Welcome to Mothers Of Lost Children – Indianapolis
Welcome. If you have visited our site because you are finding yourself in the middle of contested child custody litigation or have lost your children, you have our most heartfelt sympathies. Roughly 80% of divorces in our country involve uncontested custody determinations in which both parties agree it is best for the children to reside primarily with their mother in her continued primary care-taking role. It is the other 20% of contested custody cases that the family court gets involved in and usually the results are horrific.
Because of the pervasiveness of family violence in our country and the astounding nationwide system failure of our family courts to protect women and child victims, much of this sites’ focus is on assisting and educating protective mothers, and mother who have lost their children because of the family court system.
“Studies show batterers are able to convince authorities that the victim is unfit or undeserving of sole custody in approximately 70% of challenged cases. ” (American Judges Association)
“Fathers who batter mothers are 2 times more likely to seek sole physical custody of their children than are non-violent fathers.” (APA1996, p. 40.)
For the abuser, the courtroom is the last tool in his toolbox to control and abuse his victims. It is our goal to reverse this trend for the benefit of our children and our nation’s future as a peaceful, non-violent society. Additionally, as we work to change the systematic removal of mothers from children’s lives, we can support each other through this struggle, and support each others efforts to try and be good mothers to our children, even in our limited capacity.
Former NeoNazi/Skinhead Fights for Boone County Fathers While Blasting Mothers
Well, it seems Stuart Showalter, from Boone County Fathers, has a radical background. He has the nerve to blame Angie Warnock for her own death because she sought and received Protective Orders to protect herself from her violent husband. It is common for violent, abusive leaders that populate these father’s groups to yell the loudest. (Unfortunately good fathers get recruited into these groups too). And when they yell, they throw in the “parental alienation” claim with it. Stuart claims to have the ear of Governor Mitch Daniels, and legislators on both sides of the isle…I would think with his continued rhetoric to protect violent men and blame the moms would be a red flag for who ever is talking to him. See appellate decision below:
933 F.2d 573
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Stuart W. SHOWALTER, Defendant-Appellant.No. 90-1361.
United States Court of Appeals,
Seventh Circuit.Argued Oct. 29, 1990.
Decided May 30, 1991.Robert M. Barnes, Susan E. Heckard, Asst. U.S. Attys., Indianapolis, Ind., for plaintiff-appellee.
Daniel J. Coffey, Indianapolis, Ind., for defendant-appellant.
Before CUDAHY, RIPPLE, and MANION, Circuit Judges.
MANION, Circuit Judge.
1Stuart Showalter pleaded guilty to possession of an unregistered firearm in violation of 26 U.S.C. Sec. 5861(d). He appeals the length and conditions of his supervised release. We remand for resentencing because the length of supervised release exceeds the amount authorized by statute, but affirm the conditions of Showalter’s supervised release imposed by the district court.I.
2Showalter headed an Indianapolis organization called the “Pure American Freedom Party,” which was loosely associated with other white supremacist “skinhead” and “neo-Nazi” groups in Indiana and around the United States. Showalter, then 20 years old, was prominently featured in a July 1989 article in the Indianapolis Monthly magazine called “Skinhead Society: Should a Local Group of Neo-Nazis be Feared, Tolerated or Ignored?” The article described the weaponry in Showalter’s apartment, and discussed the group’s potential for committing acts of violence. This publicity apparently brought him to the attention of his landlords, who sought to evict him from his apartment (in a predominantly black neighborhood) for late payment of rent and violation of the lease by having too many occupants. Showalter failed to leave on time, and was seen outside the apartment brandishing a weapon, so the police were called in to assist in his departure. When he failed to respond to their request to drop his gun and come out, the police broke in and arrested him and another occupant.
To read the rest of this decision, please click here.
Also see: Angie Warnock is Blamed for Her Own Death and He Swore He’d Never Hurt Her
Enough is Enough!
From WTHR:
Rally calls for end to domestic violence
Posted: July 2, 2009 05:22 AM EDT
Updated: July 2, 2009 05:29 PM EDT
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Indianapolis – Advocates against domestic abuse say “enough is enough!” after a recent spike in deaths. A rally held Thursday aims to raise awareness and reach out to victims.
