NCJ Number
79476
Date Published
1981
Length
265 pages
Annotation
The extent of child stealing (one parent kidnapping his/her children from the other parent), the legal framework bearing upon child stealing, what victimized parents may do to find and retrieve their children, and how to deal with the psychological damage suffered by such children are discussed.
Abstract
While reasonably accurate data on child stealing do not exist, some knowledgeable sources estimate 400,000 incidents occur annually. In cases where there is no custody order, the victimized parent has no ground for legal complaint. Still-married parents have every right to take their children wherever and whenever they please. When a custody order is violated in child stealing, about 30 States, including California and Illinois, treat child stealing as a felony; this means that an abductor can be arrested in another State and returned to the State where the abduction occurred. Felonies carry a jail term of at least a year. Other States, however, like New York and Pennsylvania, treat child stealing as a misdemeanor, an offense carrying up to 1 year's penalty. A misdemeanor charge does not provide for arrest and extradition from a State other than that State in which the abduction occurred. Under the Federal Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, States are required to honor a custody order from another State. Still, child stealing does not violate any Federal law. Given the limitations of legal recourse for parent victims of child stealing, this book offers extensive advice on how parents should conduct their own search for their children. This includes discussions on the use of private investigators and 'custody vigilantes,' how to locate children on one's own, how to recover them once they have been found, and how to prevent a second abduction. Advice is also given on how to cope with the damaging psychological impact of abduction on the children. The material presented is based on hundreds of interviews with parents of stolen children, lawyers, psychologists, private detectives, police, and the children themselves. A survey of State laws bearing upon child stealing is appended.