Contact:
Linda Snyder
frc@fathersrightscolorado.com

For Immediate Release

Deadbeat Dads? Absent Fathers? Abusive Fathers?
Fathers are fighting for their right to co-parent and be involved in the children’s lives.

Fathers are being forced out of their children’s lives by Mothers and the court system.

DENVER, CO – 19 November 2007   Given the high profile Parental Alienation Syndrome incidents in the media recently involving Denise and Charlie Sheen and Alec Baldwin and Kim Bassinger, is it any surprise that PAS is occurring right under our noses here in Denver?

Parental Alienation Syndrome, commonly known as PAS is a controversial subject at best. For many years the focus has been on “Deadbeat Dads”, absent Fathers and violent Fathers abusing their wives and children. Who would have ever thought that Mothers would take advantage of a system set up to protect them to further their own agenda, mainly to deprive their children of spending time with their fathers? The additional benefit of this deprivation of visitation is often the Father is forced by the court to pay such unbalanced child support that these men are forced to take on a second and even a third job to meet their financial obligations.  While we do not deny that there are certainly Mothers who are truly struggling financially to support their families with little or no help from the father, in this investigation we are focusing on cases in which the Mother is taking advantage of the system. Perhaps she is driving expensive cars, living in large homes with a housekeeper, taking vacations, etc., while the father is living in a small apartment barely making ends meet. It is this injustice that Colorado Fathers’ Rights wants investigated. Our question to you, would be, how does the court allow this to happen? Why is the Mother, allowed to make false accusations time after time, with no repercussions? Why does the court blatantly disregard statutes and ignore hard physical evidence such as recorded phone calls, emails, testimony from third parties, etc., that would support the PAS? Why is the court system biased against fathers?

Here are some examples of local cases that we have found and have supporting documentation for.

A Father, who even though 100% of his income was being garnished, was held in contempt for not paying his child support and court ordered debt. He has been accused numerous times of child abuse, sexual abuse, not feeding his children, stalking the mother and the list goes on and on. He’s been of accused of being an alcoholic, using drugs, and being bi-polar. Even though he’s been cleared of every charge, the accusations continue and the police and courts continue to jump (and deny visitation) every time the mother makes another accusation. At what point does Child Protection Services start looking at this mother?

After a Father insists his 8 year old son attend public school, after being home-schooled by Mom and still not having been taught to read, Mom packs up the family van and moves into a safe house claiming abuse. After 19 years of marriage there is no proof of abuse; no police reports, no hospital reports, no collaborating witnesses, just her word against his. In spite of a court ordered injunction, Mom disappeared with the children out of the country and Dad does not see or have any contact with his children for over 2 months. During her investigation, the CFI talked to the women counselors at the safe house, the counselor Mom had been seeing for 6 months and interviewed Dad for 3 hours. She did not talk to the couple’s marriage counselor or any of Dad’s witnesses before writing her report recommending Mom get primary custody and sole decision making in education, health, mental and residence.

A 57 year old Father loses custody when Mom tells the CFI that Dad had ADHD as a child. Dad’s family was not contacted. Dad’s medical records were not reviewed. This diagnosis of ADHD was not medically determined. This decision was based solely on Mom’s testimony. We would ask; how many Mothers with ADHD/ADD have lost custody of their children?
 
This Father was a stay-at-home full-time Dad for over seven years, when his wife claimed abuse and Dad was “removed” from the family home. Mom’s annual income is $130,000 and Dad makes $8.50 an hour. Dad was ordered to pay $xxxx in child support. Dad did not see his children for over and year and was finally granted one hour supervised visits once a week. The supervisor saw no need for supervision since it was obvious that Dad and the children adored each other. After several months of regular visitation, Mom decided the visits were “inconvenient” and would cancel visitation on a whim. When Dad questioned Mom about allegations of abuse of his son by her current husband, visitation again was terminated by Mom. Not until the children insisted they see Dad, did Mom relent and continue with the court ordered visitation.

A Father who was ordered to liquidate his assets and pay $40,000 to Mom who has an admitted gambling problem and was found guilty of contempt 5 times for marital waste. Dad now owes $60,000 in back child support, lost $250,000 in home equity, $57,000 in his 401k, $31,000 in his mutual fund and owes his attorney $40,000.

While PAS is devastating to the alienated parent, it is the children who are the ultimate losers in this struggle. This is not a story of Fathers trying to avoid paying child support and not spending time with their children. This is a story of Fathers fighting for their right to co-parent and be involved in the children’s lives. How will any of this change? First of all the public needs to be educated that this is a real phenomenon and it is happening every day and it’s happening in your neighborhood to your friends, family and neighbors. What are you willing to do to bring this insidious malady to the public? Do you have the guts to take on a unpopular, controversial subject and are you prepared to take on the court system, the legal system and popular opinion?

About Father’s Right Colorado.
Fathers’ Rights of Colorado was formed to give Father’s an outlet for support and to share their stories. These are not “Angry Fathers” who are out to avoid financial obligations or to ignore their children. These are Fathers who are heart-sick, worried, frightened and frustrated by not being able to spend time with their children. These are Fathers who are fighting desperately for normal every day contact with their children. Visit our website at www.fathersrightscolorado.com  or call Linda Snyder at frc@fathersrightscolorado.com for more information.