“Stop Domestic Abuse!” “Enough is Enough!” Those sentiments were chanted at the rally in Indianapolis at the North United Methodist Church.
Already this year in Marion County, 15 people are dead from domestic abuse. That’s compared to 13 in all of 2008. When the economy goes down, attacks often go up.
“There was already abuse in the home, and then when he loses his job, then all of a sudden, the violence just escalates,” said Loretta Moore, Prevail. “By independence, and by financial independence, women don’t have to go back. So what we’ve done at Prevail is we now have an employment program.”
Resource agencies are trying to get the word out before another person is hurt. In just the last two months alone, three women were killed, allegedly by their husbands or ex-husband.
Amanda Yang, 43, was beaten in her Lawrence home in May. In mid-June, 32-year-old Beth Stayer was beaten outside her condo in Whitestown with a hammer. Almost two weeks ago, 38-year-old Angela Warnock was stabbed to death in her Brownsburg home in front of her children.
All three women had protective orders and were going through divorces. Protective orders are critical for legal recourse, but they are not bullet-proof. Domestic violence advocates say the women did the right thing by trying to get away, but since the separation period is the most dangerous, it’s crucial to have a safety plan.
“I would always recommend that when you get a protective order, you also get counseling. It’s important to know what kind of safety plan to put into effect because often when people get a protective order, the next thing you can expect is an escalation of violence,” said Linda Major, Marion County prosecutor’s office.
The safest action is to go to a shelter or place the abuser would never find the victim. Different agencies can help implement various plans, but the message is the same:
“Saving lives, period.”
A domestic abuse training event for the public will be held at the Brownsburg Police Department July 13th.
For the seventh year, WTHR has been “Shattering the Silence.” For more information on domestic violence , click here.
Angie Warnock is Blamed for Her Own Death
Another local blogger, Stuart Showalter, has chosen to blame Angie Warnock for her own death, stating that she should not have gotten protective orders:
“Angela Warnock’s use of the Indiana Civil Protection Order Act for leverage in the divorce proceedings with the father of their two daughters failed her this past weekend. On Friday she had obtained an order that would keep the father from having any further contact with his daughters for two years. In addition she had the daughters, age 8 and 12, sleeping with her. These are both signs of Parental Alienation.”
How interesting he claims the Protective Order was a leverage tool, when she had the hearing on Thursday last week to uphold and extend. Joseph made the run to the courthouse on Friday to file for divorce.
More Stuart:
“Parental Alienation is damaging to the child. Instead of promoting independence, the alienating parent encourages continued dependence by the children. The parent may insist on sleeping with the child, feeding the child (”It’s easier if I do it”), and taking care of these rites of passage longer than normal child development calls for. One theory about why a mother will act this way is that when a father takes his share of joint custody is that it is like asking her to give away part of her body. One mother said, “He is going to remove my right arm and take it for the weekend.” It feels like the mother has lost a profound part of who she is as a person. She feels fractured, pulled apart.”
Claims of “parental alienation” are well known by professional bodies and as such, is not accepted by any for use against another parent.
2006 – The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges also discredited the theory. It stated:
The discredited “diagnosis” of “PAS” (or allegation of “parental alienation”), quite apart from its scientific invalidity, inappropriately asks the court to assume that the children’s behaviors and attitudes toward the parent who claims to be “alienated” have no grounding in reality. It also diverts attention away from the behaviors of the abusive parent, who may have directly influenced the children’s responses by acting in violent, disrespectful, intimidating, humiliating and/or discrediting ways toward the children themselves, or the children’s other parent.
To see this report “Navigating Custody & Visitation Evaluations in Cases with Domestic Violence: A Judge’s Guide by Clare Dalton LLM, et.al., please click here, and go to Page 24.
So whipping out the “parental alienation” card on this one Stuart shows just how twisted fans of this syndrome are. More Stuart:
“Instead of encouraging the necessary interaction with both parents some battling spouses instead choose to use the children as a weapon against the other. Keeping children away from their fathers can have significant damaging effects. Children from fatherless homes account for 63% of youth suicides, [Source: US Dept. of Health & Human Services, Bureau of the Census]; 71% of pregnant teenagers. [Source: US Dept. of Health & Human Services]; and 71% of all high school dropouts [Source: National Principals Association Report on the State of High Schools].”
