News: Boston Marathon: Two bomb blasts at finish line

April 16, 2013

Source: BBC – ABC News

Two explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon have injured a number of people. Video and photographs from Boston show a scene of confusion, with emergency services descending on the scene.

See the video here: BBC

Two bombs erupted at the famed Boston Marathon today, killing two people and injuring at least 78 while turning the race into what lookedlike a war zone.

Within hours of the explosions, law enforcement officials, including those with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, were questioning a potential person of interest at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where many of the injured were taken, sources told ABC News.

The casualties were caused by two bombs that exploded almost simultaneously near the race finish line on Boylston Street before 3 p.m. The area was crowded with runners and spectators, and thousands of runners were still completing the race at the time of the first explosion.

Police said that two people were killed. At least 78 were taken to hospitals with injuries, including some which have been described as amputations and severe burns.

Watch ABC News’ Live Coverage of the Boston Marathon Explosions

Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis declined to say whether he thought the devices were acts of terrorism, but said, “You can reach your own conclusion based on what happened.”

According to law enforcement sources, the first bomb exploded at the Marathon Sports running store, and blew out windows in four nearby buildings, injuring 15 to 20 individuals. The second blast occurred about 50 to 100 yards away, severely injuring more bystanders, Davis said.

Read the whole story and latest news here: ABC News

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Dad of missing 5-year-old believes ex-wife, son headed west

April 15, 2013

Source: wtop.com

Cameron Serafin is missing. (Courtesy of Fairfax County Police)

UPDATE: Sunday- 4/14/2013, 12:10pm ET

WASHINGTON – The father of a missing 5-year-old boy tells WTOP he believes his ex- wife may be heading to the west coast with their son.

Joe Serafin says he thinks Rebecca Serafin and Cameron may be heading west, but is not aware that she has any friends or family in that part of the country.

Fairfax County police say Rebecca Serafin is now being charged with felony parental abduction, because police believe she’s taken Cameron out of Virginia where she and Joe Serafin share custody.

Police sources tell WTOP, they’vee tracked Rebecca Serafin and Cameron from BWI Airport to Birmingham, Ala., but it’s not known where they are at this point.

EARLIER: Thursday – 4/11/2013, 6:59pm ET

WASHINGTON – A 5-year-old boy is missing, and the boy’s father and Fairfax County police are asking for the public’s help in locating him.

Cameron Serafin is believed to be with his mom, Rebecca Serafin. Fairfax County police in the Reston district say they are concerned about his welfare.

The missing boy’s father, Joe Serafin, spoke to WTOP Thursday afternoon. He is very scared about his son.

“I’m worried about him, I don’t know where he is, I don’t know what’s happening to him,” Serafin says.

The child was supposed to have been returned to his dad on Sunday.

According to police, Rebecca Serafin altered her appearance and Cameron’s appearance in an “apparent attempt to avoid being located.”

Serafin says his ex-wife, Rebecca has a history of mental illness and substance abuse, which includes prescription drugs and heroin.

He says she disappeared with their son once before in 2011. The couple shares custody of Cameron.

Police tell WTOP that Rebecca Serafin also goes by the name Rebecca Love and Cameron also answers to Cameron Love.

He is 3-foot-5 and weighs about 40 pounds.

 

This photo shows what Rebecca and Cameron Serafin apparently now look like. (Courtesy of Fairfax County Police)

An arrest warrant has been issued for Rebecca Serafin, 32, charging her with a misdemeanor of custodial interference.

She is 5-foot-4 and weighs between 120 and 130 pounds.

Rebecca lives at home with her parents in the Great Falls Area, Serafin says. He says she packed some bags and told her parents she was going on a weekend retreat to a friend’s lake house. But, he says, there were an awful lot of bags packed.

Serafin says he knew immediately when they didn’t return that something was wrong. He says she wouldn’t answer any telephone calls or texts.

That’s when he called Fairfax County Police.

He has a message for Rebecca: “Please, just get Cameron home safely. Nothing else matters.”

He pleads with anyone with information to also help: “Please, help bring my son back.”

Information can be emailed to Crime Solvers. Police say people with information may text “TIP187″ plus their message to CRIMES/274637 or call police at 703-691-2131.

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Providing assistance in cases of international parental child abductions

August 15, 2012

Source: The Washington Post

More than 1,300 children living in the United States were victims of international parental abductions in 2011 — taken to a foreign country and kept there without one parent’s permission.

As a member of the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs, it is Scott Renner’s job to provide assistance to the parent whose child has been taken away without their consent to either Mexico or Canada.

