Contempt

In general, when someone violates a custody order by keeping a child past the designated time, a parent may have two options to try to get the child back - going to the police and/or filing for contempt in court. However, in many cases, the police may not get involved with enforcing a court order unless the terms are very specific (such as listing a specific time that the child is supposed to be returned) but this likely depends on the individual police department’s policies - I cannot say what may happen if you ask the police for help. Have you already reported it to the police? If so, did they take a report or do anything? Here is the law in STATE that deals with parental kidnapping in case you want to have it with you when approaching the police about it: LINK TO THE STATUTES PAGE CRIME ON THIS - NOTE, YOU CAN’T COPY THE URL FROM THE STATUTES PAGE IN THE BACK END; YOU HAVE TO OPEN A NEW TAB TO FIND THE STATUTE AND COPY THE URL FROM THAT PAGE

The second option that a parent generally has is to return to court to file for contempt. When a person files for contempt, s/he is generally asking a court to acknowledge that the other person violated the court order and asking that the court take steps to try to force him/her to follow the order and/or punish him/her for the violation.

A person has the option of filing for contempt on his/her own, or with the help of a lawyer. The clerk of court (that’s the courthouse official in charge of records) should be able to provide the forms needed to file for contempt if someone chooses to do so on his/her own. Usually, to file for contempt, a person would go to the courthouse that issued the original order but there may be exceptions to this. You’ll find contact information for legal resources for your state here, including both free legal services and the bar association’s lawyer referral service for private lawyers: LINK Sometimes if a person has to file in court based on the fault of one party, a judge may order the party at fault to pay the lawyer fees of the other person - I don’t know if this is done in your state and county or for this type of case but If you are thinking of hiring a private attorney, you may want to ask your lawyer about it in your first meeting to see if it may be an option.

Generally, the penalties for violating a custody/visitation order could vary from state to state and I can’t say how your state in particular handles this but they can often range from possible fines, to having to make up the lost visitation time, to in extreme circumstances (usually for continual or very serious violations) even losing custody or being held in contempt of court (which could involve fines or jail time). Sometimes, a person can use the violation as a reason to file to modify the order in some way. You may want to talk to a lawyer in your state who specializes in custody to find out what may happen in your situation.

ADD THIS ONLY IF THE PERSON SAYS THE OTHER PARENT VIOLATED THE ORDER BY TAKING THE CHILD OUT OF STATE AND KEEPING HIM/HER THERE: In many states, if a parent violates a custody order by taking the child out of state and keeping the child there, a parent may have to do more than file for contempt in the state that issued the custody order. In many states, the police will not enforce a bench warrant issued by another state’s judge. Often, the parent trying to enforce the custody order may have to go to the state where the other parent is holding the child to file for an emergency pick-up order in that state’s court, which could then be enforced by police. Sometimes the parent may be able to get a lawyer in the state where the child is being held to file it on his/her behalf without going to that state. You may want to talk to a lawyer in the state where the child is being held. Also, if you are a domestic violence victim, you may be able to get help from the Legal Resource Center on Violence Against Women, which specializes in interstate custody matters for abused women. Their number is 301-270-1550 and the following is the link to their website for your reference: http://www.lrcvaw.org/contact.html.

IF THE PERSON DOES NOT MENTION THAT THE CHILD IS IN A DIFFERENT STATE, ADD THIS INSTEAD [AND THEN IF S/HE REPLIES, YOU CAN GIVE THE INFO FROM THE ABOVE PARAGRAPH]: Also, if the other parent is in a different state with the child, please let me know and I can give you some more information that is specific to trying to get a child back from a different state.