IGNORANCE OF MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE COURT SYSTEM; A ROCKLANDER SPEAKS OUT

To the Editor,

Sadly, most if not all news outlets, courts, judges, staff, police departments don’t comprehend that mental abuse similar to domestic violence can be perpetrated not only by men, but by smart woman, against those disabled by mental illness such as complex post traumatic stress disorder, etc. No law requires judges to have any training in mental health much less PTSD (a silent illness).

I know so many vets who come home only to discover that their wives have filed for divorce or left them and hired high-priced domestic relations attorneys who then trample their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and New York State Human Rights Law. These women use knowingly and material false bogus, vague, ambiguous allegations of abuse to obtain a temporary order of protection (“TOOP”) (whether refrain from or stay away) and the vet is, with no notice, put on the street with one bag of cloths.

The Family Courts across our nation are supposed to hold prompt evidentiary hearings on the TOOPs (like a preliminary hearing in a felony criminal action) but 99.99 percent of the time simply put the man in a never ending cycle of supervised visitation, with no hearing, nothing, and for simplicity’s sake combine the TOOP hearing with the custody or support trial. All the while the vet is unsupported financially (because the smart lawyers for the women, who really are the abusers, using the court system to continue to pattern of mental abuse) file for temporary child support. So where does the vet, who risked his life for our country 4,000 miles away turn: booze, opiates or crime and often becomes homeless. The courts see a 6’4,” 240 lbs. vet in great shape and a tiny woman falsely claiming domestic violence and the the laughs at how the vet could be the real victim on domestic violence (mental).

The VA, state, federal and other leaders refuse to recognize that men can and are victims of domestic violence and the solution is to require every judge in the nation to undergo in-person (not video) training in PTSD/mental illness and for the United States Department of Justice and state’s attorneys general to enforce the ADA/state human rights laws for men/vets suffering from mental illness and/or PTSD in all family court matters.

The NGOs who purport to help the vets with mental illness all claim “we can’t get involved with pending family court litigation,” same with most, if not all legal aid lawyers, etc. And there the sucking sound of $$$$ and NGO’s begins. Anyone who reads this note can go out tonight, get drunk, piss in the street in their state, get charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct and demand a six person jury trial in their local town court, which could last days, and taxpayers money and a lot of time for the jury. Why would we trust the arch of a child’s life in one judge, untrained in mental illness, motivated by moving cases quickly so they can get “good marks” and run for higher office.

My .02.

Sincerely,

Donald Roth
Nyack