14-year-old Shayna Blumenfeld of Port Washington, from home, appeared virtually in front of New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Forensic Custody Evaluators, expressing the importance of making child safety the top priority in custody cases. Shayna is a youth ambassador for Kyra’s Champions, an organization that works to pass laws to protect children in child custody cases … [Read more...]
Former Corrections Officer Shoots Dead His Son, 3, in Murder-Suicide Amid Divorce After Death Threats to Wife and Her Family
Derek Thebo, 32, told his wife Katie that he would kill her and her children, according to a Police Protection Order (PPO) filed this year with the Kent County Circuit Court in Michigan. 'He threatened to kill me, my children, and my family, and to commit suicide afterward,' she wrote in court documents. Just months later, investigators say the former Michigan corrections officer appears to … [Read more...]
SB 654 Youth Testimony Protections – “to amplify the voices of children in family court custody cases”
SB 654, Youth Testimony Protections - Senator Dave Min, 37th District California has taken steps in recent years to amplify the voices of children in family court custody cases – yet too often this is done in situations that can be traumatizing and dangerous for children. To ensure that children are protected from facing life-altering trauma in family court, SB 654 prevents a child’s testimony … [Read more...]
Woman Shot 4 Times by Ex-Husband on Same Day of Their Child Custody Hearing
(Houston, TX) Aaron B. Wright has been arrested after allegedly cutting off the power to the home of his ex-wife and their four children before breaking in through a window and shooting her four times -- all on the same day they were both scheduled to appear in court for a child custody hearing. Read more here. … [Read more...]
‘How many more kids does the system have to fail?’ Father Says Murder of His 2-year-old Son Jayden Hines was Preventable
Despite his concerns with his son's safety while visiting his mother, Rashawd Hines had to follow the court-mandated custody arrangement and drop off his son, not knowing it would be the last time he'd see his little boy, 2-year-old Jayden Hines. Lakeland police say Alegray Jones, a man dating Jayden’s mother, beat the young boy until he was unconscious. Instead of calling 911, he texted the … [Read more...]