Justice for Anton

For nearly 3 years I have been fighting a custody battle against my well-funded, psychologically abusive ex-husband. I have been completely bankrupted and lost custody due to the ongoing stress this situation has taken on my mental health. My ex-husband was psychologically abusive to me during the marriage and dishonest during the divorce proceedings. I often had to represent myself in court against a judge that is prejudiced against me while witnessing my ex's attorney lie in front of the court.

My ex even got away with falsely accusing me of child abuse more than a year ago. That charge was determined to be unfounded by the Department of Child Services, but my ex was never held accountable for his false charge. I also dealt with multiple instances of property damage and electronic account hacking/identity theft, and the notoriously ineffective Chicago Police Department did nothing about it.

I am bankrupt and have already cashed in my retirement account to pay for an attorney. While my attorney helped me to get weekly phone calls with my son, I am currently unable to talk to my child for more than 30 mins per week. The legal bills keep coming, and I have no more money to pay. I expect to get supervised parenting time soon (fingers crossed) but given the attorney's fees in this highly contentious case, there is no guarantee that I will regain reasonable custody. 

My son deserves a mother. Further, he deserves a mother who is mentally in good health, which means a mother who is unencumbered by contentious ongoing legal harrassment. Recently, for example, my ex requested that I pay him nearly $15,000 before he would let me talk to my son. Thankfully, the judge disagreed and granted me phone time, but this small victory is no guarantee of future success.

Please help me regain custody of my son. His father has stated that he doesn't think it's important for a child to have two parents. He prefers if I have no custody whatsoever and demands instead that I send him $1000/month in child support. He has requested to have me jailed by the court for my inability to pay. My mental health has been extremely damaged by the ongoing legal harassment and increasingly oppressive orders handed down against me by the judge. 

I know this is a hard time for everyone due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but anything you can do to help ensure that my son has a mother would be appreciated. I know people think there are free legal aid services, but they are underfunded and unable to assist in highly contentious legal proceedings. I recently met a woman who has not seen her now 6-year-old daughter in 3 years because she does not have money for an attorney. If you think the same can't happen to me, think again. Divorce court is a "pay to play" system. Money talks, and if you are up against a person with deep pockets, it is highly likely that you will lose custody, especially if you are a mother. My state currently favors "father's rights," regardless of what is in the best interest of the child.

Will you help?