Actually research shows children are less at risk with mothers than with fathers. How do you think the effects of seeing their father stab their mother to death works Stuart? Is having a violent father around better than no father? I know that is how the “father’s rights” advocates feel. What about the children, Stuart? What about the children?
“Often times children are withheld from the other parent as punishment for a perceived wrong. This is commonly done through restraining orders which in the majority of cases do not even involve an allegation of violence. [False DV Allegations Cost $20 Billion] Douglas Darnell, Ph.D. Cites that a parent who physically or psychologically rescues the children when there is no threat to their safety reinforces alienation by placing in the child’s mind the illusion of threat or danger. An alienator may assume that if a parent had been physically abusive with him or her, it follows that the parent will assault the child. This assumption is not always true.”
So Stuart blames Angie for her own death:
“This is another case that demonstrates that a Protective Order does not protect and may actually lead to the death of a parent who was otherwise not threatened. In child custody cases every effort should be made to ensure that the children maintain healthy relationships with both parents. Not doing so can not only damage the children but, as in this case, cost the alienator her life.”
Shame on you, Stuart Showalter. Because of abusive fathers and other father’s rights supporters who use claims of “parental alienation” against women who have genuine fear of their lives, lives will continue to be lost. As these women continue to die, more and more people will realize the lies you spread are self-serving and dangerous. And more children will continue to lose their mothers. Shouldn’t the focus be on stopping violent fathers from doing this, rather than on another “blame the woman” again rant?
Any legislator that buys into your argument needs to be voted out of office.
Also see: Former Miss Kauai killed in stabbing at Indiana home , He Swore He’d Never Hurt Her and Former NeoNazi/Skinhead Fights for Boone County Fathers While Blasting Mothers
He Swore He’d Never Hurt Her
…then days later Joseph Warnock murdered his wife in front of their daughters. A protective order is only a tool, but often doesn’t stop violent men. It has happened over and over again here. Only when the courts and authorities start taking domestic violence seriously will violent events like this lessen. Even with protective orders, Angela was told by the judge to take it to family court. Violent acts by batterers are dismissed by family court judges “in the context of a custody dispute” or divorce and are not taken seriously. Until this happens, we will continue to see more women lose their lives or continue to be beaten until the family courts arrive to finish the job on her and the children.
From The Indianapolis Star:
Brownsburg murder suspect swore he’d never hurt his wife
DANVILLE, Ind. — A few days before Joseph L. Warnock was accused of stabbing his wife to death, he swore in a Hendricks County court that he would never harm her or their two daughters. “I love my wife. I love my kids,” he testified in a hearing June 18 on Angela Warnock’s request for a protective order. “I love my kids more than anything else in the world.”
On Wednesday, Joseph Warnock was back in the Hendricks County Courthouse, charged with murder in the death of his 38-year-old wife late Sunday. A not-guilty plea was entered for him, and his trial was set for Oct. 6.
Prosecutors say Warnock, 41, broke into the family home in Brownsburg’s Eagle Crossing subdivision despite the court order granted at Angela Warnock’s request. He found his wife and daughters asleep, and he stabbed the woman repeatedly, investigators said. The girls, ages 12 and 8, were not physically harmed, and they ran to hide until he left, authorities said.
Three days before her death, Angela Warnock also was in the courtroom, asking for a permanent order prohibiting her husband from contact with the family. A temporary order was issued in May. The Warnocks told widely different stories in that 80-minute hearing in front of Judge Karen Love. “I’m not a violent person. I would never do anything that would put them in harm’s way,” Joseph Warnock said.
He said he was concerned that his wife recently had taken $9,000 from their bank accounts and planned to take their daughters to Hawaii, possibly not to return to Indiana.
However, Angela Warnock said she was afraid, calling her husband an alcoholic and a cocaine addict. She told the judge of verbal abuse, irrational behavior and unexplained disappearances for days at a time. She testified that the preliminary court order hadn’t stopped her husband from stalking the family with up to 18 phone calls a day, gifts and cards, text messages and flowers. “The man knows no boundary,” Angela Warnock testified. “He knows no rules. The (temporary) order that said no phone calls meant nothing to him.”