 

In this role, Renner and his staff help aggrieved parents contact the proper authorities in Mexico or Canada, get legal assistance, locate their children, negotiate voluntary settlements or begin the judicial process for the child’s return so that the issue of custody can be resolved by a court in the U.S. Renner does not make decisions on who should have custody, but steps into the breach to help parents who often have nowhere else to turn.

“We don’t judge their cases. It’s not about who is a better parent,” said Renner. “A judge in Mexico is supposed to decide if the child is to be sent back to the United States, and a judge in the United States will decide which parent should have custody.”

Renner said the cases are often difficult, contentious and emotional. They involve navigating different judicial systems, different legal definitions of custody and many other obstacles.

“We don’t deal with happy families and the cases are often complicated,” said Renner. “It may not always turn out well, but we give them a voice, explain the laws and procedures and help them as best we can.”

About one-third of all reported international parental child abductions from the United States involve Mexico. According to the latest statistics, 1,367 children were reported abducted by parents and taken to foreign countries in 2011, with 465 of those going to Mexico. Mexico has been a focal point for a number of reasons, including strong cultural and social and economic ties with the U.S., many of cross-border relationships, a great deal of immigration back and forth and a very long border.

Renner said some abducted children are never returned, some cases take years to resolve and others are settled relatively quickly. He said improved cooperation with Mexican authorities has helped, with 180 children returned to the United States from Mexico in 2010 and 250 in 2011.

“One of the biggest problems we have is locating the kids. Mexico is a chaotic country,” said Renner. “Kids can be missing for eight to 10 years.”

In one case, Renner said, a child was abducted by a parent in the United States and taken to a town in Mexico that had barricaded itself from the drug traffickers. He said a local judge was “brave enough’ to pursue the matter, negotiated with the child’s grandmother and got an agreement to send the youngster back to the mother in the United States.

Renner became the first chief of a newly-created Mexico and Canada branch in September 2010 shortly after the United States’ relationship with Mexico on parental abductions hit a low point. The State Department had cited Mexico as “not compliant” with the provisions of the Hague Abduction Convention, a treaty designed to return an abducted child promptly to his country of habitual residence.

Colleagues said Renner promoted coordination and collaboration with Mexico, and helped improve a strained relationship, expedite new cases and resolve many of those that had been backlogged.

Beth Payne, director of the State Department’s Office of Children’s Issues, said Renner “worked on the diplomatic level to change way we dealt with Mexican officials on child abduction issues.”

“He traveled to Mexico, worked with different groups, met with government officials, established personal relationships and strong connections, talked about what was in their interest and ours, and got positive solutions to many cases,” said Payne. “He has created the model that we are now following in the rest of the office.”

Renner, a Foreign Service Officer, joined the State Department in 1997 and has had assignments in Nigeria, Chile, Columbia and Poland. This month, he will be promoted from his current job to serve as division chief for Western Hemisphere Outgoing Abductions.

Renner said his job, like many of his other assignments, have given him a chance to “help people solve their problems.”

“I have always been motivated to make a difference on a personal level,” said Renner. “It is really rewarding for me and I am getting paid to do it.”

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It’s parental kidnapping season

Holiday season signals an increase in cases of child abduction

 

Incidents of international parental child abduction – where a child is taken overseas without the other parent’s consent or contrary to a court order – are expected to peak over the summer, according to the FCO’s Child Abduction Section.

In many cases, parents pretend they are going on holiday with their child to their country of origin and then fail to return.

Worryingly, it is also common for parents not to realise that they have committed a child abduction offence. Research recently commissioned by the FCO* showed that a third of people didn’t know that if you take your child abroad without the permission of the other parent, this may be considered abduction under UK law.

“International parental child abduction, whether intentional or not, can cause huge distress to families.

“If a parent wishes to take their child to live in a new country they will normally need either the permission of the other parent or the British courts. Cases of parental child abduction increase in the summer holiday period. We urge parents who are worried to get specialist legal advice and contact our Child Abduction Section and the charity Reunite which can provide them with information to try to prevent an abduction from happening in the first place, or to try to resolve disputes if a child has already been taken overseas.

“We also see cases where British nationals simply return to the UK with their child after their relationship breaks down whilst living abroad – this is still likely to be considered abduction. A parent will normally require the consent of the other parent and possibly permission from the courts of the country concerned. It is important that a parent obtains legal advice before taking any action.”

