My wife withdrew my son from school and left the state without my consent
Full Question:
Answer:
Some of the main laws governing custody jurisdiction and enforcement are the:
Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA), 9(1A) U.L.A. 271 (1999) · Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), 9(1A)U.L.A. 657 (1999) · Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980 (PKPA), 28 U.S.C. 1738A
Every state has criminal penalties for parental kidnapping (often referred to as “custodial interference”). The elements of the offenses and the punishments vary from state to state. The options one may pursue are numerous. Please see the information on suggested actions at the link below:
http://www.abanet.org/child/pkprevrem.pdf
The following is an Indiana statute governinig enforcement of the UCCJA:
IC 31-21-6-18
(a) In a case arising under this article or involving the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, a prosecuting attorney or other appropriate public official may take a lawful action, including resorting to a proceeding under this article or any other available civil proceeding, to locate a child, obtain the return of a child, or enforce a child custody determination if there is:
(1) an existing child custody determination;
(2) a request to do so from a court in a pending child custody proceeding;
(3) a reasonable belief that a criminal statute has been violated; or
(4) a reasonable belief that the child has been wrongfully removed or retained in violation of the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.
(b) A prosecuting attorney or other appropriate public official acting under this section acts on behalf of the court and may not represent a party. The following is an Indiana criminal statute:
IC 35-42-3-4
Interference with custody Sec. 4.
(a) A person who, with the intent to deprive another person of child custody rights, knowingly or intentionally:
(1) removes another person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age to a place outside Indiana when the removal violates a child custody order of a court; or
(2) violates a child custody order of a court by failing to return a person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age to Indiana; commits interference with custody, a Class D felony. However, the offense is a Class C felony if the other person is less than fourteen (14) years of age and is not the person's child, and a Class B felony if the offense is committed while armed with a deadly weapon or results in serious bodily injury to another person.
(b) A person who with the intent to deprive another person of custody or parenting time rights:
(1) knowingly or intentionally takes;
(2) knowingly or intentionally detains; or
(3) knowingly or intentionally conceals; a person who is less than eighteen (18) years of age commits interference with custody, a Class C misdemeanor. However, the offense is a Class B misdemeanor if the taking, concealment, or detention is in violation of a court order.
(c) With respect to a violation of this section, a court may consider as a mitigating circumstance the accused person's return of the other person in accordance with the child custody order or parenting time order within seven (7) days after the removal.
(d) The offenses described in this section continue as long as the child is concealed or detained or both.
(e) If a person is convicted of an offense under this section, a court may impose against the defendant reasonable costs incurred by a parent or guardian of the child because of the taking, detention, or concealment of the child.
(f) It is a defense to a prosecution under this section that the accused person:
(1) was threatened; or
(2) reasonably believed the child was threatened; which resulted in the child not being timely returned to the other parent resulting in a violation of a child custody order.