If you suspect that your child is at risk of parental kidnapping, now is the time to prepare. Here is what to do first. by Jake Morphonios
(libertarian)
Monday, February 23, 2009
Parental child abduction is the unlawful kidnapping of a child by one parent which deprives the other parent of his or her lawful custodial rights. This kind of child snatching not only victimizes the other parent, but it is also a serious form of child abuse.
When the abducting parent chooses to go underground or flees the state or country, recovery of the child becomes exceptionally difficult - and sometimes impossible. Because of this, if you suspect that your child is at risk of abduction you must act now. There are steps you can take to reduce the risk of abduction, as well as actions designed to make the recovery of your child far more likely.
It takes time, time that you don't have, to assemble sufficient documentation to provide to authorities following the abduction of your child. To complicate matters, should your child be kidnapped you will most certainly not be in a calm state of mind. Focusing well enough to collect necessary materials will be difficult. Therefore, preassemble two sets of the following documents:
On the Children
Several recent color photos of each of your children
Two sets of your children's fingerprints
A list of your children's social security numbers
Copies of medical insurance cards
A list of the child's scars or other distinguishing physical marks
Any passport numbers or drivers license numbers
A list of your children's bank account numbers
A copy of any court order regarding child custody
All your child's email addresses or networking sites such as MySpace
Your children's cell phone number(s)
On the Other Parent
Several recent color photos of the other parent or potential family abductor
A list of the other parent's scars or other distinguishing physical marks
Two sets of the other parent's fingerprints, if available
Any passport or drivers license numbers
A list of the other parent's email addresses or social networking sites such as MySpace
The other parent's telephone number(s) and all known addresses
The names and contact information of the other parent's close friends and family
A list of all credit cards, bank accounts or other financial data
Car information including, registrations, serial numbers makes, models, descriptions
A list of any bank or retirement accounts, negotiable instruments and brokerage accounts
A list of any other assets which could quickly be liquidated for cash
The purpose in creating two sets of materials is so that the materials can be kept in two separate "safe" spots. If the abductor takes your set from your home, you will still be able to obtain the other set. Leave this other set somewhere you can access quickly, such as in the home of a local family member or friend. Do not leave the information in a safe deposit box because if the abduction takes place after banking hours you won't be able to obtain your file.
Should your child be kidnapped, it is vital to quickly locate their whereabouts. Having materials gathered and well-organized will assist both you and the authorities in launching a quick and effective search for your children.
Next Lesson: The Most Important Thing You Can Do to Prevent a Kidnapping
Articles by Jake Morphonios may be distributed or republished in full on other websites with attribution and a link back to the original article.
Jake Morphonios is a child & family rights advocate and Executive Director of the North Carolina Family Rights Coalition (NCFRC). Neither Mr. Morphonios nor the NCFRC provide legal advice or assistance with individual cases.
Parents seeking support or information, or other parties interested in becoming involved in the family rights movement may contact Mr. Morphonios at: jake@ncfamilyrights.com
The views expressed
in this article are those of Jake Morphonios only and
do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates.
Jake Morphonios is solely responsible for the contents
of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated
with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
There should be more discussion and training of the court experts as well as judges to better identify situations where there are risks of parental child abduction. Preventative measures should include mandated psychological counseling and protected visits. The Grin case is a primary example. It was all over the press in Italy.
Here is one link in English to the story, as described at the place where the abduction occurred.
http://www.theflorentine.net/articles/article-view.asp?issuetocId=7229
The story describes an abduction by a Harvard-educated lawyer, Marianne Grin, a dual US-Russian citizen who was being divorced in Italy by her husband, a US citizen. After the court found Ms. Grin to suffer from "paranoid delusions", "posing a danger to her children", sole custody of the couple's four children was given to the father. The court appointed expert and judge, knowing this, did not feel the need to mandate protected visits. The papers say the first days Ms. Grin was able to have the children, she abducted them to Russia. The scary thing is that there was a similar case in Germany where the mother, after having been found to be psychology unfit, also with paranoid delusions, abducted her 2 children to Turkey. Ms. Mellersh then sadly committed suicide taking her two poor children with her.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2064002/Tug-love-children-gassed-mother-Turkish-hotel-room.html
We need a better system to protect children.
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