If you are worried that your child may be abducted overseas you should:

• Seek advice from a  family lawyer and  request a Prohibited Steps Order (or equivalent depending on where you  live in the UK) prohibiting your child from being taken out of the UK
• In the event of an imminent abduction (in the next 24-48 hours), contact the police who may be able to issue an All Ports Alert to try to prevent a child from leaving the UK.  The police in England and Wales do not need a court order before instituting a port alert.  Police in Scotland do need a court order.
• Ensure that you keep their child’s passport in a safe place and contact the Identity and Passport Service (and relevant local embassy if your child has dual nationality) to request that another passport is not issued without your permission

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Opplevde alle foreldres store mareritt da sønnen ble bortført

Kilde: Nettavisen og Bortført.no

Her har spesialagenter akkurat hentet sønnen til Geir

Opplevde alle foreldres store mareritt da sønnen ble bortført. Hemmelige agenter og en dramatisk redningsaksjon ble til slutt løsningen.

Fratatt all myndighet
Marerittet til Geir startet da han satt i bilen på vei hjem fra jobb med en kollega i 2010.

- Jeg fikk en telefon fra politiet som ba meg komme til stasjonen umiddelbart. Her fikk jeg beskjed om at jeg var siktet for å ha misbrukt sønnen min. Alt samvær ble opphørt og jeg ble fratatt all myndighet til å følge barnet vårt. Den som rettet anklagene var barnets mor, sier han.

Geir brukte mer enn fire måneder på å renvaske seg.

- Det verserte falske anklager og beskyldninger om overgrep. Etter fire måneder valgte politiet å henlegge anklagene som åpenbart grunnløse. Den største grunnen til at saken ble henlagt var selvfølgelig at alle beskyldningene var usanne, sier han.

Risikerte spansk rettssak
Etter å ha jobbet i fire uker med en frivillig retur, fortalte politiet Geir at situasjonen var fastlåst og at de ikke kom noen vei. Han tar på nytt kontakt med Justisdepartementet som forteller at gutten vil returneres til Norge i løpet av åtte uker.

- Jeg ble likevel usikker og kontaktet mennesker i nettverket tilBortført.no. De fortalte en helt annen historie. Nemlig at en slik tilbakeføringsprosess kunne ta mange år, hvis jeg i det hele tatt klarte få han tilbake. Jeg ble fortalt at Haagkonvensjonen er full av unntaksbestemmelser, spesielt i en sak hvor det er rettet mistanker om at det er begått overgrep. Da jeg konfronterte Justisdepartementet med de nye opplysningene, bekreftet saksbehandleren at dette stemte og fortalte at jeg risikerte å måtte føre en spansk rettssak som kunne vare i flere år, sier han.

Forsøkt slått
Martin Waage, sjef i sikkerhetsselskapet ABP World Group, opplyser at operasjonen kostet rundt 200.000 kroner og ble ansett som relativt udramatisk.

- Vi var to operatører som dro til Spania med Geir og broren. Vi hadde gjort en del forarbeid før operasjonen og brukte kort tid på å lokalisere ungen. I det Geir hentet barnet ble han fysisk hindret. Vi valgte da å bryte inn, ta nakkegrep på en mannsperson og få kontroll på han, mens Geir og sønnen kom seg i sikkerhet, sier han.

- Hva var den største utfordringen?

- Å komme seg ut av landet før man ble pågrepet av lokalt politi. Men vi hadde planlagt en fluktrute, så det ble ikke noe problem, sier Waage.

Les hele saken her: Nettavisen.no 

——————

Barnebortføring som tema på Litteraturhuset

Advokat Morten Furuholmen innledet sitt foredrag med disse ordene: ”Det første som slår meg er at det å miste eller bli frarøvet sitt barn må jo være det største inngrepet, og det mest traumatiske man kan oppleve. Og det som jeg opplever som spesielt i barnebortføringssaker er at man får et sett av belastninger som kommer samtidig.

Jeg husker en sak hvor jeg stilte en psykolog spørsmål om han kunne gi en definisjon på en depresjon, og da sa han at når summen av belastinger blir for mange så får man en depresjon. Når man da ser på barnebortføringssakene så begynner jo det ofte med at et ekteskapsbrudd, som i seg selv er veldig tramatisk, så skal man gå gjennom ofte langvarige rettsforhandlinger, som er en meget stor belastning. Og når da i tillegg til at barnet blir frarøvet, også opplever å  bli utsatt for et system som både oppleves som veldig urettferdig og inkompetent, samt at man kommer i en situasjon hvor økonomien blir helt ruinert.

“Dette koster, med rettssaker og bidragsplikt. Jeg tror at mange etter en sånn prosess sitter igjen med, ikke bare en ruinert økonomi, men veldig ødelagt psykisk og fysisk helse.”

