“I am terrified for my family's safety…We are all terrified to disobey my husband. I know that filing for divorce and filing this motion will enrage him. I know he will retaliate by trying to harm me in some way.”
- Protective Mom Jennifer in court filing Jennifer, a loving mother of 5, ranging in age from 8 to 13, has been missing for over a week and is feared dead. The missing persons investigation turned criminal after blood, and evidence of a clean-up, was discovered at her home. Despite credible and corroborated reports that her ex is seriously abusive and that she justifiably feared for her children’s and her lives, the judge denied a protective order and granted joint custody. Her ex reportedly threatened to kill her, threatened to kidnap the children, and engaged in controlling, volatile and delusional behavior. It was only after the father violated the custody order by allowing a romantic partner to stay at his house, that the judge restricted the father’s visitation. The children are staying with their maternal grandparents right now, but the father has filed an emergency motion for the children to be returned to him. It will be heard on Wednesday at the Stamford Family Court at 10 am. Hopefully this time the judge will finally rule in the best interests of the children and protect them. Jennifer has been forced to endure custody battles for over two years. It is the Coalition’s position that any woman who is a victim of abuse by her ex, or whose children are victims, should automatically be granted sole custody, and the father’s visits supervised. This is not only in the best interests of children, which is prevailing law, it would deter men’s violence against their exes. The problem is that judges are wrongly finding that there is not preponderance of evidence of abuse when it easily reaches that burden of proof. That is why we need a new system. See the proposed new custody court system in which juries decide custody in a "real" civil court: https://www.womenscoalitioninternational.org/the-solution.html FOLLOWING are excerpts from: Jennifer Dulos feared her estranged husband https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Divorce-proceedings-Missing-New-Canaan-woman-13903609.php#photo-17569227 A mother of five children who went missing last week said she feared her estranged husband would harm her in retaliation for her attempting to gain full custody of their children in a divorce case that began two years ago, according to court documents. … Much of the often fierce divorce battle with her husband, Fotis Dulos, has centered on custody of their five children, who are between the ages of 8 and 13, including two pairs of twins. While the divorce is still in litigation, Jennifer Dulos has been awarded [primary] physical custody of the children after a judge last year found Fotis Dulos to be an unhealthy influence on the children. … Documents from the divorce proceedings reveal that Jennifer Dulos claimed her husband was verbally abusive and she worried he would attempt to take their children from her. “I am afraid of my husband,” reads an affidavit tied to an order of custody filed in June 2017. “I know that filing for divorce and filing this motion will enrage him. I know he will retaliate by trying to harm me in some way.” In the affidavit, Jennifer Dulos claimed Fotis Dulos had exhibited “irrational, unsafe, bullying, threatening and controlling behavior.” The document says, “I am afraid for my safety and the physical safety and emotional well-being of our minor children.” … The affidavit from Jennifer Dulos also stated that Fotis Dulos had threatened to kidnap the children and take them to his native Greece or somewhere else. He told Jennifer Dulos, “You will never find us,” according to the document. … Jennifer Dulos said she grew increasingly afraid of her husband after he purchased a handgun about two years ago. “I am terrified for my family’s safety, especially since discovering the gun, since my husband has a history of controlling, volatile and delusional behavior,” the affidavit says. Excerpts from: Jennifer Dulos feared her estranged husband https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Divorce-proceedings-Missing-New-Canaan-woman-13903609.php#photo-17569227 Daily Mail article: Missing Connecticut mom's disappearance is now being treated as a HOMICIDE after blood is found at her home https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7089033/Children-missing-Connecticut-mom-walk-grandmothers-apartment-armed-guard.html JOIN The Women’s Coalition and help fight for the Child Custody Court Act, which codifies a new system designed to ensure children’s safety and well-being in contested custody cases. https://www.womenscoalitioninternational.org/
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AuthorCindy Dumas, M.A. has been researching, writing, and raising awareness about the Custody Crisis since 2003, when she was unable to protect her children from their abusive father. She fled into hiding when Family Court failed her and was tricked into returning home, when her children were given to their abusive father. Archives
January 2022
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