Legislative Action

One of the greatest injustices in the recent North Carolina case of Venessa Mills - and in any divorce case - is the abuse of "Temporary Orders."

Currently, "Temporary Orders" are legal black holes that allow judges to do whatever they choose without the light of legislation or common sense to guide them.

I am writing to ask that you introduce immediate legislation to enact the following directions and limitations on Temporary Orders:

• They should preserve the status quo as much as possible, not seek to create a new one.
• They should not impose any significant change on anyone involved, especially children, if it can be reasonably avoided.
• They should have a specific expiration date, to avoid being taken advantage of by legal loopholes and stall tactics.
• If requested, a basic appeal process should be allowed and considered immediately by a different judge.

Please take action now in order to correct the injustices that are being perpetrated under the name of "Temporary Orders" and inflicting turmoil and distress on hundreds, if not thousands, of people.

You can find out more about Venessa Mills' case by visiting www.HSinjustice.com.

Sincerely,

Print this out and mail or fax it to all your State representatives. E-mail a link to this post to everyone you know, whether they home-school or not. This issue is bigger than homeschooling. Don't let one more person suffer because nobody stood up and demanded that the law protect them.

Most people assume that Temporary Orders don't mean much, that they can be easily changed or appealed, or that they somehow expire on their own. Don't you believe it. "Temporary Orders" are not really temporary.

From one attorney's website: "Temporary orders create the status quo and set precedent for future issues." [Emphasis added.]

Judges always look at whatever was agreed or imposed in the Temporary Orders and use that as a basis for the Final Order - in some cases, the Final Order turns out to be almost exactly the same as the Temporary Order.

For this reason, right at the beginning of a divorce, when everyone involved is at their most vulnerable, there is a "feeding frenzy" as the attorneys try to push, pull, block, and dodge to get a favorable Temporary Order. While no doubt there are some attorneys who play fair, too many approach these matters like sport and try every trick in the book to win this important advantage. But this is not a game - this is about real people whose lives and beliefs are at stake.

In Venessa Mills' case, she has been subjected to gossip and slander against her religious beliefs, an adulterous husband refusing to leave the family home, and being forced to use powdered milk to feed her children - all of which the judge was happy to go along with.

At a time when the Court is being asked to step into a difficult situation to create safety and stability, the exact opposite is what happens.

In his "temporary" Order, Judge Ned Mangum decided to:

• Stop three "thriving" children from being home-schooled, and place them in public school.
• Initiate a 50/50 visitation schedule that results in the maximum disruption to the children's lives.
• Place Venessa Mills in a doomed financial situation, due to ridiculously inadequate support from her husband and a crazy custody/schooling schedule that makes it almost impossible for her to get a job.
• Require a mental health evaluation for Venessa Mills, and a custody evaluation for the family, in the very midst of all the upheaval and turmoil he had just created.

Even legal websites dealing with divorce find this kind of ruling to be highly unusual. For example, regarding the evaluations, one divorce guide states that "such an appointment at the temporary order stage is usually considered premature, as is the requirement of a social study..." [Emphasis added.]

Is pulling children out of home-school and enrolling them in public school "temporary?" Is imposing a 50/50 visitation schedule "temporary?" Is deliberately creating long-term financial hardship "temporary?" Perhaps Judge Mangum should have spent a little more time looking at a dictionary instead of trying to find ways to cover up his imprudent remarks about homeschooling.

Some people say that the "system" is working, but the actions of this judge demonstrate the fallacy of that belief. The very definition of "Temporary" Orders is being twisted beyond any resemblance to the truth.

What Judge Mangum was allowed to do in this case is an outrage. But it's not just Venessa Mills and her children who suffer. There are many, many other people who have experienced similar injustice and legal torture due to the abuse of Temporary Orders. One lady who contacted us said that, due to all kinds of legal wrangling, she had to endure "Temporary" Orders for over five years.

The law should not allow this to happen.

Action needs to be taken NOW. Our legislators say they can't intercede in a judicial divorce case. Well, they CAN step up and introduce legislation that will reign in the chaos of "Temporary" Orders and provide basic boundaries of common sense and protection for the basic foundations of justice.

Use the template letter at the top of this post. Use this fax service to send it to all our Senators and Representatives. You can make a difference, and NOW is the time to demand a change.