Legal Question in Family Law in Washington
My husband has an 8 year old son. His exwife has full custody, and my husband legally has only supervised visits. However we have him on our own every other Sunday, and before we were married he had him every weekend. He is a fit parent and she knows this, which is why she allows him to have him alot on his own. The problem is because of how it is set up legally, my husband cannot even have authority over his son when he has him, because all he has to do is tell his mom something he doesn't like such as activities we've planned, or the times he prefers to come and and be taken back, and she will accomodate all of his preferences and force us to also. This is posing HUGE problems. My husband totally deserves some court mandated visits which are his own without having his son making all the important decisions. The reason the parenting plan was set up that way in the beginning was because at the end of their marriage, my husband decided to commit suicide by cop because he distraught the marriage was ending. The police counted it as assault towards the police, shot him 4 times, and gave him a class C felony. He has never been involved in domestic violence and his son was not present at this event. This was 4 years ago and he is a good dad as he always was, is happily remarried with another infant son. We just want his weekends to be court mandated so she cannot keep controlling every little thing we do and don't do with her son. It is always a good environment for him, whether or not it is his favorite activity of the day. We need help because we are low income, and do not know where to turn. He kept a log for several years now recording the fact that she willingly trusts, and lets my husband take his son for regular unsupervised visits. Can you help with the answer????
1 Answer from Attorneys
Unfortunately, your husband's case is not going to be a simple case. The less simple, the more expensive. Given your income limits, I may be able to help you, if you think you can afford a payment plan. Otherwise, I may be able to refer you to an organization that does free or low cost legal services. It is never the same as having your own attorney, but it is far better than going it alone, especially given the restrictions on your husband's rights.
That said, what is key here is that four years have gone by and apparently, the mother has allowed your husband to see his child quite regularly for this period of time. I am assuming that the current parenting plan has restrictions that preclude all visitation based on RCW 26.09.191, which limits or restricts visitation based upon various issues, such as being suicidal.
Perhaps what is most needed now is a psychological assessment of your husband to demonstrate that he is no longer suicidal and therefore not a danger to himself or others. Having a new son and wife also goes a long way to demonstrate the drastic improvements in his mental health since the parenting plan was entered four years ago.
With that assessment, you will go from an impossible task to a difficult task. By this, I mean that you now have a shot at getting court ordered time.
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