The Genia Shockome Case--What the Media and Genia's Supporters Didn't
Tell You

Last fall Newsweek magazine made Genia Shockome out to be a heroine in their article Why Parents Who Batter Win Custody (9/25/06). Newsweek's Sarah Childress wrote:

"It took six years for Genia Shockome to gather the courage to leave her husband, Tim. He pushed her, kicked her and insulted her almost from the moment they married in 1994, she says. She tried to start over with their children when the family moved from Texas to Poughkeepsie, N.Y. It didn't last long. Tim called her constantly at work and, after they split up, pounded on her door and screamed obscenities...The judge sided with Tim. This summer he was granted full custody of the kids, now 11 and 9. Genia was barred from contacting them."

In my co-authored column Shockome Syndrome we looked a little deeper at the Shockome case. We wrote:

"The FFLM's current 'Custody-Visitation Scandal' cause celebre is Genia Shockome, a New York mother who in 2003 lost custody of her two children, now ages 11 and 9, to her ex-husband, Tim Shockome. Genia claims that Tim had abused her during their marriage, which ended in 2000. She has drawn support from officials from many branches of the National Organization for Women, as well as from Justice for Children, the Battered Mothers' Custody Conference, Stop Family Violence, and much of the feminist blogosphere.

"Shockome's case gained national attention when she was jailed for 30 days for contempt of court by Poughkeepsie Family Court judge Damian Amodeo in May, 2005. The New York Post reported that Genia, a seven months pregnant 'Mother of the Year,' was sent 'to prison over Mother's Day,' and portrayed Shockome as a heroic mother resisting a tyrannical judge. The FFLM, including many feminist bloggers, organized a petition drive to free Genia and to get Amodeo removed from the New York State Matrimonial Commission.

"On a superficial level, Genia appears to be an excellent poster child for the types of injustices the FFLM highlights. A closer look at the Shockome case, however, reveals as many problems with the FFLM's characterization of it as one could take the time to name."

To read the full article and learn what the media and Genia's supporters didn't tell you, click here.  To discuss the article and the case, click here. To read the court documents from the Shockome case, click here.

Would You Believe Genia Shockome?

In Shockome Syndrome we discuss in some detail the problems with the way the feminists and the media are depicting the highly-publicized Genia Shockome case. Let's leave aside, for a moment, all this evidence and just consider the following question--if you were a family law judge, and Genia Shockome walked into your courtroom, would you believe her claims? Based on the court records and Genia's out-of-court statements, we wrote the following:

"Genia Shockome's supporters expected Judge Amodeo--who was presented with no evidence of any violence against Genia beyond her own statements--to simply take her word for it, and allow her to destroy the bonds between the Shockome children and their father [Tim Shockome].

"Genia claims that a video filmed at the visitation center which shows her kids jumping up and down on a couch actually shows them masturbating--an interpretation which no other participant in the court proceedings shared. To this day Genia accuses Tim of all of the following: being a pedophile who got sexually aroused by changing his daughter's dirty diapers; sexually abusing his children; masturbating in front of his children; taking his children to a sexual store; having a ferocious sexual appetite for women; having a ferocious homosexual appetite for men; being an abusive father who 'beat the kids very often, 2-3 times a day' when Genia and Tim lived together; being a wife-beater; secretly beating his former wife who had a secret miscarriage; beating Genia so she almost had a miscarriage; intimidating five of Genia's witnesses; insurance fraud, identity theft; immigration fraud; defrauding the federal government of $60,000; stealing; embezzlement; extortion; bankruptcy fraud; almost driving over Genia's neighbor's little son; and of violating a protection order over one million times. To say that Genia Shockome lacks credibility is like saying Attila the Hun had bad table manners--what judge in his right mind would take this woman's word for anything?"

To discuss the article and the case, click here.

Connecticut Public Television and Tatge-Lasseur Productions, the co-producers of PBS's anti-father film Breaking the Silence: Children's Stories, have been forced to publicly apologize to Dr. Scott Loeliger for the film's misleading portrayal of the family court case involving himself, his daughter Fatima and his ex-wife Sadia.

Sadia Loeliger, one of the central figures in Breaking the Silence: Children's Stories, was portrayed by the filmmakers as a heroic mom who had lost custody of her daughter to an abusive ex-husband. Soon after the film aired we publicly revealed extensive documentation showing that Sadia Loeliger had, in fact, lost custody of her daughter because a Tulare County Juvenile Court concluded she had committed multiple acts of child abuse.