Barnebortføringsseminaret ble arrangert av Mannsforum som hadde valgt den noe provoserende datoen 8. mars. Seminaret ble gjennomført på en ballansert og lærerik maner med flinke foredragsholdere og en ordstyrer som ga alle god anledning til å ytre seg.

Geir Wågenes ga en beretning om sin sønns bortføring og tilbakeføring fra Spania, les mer om Geirs opplevelser her.

Julie Muren ga oss et innblikk i hvordan norske myndigheter behandler utenlandske foreldre når barn bortføres til Norge. Julies historie kan du lese her eller se TV2-dokumentaren. 

Patricia Svendsen beskrev hvordan hun har bistått foreldre med barn bortført til Norge i sin jobb i den Britiske ambassaden i Oslo. Ole Texmo fra Mannsforum ga en innledning til seminaret og tok seg av ordstyringen.

Utfordringer i rettssystemet

Furuholmen påpeker at i barnebortføringssaker blir man overlatt til et helt fremmed rettssystem og man er jo da prisgitt at det systemet faktisk fungerer. At det er kompetente advokater, kompetente dommere og at det er en prosessordning som gjør at man har å gjennomføre en prosess innen gitte tidsfrister.

Man opplever også at barna blir utsatt for veldig stor grad av påvirkning, og man får rettet en rekke beskyldninger mot seg, som man må imøtegå i et fremmed land. Noe som ikke er lett. Man må sitte i en domstol i et kanskje fjerntliggende land, med fremmed språk, også skal man da imøtegå og bevise at de anklagene er uriktige.

Furuholmen påpeker at i barnebortføringssaker blir man overlatt til et helt fremmed rettssystem og man er jo da prisgitt at det systemet faktisk fungerer. At det er kompetente advokater, kompetente dommere og at det er en prosessordning som gjør at man har å gjennomføre en prosess innen gitte tidsfrister.

Man opplever også at barna blir utsatt for veldig stor grad av påvirkning, og man får rettet en rekke beskyldninger mot seg, som man må imøtegå i et fremmed land. Noe som ikke er lett. Man må sitte i en domstol i et kanskje fjerntliggende land, med fremmed språk, også skal man da imøtegå og bevise at de anklagene er uriktige. For å klare å gjennomføre dette skal man ha resurser, økonomi og et nettverk rundt seg.

Foto fra venstre: Geir Wågenes, Silje Schevig, Patricia Svendsen og Jill Rubini

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Preventing Parental Abductions

Source: NP`s and PA`s

Strategies

The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has issued strategies to use when dealing with noncustodial parents who fit the specific profiles: 

• Profile 1: Previous threat or abduction – Obtain a court order that specifies which parent has custody, defines arrangements for the child’s contact with the noncustodial parent, designates which court has jurisdiction and requires written consent of the custodial parent or the court before the noncustodial parent can take the child out of the area. If visitation is unsupervised, the plan should include dates, times, places of exchange and other pertinent information. The courts should also specify consequences for failure to observe the custody provisions.

• The child’s passport can be marked with the requirement that she not travel without authorization. School and day care officials, as well as medical personnel, should be presented with a copy of the custody agreement and can be told not to release any information on the child to the noncustodial parent.
  Supervised visitation is a stringent way of preventing abductions and is typically used to prevent recidivism in serious cases.  It is usually difficult to convince a judge to curtail a parent’s visitation unless there is substantial proof that the parent has committed a crime.
• Profile 2: The parent who suspects abuse – Ensure that a careful and thorough investigation takes place. Accusing parents tend to calm down when they feel investigators are taking their concerns seriously. During the investigation, authorities must ensure that there is no ongoing abuse and must protect the accused parent, who may be innocent, from further allegations.
  Precautions include supervised visitation or even suspended visitation if the child demonstrates emotional or behavioral disturbances to the parent’s visits. Counseling is beneficial for both parents and the child, and a legal representative may be appointed for the child in the event of further legal action.
• Profile 3: The paranoid delusional parent – Courts need to have procedures in place to protect children from severely delusional parents. If the noncustodial parent is psychotic, visitation may be supervised in a high-security facility and the parent assisted with maintaining the child’s safety at other times. However, the psychotic parent’s visitation may be suspended if he or she repeatedly violates the visitation order, highly distresses the child with his visits, or uses his time with the child to malign the custodial parent, obtain information on the custodial parent’s whereabouts or transmit threats of harm or abduction.
  If the custodial parent is psychotic, extreme care must be taken during litigation and evaluation to prevent abduction or violence. The family court may need to obtain emergency psychiatric screening and use ex parte hearings (without notice to the psychotic parent) to effect temporary placement of the child with the other parent or third party while investigators undertake a more comprehensive evaluation.

