Family Abduction

248 Pages·2007·1.04 MB·English

in cooperation with the
ABA Center on Children and the Law
A program of the Young Lawyers Division
American Bar Association
Family
Abduction
Prevention
and
Response
FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE -
- FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE
Family Abduction
Prevention
and
Response
March 2002
Fifth Edition
Revised by Patricia M. Hoff, Esquire
Copyright © 1985, 2002 National Center for Missing & Exploited Children®. All rights reserved.
Charles B. Wang International Children’s Building
699 Prince Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314-3175
U.S.A.
1-800-THE-LOST
(1-800-843-5678)
This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the
subject matter covered. The publisher is distributing this publication with the understanding that
neither it nor the author is engaged in rendering legal or other professional services. If legal advice
or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.
This project was supported by Grant No. 2005-MC-CX-K024 awarded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice.
Points of view or opinions in this document are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the
official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice, National Center for Missing & Exploited
Children, nor American Bar Association. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children® is a registered
service mark of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children.
FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE -
- FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE
Contents
Acknowledgments…v
A Message to the Reader…vii
Glossary…ix
Family-Abduction Prevention and Action Checklist…1
Preventing Abductions…7
Chapter Overview…7
Get a Valid, Enforceable Custody Determination…9
Prevention Provisions in the Custody Determination…9
Preventing International Abductions and Wrongful Retentions…15
Practical Things Parents Can Do to Reduce the Risk of Abduction…17
Civil-Court Remedies If Your Child Is Abducted…21
Chapter Overview…21
Getting a Custody Determination…23
Do You Need a Lawyer?…24
Filing for Custody…27
Getting Custody in Special Circumstances…31
Child-Snatching Lawsuits…34
Noncustodial Parents’ Civil Remedies When Custodial Parents Disappear With the Child…35
Criminal Remedies In Family-Abduction Cases…37
Chapter Overview…37
Left-Behind Parent’s Role…39
Law Enforcement and Prosecutor’s Role in Family-Abduction Cases…39
What If a Criminal-Justice Professional Won’t Get Involved?…40
Missing-Person Investigation…41
Criminal Charges…44
The Criminal Investigation…50
The Arrest…52
Extradition…53
Conviction and Punishment…54
Victim Assistance…55
Searching for Your Child…57
Chapter Overview…57
Missing Children’s Organizations…59
Sources of Information…61
Pursue All Legal Means Available…80
Checklist of Information Sources...81
FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE - iii
Recovering Your Child…85
Chapter Overview…85
Voluntary Return…87
Public Enforcement: Help from Law Enforcement and Prosecutors…87
Filing and Registering Out-of-State Custody Orders…88
Registering an Order Under the UCCJEA…89
Going to Court to Enforce Your Custody Order…89
Temporary Care for the Child…94
Transporting the Child Home…95
Special Enforcement Problems If the Abductor Is In the Military and
Stationed in Another Country…95
Self-Help Recovery: Is it Advisable?…95
Post-Recovery Prevention Measures…96
International Child Abduction…97
Chapter Overview…97
The Problem…99
Overview of the Legal Response to International Child Abduction…99
Preventing International Abductions…100
Civil Remedies in International Abductions…103
Criminal Remedies in International Abductions…106
Searching for Your Internationally Abducted Child…107
Recovering Your Internationally Abducted Child…110
Psychological Issues in Recovery and Family Reunification…115
Chapter Overview…115
Specific Issues Prior to Recovery…117
Reunification Meeting Recommendations…118
Specific Issues After Recovery…120
Planning for the Future…121
The Impact of Abduction on Children…123
Chapter Overview…123
The Study…125
One Family’s Experience…125
Appendices…129
Bibliography…131
Missing Children’s Organizations…137
Laws Applicable to Family Abduction…139
State Directory of Family-Abduction Laws and Resources…163
Key Contacts in Parental-Kidnapping Cases…217
Missing Person’s Report for an Abducted Child…219
Sample Request for Authorization to Use the FPLS…221
Missing-Child Poster…223
Sample Request for FERPA Records…225
Application for Assistance Under the Hague Convention on Child Abduction…227
Index…229
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children...231
iv - FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE
Acknowledgments
This is the fifth edition of Family Abduction. It was prepared by Patricia M. Hoff,
Esquire. Julie Eckert, Benjamin Graham, and Paula Niederman, summer law
interns at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, provided valu-
able research assistance. In addition Ms. Eckert prepared the “State Directory of
Family-Abduction Laws and Resources,” (“State Directory”) beginning on page
163, which is new to this edition. Nancy Hammer, the National Center for Miss-
ing & Exploited Children’s General Counsel and Director of the International
Division, spearheaded the completion of this edition.
The first three editions of this book were published as Parental Kidnapping:
How to Prevent an Abduction and What to Do If Your Child Is Abducted. The first
and second editions were written by Patricia M. Hoff. The third edition was
revised by Patricia M. Hoff and Janet Kosid Uthe, Esquire. The fourth edition,
published in 1994 under the title of Family Abduction: How To Prevent an Abduction
and What to Do If Your Child Is Abducted, was revised by Judith Drazen Schretter,
Esquire, and Donna Castle Aspell, Esquire. The fourth edition rearranged the origi-
nal material and incorporated valuable suggestions made by many readers of the
earlier versions.
