What Can I Charge My Ex For A False Sex Abuse Charge?

[NJDad]

Hi Everyone,

I live in Camden County, NJ and my Ex and the children live in Burlington County, NJ.

Since our separation, my ex filed about 10 CPS charges against me. Four before our divorce (June '03) and about six more afterwards. All have been dropped except for a new one last month and the one described in the next paragraph.

In November, I was contacted by my county's prosecutor regarding charges of inappropriate sexual contact with my now 5 year old daughter - dating back to a claim filed in early September with CPS. This resulted in a mini-GYN exam on my daughter at a sex trauma center using what I think is called an endoscope. The county prosecutor may let Family Court rule on the sex charge, since it appears that the Ex is an "Angry Spouse".

My divorce/custody attorney and I recently have reviewed the CPS records and found that my Ex lied several times to CPS, the county prosecutor, her own attorney and in her Reply Certification to my Motion for Custody (which I filed this January). Her attorney even contradicted events that my Ex told him in the Judge's chamers the other week.

I want these charges to stop for my kids sake (they are forced to lie but later recant their statements) and mine. My Ex is slandering me to all of the doctors and school officials and to her friends in the neighborhood. My civil attorney wants me to contact a criminal attorney to see what can be done to stop it. My criminal attorney said that I perhaps could file a "filing a false report" charge. This sounds rather weak since, if I were convicted of her false claim, I would have to serve jail time and then be a Megan's Law Tier 1 / 2 Offender for the rest of my life!!

What charges, both civil and criminal, could be levied against my Ex for subjecting our family to this?


Thanks for any and all help,

W

[Peanutsdad]

Essentially, your attorneys are correct. Sux big time, but yes, you could face horrible consequences as a result of her lying,, BUT,, about the worst they do to her,, is a slap on the wrist. Filing a false report is about all she can get.


You MAY be able to file a civil suit,, but even with that,, all you get is a monetary award that is probably not collectable.

[whippertizzy]

When my sister and her husband were going through their divorce "someone" kept calling DCFS. After the third time where they determined the charges were false, they filed harrassment charges against the person who was making the charges. I live in Illinois, so I am not sure if thats how it works in every state.

[jilly]

Posted on Wed, Mar. 03, 2004

Push on to criminalize false child abuse reports

Legislator says bad tips waste time investigators need for real cases

ERIC FRAZIER

Staff Writer


RALEIGH - Some N.C. lawmakers, frustrated by what they believe to be large numbers of false child abuse and neglect reports, are pushing for a new state law that would make such behavior a crime.

Others, meanwhile, suggest the state must get more people to comply with a law already on the books requiring anyone with reason to suspect a child is being abused or neglected to report it to social workers.

Lawmakers on an N.C. House panel trying to draft child welfare reform bills say they worry that false reports are diverting harried social workers from real cases of abuse and neglect. Such false reports are becoming especially common in child custody battles, said Rep. Jeffrey Barnhart, R-Cabarrus.

He noted that North Carolina is one of only a handful of states with no legal penalty for those who fail to make required child abuse or neglect reports or who deliberately make false reports.

"It's a big issue, it really is," Barnhart said Tuesday. "People are trying to better their position in custody cases, or (using DSS) for other malicious purposes."

N.C. child welfare social workers investigated reports involving more than 107,000 children last budget year; officials substantiated reports involving more than 30,000 of those children.

Barnhart didn't have specific numbers on how widespread the false reporting problem might be, but he cited a federal study that shows at least 31 other states have laws criminalizing false reporting or requiring mandatory reporting by those who suspect a child has been mistreated.

The state doesn't keep track of false reports, said Jo Ann Lamm, the top child welfare official with the N.C. Division of Social Services. She added that investigating false reports "can be time-consuming, but we don't believe (false reporting) is a huge problem."

Lamm said DSS has been moving to a new approach to handling child maltreatment reports, one that allows social workers to work more collaboratively with families and close cases more quickly when children aren't in danger.

She said DSS hasn't found false reporting to be as big a problem as underreporting -- people who suspect child abuse or neglect and fail to call their county DSS office.

North Carolina has a law requiring any person who suspects a child is being abused or neglected to report it to DSS. But the Observer, in a special report published last year, analyzed five years' worth of DSS case reviews and found instances in which even police officers and doctors failed to report such suspicions.

Rep. Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, co-chair of the House panel looking into the child protection system, said the N.C. mandatory reporting law doesn't have any penalties attached. He said such penalties perhaps could be inserted into the state's juvenile code or the criminal statutes.

South Carolina's laws make failure to report a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding $500 and/or prison for no more than six months. In South Carolina, filing a false report is a misdemeanor that can bring a fine not exceeding $5,000 and imprisonment of up to 90 days.

Some have expressed fear that a new false reporting law would make people reluctant to volunteer their suspicions to DSS; others fear toughening the mandatory reporting law would allow authorities to coerce people into giving information.

Rep. Jennifer Weiss, a Wake County Democrat who co-chairs the N.C. House child abuse panel, said she believes mandatory reporting and false reporting rules must be considered together. If laws regarding one will be altered, she said, the other would likely need to be adjusted as well.

Barnhart said lawmakers must seek a balanced approach.

Abuse must be reported, he said, "but we don't want to be like the Gestapo out in the community saying, `Hey, you knew something about a child abuse situation and didn't report it so you're going to jail.' We don't need that."

[NJDad]

Thanks Everyone who replied.

I'm going to heed everyone's advice.

jlilly, you've got me on a roll. I checked with a State Senator. They are drafting legislation regarding CPS laws. They want to incorporate this penalty in the bill. They have asked me to compile the laws in at least 5 states showing penalties for false accusers. I have one week to do this.

If i can do this, they have precident to their proposal. Especially if the states claim that these false accusor laws work.

W.

[jilly]

Glad that the article was of some help to you. Good luck and keep us posted on how this progresses!

Jilly