Parental Rights and Laws

Dear Citizens Of GA:   

     In my opinion GA family laws are unethical somewhat, unfair, and to lightly taken. Courts and Judges of the state to lightly make decision on a child's welfare without the searching of parent's current conditions. A judges decisions on custody, child support, and visitation is an unbalanced decision. Take this into consideration for instance: if the parent paying child support gets to far behind, the parent can be incarcerated until caught up. So another words you sit in jail until someone else pays your support for you or lends you the money. That is stupid. If your in jail, you have no income, how ignorant is that? If the custodian does not give the other parent court ordered visitation, the custodian can be held in contempt. That's like slapping on the wrist saying don't do that, also the contempt has to be pushed by the other parent. Failure to pay support is automatically taken care of by the state. Why can't the state enforce the visitation without the other parent having to file contempt charges. How is this fair and just? If i go to get my children and the custodian doesn't release them to me, then in my opinion, law enforcement should force the custodian to release them. They enforce the child support. A court order is a court order. It should have the same consequences. Child support and visitation should be decided all at the same time. The custodian talks to the state for support, they take care of it. The other parent ask for visitation, that person has to pay a lawyer and court cost. How is that is that equally fair, it's not. If the state can decide on money, they can decide on visitation. Sounds like a money gimmick to me.

     Another issue I see is the fact that the custodian has the right to claim the children as dependents. In my opinion that should be split from year to year. The other can't claim child support on his/her taxes. Why should the custodian get child support and the right to a tax claim. If both parties is taking care of the children, it should alternate or be split.

     I think that children's fate should be decided the day they are born, that both parents should have equal rights unless proven otherwise, equal tax claims, equal parental time, and everything essential to a child's life should be split. Decided and enforced by the state. This would prevent the misuse of the courts time and law enforcement. They have better things to tend to so why not make the judgement at birth save everyone some time and possible heart ache.

     Let me give you a little insight of why I think this way. I was never married to my children's mother but legitimization was taken care of at the hospital. I am the biological father of my twins. She picked up one day and left me. She took our children and ran. I didn't get to see them for a while. She files for child support, state enforces. Not that I mind taken care of my children, I want to. Mind you, I am not able to see my kids. I have to go pay a lawyer to fill for visitation, $1500 retainer which was almost impossible because I'm paying child support, no-one takes this into consideration. I file and get my visitation. I'm awarded 1 hour out of every week and every other weekend. How is that remotely fair. Okay I'm paying my child support as I should I have yet to receive my 1 hour during the weeks and she has keep them from me on the weekends sometimes just to be mean, including I didn't get them for Christmas I broke down and cried on that day. I talk to law enforcement and they tell me there is nothing they can do. I have to file a contempt order which will cost me. She might spend a night in jail. If I don't pay child support it don't cost her anything and I would be automatically incarcerated. Now why is it that I have to sit back and be trampled upon, while she can do whatever she wants. That is unjust to me. I am father that loves my children dearly but these laws need to reconditioned because they lean to the custodian instead of equality. About the taxes, I can't claim child support on my taxes, but yet every year she can claim the children and get 8,000 dollars plus my child support. Where's the equality in this. In my opinion someone needs to do something. This is the reasoning behind dead beat parents. I know not every custodian is like this, and I'm proud if you are one of those type, but if your like the one described above shame on you. Hopefully something will be done about it. Equality is all I want nothing more. I shouldn't have to sit back and suffer because of unjust and unequal family laws. Something needs to be done to balance this situation.

                                                                                                       God Bless You,                                                                                                                    A loving father,

                                                                                                       Richard Vittitow