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Hopefully, our last article about family abductions increased your awareness of parental kidnapping and how harmful it can be to children and families. In this article, we will take a closer look at how you can help prevent these serious incidents from happening to you and your kids:
- Do your best to co-parent respectfully. Although it may be difficult, communicate openly with your children’s other parent, respect their visitation rights and custody rights, and try to listen to their concerns.
- Keep in touch with your ex’s family. Your ex’s family is your children’s family, and having a good relationship with as many members as possible is not only in their best interest most of the time, it may also help you in the event of a parental kidnapping.
- Document and report all abduction threats. Any threats of harm or kidnapping are extremely serious, even if you don’t believe they hold water. Report them to your lawyer, the court, and the police as needed.
- Make sure everyone knows the custody orders. This includes family members, friends, school teachers, daycare professionals, and healthcare providers.
- Take passport precautions. Consider having your ex leave his or her passport with a country clerk during visitations. Make sure your child has a passport but cannot leave the country without your written permission.
- Consider counseling. Even if your relationship hasn’t worked out, even a few hours of family counseling after a divorce or break up can drastically reduce the chances of a family abduction.
- Keep recent pictures of your child and ex. Also be ready with important information such as height/weight descriptions, social security numbers, and license plate numbers.
- Look for abduction read flags. Be cautious if your ex has made threats about abduction, suffers from drug addiction or mental health issues, or has voiced his or her frustration with the court system. Also be wary if your ex has indicated that he or she is moving or if he or she has violated visitation rules in the past.
Do you have a question about your children’s child custody orders or visitation plans? Contact the Law Offices of Molly B. Kenny to speak with a Bellevue child custody attorney today at 425-460-0550. We are here to help.
