My ex-wife and I have a Parenting agreement in place since 2007. Our agreement is that we have shared joint custody of our 2 children. Their ages are now 11 & 13. I went to school to pick up the children today only to find that they weren’t there. I went into school and asked the receptionist if the kids were in the building. She paged the kids, but the kids never came. I went back outside and searched the school grounds and did not find them. As I was leaving the school, my ex-wife called me. She called to tell me that the kids are with her and that they didn’t want to be with me any longer. I told her thanks for letting me know and that I would be contacting a lawyer. I also notified her that she is violating our court order to maintain our joint custody agreement. My ex-wife has been bitter since our separation and divorce. This escalated when I remarried. Two weekends ago there was an accusation that my current wife harmed my son & daughter by pushing their heads down to get them to focus on their homework. At the time this allegedly happened I was not at home. I’ve done some research on her behavior and found that she is suffering from P. A. S. ( Parental Alienation Syndrome ). What do I do next? I have a tentative appointment set up with an Attorney this coming Monday morning.
It sounds like she is breaching the agreement in not letting the children visit you. Even if the children do not want to go, they must go. If she refuses to make them go, she is in breach. The only defense she would have available is if she is concerned for the children’s well-being while in your care. She would need to put on evidence about why withholding visitation is necessary to protect them. It is good that you are meeting with an attorney to help create a plan of action for your case.