[Sticky] Help make it harder to lie in Family court

https://www.change.org/p/perjury-in-family-court-nyc?source_location=psf_petitions

A 2009 report from the University of New Mexico School of Law explains that recantation in domestic violence cases has become the norm. According to the head of the Family Violence Division of the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, an estimated 90% of domestic dispute victims recant their original statements. A recantation does not always mean the abuse didn’t occur, but for some reason, the victim recanted their statement whether it be due to pressure from the accused, fear, false accusations, or other outside factors. Due to the emotional and often volatile nature of domestic violence, there are many organizations and protocols in place to help victims quickly and safely escape a dangerous situation. Sadly, this also makes it easy for domestic violence charges and restraining orders to be taken advantage of. Due to the high prevalence of recantation, it is commonplace for prosecutors to turn a blind eye to possible perjury in domestic violence cases for fear of criticism even though it is widely understood that lying to a court a felony. According to to SAVE, an organization dedicated to finding evidence-based solutions to end domestic violence and sexual assault, it is estimated that nearly 700,000 people are wrongfully convicted of domestic violence every year yet there are no district attorneys who regularly prosecute false allegations of domestic violence. With the high prevalence of innocent men and women convicted of domestic disputes, it’s shocking to hear there are no district attorneys in the United States who regularly prosecute false allegations of domestic violence.

As of now, the only true help a person accused of domestic violence can find is with a domestic violence defense attorney to avoid conviction and prove their innocence. Even so, the accused are often arrested and charged based on the word of the accuser and then face attorney fees and a social stigma that can last months, years, or a lifetime. Even without formal criminal charges, a false accusation of domestic violence can result in devastating circumstances for the accused socially, professionally, and even financially.
 
A good -or bad – example of this situation was in 2015 when UFC Heavyweight, Travis Browne, was accused of domestic violence by his estranged wife and fitness model, Jenna Renee Webb. Rather than making a formal claim and getting the authorities involved, on July 8, 2015, Ms. Webb posted a photo of her, with a bruised face and arms, on her Instagram profile with over 100k followers.

The picture was accompanied by the following caption: “Probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made was walking away from this life and starting over. I’m still ashamed for staying as long as I did. #domesticviolenceawareness”.
 
This caused a social media uproar with “trolls” coming out of the woodwork to attack Mr. Browne for his alleged abuse, even though there was no concrete evidence of abuse or criminal charges. Due to the violent nature of professional fighting, the UFC quickly suspended Browne to conduct thrown private investigation into the matter.
One month after the allegations surfaced, the investigation concluded and found “inconclusive evidence” to support the allegations of domestic violence. Although Browne was reinstated and much of the public attention to the matter eventually died down, the damage was already done. A quick look at Browne’s social media accounts shows he still receives messages and comments accusing him of beating his wife.
With the massive impact a false allegation of domestic abuse can have on the accused, it’s a wonder why the accusers are so rarely prosecuted, especially with the drastic negative impact it has on the life of the accused. 

what I am asking is that the court recognises this issue and starts taking action. There are so many incidents that I, am sure it would be an issue but if it has been proven beyond reasonable dought that one percent went out of their way to destroy the other with a false allegation of domestic violence then there should be a penalty. it is already illegal to do so we are just asking that the court take action on the matter. the whole world saw amber heard lie on the stand sometimes and even though Jonny Depp won it was not frowned upon especially with her being a celebrity in such is automatically a role model to many.

Under Section 210.45 penal chapter 40-part 3 title L article 210

201.45 Making a punishable false written statement.

A person is guilty of making a punishable false written statement when he knowingly makes a false statement, that he does not believe to be true. In written instrument bearing a legally authorized form notice to the effect that statements made therein are punishable.

Making a punishable false written statement is a class A misdemeanor.

All too often in the United States, we have seen divorce and custody cases where a parent decides that to level the playing field or substantially lean it their way for full custody, the best course of action is to make false and severe allegations against the other parent.  These allegations range from allegations of sexual offenses to allegations of physical and emotional abuse, allegations of serious criminal offenses, allegations of drug abuse, allegations of domestic violence, and allegations of negligence.

The process of uncovering the falsity of allegations such as these or disproving such allegations involves lengthy and expensive investigation and litigation, often requiring or mandating the employment of expensive experts attempts to get records from police departments, attempts to get records from physicians, attempts to have witnesses come forward and dealings with child protective services and other county agencies. Involvement of all or some of these experts and agencies sometimes creates even bigger issues and oftentimes further variables with which to deal— all in a case where the allegations are false.

Sometimes parents make an allegation and if it is found unsubstantiated, they scramble to come up with other allegations, one after the other, thinking that at least one “might stick”– all causing years of harassment and litigation, not to mention potential job loss, criminal charges, and, most importantly, severe mental trauma for the parties’ children. Many times, the parent against whom these allegations are made cannot afford the legal and expert fees or multiple attorneys it takes to prove his or her innocence. While all of this is going on the parent may not even have the ability to even talk to the children. What is alarming to me is the level to which some people will go to ensure that the other parent will have absolutely no relationship with their children.

Children are gifts, not possessions. This is a simple truth that many bitter or selfish parents do not consider during divorce or custody disputes. It stands to reason that when parents’ relationship ends it is due to some kind of difference of opinion, be it a large difference or one which is minuscule. These differences can make parenting together difficult but parents often lose sight of the need for the children to be with their parents. Both of the parents even if the parents do not get along.  Parents may subconsciously start viewing children as pieces of property that the other parent cannot have or share.

I believe that parents know that courts generally favor shared parenting and that, without some proven heinous act, the courts will probably grant shared parenting since it makes sense that a child should have the involvement of both parents in his or her life, if possible. Fortunately, where the allegations are serious, our experience is that, when the parent can hang in long enough, false allegations are finally proven to be false. But what about the children?

Even when an allegation is eventually proven false, often years or months of litigation have occurred. Usually, the children have been told one or both versions of “what is going on,” or even sometimes coerced to be involved in the making of false allegations. The emotional abuse to a child involved in this type of litigation based upon false statements often irreparably changes the course of a child’s life.

Think about a child who has been needlessly examined by children’s hospital rape or molestation examiners, a child who is told to lie and defend one parent over the other, a child who is being stigmatized by visits at school by guardian ad litem, a child whose love is being purchased, a child who is asked to lie to police, and a child who witnesses a parent being arrested.

Think about an impressionable child who is falsely made to see a parent being portrayed as a monster. to the point where the child believes it, or at least to the point where it is “not okay” to love that parent any longer.

Who would do this to their child or any child? Who wakes up and decides that the parent that was perfectly acceptable yesterday, is a monster today, and that, to gain some advantage or satisfy some selfish desire, it is okay to go on a mission to destroy the other parent, alienating them by saying that parent is suddenly a child molesting, drug addict, who beats their child?

What about the parent who engages in these tactics, and what about the child? Is this not abuse of its own kind—perhaps of the worst kind?  What kind of parent finds these tactics reasonable? How many parents are losing custody of their children, losing decision-making abilities, and losing the right to access records based on fabrications?

Even if the attempted fabrication is revealed, how many parents will gain full or joint custody but have a potentially unsalvageable relationship with a child who is emotionally broken or so damaged that he or she doesn’t want to be with that parent anyway?

  Yours truly Jason A Young