Child Custody, Proving the Other Parent Has a Criminal History, How Do I Do It? Is it Relevant?

Many times parents run up against a legal system that seems to be indifferent to criminals. While a parent may know that the other parent has a criminal history, it seems that judges do not want to hear about it or don't care what the charges were. Are the criminal charges relevant and how do you get them into your custody case?

While judges are not immune to the plight of a parent who fears for their child, it is a leap for them to go from a criminal charge to condemned parent. In order for the criminal charge to be relevant to parenting you must show that the type of offense would be unsafe for the child or create a pattern of bad choices that could be implied onto parenting skills.

The first hurdle you need to overcome is the problem of turning the  charge from an accusation into a truth. Just because you know they went to jail doesn't create proof for the judge in family court. In order to show the court that you are not making unsubstantiated claims but that you are justifiably concerned, you need a copy of their record. How do you get their record? Simple. Most criminal complaints are public record and available at the criminal courthouse.

You can head down to the courthouse or even phone into the records research desk. They typically charge by the page so copying entire files can be expensive. Fortunately you don't need the whole file. You only need the following:

1: Police Report
2: Complaint
3: Bench Warrant (if exists)
4: Arrest Warrant (if exists)
5: Final Disposition

The police report will give the penal codes and tell you why they were arrested. The complaint is what the district attorney decided to charge them with. A bench warrant is issued if they do not show up for court (they can just set a new date). An arrest warrant is issued when the suspect is known but not available for arrest.

Armed with this specific information you can include the details of their history and make your case about why you think their problems will create problems with the parenting plan. Like all motions make sure you do not focus on moral issues but instead focus on concrete issues. For instance if the parent has a drug problem, that would mean that their ability to make parental decisions could be impaired.

This could also prove helpful if the other parent has a roommate or significant other with a criminal history. Hanging out with criminal roommates shows a lack of good judgment.

Do you want to learn more about high conflict child custody resolution? Receive my brand new series "Child Custody Court Processes and Case Flow" here. If you want to learn more about dealing with dirty tactics in Child Custody Evaluation you can find it here. Ed Brooks knows firsthand how painful a High Conflict Child Custody battle can be and has created a site where parents can get advice on how to handle all aspects of a high conflict Child Custody battle.