Long before Breaking the Silence aired, Dr. Scott Loeliger had informed Dominique Lasseur and CPTV of the Juvenile Court decision, provided ample documentation of the Court's findings of abuse, told them he did not want his daughter to be a part of their circus, and warned them of legal action. In what could only be construed as boundless arrogance, Lasseur and CPTV brushed off Loeliger, despite repeated warnings.

Loeliger pursued legal action, and Lasseur and CPTV have now been forced to publicly apologize. In the letter of apology from Tatge-Lasseur Productions and Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Inc., they write:

"Prior to the distribution of the film, Dr. Loeliger advised us that he strongly disputed the version of events related by his daughter and former wife in the film. He also contended that his former wife was herself abusive toward their daughter. Finally, Dr. Loeliger expressed his concern that the film would cause damage to his daughter...

"Dr. Loeliger has continued to raise concerns about the film, contending among other issues that viewers would understand his family members to be accusing him of physically abusing his daughter, and that distribution of the film continues to cause damage to his daughter.

"It was never our intent to accuse Dr. Loeliger of physically abusing his daughter or to create harm to his daughter. Although we believe that most viewers understand this, we sincerely regret if some viewers drew an inference from the film that we did not intend and do not endorse."

Read the full letter here.

PBS Producers Agree to Alter All Future Copies of Breaking the Silence

Tatge-Lasseur Productions and Connecticut Public Broadcasting, Inc. have also been forced to agree to alter all future copies of Breaking the Silence. The agreement reads:

"In consideration of this Agreement and the terms and conditions thereof, CPTV and Tatge-Lasseur agree that, with respect to all future distribution of the film by them in whatever form, they will obscure the faces of Loeliger's daughter and ex-wife such that viewers will not be able to recognize them."

Film's Heroine Sadia Loeliger--Abusive Mother

Regarding Sadia Loeliger's history of violence and child abuse, in Shockome Syndrome Mike McCormick, Executive Director of the American Coalition for Fathers and Children, and I wrote:

"Documented evidence of Sadia's violence and abuse abounds. Doris Nava Arellano, Sadia's babysitter for 18 months, testified against her, noting in a court affidavit that 'every child in the house is afraid' of Sadia. Arellano asserts that Sara, Sadia's then-15 year-old niece who was living with Sadia, 'actually has scars on the back of her legs and on the left side of her head from Ms. Loeliger's attacks on her.'

"Sara penned a desperate letter to her father in Africa, detailing the abuse she suffered at Sadia's hands, writing, 'she hits in front of anyone anywhere with anything. I fear for my life sometimes. Just recently she hit me in the head.'

"A child abuse investigator for Tehama County, California wrote that Fatima, then age eight, 'says she is afraid to go home because she fears being hit again. She also expressed concern for the two other female minors in her mother's residence.' A therapist who conducted investigations for Shasta County Child Protective Services wrote that Fatima 'told me she did not want to go home because she was afraid her mother was going to hit her.'  Another therapist wrote 'on two separate occasions this child reported to me that she was burned 'with a match' by her mother, Sadia Ali Loeliger....I am extremely concerned regarding this child's welfare.'

"Terri Lynn Sais, Scott Loeliger's roommate after Scott and Sadia divorced, filed a crime report with the City of Salinas in which she asserted that Sadia physically attacked her and threatened her one-month-old baby boy. At the time Sais was babysitting Fatima after Scott, then a medical resident, was called in to work. According to Sais:

"'Respondent [Sadia] hit me in the back of my head while I was holding the baby. She grabbed Fatima [then a 16-month-old baby] who began crying...I tried to call the police...Respondent [Sadia] grabbed the phone from me...[she] pulled my hair, hit me again on the back of my head...Fatima began crying and Respondent [Sadia] put a blanket over her head....I am very afraid of this woman and want her to leave me alone. I was also shocked by the way she grabbed her own child and how she proceeded to threaten and abuse me without any regard for the fact that she was holding her own child.'"

I have been surprised and disappointed at the reactions of men's rights advocates Gordon E. Finley, Ph.D. and the activists at the Manumit Exchange to the Tony Camacho case. Camacho, a Florida father of two, was embroiled in a custody dispute when he set his house on fire and killed himself and his two children, ages 10 and 8.

The reaction? One of the activists at the Manumit Exchange wrote:

"This tragedy may not have happened if a presumption of shared parenting (physical joint custody and residency) were law and the father knew that his children were not going to be kidnapped from him by his ex-wife and the State."

Similarly, Finley penned the brief letter Shared parenting may save lives for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, in which he argues that if Camacho had been granted shared parenting, the whole thing would never have happened, thus the family law system is at least partly to blame.

