When fighting for custody in Florida, it is understandable that some parents may become desperate. They want to ensure they can continue to see their children. Sometimes this desperation is so strong that parents turn to underhanded tactics to either win custody or gain a child’s favor. What is this dirty tactic? Some parents brainwash their children against their ex, and what is worse is that sometimes this happens on both sides.
According to ABC News, this is called parental alienation and it often makes its way into the courtroom. In an attempt to secure custody, one parent may even successfully manipulate the child into making false accusations against the other. This is so often without proof that courts have become increasingly convinced that when child abuse comes up in court, divorce poison may be the cause.
Because of this, when one parent alleges abuse or convinces a child to make such claims truthfully or not, they must make a strong case. Failure to prove abuse may lead to a parent losing custody or access to their child.
In fact, a study cited by ABC News showed that when mothers alleged that a father abused the child and parental alienation was determined to be the reason, mothers lost custody of the child 80% of the time. Unfortunately, many of these allegations were actually true. When this is the case, children may end up living with their abusers.
According to ABC27 News, children benefit most from a healthy relationship with both parents. If there is no reason that the other parent would present a threat to the child, for one parent to make false accusations in the attempt to secure full custody is discreditable. Psychologists continue to study parental alienation, why it works on some children and not others and the effect it has on family relationships long-term.
