October 21, 2008 CT Supreme Court Admits Parenting Cl***** Don't Help
Children
Parents don't have to use anything in the cl*****.
Staff Writer Connecticut DCF Watch Hartford, CT
Even though the Supreme Court ruled that the state can impose
parenting cl***** in cases of divorce without probable cause or
evidence that the child is impacted in anyway. The Court also had to
admit in the same breath after parents waste their time and money for
paying and attending parenting cl***** the parents can toss everything
in the garbage that was forced down their throats. Parents DO NOT
have to use any of the information. Parents can walk out of the class
and never use any of the information. The State of Connecticut or the
courts can not force parents to use ANY information that is given
them. Parents who are forced to attend cl***** who have already
decided to never to use any of it is a waste of time and money.
Parenting cl***** [ have NEVER helped ] a child and there is no
evidence to show [ otherwise ]. These cl***** are based on educated
guess at best. Every child is different and the parent knows the
child and is fully capable of educating their own children. Stop
wasting parents time and money. Judges already have the authority to
order parenting cl***** or anger management cl***** in a case by case
basis and has judicial review. In divorce cases, parenting cl*****
are part of an automatic court order the minute you file for divorce
with NO judicial review. The intent of the cl***** were to help
children through an alleged difficult time. This state statute
forcing parenting cl***** is not sup****ted that parents and children
need or want help. Nor did the state show that parents are incapable
of handling divorce or any other stressful time in the family like a
death of a parent. The state presumes that ALL parents are unfit and
incompetent contrary to Troxel v. Granville. In the U.S. Supreme Court
opinion in Troxel v. Granville, parents are presumed to be fit,
competent and fully capable of taking care of their children. The
state must show the requisite proof of parental unfitness in order for
states or judges to have jurisdiction. Compelling state interest is
not a legal way to cir***vent due process. Below is the AP story by
Stephanie Reitz, Associated Press Writer.
By STEPHANIE REITZ, Associated Press Writer
Posted on Oct 20, 12:22 PM EDT
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- A state law requiring Connecticut couples to
take parenting education courses as a condition of their divorce cases
is constitutional and protects children's interests, the state Supreme
Court ruled Monday.
The high court, in a unanimous ruling, rejected an appeal by Bristol
resident Thomas Dutkiewicz stemming from his 2006 divorce.
Dutkiewicz said forcing parents to attend the cl***** is akin to
convicting a person without a trial, since the law does not consider
whether a person already is a good parent.
He also said it infringes on constitutional guarantees of freedom of
choice in family matters and violates parents' right to choose what is
best for their children.
The Supreme Court upheld a trial court's decision that the cl*****
achieve "a compelling state interest by aiming to maintain familial
harmony through a difficult transition."
Justices also concluded the cl***** do not represent any "intrusion on
the parent's decision-making authority" since parents can embrace or
ignore the lessons.
State law requires divorcing parents to sign up for the $125 cl*****
if they have children under 18. The six-hour programs are run by
family service agencies, counseling programs and other court-approved
entities statewide.
They are required for all parties involved in divorces, dissolving
civil unions, annulments, legal separations and child custody or
visitation cases.
Dutkiewicz, a truck driver, filed his appeal after he and his ex-wife
were ordered to attend the cl***** as part of their 2006 divorce.
Attendance can be waived if both spouses and a judge agree, as
occurred in the Dutkiewicz divorce.
However, he appealed the case to challenge the state law, which he
called similar to "getting a sentence without a trial."
"Like anger management (cl*****), there should be some evidence or
proof that the class would even be needed," he said Monday. "I'm
disappointed, because basically they're saying they can impose
anything without any judicial review."
Dutkiewicz also is president of Connecticut DCF Watch, an organization
he started in 2003 with other parents to monitor state and national
child welfare services.
He said Monday that he questions why the law on parenting education
cl***** is so automatic and inflexible.
For example, he said, it does not consider cases in which infant
children would be unaware of a divorce; or when a parent can prove
they already have the communication skills to help their child through
the transition.
"I'm a cancer survivor. I didn't need the state to tell me how to
address that with my children, so why this?" Dutkiewicz said.
The state Judicial Branch brochure given to the participants says the
cl***** "include information about children's developmental stages,
helping children adult to parent separation."
They also focus on "cooperative parenting, conflict management and
dispute resolution techniques, guidelines for visitation and parent
access, and stress reduction for children."
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