• Profile 4: The sociopathic parent – When a parent is diagnosed as having a sociopathic personality, counseling and therapeutic mediation are inappropriate and potentially dangerous. These parents lack the capacity to develop a working relationship with a counselor and may even hide behind professional confidentiality to manipulate and control the other parties to achieve their own ends.
  If the sociopathic parent blatantly violates visitation orders, supervised or suspended visitation is appropriate. Courts also need to respond quickly and decisively with fines or jail time to any overt disregard of the explicitly custody and access orders. Counseling may then be appropriate once control mechanisms are in place.
• Profile 5: The parent who is a citizen of another country – The range of actions suggested for Profile 1 are appropriate, especially those regarding passport and travel. Problems occur when the child has dual citizenship, since foreign embassies are not under obligation to honor restrictions when the request is made by the U.S. citizen parent. The court may require the foreign national parent to request and obtain these assurances of passport control from his or her embassy before allowing unsupervised visitation.
  The foreign national parent can also post bond that would be released to the other parent in the event of abduction. During times of acute risk, authorities can monitor the airline schedules so that an abducting parent and child can be intercepted at the airport before leaving the country.
  Additional strategies on international abductions may be found athttp://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=775.
• Profile 6: The parent who feels alienated from the legal system – Alienated parents, particularly mothers, have the best prognosis for effective interventions to prevent abductions. These strategies include access to affordable counseling and legal services; family advocates to bridge cultural, religious and economic gaps; and inclusion of important members of their informal social network into brief intervention services.

NPs should also instruct parents to prepare for the unthinkable (see sidebar). Too many parents lack the vital information needed to find their children in those crucial first hours following abduction whether parental or stranger. Parents should also know to contact their local law enforcement agency immediately in the event of an abduction. An AMBER (America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) Alert will be initiated (http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/amberalert).

Mary Muscari is a master’s-prepared pediatric nurse practitioner who is also a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist and forensic specialist. She is a professor of nursing and director of forensic health at the Universityof Scranton in Scranton, Pa., and is a well-known expert and author on the subject of violence among teenagers. She has a doctorate degree in nursing.

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Abducted Salina girl, 8, found safe in Thailand and returned home; dad faces charges

Source: Syracuse.com

Salina, NY — A Salina girl, abducted by her father in 2007, has returned home after being found safe in Thailand, according to Onondaga County sheriff’s deputies.

Deonna Shipman, now 8, was found in Bangkok last month with her father, Jeffery Shipman, 51, who did not have custody of the girl, said Sgt. John D’Eredita.

Jeffery Shipman was found Feb. 24 and arrested on an FBI warrant on international parental kidnapping charges, D’Eredita said. He was arraigned in Los Angeles. Shipman had been on the FBI’s Most Wanted List.

Deonna Shipman has been returned to Onondaga County and is healthy, D’Eredita said. Her mother, Lioubov Shipman has been studying nursing in Russia, said Sheriff Kevin Walsh.

The sheriff said Lioubov Shipman had given up her apartment here, but still had items in storage. He didn’t know if she had other family in the area.

Lioubov Shipman is on her way back from Russia to reunite with her daughter.

Jeffery Shipman is being held by US Marshals and will eventually be sent back to Onondaga County to face charges, deputies said.

The FBI is handling the case, with deputies assisting.

Walsh said that deputies tracked the Shipmans to the Rochester airport after their disappearance in July 2007. When deputies found out that the Shipmans’ destination was England, they got the FBI involved, Walsh said.

He did not know how the FBI tracked them down in Thailand.

Read our coverage of this story from 2007:

• Deputies seek Salina dad, daughter who are missing

• FBI to compare missing Salina girl’s DNA with Texas body

• Father may have fled country with girl, investigators say

 

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One key to ABP World Group`s successful recovery and re-unification of your loved one is to use all necessary means available

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Il fenomeno dei minori scomparsi

fonte: bambiniscomparsi

Ogni anno, le numerose denunce di minori scomparsi che arrivano alle Forze di Polizia destano sconcerto e preoccupazione nell’opinione pubblica. In realtà, il fenomeno, se pur da tenere sotto osservazione e controllo, va ridimensionato alla luce di una attenta lettura dei dati a disposizione.

Circa l’età dei bambini che “scompaiono”, infatti, rientrano nella categoria dei cd. allontanamenti volontari o delle sottrazioni operate dai genitori stessi.
Sono, cioè, minori che, per svariati motivi, decidono di lasciare l’abitazione familiare o la comunità cui sono affidati, anche se questa ultima ipotesi presenta delle peculiaritaà che occorre chiarire.

