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[aprilromine]

Jurisdiction/Place: USA - Minnesota

To make a very long story shorter, I married into a family that has dealt with an alcoholic abusive father and deadbeat mother. Resulting in a son (my husband) who inherited a bit of a drinking problem also but is a good guy, and a daughter who has a temper/hatred like I've never seen before, but still idolizes her father even after physical and verbal abuse. And they are very good at hiding their dis functions from the rest of the extended family. So basically when an outsider like myself, who realized that the way they are isn't normal, came in the picture they never opened up to welcome me.

We have had disagreements over the last 2 years resulting in my father/sister in laws talking down to me, bullying me trying to intimidate, calling me nasty names, basically twisting everything I say into something else just to try and built a false case against me to make me look bad in everyone elses eyes. I am a quiet-submissive-sensitive person who was brought up in a loving hardworking family. So these things really hurt, I mean they don't even know who I am. About six months ago we had pretty much come to the conclusion that agreeing to disagree was the only way to keep this so called "family" together. And I was doing that to the best of my ability. I love my husband and know these people are important to him.

A night last summer after they had been drinking again (I was sober), they started in again about me "brainwashing" their son/brother and taking him away from them. I just told my husband we should go before something happens. But he wanted to stay because he had had enough and wanted to say some stuff to them. Well, a fight broke out between an ex boyfriend of the sisters and my husband, I ran over to them and before I knew it I was on the ground with my father in-law on top of me saying "She can get up when I tell her she can get up!". I screamed at him and he finally got off me. In the process I lost my keys in the grass and then began looking for them. My sister in-law proceeded to scream at me that she "hates my F**ing guts, the whole family hates you and to get off this property and never f**ing come back". I ignored her. My husband then was standing off to the side doing or saying nothing when the father in law (his dad) attacked him for no reason resulting in my husband hitting his head hard on the way down. Luckily an uncle was there to grab him off of him. I was so horrified and angry that I went over to the dad with intent on popping him in the nose, but couldn't do it. Turning around I started over to my husband who was still on the ground when my sister in-law grabbed me by the hair, began to scratch my face almost getting my eye, hit me in the mouth and wouldn't let go of me. I was struggling to stay on my feet and it took three people to pull her off me bloody and in shock. I then got the heck out of there leaving my husband and all.

A few days later (I waited not knowing what to do) I filed a police report, but decided not to press charges. The officer told me that me about hitting my father in law might be chargeable also. So I just wanted to be done with them forever and didn't want to draw things out. My husband and I had to work through a lot of things together, this has been the only thing wrong with our marriage. I later find out that they are telling the rest of the family that the sister in law got her hair pulled out and that was the extent of it. Conveniently, not telling the whole story about the reason her hair might have been pulled on to get her off me. So, I to get some of the truth out put a pic of myself on my profile with my beaten swollen face. They are now threatening with turning me in, saying that putting my pic on there is illegal. When really they don't want anyone to know what really happened. Again, they are very careful to cover things up, but I will not let that happen. My question is, is it really illegal for me to do that and anymore advice would help. Please?

[CdwJava]

You can put any picture you own wherever you want to - especially if it is of yourself. What they might allege, however, is that you are committing the act of libel (printed slander) by claiming that one of their family did this. If it really happened, then it would be hard to prove that the father-in-law (or whomever) did NOT pummel you.

I do not see any legal reason to take the photo down. But, this family - which is now your family by marriage - appears quite dysfunctional.