He Wants What? Parenting Time or Custody? He Trafficked Me
David Manville | September 11 | 1:30 - 2:30 PM | Room Ingman
There are cases where survivors have had children with their traffickers. While these case are low in numbers there is every reason to believe they will increase in the future. This is an issue as traffickers may attempt to use family court as a means of intimidating survivors for a variety of reasons. Traffickers fear her testifying or providing information to law enforcement regarding being trafficked. Traffickers may threaten women with seeking custody and/or parenting time in their state.
In Michigan, Family Court primarily deals with custody and parenting time issues. If the trafficker is the biological father in unmarried cases or if they were married and/or divorced, he has the right to seek contact with their common child.
This workshop will focus on the trafficking context as it relates to Custody and Parenting Time laws of Michigan with the focus on the power, control, manipulation and fear factor. Survivors would naturally be fearful of their trafficker having any form of contact with their child, especially related to the fear of similar acts being forced unto their child and/or the use of the child as a means of continuing to have control over the woman’s life.
Objectives:
1) Attendees will gain understanding of the legal system related to custody and parenting time.
2) Attendees will be able to recognize the role of power and control as it relates to potential court cases.
3) Attendees will be able to formulate concepts of how to address these issues in future court cases.
Attendees will have a greater understanding of examining their state’s custody and parenting time laws related to HT survivors.