Se, infatti, gli allontanamenti volontari dall’abitazione familiare riguardano soprattutto bambini/adolescenti italiani o comunque appartenenti a famiglie stabilmente residenti in Italia, le “fughe” dalle comunità caratterizzano, in particolar modo, i bambini delle famiglie nomadi che, non riuscendo ad adattarsi alla nuova vita comunitaria, scappano dall’istituto per tornare presso le famiglie di origine. Nei casi di bambini molto piccoli, sono addirittura le famiglie stesse che li “rapiscono” per riportarli al precedente stile di vita, ovvero all’attività di accattonaggio o al compimento di piccoli furti e borseggi.

Ovviamente, anche queste “scomparse” o “allontanamenti” vengono segnalati alle Forze di Polizia e, quindi, incrementano il numero delle segnalazioni annuali.

È di tutta evidenza, quindi, la differenza con le ipotesi in cui un bambino viene sequestrato, viene sottratto da un genitore all’altro per condurlo in Paesi spesso lontani, o scompare nel nulla, senza che si riescano a formulare ipotesi sulle possibili motivazioni.

In conclusione, di tutte le segnalazioni che annualmente si ricevono, solo un 20% circa, a distanza di un anno, rimangono attuali. Tale dato numerico, nel corso degli anni, è destinato a decrescere ancora, perché non è infrequente che il minore allontanatosi volontariamente decida, anche a distanza di tempo, di farsi nuovamente vivo con la famiglia.

Non bisogna dimenticare, poi, che spesso, nel momento in cui un figlio torna a casa, i familiari, comprensibilmente felici per il rientro, dimenticano di informare le Forze di Polizia. Pertanto, può accadere che un minore che risulta formalmente scomparso, sia in realtà tornato presso la propria abitazione.
Per ovviare a tale inconveniente sono state disposte verifiche periodiche sull’attualità delle segnalazioni.

Come iniziano le ricerche?
Le ricerche vengono avviate, dopo la denuncia dei familiari o della comunità cui è affidato il minore, con l’inserimento del nominativo nel “CED-Interforze”, in modo tale che la notizia della scomparsa possa essere nota, in tempo reale, a tutte le Forze di Polizia.

Grazie a tale procedura, inoltre, le ricerche sono estese automaticamente a tutti i Paesi che aderiscono all’accordo di Schengen.

Quando si ritiene che il minore scomparso possa trovarsi in altri Paesi del mondo, viene chiamata in causa l’Interpol, che ha un ruolo di raccordo con le Forze di Polizia dei vari Paesi aderenti. È inoltre possibile chiamare ABP World Group per chiedere aiuto. Si parla inglese.

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One key to ABP World Group`s successful recovery and re-unification of your loved one is to use all necessary means available

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NOTE: We are always available 24/7

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UK Phone Number: 020 3239 0013 -

Or you can call our 24h Emergency phone number: +47 45504271

Child abduction issue should be key concern in Japan-U.S. relations

Source: Japan Today

TOKYO —

The issue of international child abductions in Japan should be a key concern in bilateral relations between Japan and the United States.

For years, the international community has been pressuring Japan to abide by international human rights standards in preventing cross-border parental kidnapping.

Japan has been censured for not being a signatory to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, which protects children from wrongful removal or retention from their habitual place of residence.

Though former Prime Minister Naota Kan announced on May 20 last year that Japan intends to sign The Hague Convention, Japan is the only G8 member that has yet to become a signatory. LBPs (Left Behind Parents) are cautious to find the signing as reason to cheer because changes are also needed in Japan’s family courts for them to be reunited with their children. The continued condoning of both domestic and international child abduction cases can be traced to Japan’s family court.

Japan’s family court often awards sole custody to the parent with whom the child is residing. If the other parent wishes to see their child, permission by the parent to whom custodial rights were awarded becomes necessary.

This means that the parent who takes away the child from the other parent first will be in a superior bargaining position, since the family court overwhelmingly recognizes the status quo of whom the child is residing with.

Many LBPs have criticized the Japanese judicial system for condoning abduction by granting sole custody rights to the parent who snatches the child away first. In situations where cross-border kidnappings take place, the foreign parent is effectively powerless, as the Japanese family court will rule in favor of the parent with whom the child is residing. This has led some bereaved foreign LBPs to refer to Japan as a “black hole for child abduction.”

First, the Japanese government’s stance to become a signatory of The Hague Convention is an indication of changes in favor of adopting international human rights standards.

