Motion to Ammend...HELPPPPP!!!

[stepmom2b]

     We were given custody of my step children 11/02.  Visitation with mother is as follows:
     sring break even # years, one month in the summer (june21-July21), 1 week christmas with mother haveing children christmas day in odd 3 years, all contact between children and *****(mothers husband) to be supervised by an adult other than the mother and additional visitation as mutually agreed.
 
    Mother files motion to ammend and is requesting the following:Unsupervised visits with *****(mother's husband), 1 weekend per month, ALL school breaks, 6 weeks in summer and additional mutually agreed visits, based on the following reasons:
     Thereapy has been completed, therapist reccomends discontinue unsupervised visits.  Current order shows additional visits as mutually agreed, custodial parent has refused 6 differnt requests for other visits.

    WE have NEVER refused an additional visit as she has never asked for any.  We refused her fall break visit last year because she bought her husband with her to pick the children up, police were called.  She missed last christmas, calling at 9pm the night before she was to pick them up saying she had the flu and wasn't able to get them for visit.

      At Spring break visit this past April, we offered 3 additional days, she again called the night before she was suppose to come and didn't come till 3 days later, on Monday.  She called us on Wednesday and told us to come get them, that my sd was sick.  Mother lives a good 10 hour drive one way away from us.
    Motion to Ammend is in VA.

1. how do we prepare for this hearing.
2. any documentation we need to bring?
3.  will they change visitation so soon after this was agreed on (nov. 26 2002) during custody hearing?

[socrateaser]

>1. how do we prepare for this hearing.

Unless your existing order provides for later modification without making an initial showing of changed circumstances, then your response is that no substantial change in circumstances has taken place, therefore the court cannot modify custody.

The argument is, that unless the therapist is available at the hearing to state, that in his/her expert opinion, the mother no longer requires supervision during visitation, then the therapist's report is objectionable as hearsay, and without the therapist's report or testimony, there is no showing of changed circumstances, and therefore the mother's motion must be denied.

>2. any documentation we need to bring?

Don't know. Need to read the specific allegations in the motion.

>3.  will they change visitation so soon after this was agreed
>on (nov. 26 2002) during custody hearing?

See #2, above.

[stepmom2b]

   All this motion states as to reasons for ammending is the following...."Therapy has been completed by ***** (mother's husband).  Therapist reccomends discontinuing supervised visits.  Current order states all other mutually agreed visits.  Custodial parent has refused 6 differnet requests for visits."

   BM filed this herself, no attorneys involved as of yet.

   Nothing has EVER been mentioned about her husband taking therapy.  SHE was supposed to.  BD ahs NEVER refused any additional times or visits.
    Facts are that BM has not taken the visits twice and once hid her husband here, telling us she was by himself.  We found him sitting outside, waiting for her and the children at the hotel.  We called the police, they told BD he DID NOT have to allow the visit since she was breaking the custody order by trying to allow the children contact with her husband.  There is a police report.
   Her husband has SEVERAL substantiated abuse allegations.

   >1. will they change visitation so soon after this was agreed
>on (nov. 26 2002) during custody hearing?
   
    2.  Should we get a copy of the police report?

[socrateaser]

If that's all that the motion states, then I my response is, that the allegations that the mother has completed therapy, in and of itself, does not contain sufficient grounds to rise to the level of a material change in circumstances affecting the child's best interests, and therefore the motion should be denied.

In addition, you should object at the hearing to the introduction of the therapist's report as heresay, and without sufficient foundation, unless the therapist appears to testify to the report's contents -- assuming that the other parent has even submitted a report -- if not, then her attempt to introduce her statements as to the contents of the report are multiple hearsay, and the court should disallow them, after which there will be no evidence to support the motion, which should be denied.