by Katherine van Wormer, MSSW, Ph.D.

Josh Powell, Dangerous Men, Child Visitation and Joint Custody Laws A murder-suicide that could have been prevented Published on February 7, 2012 by Katherine S. van Wormer, MSSW, Ph.D. in Crimes of Violence Psychologytoday.com Almost the same moment that the media reported the horrific murder-suicide of su spected wife killer, Josh Powell, and his two sons, the British government annou nced new legislation to back "shared parenting" and give divorced fathers more r ights. The Josh Powell case, although the custody issue was somewhat different, epitomizes the risks involved in catering to the fathers' rights movement. The key psychological factor relevant to Josh Powell's behavior was the issue of control. From what we learn of his wife's situation before her disappearance tw o years ago, the wife was threatened and thought she could handle the matter her self. The control issue came to the surface again when the children's grandparen ts were given custody of the children. This happened because Powell's father, wh o lived in the home, was arrested for voyeurism and pornography. Then during a s upervised visitation, the younger Powell blew them all up. As the grandparents l ater stated, Powell was controlling with the children, and didn't want anyone el se to have them. Custody and visitation disputes are one of the arenas where victimization of wom en and children is most likely to occur. Control issues come to a head in fights over the children. The situation is rife for psychological abuse as well as vio lence. The fathers' rights movement includes good fathers who want to play more active roles with their children. Most fathers, however, do not contest the mother's ri ght to custody and work out agreements for their time with the kids. But of thos e who do, some are men with histories of wife abuse. And in such cases, the moth er is at high risk of loss of custody now that the states (since the 1980s) have adopted a more or less gender blind system for awarding custody of small childr en to fathers in many of the contested cases. Keep in mind that the man can more often afford to hire a lawyer than the mother . The father more often having a well-paying job, and a new wife or sometimes a mother who can care for the child, may appear to be in a better position to take responsibility than would the ex-wife as a single, working mother. And in domes tic violence situations in which police have made dual arrests, the woman is in serious jeopardy of losing custody of her children. Moreover, battering by the h usband is often overlooked if the wife has flaws such as a drinking problem or a poor work history. It is common for courts to rule that the father's violence toward the mother has no effect on the children. And yet, research shows that batterers who use viole nce against intimate partners also use it against children, and even more so aft er separation. The fact that fathers have obtained much more clout than they ever had previously can be viewed as part against the women's equality movement. The reality abusive men are succeeding in using claims of cess to the children as well as to their ex-wives.

in family and divorce court of an anti-feminist backlash is that a growing number of parental alienation'' to gain greater a

Fathers with a history of battering are twice as likely to seek the sole physica l custody of their children as are nonviolent fathers. Thanks to the Internet, t his movement of divorced men and their second wives for new laws favorable to th e father is sweeping the United States and much of the western world. Under the guise of supporting more active roles for fathers in the lives of their children

, male consciousness-raising groups advocate for legislation to require that div orcing parents have joint custody of their children. Lawyers and judges generall y oppose legislation for forced joint custody as conflict-invoking and harmful t o children torn between fighting parents. Josh Powell , although the only suspect in his wife's disappearance, was allowed to have visitation rights in his own home with his children. The grandparents s aw several red flags and feared that if crossed, their son-in-law would do somet hing drastic. At the least, a man who is thought to have killed his wife should hardly be regarded to be a fit parent for his children. Think of the O.J. Simpso n case. After he was found non-guilty (a verdict which only refers to doubts abo ut the level of proof), he was awarded full custody of his children. Josh Powell , similarly maintained custody of his children and only lost it six months ago b ecause of a pornography investigation. It is time that children be protected fro m men thought to be dangerous to their wives.