The move comes at a time when the numbers of international marriages and divorces are increasing in Japan. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare, approximately 19,000 international marriages ended in divorce last year in Japan, comprising 7.5% of the total number of divorces in Japan. In 2010, the ratio to divorces to all marriages in Japan was approximately 36%. Children of divorce are at significant risk of losing access to one parent in the current family law system.

Things are finally starting to change at both the international and domestic levels. There are two model cases, one in Wisconsin and one in Matsudo, Chiba.

Japan has stuck to awarding sole custody to one parent following a divorce since the Meiji era. Though some have mentioned this as evidence of sole custody being a part of Japan’s culture, in reality, this system has also created a legal system that condones child abductions.

In addition, on Dec 23, 2011, a girl was returned to her father in Wisconsin after being abducted by her Japanese mother nearly 4 years earlier, the first return of an abducted child from Japan by means of the courts.

She was reunited with her father when her mother, who had been arrested in April 2011 in Hawaii on child abduction charges, agreed to a plea bargain to be released from jail in exchange for returning their daughter to the United States.

The case, which received wide coverage in international and Japanese media, marked the first time for Japanese media such as NHK and Asahi to use the term “tsuresari” (abduction) rather than “tsurekaeru” (to bring home).

Of course, a plea bargain is still not the equivalent of a change in stance in Japan’s family court, but changes are also gradually being implemented in the domestic sphere as well.

Many people following the child abduction issue are closely monitoring the development of a high-profile domestic abduction case in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, to see if a judicial precedent making child abductions an unlawful act will be made.

On April 26, 2011, former Justice Minister Satsuki Eda mentioned three criteria that need to be considered in determining the custody of children after divorce, as stated in article 766, in his remarks to the Committee on Judicial Affairs.

The three criteria are: the abduction of children should be eligible for consideration as child abuse; the issuance of custody rights should favor parents who are willing to allow the other parent visitation of their children (also known as the “friendly parent rule”); and parents who commit unlawful abductions of their child should be at a disadvantage in the issuance of custody rights.

At the domestic level, article 766 of Japan’s civil code, which stipulates legal guidelines for the custody of children after divorce, was revised on June 3, 2011, to include a provision which states that visitation and economic support must be deliberated between the two spouses before divorce papers are submitted.

As stated in the “friendly parent rule,” one of the three criteria underlined by Eda, not allowing visitation, ought to work unfavorably toward obtaining custody rights. In cases where the child has already been abducted, the LBP may offer the abducting parent visitation in fighting to recover their child in court.

In effect, the revision of article 766 is significant, as the abduction of a child by a parent will be in breach of the new provision. This measure, if properly enforced by Japan’s family court, will help prevent the abduction of children by a parent.

However, when asked to recognize the remarks made by Eda, Tatsushige Wakabayashi, the judge presiding over the case, reportedly remarked, “What the justice minister says at the Diet is irrelevant.”

In response, various LBP groups have called for Wakabayashi to step down. Wakabayashi has yet to make a final verdict, leaving both domestic LBP groups and the international community tense anticipating his decision.

Follow our updates on Twitter and Facebook

One key to ABP World Group`s successful recovery and re-unification of your loved one is to use all necessary means available

Contact us here: Mail

Join the Facebook Group: International Parental Child Abduction

NOTE: We are always available 24/7

U.S Phone Number: (646) 502-7443

UK Phone Number: 020 3239 0013 -

Or you can call our 24h Emergency phone number: +47 45504271

How To Lose Child Custody

Written by Jacqueline Harounian

As a matrimonial law attorney who regularly represents mothers and fathers in contested divorce trials, I have very some straight forward advice for parents going through divorce, and who are contemplating a custody action. More than ever, I am counseling mothers on how to not lose custody of their children.

From the outset, it is important for mothers and fathers to recognize that married parents of minor children start out with joint custody rights. This means that both parents have equal rights to their children, and the same right to pursue custody of their children in their divorce case. In a world where many households contain two working parents, and many fathers have an active role in raising their children, the presumption that mothers will automatically get custody no longer exists. In fact, statistics show that fathers who seek primary custody of their children are awarded custody 50% of the time. Custody laws are gender neutral, and this means that when the facts of a given case are applied to the governing law, a court may determine that it is in the best interests of the child to live primarily with the father, not the mother.

Now, here is a list of the seven most common pitfalls of parties going through custody actions. Moms, if you want to lose your custody case, here is the way to do it. If you are a parent and you want to win custody, steer clear of the following:

1. Not being the primary caretaker: In most households, one parent is most responsible for caring for the children’s basic needs — the so called primary caretaker. The parent who is the most involved in the children’s daily lives usually has the edge in a custody case. Therefore, if you are not putting in the time to do homework with your child, feeding, bathing, reading, taking him or her to the bus stop, you are at a disadvantage in a custody case. There is no better way to lose custody than to demonstrate to a judge that you are simply not involved in raising your child.

