FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
September 14, 2011
CONTACT:
Kathleen Russell – 415.388.9600 [email protected]
Mom Loses Teen to Controversial "Parental Alienation" Theory
---Teen in Hiding from Identified Abuser
Rally at San Diego Appellate Court Against "Parental Alienation" Theory
--Used to Strip Mothers of Custody and Children of Safety
San Diego County, CA — The Fourth District Appellate Court will be hearing oral arguments Thursday, 9 a.m., Sept. 15th, at 750 B St., Floor 3, San Diego, in a high profile Family Court case involving a teen who first reported sexual abuse by his father eight years ago. There will be court watchers present and the public is encouraged to attend. A press conference is scheduled for immediately prior to the hearing at 8:30am. The press is strongly urged to attend both the press conference and the hearing.
When the teen first reported abuse in 2003 at the age of six, the father, Eric Moelter, used the common defense tactic of shifting blame to the mother, Cindy Dumas, through the use of the discredited "parental alienation" (PA) theory. PA theory, concocted by pedophile apologist Dr. Richard Gardner, posits that the "protective parent" (usually the mother) coached or brainwashed the child to report abuse, in a malicious effort to alienate or turn the child against the reported perpetrator (usually the father). Gardner’s "cure" for PA is to isolate the child from the protective parent through supervised visitation or no contact, which translates legally into loss of custody.
Gardner’s theory formed the basis for fathers’ rights advocates to use alienation as a strategy to strip custody from the primary bond/caretaker and is used almost exclusively against mothers. Despite the fact that PA is not accepted in the scientific community, and is therefore inadmissible in criminal courts, Family Courts across the country are still relying on it. Because of its demise in scientific circles, the theory is now used in thinly veiled forms, such as not being a ‘friendly parent’, ‘interfering with custody’, and ‘being a danger to the children due to alienating behavior’. Judge Lorna Alksne found the mother in this case to be a danger because she believes her son and is trying to protect him.
Another "cure" for PA is to send the children to behavioral modification boarding schools and camps where they use torturous coercive persuasion techniques to get them to recant the abuse and submit to living with their identified abuser. Both Judge Alksne and the father have proposed sending the teen to one of these facilities. The mother is requesting that the Appellate Court forbid this unethical treatment.
Meanwhile, the teen has taken action himself. He has gone into hiding and hopes the Appellate Court will grant his wish to live with his mother. He belongs to Courageous Kids, an organization formed by and for teens adversely affected by this theory. It is run by Jennifer Collins, who also went into hiding with her mother, and was the first American to be granted asylum in the Netherlands in a similar case. Her new and compelling documentary is at: http://www.nowayoutbutone.com.
Protective parents and their allies call the use of PA theory in Family Court archaic and discriminatory since it portrays women and children as liars when they report abuse and deprives them of their Constitutional right to a normal relationship with each other. Bills to restrict its use have been defeated in Congress multiple times, largely due to heavy lobbying by Fathers’ Rights activists and the attorneys and psychologists who profit from it.
If the Appellate Court does not take measures to protect him, the teen has asked D.A. Bonnie Dumanis to press charges against his father. If she declines, supporters will take their rally to the Hall of Justice, as that will be the last option in procuring protection and justice.
Organizations supporting the mother and the rally include: NOW (National Organization for Women), California Protective Parents Assn., Center for Judicial Excellence, Justice for Children, Defenders of Children, Stop Family Violence, Protective Mothers Alliance, and American Mothers Political Party.
For more information on this case, go to SavingDamon.com
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September 14, 2011
CONTACT:
Kathleen Russell – 415.388.9600 [email protected]
Mom Loses Teen to Controversial "Parental Alienation" Theory
---Teen in Hiding from Identified Abuser
Rally at San Diego Appellate Court Against "Parental Alienation" Theory
--Used to Strip Mothers of Custody and Children of Safety
San Diego County, CA — The Fourth District Appellate Court will be hearing oral arguments Thursday, 9 a.m., Sept. 15th, at 750 B St., Floor 3, San Diego, in a high profile Family Court case involving a teen who first reported sexual abuse by his father eight years ago. There will be court watchers present and the public is encouraged to attend. A press conference is scheduled for immediately prior to the hearing at 8:30am. The press is strongly urged to attend both the press conference and the hearing.
When the teen first reported abuse in 2003 at the age of six, the father, Eric Moelter, used the common defense tactic of shifting blame to the mother, Cindy Dumas, through the use of the discredited "parental alienation" (PA) theory. PA theory, concocted by pedophile apologist Dr. Richard Gardner, posits that the "protective parent" (usually the mother) coached or brainwashed the child to report abuse, in a malicious effort to alienate or turn the child against the reported perpetrator (usually the father). Gardner’s "cure" for PA is to isolate the child from the protective parent through supervised visitation or no contact, which translates legally into loss of custody.
Gardner’s theory formed the basis for fathers’ rights advocates to use alienation as a strategy to strip custody from the primary bond/caretaker and is used almost exclusively against mothers. Despite the fact that PA is not accepted in the scientific community, and is therefore inadmissible in criminal courts, Family Courts across the country are still relying on it. Because of its demise in scientific circles, the theory is now used in thinly veiled forms, such as not being a ‘friendly parent’, ‘interfering with custody’, and ‘being a danger to the children due to alienating behavior’. Judge Lorna Alksne found the mother in this case to be a danger because she believes her son and is trying to protect him.
Another "cure" for PA is to send the children to behavioral modification boarding schools and camps where they use torturous coercive persuasion techniques to get them to recant the abuse and submit to living with their identified abuser. Both Judge Alksne and the father have proposed sending the teen to one of these facilities. The mother is requesting that the Appellate Court forbid this unethical treatment.
Meanwhile, the teen has taken action himself. He has gone into hiding and hopes the Appellate Court will grant his wish to live with his mother. He belongs to Courageous Kids, an organization formed by and for teens adversely affected by this theory. It is run by Jennifer Collins, who also went into hiding with her mother, and was the first American to be granted asylum in the Netherlands in a similar case. Her new and compelling documentary is at: http://www.nowayoutbutone.com.
Protective parents and their allies call the use of PA theory in Family Court archaic and discriminatory since it portrays women and children as liars when they report abuse and deprives them of their Constitutional right to a normal relationship with each other. Bills to restrict its use have been defeated in Congress multiple times, largely due to heavy lobbying by Fathers’ Rights activists and the attorneys and psychologists who profit from it.
If the Appellate Court does not take measures to protect him, the teen has asked D.A. Bonnie Dumanis to press charges against his father. If she declines, supporters will take their rally to the Hall of Justice, as that will be the last option in procuring protection and justice.
Organizations supporting the mother and the rally include: NOW (National Organization for Women), California Protective Parents Assn., Center for Judicial Excellence, Justice for Children, Defenders of Children, Stop Family Violence, Protective Mothers Alliance, and American Mothers Political Party.
For more information on this case, go to SavingDamon.com
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