Sorry, guys, but I'll have to pass on this one. Camacho didn't deserve shared parenting, he deserved a necktie party.

According to one news article, "Camacho set the house on fire eight days after the [custody] ruling, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office officials said. He died of smoke inhalation after stabbing Crystal [his eight year-old daughter] in the back, severing her spine and leaving her paralyzed as the flames engulfed their home, according to the sheriff's office." A loving parent, no matter how distraught, could never bring him or herself to do such a thing.

Moreover, according to the article Psychologist saw paranoia in dad before he set fatal fire, Camacho was offered shared parenting but was so controlling and obsessive that he rejected it, demanding sole custody. Moreover, just as so many divorcing women are vindictive and denigrate the children's father in front of the children, according to the psychologist in this case, Camacho did the same thing to his ex-wife. It was Camacho, not his ex-wife, who was refusing to share custody. When he couldn't get sole custody, he killed himself and took both of his kids with him.

This reaction to the Camacho killings reminds me of the reactions of some to Darren Mack. Mack, a Nevada "father" who was embroiled in a custody dispute last year, stabbed and killed his ex-wife as his little daughter played with her toys downstairs, and then shot and almost killed the Nevada family law judge who presided over his family law case.

After the Mack murder, some idiots in the fathers' rights movement defended him, comparing him to the Founding Fathers' struggle against British tyranny. (To be clear, not Finley or the Manumit Exchange, but others). I responded to these claims in my commentary Thomas Jefferson Murdered Women?

To continue reading and/or to discuss this issue, click here.

Apparently Matt Katz, a syndicated columnist who writes about gender issues from an anti-male perspective, bears me a grudge. In a recent column Katz declared that he has "found a new nemesis: Glenn Sacks, a self-described 'men's columnist,'" and that I am someone he "can focus [his] aggression toward." He writes:

"Sacks qualifies as having undeserved good fortune -- because he makes a living saying things that are entirely wrong!"

Katz followed this gem with his column Have men gone the way of the dinosaur? (Lansing State Journal, 1/2/07), in which he happily chirps that men have "outlived our usefulness, purpose and relevancy, and soon enough we're going to go the way of the human appendix and the eight-track player." Katz explains:

"And once we become extinct, I'm fearful that women really aren't going to care. Sure, they may put up an exhibit at the natural history museum, or do a special on TV. But other than that, will they even notice? The only things we've ever been good for - procreation, protection and making cash - can now be done by women themselves...

"Meanwhile, even babies who come into the world the traditional way don't necessarily grow up with men around. In 2004, 32 percent of births were to unmarried women, and in 2005 there were 10.4 million single mothers living with their kids, according to the Census Bureau.

"...women are going to realize men are no longer needed, and they'll kick us out. Gentlemen, pack your bags and kiss your wives. Because we're not coming back."

Katz's "men are finished and that's a good thing" shtick is similar to Michael Moore's. In my column Michael Moore, You Used to Be My Hero I wrote:

"In your chapter 'The End of Men' from Stupid White Men you cite declining male birthrates as evidence that 'Nature is trying to kill us off' and that men have done 'plenty' to 'deserve this.' Men have 'made a mess of our world. Women? They deserve none of the blame. They continued to bring life into this world; we continued to destroy it whenever we could...how many women have spilled oil into oceans, dumped toxins in our food supply, or insisted that the new SUV designs had to be bigger, bigger, bigger?...[Men] are working overtime to wipe out this beautiful, wonderful home we were given free of charge...no wonder Nature is getting rid of us.'"

"On Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher you asked 'how many women have created factories that have polluted this environment?...most of the crap in this world came from a guy' and said '[It's not] female fishermen doing all that extra fishing, ruining the oceans. It's the men ruining the oceans. Name a woman who's ruined the oceans.'

"The central flaw in all of these statements is so obvious I wouldn't bother pointing it out except that it seems nobody else has. Yes, Michael, few women have created factories which have polluted the environment, just as few women have created factories which have produced the staples of modern civilization. You vilify men for large SUV designs without giving them credit for the miracle of modern transportation. You blame men for 'spilled oil into oceans' without giving them credit for the millions of metric tons of oil which are transported by sea each year, almost all of it without incident...

"Needless to say, your friends at the National Organization for Women ate it up. NOW's Communications Director Lisa Bennett said 'The End of Men' should warm the hearts of feminists' and gleefully noted that it 'details the havoc that men have wreaked on women, government, and the planet.'