She testified that the previous three weeks “with him out of the house were the best three weeks my children have had in years.”
“I’ve exhausted myself trying to clean him sober, rehab him sober, be his friend. I’m trying to express what a danger he is,” she testified. Warnock testified that he was getting counseling for his addictions, and “90 percent of the time in the last 10 years, I’ve been clean.”
In the hearing last week, the judge continued the preliminary order that Warnock should have no contact with his family. Love also suggested that the couple take their dispute to divorce court. Joseph Warnock filed for divorce the next day.
Also see: Crime of Passion? No, it was MURDER and Angie Warnock is Blamed for Her Own Death
Parental Alienation Syndrome and Alienated Children – Getting it Wrong in Child Custody Cases
This is an article that should be made manditory reading for all court officials. Here is an excerpt:
As courts and legislatures continue their enthusiastic ventures into family law reform, they make frequent use of theories and research from the social sciences. This essay focuses on developments in child custody law stemming from Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), a theory propounded in 1985 that became widely used (sometimes in a form called Parental Alienation) despite its lack of scientific foundations. The discussion highlights theoretical and practical problems with PAS, provides a similar discussion of more recent proposals concerning Alienated Children (AC), and concludes with recommendations for lawyers and judges who must evaluate these and similar developments.
To download “Parental Alienation Syndrome and Alienated Children – getting it wrong in child custody cases” by Carol Bruch, please click here.
Crime of Passion? No, it was MURDER
Again, another murder is watered down in it’s description…a crime of passion? Get real, this is murder. This was a violent act in front of their children! Thankfully he was caught!
Joseph Warnock captured.
From The Indianapolis Star:
Man arrested in stabbing death of estranged wife
By Bruce C. Smith
Posted: June 23, 2009
BROWNSBURG, Ind. — In the last minutes of Father’s Day, police believe, a Brownsburg man violently stabbed his estranged wife to death.
The couple’s two daughters, ages 8 and 12, slept with their mother as the attack began before midnight Sunday. The girls ran and escaped injury, police said.
“Daddy stabbed Mommy,” one of the girls said in a 911 call after her father left early Monday. They hid in a closet about 20 minutes, police said.
Joseph L. Warnock, 41, is charged with murder in the death of Angela A. Warnock, 38. He was arrested about 9 p.m. Monday north of Brownsburg and taken to Hendricks County Jail in Danville.
Detectives said Angela Warnock was stabbed many times. Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Charles Morefield described injuries to her arms as “defensive wounds, like she tried to resist.”
“This looked like a crime of passion,” he said. (No, this is MURDER)
A judge had ordered Joseph Warnock to stay away from the family home in the 10400 block of Splendor Way in the Eagle Crossing subdivision, about a half-mile west of 56th Street and Raceway Road on the Hendricks-Marion county line.
Shortly before midnight, Warnock parked in a church lot about a quarter-mile from the home, walked through farm fields and broke in the patio door, investigators believe. He stabbed his wife with a steak knife, a weapon he apparently took to the house, detectives said.
Police and their dogs tracked Warnock to the church lot but didn’t find him during a search around Eagle Creek Park and nearby areas on the Northwestside of Indianapolis.
Sheriff’s officials said a caller reported seeing a man matching Warnock’s description sitting next to a utility box in the 10500 block of East County Road 600 North — about a quarter-mile from the Warnock home.
An off-duty officer working night security at Eagle Crossing arrested Warnock without incident, sheriff’s officials said.
“Our officers recognized him immediately,” Morefield said. “He just put his hands in the air and gave up.”
Warnock was shirtless and wearing shorts and tennis shoes. He was dirty and had light scratches on his body — the kind that might come from running through twigs, Morefield said.
Also see: Happy Fathers Day: “Daddy Stabbed Mommy”, He Swore He’d Never Hurt Her and Angie Warnock is Blamed for Her Own Death
Happy Fathers Day: “Daddy Stabbed Mommy”
From the Indianapolis Star:
Husband sought in Hendricks Co. killing
By Bruce C. Smith
Posted: June 22, 2009
BROWNSBURG — Two girls sleeping with their mother ran from the bed as their father stabbed her to death, Hendricks County police said today.