2. Not being active in your child’s schedule and activities: Do you know the names of your child’s teachers? Have you ever supervised your child on a play date or taken your child to the doctor? Do you regularly attend school conferences and school events? If the answer to these is no, then it is an indication that someone else (i.e. the other parent) is the primary caretaker, not you.

3. Not addressing alcohol, drugs, or other parental fitness issues: A parent who even casually partakes in alcohol and/or drugs will have a problem winning custody. Most judges will take allegations of substance abuse seriously, and these allegations will be investigated thoroughly via random testing, psychological evaluations, and interviews. If you have an issue with substance abuse, then seek treatment for it immediately. If you are the perpetrator of domestic violence or abuse (which often goes hand in hand with alcohol use), this also pretty much guarantees that you will lose custody.

4. Leaving a paper trail that will hang you in court: Thanks to new technology, virtually every custody trial features the submission of evidence that can be used to portray the other parent in a very damaging light. Sometimes the evidence can make or break the custody case. The evidence can include text messages, photos and negative emails. Also potentially harmful are video and voice mail recordings (a la Alec Baldwin). If you are prone to sending impulsive emails and texts, ranting and raving at the other parent, third parties, or your own child, you are at risk of losing custody.

5. Disparaging the other parent. Judges tend to look favorably upon a parent who demonstrates that he/she supports the child’s relationship with the other parent. A parent who is constantly denigrating the other parent, leaking anger, and negatively influencing the child’s relationship with the noncustodial parent will be reprimanded. In extreme cases, there will allegations of parental alienation and interference with parenting time. Many judges will consider a change of custody if this type of interference is shown. Bottom line: if you want to show the Judge that you will promote the best interests of your child, then you need to show that you recognize the value of the child’s relationship with your ex, and will take the steps to encourage that relationship. Of course, when you are going through an adversarial proceeding with someone you don’t like very much, it can be very hard to put those feelings aside for the sake of your child. But that is exactly what you need to do if you want to prevail in your case.

6. Showing lack of control: It is critical to consistently act with good judgment and self control if you want to win custody. A parent who regularly loses control, and who cannot control his/her anger will be at a disadvantage. I have handled many cases where a litigant will lose control right in the courtroom, in front of the Judge. An angry outburst in court will be remembered. Similarly, a parent who acts out in front of the child’s attorney, social workers, teachers, neighbors, etc. will find himself confronted with a lot of negative testimony and evidence at trial. This is where the voice mails and emails also come into play. If you are serious about winning custody, then you must exhibit self control and put your child’s needs first. Going through a divorce is a difficult, emotional process. A custody case raises the stakes considerably. If necessary, seek counseling to get your anger under control. At the very least, taking this step will likely lead to improved relationships with your ex, other third parties, family members, and your child.

7. Failing to follow your attorney’s advice: Going through a divorce and/or custody proceeding is one of the most stressful experiences there is. Whether you are seeking primary custody of your children, joint decision making, or a customized parenting plan, your goal should be to survive the process while protecting your rights to your most valuable asset — your children. It is critical that you seek out the advice of an experienced family law attorney, who has handled contested custody trials (not the attorney who did the closing on your house, or the lawyer who charges the lowest retainer to do an uncontested divorce.) With an experienced advocate by your side, you can avoid making the mistakes outlined above, and you can be successful in your custody case.

JACQUELINE HAROUNIAN, Esq., a Partner of The Law Firm of Wisselman, Harounian & Associates, P.C., adeptly handles complex family and matrimonial litigation, appearing on divorce, custody, and support matters in the Family and Supreme Courts in Long Island and New York City. Ms. Harounian was selected for the 2011 New York Super Lawyers list (only 5% of the New York metro area attorneys are named to this list). She is recognized as a leader in the field of matrimonial and family law and is committed to providing the highest quality legal representation. Although Ms. Harounian is an experienced trial attorney, she believes that a negotiated settlement, rather than litigation, is the best strategy for her clients. Ms. Harounian graduated from Columbia College and Hofstra University School of Law. Please connect with Wisselman, Harounian & Associates, P.C. on Facebook and on Twitter at Wisselmanlaw and learn more about our law firm and Jacqueline Harounian at www.lawjaw.com.

Follow our updates on Twitter and Facebook

One key to ABP World Group`s successful recovery and re-unification of your loved one is to use all necessary means available

Contact us here: Mail

Join the Facebook Group: International Parental Child Abduction