MP Mum Wins Right to Speak Publicly about Horrific Case
"Huge Emotional & Financial Toll" Inflicted by Family Court
This is a positive step forward in a Family Court battle that has taken a huge emotional and financial toll on my family.
Kate Griffiths, MP
A British journalist won the legal right to publish a mother’s story involving rape, coercive control and child abuse. Family Court Judge Elizabeth Williscroft had ordered the case remain secret, but an appellate court overturned her ruling last week.
The journalist, Louise Tickle, published her story immediately.
The mother in this case, MP (Member of Parliament) Kate Griffiths, decided to waive the anonymity accorded her as a sex crimes victim in order to raise awareness about the high rate of domestic violence in custody cases, and the epidemic of judges minimizing or ignoring it and giving custody to the abusive fathers.
Kate and her attorney, Charlotte Proudman, celebrated their victory together.
A RARE CASE
Kate’s is a rare case, however, since she was, in the end, able to maintain custody (residency) and protect her child through supervised visitation. Her ex was actually found to have serially raped her and subjected her to coercive control. It is exceedingly rare for Family Court judges to hold men accountable like that, especially white men of status.
These proper judicial findings likely occurred only because Kate’s ex had already been publicly exposed and disgraced for sex crimes perpetrated OUTSIDE the family and had subsequently resigned as MP. Judge Williscroft didn’t have much choice due to the widespread negative publicity surrounding the father and his crimes.
However, Judge Williscroft gave one for the old boy team: she ordered Kate to pay half the cost of her rapist’s supervised visits. Kate has appealed this order and the decision is pending.
THAT’S ALL WELL AND GOOD, BUT…
It is great that Kate and the press have been allowed to speak publicly, bringing attention to the plight of abused women and children in Family Court. That is because the father was a public figure so the public had a right to know, so it will not help other mothers who would like to go public.
More importantly, the focus being on violence and keeping cases secret diverts and distracts from the true cause of the Family Court Crisis. Even in cases where the record is public and no abuse is involved, women still unjustly lose custody and are put through hell every day in Family Courts around the world.
That’s because the core issue in the Custody Crisis is not Abuse, but Power—the Power men are given by judges to take and abuse children…and the Power women are denied to maintain custody and protect their children.
Unless and until women band together to demand a new system in which judges do not have the power to entitle and empower men, the crisis of women losing custody will persist.
Join The Women’s Coalition where we are uniting to take back our power to keep and protect our children.
MSM
Former Conservative MP raped his wife, court finds
ACTIVISTS
Contact MP Kate Griffiths and let her know the truth about scourge against women in Family Court and that an entirely new system is needed.
You can share this post with her and link to The Women’s Coalition website where there is more information about the Custody Crisis and our proposal for a new system.
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Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.
Frederick Douglass
What is the solution? Remove those judges or retrain-re-educate them? I do feel as though if they can't see clearly how horrific their actions are that maybe we just need to hire and Vet different Judges...Sooner than later Please.