“Daddy stabbed Mommy,” one of the girls said to a dispatcher as she called 911 about 20 minutes after witnessing the violence around midnight Sunday.
Joseph Warnock
Police have a warrant for Joseph L. Warnock’s arrest on a charge of murder in the stabbing death of his wife. At noon, Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office authorities continued to search for the father using bloodhounds on loan from Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
They described Warnock as a physically fit, avid runner, and believed he could be around Eagle Creek Park. The bloodhounds were at the Warnock home in the 10400 block of Splendor Way in the Eagle Crossing subdivision, about a half-mile west of the Marion-Hendricks county line off 56th Street.
Joseph, 41, and his wife, Angela Warnock, 38, were seeking a divorce. As part of court proceedings on Friday in Hendricks Superior Court, Angela had obtained a two-year extension on a protective order to keep her husband away from Angela and the girls.
Detective Sgt. Charles Morefield of Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office said shortly before midnight Sunday that Joseph busted a back door on the patio of the home. Instead of driving to the subdivision, he’d parked his white Mitsubishi in a church parking lot and walked across a field to get to the house, police said. They have recovered the car and Joseph’s cell phone today.
The two girls, ages 8 and 12, were sleeping in bed with their mother when Joseph came into the room and began stabbing Angela, the girls told police. The girls said they ran into a closet, escaping any injury, where they hid for at least 15 minutes while their father was in the home. When he left, they called 911.
Rest in Peace, dear Angela.
Also see: Crime of Passion? No, it was MURDER
Carl Brizzi: Prosecuting Battered Women
Hey, Carl Brizzi. I heard you say on the radio that you were personally going to prosecute this. Do you take this view when a man who has beat his wife, girlfriend or child has a case come to your office? How come so many men get away with not going to court for domestic violence? How come, if they do make it into court and are found guilty, they are put in a “diversion” program? How come if a child is sexually abused, the prosecutor’s office turns it head because it is in the middle of a “custody dispute” and doesn’t warrant going after?
How come domestic violence is a total joke in the courts of Marion County…if a Protective Order is issued…it will be dragged into family court for hearing? And we know how the judges really take domestic violence seriously here (NOT).
Why are you so interested in punishing this battered woman? A women in fear of her life also. Shouldn’t you worry a little bit more about the batterers and the child sex abusers here?
From The Indianapolis Star:
Mother faces neglect charge in tot’s beating death
Woman left room because she couldn’t bear to watch fatal beating, Brizzi says
Marion County’s prosecutor filed a felony neglect charge Wednesday against a woman who, he said, is only the latest mother to stand by while a boyfriend killed her child.
Rachel Goodmann, 21, told investigators after the March 11 incident that she went to a bedroom because she couldn’t stand seeing her 15-month-old daughter, Lilliana Goodmann, being beaten with a belt, according to court documents.
The beating, in an apartment in the 2100 block of Amerherst Drive, led to Lilliana’s death two days later and a murder charge against Tayuan Chism, 18. Goodmann, accused of failing to intervene or seek treatment for Lilliana, could face 20 to 50 years in prison if convicted.
“We’ve seen a pattern where mothers allow these men, who are not the natural fathers of their children, to use extreme discipline or even beat them,” Prosecutor Carl Brizzi said.
Brizzi said Goodmann, who cooperated with police after Lilliana’s beating, arranged to turn herself in today.
Prosecutors say Chism beat the toddler on and off with a belt for as long as two hours, leading to internal bleeding and a skull fracture. Police said a man and a 17-year-old girl awoke to sounds of the beating, grabbed the girl and took her to the hospital.
Last month, in another child-death case, a Marion Superior Court judge told Charity Bailey, 22, mother of 3-year-old TaJanay Bailey, that she had been “passive toward the torture of your daughter.” He gave her 35 years in prison. Her boyfriend, Lawrence L. Green, got a 65-year murder sentence.
Coparenting Counselors?
Article on Parenting Coordination can be found at:
Parenting Coordination, a bad idea
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