A decade ago, when Carlotta left her marriage with Ed, their only child was a toddler. There had been not child custody investigation or battle. Ed was given regular visitation rights in the divorce. Through the years, Ed had moved out of state to live with his parents and contact with the baby was sporadic. Actually, their child, Elicia, had seen her father less than five times in her entire life.
So, Carlotta was very upset when Ed’s family filed suit against her for grandparents’ rights. Ed’s parents had seen Elicia even fewer times than her father had seen her. Carlotta was stunned that, all of a sudden, Ed and his parents had an interest in getting to know Elicia, who was now 11 years old. She did not trust their motives. She did not want her daughter to leave the state with people she didn’t even know.
Carlotta was most concerned about Elicia’s safety because Ed and his entire family had been heavy drinkers with drug use history, too. When Carlotta spoke to her divorce attorney about the suit, she learned that, if she refused to allow visitation between Ed’s family and her daughter, the court would very likely find her to be in contempt.
Carlotta would be forced to send Elicia out of state to visit strangers unless she could somehow prove that the environment was unfit for a child. Knowing this would be her only opportunity to save Elicia from such an unstable situation, Carlotta’s attorney suggested she work with as private investigators for child custody.
Once she explained the details she knew, investigators got to work. Their greatest mission in every case is to simply gather facts and get to the truth. With time as a great concern, investigators dove into a research frenzy, exploring Ed’s life and the lives of both of his parents. They searched for information about the household, such as who else resided there and whether the police in that area had ever been summoned to those addresses.
Using various research data bases, provided proof for the court that, in the last year, Ed and his father both had DUI arrests. Twice, police responded to allegations at Ed’s address, that he was violent against a female companion. When Carlotta and her attorney appeared in court, armed with that evidence, the judge ruled that Ed and his family could only see Elicia for supervised visits, in her home state. Carlotta credited for keeping her child safe.
Child custody issues do not only arise at the time of divorce. Often situations change, people change their minds or get new ideas. Court battles can churn off and on for years. has experience with issues surrounding custody and visitation of children and parents. Child custody investigations often provided the documented evidence to put claims and requests to bed once and for all. That’s because a child custody investigator is not emotionally charged and seeks the facts and truth.
-Brenda McGinley, CEO, All in Investigations, All in Investigations