This fifth edition updates and revises the fourth edition. It contains informa-
tion about new laws and tools that address family-abduction cases. It identifies
relevant web sites on the Internet that were only beginning to become available
when the previous edition was published. Each major chapter begins with an
overview and contains a checklist to help parents organize their efforts to help
prevent or resolve family abductions. The “State Directory” gives a snapshot of
each state’s response to family-abduction cases to better inform parents about the
laws and resources in their states. A section titled “Laws Applicable to Family
Abduction” can be found beginning on page 139. It is included for the conve-
nience of those who might have difficulty accessing them.
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children acknowledges the many
people who contributed to the previous editions of this book, whose efforts paved
the way for the current volume. The individuals listed below are acknowledged
for sharing their expertise to help ensure the presentation of accurate and useful
information in this edition. They include Charlie Bond, Second Lieutenant,
Supervisor, Child Services Unit, Fairfax County Police Department, Fairfax, Vir-
ginia; Susan Kreston, Senior Attorney, American Prosecutors Research Institute,
Alexandria, Virginia; David L. Peery, Retired Investigator, formerly with the Kern
County (California) District Attorney’s Office, Oshkosh, Wisconsin; and Dave
Wagner, Deputy District Attorney, Office of the District Attorney, Orange County,
California.
And from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children contributors
include John B. Rabun, Jr., A.C.S.W., Vice President and Chief Operating
Officer; Nancy Hammer, Esquire, General Counsel and Director of the Interna-
tional Division; Ben Ermini, Director, Missing Children’s Division; Bud Gaylord,
Director, and Cathy Nahirny, Supervisor, of the Case Analysis and Support Divi-
sion; Marsha Gilmer-Tullis, Family Services Advocate; and, from the Publications
Department, Sue Carruthers, Sheila Chapman-Panizza, Veronica Culley, Catherine
and Theresa Delaney.
NCMEC also acknowledges the state missing children’s clearinghouse staff
members who provided information for this edition and NCMEC’s computer tech-
nicians for their wizardry.
Artwork by John Katsu
FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE - v
- FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE
A Message to the Reader
Many child kidnappings that take place in the United States (U.S.) are committed
by a parent or other family member. An estimated 354,100 children were abducted
by parents or family members in the U.S. in 1988, according to the National Inci-
dence Studies: Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children in America
(NISMART), a study published by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency
Prevention (OJJDP), U.S. Department of Justice, in 1990.
When a child is wrongfully taken or retained by a parent, the term parental
kidnapping is appropriate. Because child kidnappings are also frequently
committed by other family members, however, the term family abduction more
accurately describes the action. Both terms are used interchangeably in this book.
Both have civil and criminal meanings.
When a parental kidnapping occurs, the government may pursue criminal
process against the abductor if a criminal law violation has occurred. Law
enforcement, prosecutors, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are part
of the criminal-justice system. The left-behind parent’s lawyer and family court
are part of the civil-justice system. The left-behind parent, with or without the
help of a lawyer, may use the civil-justice system to prevent an abduction or
recover an abducted or wrongfully retained child. It is important to understand
that both criminal and civil remedies can be sought at the same time; however,
each parental-kidnapping case is unique, and strategic decisions need to be made,
based on the facts and personalities of all concerned, about whether and when
criminal process should be used along with civil remedies.
This book guides parents and their attorneys through the criminal- and
civil-justice systems’ responses to parental kidnapping. It describes actions par-
ents can take and laws that may be of help when their children are the victims of
domestic or international family abduction. It covers civil and criminal remedies.
It also explains how to prevent abductions. The suggestions in the book are
appropriate regardless of the abductor’s intentions, because the child suffers. In
addition to being uprooted from home and deprived of the other parent and some-
times being told the other parent no longer loves the child or is dead, too often the
child lives a life of deception, sometimes under a false name, moving frequently
and lacking the stability needed for healthy emotional development.
Parents should take this book with them when they meet with their attorneys,
law enforcement, prosecutors, and family-court personnel, many of whom may
be handling a family-abduction case for the first time.
Other sources of information on parental-kidnapping cases are available to
law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges handling these cases. Law enforcement
may contact the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children for free copies
of Missing and Abducted Children: A Law-Enforcement Guide to Case Investigation and
Program Management and Recovery and Reunification of Missing Children: A Team
Approach. Prosecutors may contact the American Prosecutors Research Insti-
tute at 703-739-0321 to request a copy of Investigation and Prosecution of Parental
Abduction. Judges will find two bench books on the civil and criminal aspects of
parental kidnapping in the Spring 1997 volume of the Juvenile and Family Court
Journal, published by the National Association of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.
Other publications for parents and concerned professionals are listed in the “Bib-
liography” beginning on page 131.
FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE - vii
If your child is the victim of a parental kidnapping and you are experiencing
difficulties with the civil- or criminal-justice process, you may call the National
Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678) for
information and help. You may also encourage your law-enforcement investiga-
tor, prosecutor, or attorney to contact NCMEC for advice and technical
assistance.
For more information on the full range of services and publications offered by
NCMEC, please write, call, or visit at
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
Charles B. Wang International Children’s Building
699 Prince Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314-3175 U.S.A.
1-800-THE-LOST
(1-800-843-5678)
703-274-3900
fax [phone]
www.missingkids.com
viii- FAMILY ABDUCTION: PREVENTION AND RESPONSE