"And Michael, don't try to dismiss this despicable chapter as being a joke or an attempt at satire. After your mother's death you expressed your grief to the U.K. Guardian and said '...she was reading it and when we came back to the house after she died, it was sitting out there with the page marked where she had left off, and she was on the chapter about the end of men...and I'm sure she loved that.'

"How wonderful--your dying mother's last connection with the work and beliefs of her now famous son was to revel in his man-bashing. Sticking the knife in men's backs warmed mommy's heart in her final days. You've previously described your upbringing as being decidedly matriarchal, with your mother and your two angry feminist sisters calling the shots. It must have been some childhood.

"Interesting too that while you have so often emphasized a class-based analysis of society, you seem happy to chuck all that stuff overboard when speaking about men. In your words and writing the men who run a Fortune 500 company are indistinguishable from the common blue collar worker. They're all men, so they're all 'in control,' have all the power, and are united in one large, extremely profitable conspiracy against women. Michael, you're the socialist, not me, but even I know that Marx, Lenin, Trotsky & Co. always held social class to be a vastly greater determinant of privilege in capitalist society than gender."

To discuss this, click here. To contact Katz, call him at (856) 486-2456 or email him at mkatz@courierpostonline.com.

From the Associated Press:

"Sports announcer Jim Lampley denied wrongdoing Thursday after being arrested for investigation of felony domestic violence.

"The 57-year-old Lampley was taken into custody Wednesday and booked on the felony charge and investigation of violating a restraining order and dissuading a witness, both misdemeanors, said Mary Helmen, the supervisor of investigators of the San Diego County Sheriff's Department's domestic violence unit.

"Sheriff's Capt. Glenn Revell said Lampley was released from the Vista Detention Facility after posting $35,500 bail.

"'The circumstances are that there was an altercation between Mr. Lampley and a 28-year-old female with whom he reportedly has a dating relationship,' said Revell...

"According to court records, Candice Sanders wrote in an application for a restraining order that Lampley attacked her in her Encinitas apartment on New Year's Eve.

"'I received injuries to my head, neck and back from his throwing me against the walls and door,' she wrote.

"Sanders, Miss California USA 2003, also alleged that Lampley had been drinking and smoking marijuana before attacking her. She also claimed he threw her to the floor at a New York restaurant two months ago.

"'I am terrified that he will harm me unless he is restrained,' Sanders wrote...

"'I am innocent of the charge of domestic abuse that has been leveled against me and will vigorously defend myself,' Lampley said...'I'm confident that the process will prove that I'm not guilty of this charge'...

"Sheriff's Sgt. Brian McCauley said Lampley was arrested in Encinitas for violation of a restraining order.

"'He had a disagreement with his live-in girlfriend earlier in the week, she obtained a restraining order from San Diego Superior Court,' McCauley said. 'The order basically told him he needed to stay 100 yards away from the residence and her.

"'Yesterday, the domestic violence detectives were at the residence conducting a follow-up interview when he showed up at the residence. He was placed under arrest for violating the restraining order'...

"Linda Lee, the first of Lampley's three former wives and a professor in the school of journalism at the University of Kansas, said by telephone that she couldn't believe any accusation of violence against him.

"'He's like nobody else. I adore him,' Lee said. 'We've been friends since we were kids. We grew up together. We were married for a while. We're still friends. When I heard this, it was just unimaginable.

"'I know the man, I've known him for years. He's not capable of striking a woman, in my opinion. I've never seen him strike anything or anyone. I've never seen him strike a pillow, that's not his nature. He's a very gentle man and very even-tempered.'"

As I've pointed out on numerous occasions, you can usually trust the facts stated in a domestic violence restraining order about as far as you can toss the average piano. The reliability of a domestic violence arrest is better, but not all that much better.

Nevertheless, I certainly would not want to assume that Lampley is innocent. Also, as addiction expert Doug Thorburn always tells me, drugs and alcohol play a huge role in pathologies like domestic violence, and Lampley's girlfriend alleges he was drinking and doing marijuana before he allegedly attacked her. Still, there are a few red flags:

1) While the phrase "a judge granted a restraining order against him" sounds very ominous and official, in reality, it is almost completely meaningless. Restraining orders are given out like candy with almost no regard for the facts--to learn more, see my co-authored column Letterman Case Shows Problems with Restraining Orders (Albuquerque Tribune, 1/17/06).

2) By getting the restraining order, Candice Sanders was able to toss Lampley out of and seize control of their home, more than enough motivation to perhaps bend the truth.

