Home Evaluation

[reellis527]

There was a home evaluation ordered in my case, evaluation was done last month in April.  The child has been abused so I have been withholding the child from her father.  I have had a boyfriend for the past four years, we do not reside together but when the evaluation was done I had him present since he has been such a strong force in her life and ruled out of the abuser.  Anyway, home evaluators are supposed to see how both parents interact with the child.  Because of the abuse previously mentioned the child was not present for the father home evaluation.

1) How does the evaluator make a fair observation is she hasn't seen the child with the father?

2) Is this something my lawyer could/should argue?

[socrateaser]

>1) How does the evaluator make a fair observation is she
>hasn't seen the child with the father?

If the child has been proven to be abused by a parent, then it falls to that parent to prove to the court that he/she is rehabilitated and not a danger to the child. Usually, I would recommend that the parent submit to a polygraph, if the other attorney will accept it as evidence of rehabilitation.

Otherwise, the case is probably over before it starts, and the abusive parent will get very little visitation.

>
>2) Is this something my lawyer could/should argue?

I'm not sure who the abusive parent in this scenario is, but if it's you, then your attorney will need to argue something better than that the evaluator couldn't view the parent and child. Question is whether or not the abuse is proven or just speculative. I don't have enough facts to analyze your case.

[reellis527]

The abuse we are talking about has been proven and the case has been turned over to the Attorney General for prosecution (I hope that lets you know what kind of abuse we are talking about).  At the time the evaluation was done everything was still accusatory, and since the evaluation the accusations have been proven...

1) Since the abuse has been proven, after the evaluations were done, does the evaluation still have merit?

A protection order was given to me through Child and Family Services (in MD) and the worker is coming to trail with me next week.  Official reports won't be avialable by the 31st (the trail) and the attorney general doubts prosecution will happen by then either...

2) Is it likely all contact with him will be terminated even though all official reports aren't available or is it more likely he'll have no contact until the next trail (is the judge continues it)?

[socrateaser]

>1) Since the abuse has been proven, after the evaluations were
>done, does the evaluation still have merit?

I think a polygraph would have more merit, but it's inadmissible without both party's consent, so only thing left is some sort of eval.

>2) Is it likely all contact with him will be terminated even
>though all official reports aren't available or is it more
>likely he'll have no contact until the next trail (is the
>judge continues it)?

I think you're mixing up "trail" with "trial." ;-) Anyway, if you have evidence of a conviction on child abuse, that evidence should be determinative. Whether all contact is terminated is a question for the court -- but, I'd wager that nothing more than supervised visitation at the police station will be allowed.