FALSE ALLEGATIONS OF CHILD ABUSE

Disproving false allegations of child abuse is one of the most difficult issues to overcome. Disproving becomes the method of how to beat child abuse allegations. This is why it is critical to act Fast and Strategically. If nothing else, Remember This Maxim: The more time that passes between the allegation and your effort to disprove it, the harder it gets.

False Allegations of Physical Abuse

If you are facing false allegations of physical abuse of your child there are a number of ways to handle this.

One way is to bring the child to their pediatrician for a general exam. You can even say that you're facing false allegations of child abuse. This is a Clean Bill of Health approach. Better: Bring another responsible adult with you (someone who could submit a signed affidavit). Get a letter from the pediatrician stating something as simple as, “Mr./Mrs. Smith brought Susie for a check-up today. I am aware there have been allegations of child abuse. She has no injury or illness consistent with physical abuse.”

Take photos of the child which are dated and e-mail them to your attorney (this dates them too)

False Allegations of Sexual Abuse

These are absolutely the worst false allegations of child abuse to confront because it takes an enormous amount of effort and investigation to “make sure” nothing happened.

These allegations also tend to bring in multiple agencies including law enforcement, social services, a forensic interview team from a hospital or mental health agency, and sometimes the Emergency Room. I strongly recommend hiring a forensic psychologist to help you address these false allegations. This story tells you why:

Several years ago I was hired by a young man who was separated from his girlfriend. They had a child together who was 2 at the time. His girlfriend made allegations of sexual abuse because of some statements the child made about genitals and such. The father was legally cleared criminally, but was not by social services. By the time he came to me he had ZERO contact with his son in over a year. Six months later, we were able to reverse the social services findings through an appeals hearing, but then had to go to family court. The Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) took the testimony of the child’s therapist over mine and submitted a report to the Judge contradicting my testimony and findings. [after an exhaustive investigation I was sure the father had done nothing]. To this day the father still has no contact with his now 4 year old son. Even worse, contact remains deadlocked with a restraining order enforced by the Family Law Judge.

The moral to the story: Time Matters. With more time and having gotten involved earlier in the game, the social services investigation could have easily been defeated, the false allegations of abuse could have been defeated, and the outcome would have been much different. With all the time that went by, everyone (inappropriately) made up their minds that the father was an abuser. I also think the Judge and the GAL were not well informed on these issues, and definitely not open to even supervised visitation. There is no logical reason for this, but it shows how matters can just get very bad when they’re allowed to run their course.

What To Do/ What May Occur:

Speak to your attorney!

The next step involves preparing for interviews by all of the investigating parties.Have the child evaluated by a neutral forensic psychologist who specializes in assessing sexual abuse allegations. Your attorney will probably have to request this formally in court.

You may need to voluntarily submit to a psycho-sexual evaluation to determine any proclivity towards sexual abuse.

If nothing really happened, then the investigation should end here.

What Not To Do:

Don’t submit to a polygraph test; It has been shown to be scientifically unreliable.

Don’t submit to a plethysmograph test: Most courts have considered it to be scientifically unreliable.

Don’t joke around, be sarcastic, or make ridiculous statements because you’re mad. They could be used against one way or another.

Don’t violate any temporary restraining orders or visitation orders.

False Allegations of Domestic Violence

Documentation & Witnesses are very important for these types of false allegations. You need to keep records of your location, whom you were with, etc. which can sometimes easily show you were not with your ex-spouse, and did not harm her/him. Credit card receipts sometimes come in very hand here.

Under this umbrella also falls “emotional abuse”. This is one of the hardest "false" allegations to prove because it leaves no visible mark. However, if your spouse is in counseling and has been reporting this type of domestic violence over the course of several months or longer, that therapist could be deposed and serve as a witness against you. Still that doesn’t mean it happened, but something to consider.

Another form of tracking of emotional abuse in this day and age comes from e-mail. If slews of e-mails have been written using curse words, threats, etc. this is pretty solid data that can be used against you. On the other hand, if you have shown patience, compromise, and attempts to be cordial in communication this shows otherwise.

Expecting False Allegations Of Any Kind

Sometimes the best offense is….A strong DEFENSE. If you’re expecting a false allegation of child abuse, it may be helpful to voice your concern especially to a professional from the court involved with your case, a child protection agency, or with the local police, etc. For example, if you have been accused of drinking and social services has investigated you, and you think the next false allegation is going to be worse, call the investigator on your case, and let them know more about your situation, and the type of retaliation you are expecting because of the first false allegation and the possible second. If that call does come, they will be have forewarned, and you will appear more credible.