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lovehadley

Court today..went well, all things considered

lovehadley
14 years ago

DH and I are pleased for the most part.

Ok, so right off the bat I got my full order of protection because BM did not contest it. It *does* say in there that she can pick SS up at our house CURBSIDE and that she is not allowed to enter the home, or even the driveway. We don't EVER do pickups/dropoffs at our house, anyway, so this is more of an emergency-type situation.

It also says that she is allowed to attend all events for SS. (This was expected because obviously the courts are not going to tell her she can't go to his school events, games, etc. but they are also not going to tell me I can't either. SO she will be around me at school functions.) But other than that--she can't call me, can't email me, can't show up at our house, etc. ALL GOOD. And it's for a full year.

So--on to the grittier issue, SS and his protective order. Obviously, DH did not get that, but we knew that. It was a FIGHT this morning, though. BM has a different (better!) attorney than she used for the school district issue. This lady was on the ball, I have to say.

DH's attorneys started out saying we want BM to undergo an evaluation at a treatment center and complete whatever program is recommended. BM said NO WAY. Wow, we weren't really expecting that. Then DH's attorneys said "fine, we want you to put in writing that you will not consume alcohol for 10 hrs prior to having your son and not at all when he is with you."

Again, BM and her attorney said NO WAY.

So then--DH's attorneys said "we are requesting a hearing to determine if an alcohol evaluation is necessary."

At this point, we were frustrated, thinking a hearing was going to be scheduled and the case was going to be delayed once again.

So then the attorneys all got together, with the GAL, and duked it out. DH and I were sitting down the hall and we caught snippets of the conversation here and there. Basically, the GAL was saying "look, what is the harm in BM undergoing the evaluation?' Well, BM and her attorney were just 100% adamant that she would NOT undergo an evaluation.

Finally, it went before the judge and the judge COURT ORDERED the evaluation! WOOHOO. BM and her attorney were taking the stance that this was an isolated incident, that BM was just out partying and got too carried away. Our attorney pointed out that this was at 3 pm on a MONDAY when BM was SUPPOSED to have custody of her son, and that these factors indicate there IS a problem.

Thankfully, the judge AGREED and BM was ordered to undergo the evaluation at a treatment center the courts typically use. HERE is the kicker--DH has to pay for it upfront. IF further treatment is deemed necessary, THEN BM will be ordered to reimburse him for the costs.

So--continued until early July.

All things considered--we are pleased with how it went.

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