Enforcing Parenting Time

[cnicole00]

I have parenting time every weekend. I have had my child every weekend for over a year and a half. I have a temporary custody order stating that I will have parenting time with my child on the weekends.

I got a phone call from the father stating that if I did not bring her back Saturday at 5pm that he was not going to give her to me Friday. I told him I already had plans and this was my time. He said he wanted to do something with her. I told him he could have next weekend because we already had plans for that day.

I waited for an hour and her never showed up. I called him and he said don't bother waiting. I called the local police and had the order with me. I asked if them could help me get my child and they said no it was a civil case. I called the police because my lawyer told me they could help. Is this true? Also the police officer that showed up i recognized because he is freinds with my ex who is also a police officer.

Now I am sitting here wondering why they put orders in place when its so easy to not follow them. I do not have my child because the father wanted to do something with her on my time. He gets five days a week to spend with our child. Now I have tickets to something I was taking my child to and do not get to see her all weekend. Any insight would be great! My attorney will not answer my calls.

 

[jharris352]

To enforce a civil order you have to take him back to court for contempt. I would write him a letter and tell him just that. Tell him you have a court order giving you access to the child at certain times and you expect to get those times or you will go back to court. Tell him you will also report to his superiors at work that he isn't obeying a court order. (That is pretty dirty pool but so is what he is doing). Hopefully he will break and you won't have to do any of that.

If the tickets were particularly expensive you can force him to pay for them if he breaks the court order. Just a thought.

 

[cnicole00]

Thanks for the response but this had already happened. He did not bring her to me last night which is when he was suppose to. He also will not let her talk to me today. Her cell phone is turned off and they are not asnwering the house phone. I am not seeing my child on my court ordered parenting time. What steps should I take now? Does he have to do this again for anything to be done?