely told slate officials that her ex-husband was sexually abusing their daughter. The child was immediately taken away from him and his access to her was denied. During the course of a custody dispute, one mother falsely informed the guardian, who was investigating the parenting skills of each parent, that the father had physically abused her. Snyder (1986) has reported on the difficulty imposed upon legal authorities when confronted with someone who is an excellent liar. Consistent with research on the inability of "specialists" to detect lying (Ekman and O'Sullivan, 1991), a skilled fabricator can be a compelling witness in the courtroom (Snyder, 1986). While sometimes seen in borderline personalities, Snyder (1986) notes that pathological lying (Pseudologia Fantastica) is not restricted to that particular character disorder. Criterion 3C: Violating Law to Attack the Husband Individuals suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome have few if any boundaries in their campaign against the divorcing husband. Violations of law are common in many cases, although the laws broken may be relatively minor. However, in some cases, the violations of law may be quite serious. One woman deliberately drove her automobile into the house of her ex-husband where their mutual children resided. In the midst of a custody battle, one woman broke into the residence of her divorcing husband and stole important business papers. An angry divorcing mother called a Christian evangelical television station and pledged $1000, giving the name, address, and phone number of her divorcing Jewish husband as the pledgee. The above descriptions may remind the reader of certain personality disorders (e.g., antisocial, borderline, sadistic) but these behaviors may be demonstrated by individuals with Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome who do not appear to meet official diagnostic criteria for an Axis II disorder. Further, in each of the four examples provided above, none of the Malicious Mothers involved was sentenced for such behavior by a Judge. Criterion 4: Not Due to Another Disorder In assessing the Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome, it is important to note that many of the above clinical examples seem to have occurred in individuals who had no prior mental disorder diagnosis or treatment. In fact, one mother who engaged in extreme maliciousness toward her divorcing husband had several mental health professionals testify that she was not suffering from any type of mental disorder. Clearly, it would seem that individuals who have Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome may or may not have a concomitant mental disorder. In the author's experience, for each mental disorder that might come to mind to account for some of this behavior, an exceptional case presents. For example, in some cases an Adjustment Disorder might seem an appropriate diagnosis, yet one woman still denied her ex-husband visitation 10 years after the divorce. Other cases might suggest a possibility of a personality disorder diagnosis, yet one woman who repeatedly violated the law in attacking her ex-husband, received no personality disorder diagnosis despite being evaluated by masters level and doctoral level examiners. In some instances, Intermittent Explosive Disorder might be considered, yet the anger for many of the mothers does not appear to be intermittent. Finally, the reader should appreciate that while diagnostic accuracy for certain psychiatric difficulties is not as good as one would like (e.g., the personality disorders, see Turkat, 1990), the problem is compounded in family law where incompetent mental health examiners sometimes become involved in the judicial process (Turkat, 195)3). Clearly, the relationship between Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome and other mental disorders is a complex one which requires significant investigation. DISCUSSION The above description of the Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome raises a variety of important clinical, legal, and scientific issues. From a clinical perspective, families that involve a Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome are subject to serious episodes of stress and distress. Yet, there is no scientific evidence on how to treat this phenomenon. It is particularly compromised by the fact that many of these cases that appear to meet the proposed diagnostic criteria deny that there is anything wrong with them. An additional difficulty is that many therapists are unaware of this pattern of malicious behavior (Heinz and Heinz, 1993). As such, there are therapists who are "fooled" by such cases and, as noted earlier, will come to court testifying that there is nothing wrong with the mother involved. From a legal perspective, there are some attorneys who may unintentionally encourage this type of behavior (Gardner, 1989). On the other hand, there are some attorneys who deliberately encourage such behavior, as the financial rewards for them are time dependent. In other words, the more involved the litigation process, the greater the profits for the attorney (Grotman and Thomas, 1990). However, even for the subset of attorneys for whom this may be true, there is a point of diminishing returns. Furthermore, independent of economic considerations, many who become involved with family law courtrooms find that these types of cases are not handled well (Greif, 1985; Levy, 1992). The woman who is not disturbed "enough" to lose custody of her children in the courtroom will not have money denied to her because she engages in this behavior; nor will she go to jail. Thus, many clients report significant frustration when they and their children are exposed to this type of behavior, and the courts seem to do little if anything about. In a review of pertinent law literature on bias against men in family law proceedings, Tillitski (1992) concluded that there is widespread discrimination. This is well illustrated by one family law Judge's statement that, "I ain't never seen the calves follow the bulls, they always follow the cow; therefore, I always give custody to the mamas" (Commission on Gender Bias in the Judicial System, 1992 p. 742). Similarly, it is noted that visitation rights of fathers are not enforced as rigidly as are child support orders (Commission on Gender Bias in the Judicial System, 1992). Such bias against men in family law proceedings results in a unique group of fathers who unintentionally become relatively helpless victims of the system (Tillitski, 1992). This situation would seem to reinforce much of the vicious behavior displayed by women suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome. The issue of sex distribution of the disorder certainly needs to be addressed. The overwhelming majority of custodial parents are female (Commission on Gender Bias in the Judicial System, 1992). Gardner (1989) has noted that Parental Alienation Syndrome appears most commonly in females, although it is possible for a male who has custody of the children to engage in the same type of alienating behaviors. The author's experience with Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome is similar to Gardner's. However, the present writer has yet to see a case of a father engaging in all of the criteria listed. This does not mean that it is not possible for there to be a "Malicious Father" Syndrome. In fact, Shepard (1992) reports that there is significant abuse of some custodial mothers by non-residential fathers. On the other hand, it should be noted that there are females who are required to pay chiltl support, but we have yet to heara about "Deadbeat Moms." Given at the present time that a case in which the father met all of the criteria for Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syntlrome has yet to be documented, it appears advisable to await scientific evidence to guide issues of nosologic labeling. How prevalent is the Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome? The answer is unknown. Gardner (1989) reports that approximately 90% of all custody battles involve some aspects of parental alienation. Further, Kressel (1985) reviewed data indicating that up to 40% of maternal custodians denied visitation to the ex-husband in order to punish him. Relatedly, Arditti (1992) reported that 50% of a sample of divorced fathers (N = 125) indicated that visitation was interfered with by the mother. While aspects of parental alienation may be common, it is highly unlikely that such a percentage of maternal custodians would meet all of the criteria for Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome. In regard to incidence, it would appear through the title of this syndrome that the malicious behavior is precipitated by the divorce process. However, this is clearly an empirical question. While the malicious actions may first be noted during a divorce process, it is possible that maliciousness may have been present earlier but undetected. Research on pre-divorce parental conflict (Enos and Handal, 1986) supports this speculation. Relatedly, it may also be that there are some cases of pre-existing mental disorder that have not been discovered until the stress of the divorce itself unfolds. Finally, it should be noted that research on the nature of post-divorce family functioning is beginning to emerge. Some data exist on the role of parental conflict in children's postdivorce functioning (e.g., Frost and Pakiz, 1990; Furstenberg et al., 1987; Healy, Malley and Stewart, 1990; Kudek, 1988), but studies have yet to appear on the more extreme cases of Parental Alienation Syndrome and Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome. The Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome represents an important societal phenomenon. The disorder affects children, parents, attorneys, judges, guardians, mental health professionals, and others. Until this phenomenon is explored more thoroughly in the scientific and clinical literature, the problems imposed by individuals suffering from Divorce Related Malicious Mother Syndrome will continue to plague us. Hopefully, the present manuscript will stimulate research so that clinical and legal management guidelines can be developed. REFERENCES Artlitli, J. A. (1992). 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