3) Lampley was arrested for violating the restraining order--i.e., going to his own home--and an "altercation" with Candice Sanders, which could have been nothing more than him trying to get back into his own home. Also, he may have been trying to get back into his home for professional reasons--I often hear from men who've been cut off from things they need for their businesses and careers because their wives have gotten restraining orders prohibiting them from going to their homes.

4) Because of mandatory/presumptory arrest policies, police often arrest male "perps" even though it is very questionable whether the men actually committed any abuse. This is particularly true in California, partly because of draconian laws passed in the wake of the Simpson case. In my co-authored column Simpson Case Led to Harmful Domestic Violence Policies (Riverside Press-Enterprise, 12/5/06) I explained:

"California's SB 591 mandated that all law enforcement agencies implement mandatory/presumptory arrest policies which virtually require officers to make arrests when responding to domestic violence calls. SB 1944 introduced the 'dominant aggressor' doctrine as a way of encouraging officers to arrest men, not women. Many California District Attorneys adopted 'no drop' prosecution policies.

"These policies have led to large numbers of arrests and prosecutions in cases where it is questionable whether the men actually committed any abuse. In a report in the California legal publication Daily Journal detailing attorneys' frustration with these policies, Pacifica criminal defense attorney Dave McDonald explains that now '[Domestic violence] is a political hot potato...The Legislature is saying, 'Prosecute, prosecute, prosecute'...They prosecute everything.' John Digiacinto, head of the San Mateo County Bar Association's Private Defender Program, asserts, 'There are cases of pushing and shoving that are treated like the crimes of the century.'

"Reflecting the questionable nature of many of these arrests and prosecutions, the Daily Journal report explains that many 'victims' do not want their husbands or boyfriends prosecuted. Digiacinto criticizes the system's 'craziness [with] spouses calling in complaining because [the defense lawyer] can't get the case dismissed.'

"Certainly there are instances where the defendant really did batter his wife and she later recants her previous allegations. However, many prosecutors refuse to acknowledge that sometimes women want the charges dropped because the 'violence' never happened, was marginal, was mutual, or was actually perpetrated by the woman. The report notes:

"Domestic violence units have adopted aggressive policies, refusing to drop the cases even when the victim refuses to cooperate."

The arrest of former major league baseball player Scott Erickson provides an excellent example of what can happen to men--see my co-authored column Brett Myers Case Obscures an Important Truth About Domestic Violence Arrests (Delaware County Daily Times [Philadelphia], (8/2/06) for details.
 

Child Custody A to Z

Private investigator Guy White's Child Custody A to Z tells you how child custody cases are won and lost. White provides an insider's perspective on how to choose an attorney, impeach court experts, gather evidence, expose personality disorders and investigate your case. Guy White identifies how you should act, think, protect, and live your child custody case. To buy Child Custody A to Z, click here.

Los Angeles Dads--Free Legal Consultation on Your Case
If you are involved in a divorce, domestic violence, paternity, child custody or support case in the greater Los Angeles area, call Stephen A. Gershman to schedule your FREE initial one hour consultation at (888) 295-1756 or (818) 990-6505. Gershman is certified as a Specialist in Family Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the State Bar of California. He is an experienced attorney, over 25 years, who will competently and aggressively defend you against unjust domestic violence restraining orders or unfair financial obligations. When Parental Alienation or custody is an issue, he will help you protect your relationship with your kids. www.losangelesfamilylawyer.com  

The little baby boy is abandoned, and says "Mom's out partying. Dad's split." One problem--in this case (as in so many others), dad did not split--he was booted out. I've little desire to defend Kevin Federline, and much (though not all) of the criticism directed at him is fair. However, one thing is very clear--Britney Spears dumped him, and, as best as one can tell, he was very much caught by surprise. This doesn't make him a good father or a good husband, but he sure as hell didn't "split."

Tens of thousands of the men reading these words have also fought the assumption/accusation/stereotype that they "abandoned" their children or "split", when they did no such thing. And, as I've discussed on numerous occasions, it is women, not men, who initiate the vast majority of divorces involving children.
 

Help for Michigan Dads
Michigan family law attorney Mindy L. Hitchcock has experience fighting for noncustodial parents against Michigan's abusive FOC. Her holistic approach to divorce gets results for her clients while avoiding the scorched earth approach to law that leaves families emotionally and financially devastated. www.Lady4Justice.com

The LaMusga Company
The LaMusga Company provides customized solutions to assist individuals and business owners in reaching their financial goals. The LaMusga Company is committed to helping you accomplish your long-term financial objectives. LaMusgaCo.com