Parents seeking equal custody

Advocates expected to file federal suits in at least 47 states.

By JOHN DOBBERSTEIN Tribune Staff Writer

Roxanne Varga of Bristol said she's been stonewalled in trying to win more visitation rights with her daughter. Parental rights organizations are expected to file federal lawsuits today in nearly all 50 states, complaining about patterns of unequal treatment in the nation's family court systems. Tribune Photo/GENE KAISER

Before the watchful eyes of a custody supervisor, Roxanne Varga gave her daughter hugs and kisses.

They said they loved each other.

They painted pictures. They ate popcorn and talked. When the visit ended, 6-year-old Emily gave her mother a kiss and said goodbye.

"They treated each other with respect and spoke pleasantly to one another," the supervisor wrote.

But ever since Varga and her husband split up 20 months ago, Varga's parenting skills have been called into question. Her visitation rights have been limited after a counselor related undetailed concerns about the girl's mental state, as well as the home Varga shared with her boyfriend and his three children.

In a court hearing, her husband admitted to saying at work that he wanted to kill his wife. His visitation rights were unchanged.

Today, Varga will be in court again, accused of not paying $1,910 in child support since she lost her job at Bosch Corp. She could be fined or even jailed for contempt by Judge Terry C. Shewmaker, who's been handling the custody case as well.

Varga says that in her case, Elkhart County's family court system is broken.

"I would invite anyone into my home. I don't do drugs, I don't drink. I'm a good mother," Varga said. "I question motives. Why would these people do this?"

Parental rights groups claim injustices are piling up in courtrooms across the United States, leaving scarred relationships between parents and emotionally distraught children, and financial ruin.

Hoping to spur reform, dozens of civil rights groups today are expected to file federal lawsuits against government officials in at least 47 states.

The lawsuits -- filed on behalf of 25 million noncustodial parents -- demand that federal courts allow "fit parents" a chance to have equal custody of their children restored. Some of the lawsuits contain accusations of mismanagement in the courts, disparate treatment, and fraudulent attainment of funding for programs.

Torm Howse, president of the Indiana Civil Rights Council, which is coordinating the effort, said he also wants the U.S. Justice Department to investigate any patterns of civil rights infractions. He plans to seek class-action status for the case.

"The situation is way out of hand everywhere," he said. "It's bad for the children, bad for the parents and bad for society."

'Horror stories all over the place'

Six years ago, Howse faced his own custody battle with three children.

The experience left him so angry that he spent 3 1/2 years planning the wave of lawsuits.

"Fathers tend to get less of a deal. Things started happening to me, and I said, 'The law can't be that way,' " said Howse, who lives in Indianapolis. "I fired my worthless attorney and did things on my own.

"The court could not explain why I was made a second-class citizen in regards to my children. I learned this phenomenon was widespread, and with various attempts to correct that situation, I started realizing there were horror stories all over the place."

There are 311,000 plaintiffs in the Indiana lawsuit. Howse said the number is based on the amount of open child-support cases in the state.

Howse pointed to studies and remarks by prominent researchers, lawyers and judges that support his claims.

A study by the American Psychological Association that Howse described as "exhaustive" said children in joint custody usually have fewer behavior and emotional problems, higher self-esteem and do better in school.

He also noted a 1990 study by the U.S. Justice Department that confirmed that more than 350,000 children a year were abducted by a family member -- most often a parent involved in a custody dispute. Sole-custody arrangements can promote child abuse, he said, because one parent is not there to police the other's parenting decisions.

The lawsuits also complain of fraud and abuse in state family programs and bloated bureaucracies that cost taxpayers too much.

Howse said it's time for "costly government to get out of the lives of most parents and children.

"It costs a lot of money to Band-Aid all problems because of children being fatherless or motherless," he said. "It's the right of every fit parent of this country to have an equal opportunity with their children. We want widespread system reform."

The Indiana attorney general's office declined to comment Thursday afternoon about the pending lawsuit, although spokeswoman Sarah Rittnan said the agency would likely be the one defending the state.

'I'm just sad'

Originally, Varga and her husband had shared custody of their daughter.

The mother said things began to fall apart in August 2003 when she and her husband had a vocal fight in front of their daughter outside an Elkhart elementary school. The argument was over which school the girl would go to and where she would attend day care, Varga said.

The matter was ultimately decided by the courts.

Varga was petitioned into Elkhart County court on Sept. 5, 2003, by a court-appointed guardian, who recommended that Varga's husband be granted sole physical and legal custody of their daughter.

Varga would only be able to see her daughter once a week, for 1 1/2 hours.

In a report, the guardian said the counselor for Varga's daughter was concerned because the mother "ceased cooperating with the therapist," and the father was taking the girl to weekly meetings.

The counselor said the girl was being stressed by changing homes every few days, and she appeared to "deteriorate psychologically." She also cited "serious concerns" about Varga's parenting abilities and her "live-in boyfriend and others at the home."

There was also discussion in court of a faint mark or bruise on the girl's arm.

Two weeks later, the court guardian insisted in court that the girl was doing poorly. "I just -- I'm not sure what is going on at (the) mother's house, but this child is in an awfully bad psychological condition," said the guardian.

But a Child Abuse Prevention Services (CAPS) supervisor's report during visitation on Oct. 14, 2003, seems to paint a different picture. The woman wrote that Varga and her daughter interacted well together.

"Mom brought her two small pumpkins for them to decorate. She brought markers to draw on them. They each decorated one for the other to take home," the report read.

"They sat at the table and colored and worked on other craft ideas. Mom brought pictures for Emily to take home with her. Mom lets Emily know that she loves and misses her."

With 10 minutes left in their visit, Varga asked her daughter if she was OK.

"Yeah," the girl said.

"You just got kinda quiet."

"I'm just sad," the girl said.

"They gave each other hugs and kisses and told each other they loved each other," the supervisor said.

Husband's attorney defends court's action

Max Walker Jr., who represents Varga's husband, said he still feels the present custody situation is fair.

"He believed and presented evidence that he's been the primary parent for the child, literally from birth," said Walker, who was a law partner with Shewmaker for more than 20 years and a co-worker with Shewmaker in the Elkhart County prosecutor's office.

Walker said the girl was given more unsupervised visitation with her mother, but the girl was having psychological problems. He acknowledged the CAPS reports contained very little negative information.

"In an adversarial system like this, it's going to be contentious, even if you have two good parents," he said. "It's hard to patch things up and be pals. The level of suspicion is so enormous, and the lack of trust."

Varga tried in August to have her case heard in U.S. District Court, but the court sent it back to Elkhart County.

A status hearing is scheduled for today.

"I think she's entitled to her day in court. I don't think she's had that yet," said Varga's former attorney, Thomas Leatherman, who called the CAPS reports on his client "some of the best" he'd seen in 30 years as a lawyer. "The system is not working to her benefit."