Stand with Shannon: Legal Fees for Family Protection

My name is Shannon, a mother to three of the most amazing, beautiful humans that will walk this earth. Some of you may already know our story, most of you don’t and that was intentional, to keep what peace was left in our lives. For 18 months now, and with no real end to this madness in sight, my children and I have encountered one of the most tragic and horrific times of our lives.

In May of 2023, I received a call from Robyn & Brian Scott, my very own mother and stepdad. A call that described a form of abuse that was being done to my two small children by their father. These allegations were investigated and cleared by all the proper channels; Gurnee police, Grayslake police, forensic investigators, The Child Advocacy Center, States Attorney, DCFS and over 8 months of therapy at the Zacharias Center, to which their therapists concluded that nothing happened either . It was determined that these allegations against the boys' father were untrue, and that they were even coached by Robyn on what to say in the “video evidence” that she recorded of the children’s testimony of abuse.

It was just a couple weeks into this nightmare that I learned that my parents had a whole different agenda other than accusing my ex-husband of abuse, that I had knowingly let this alleged abuse go on for years. That I was also an unfit parent and could not take care of them, for very untrue reasons. My parents, the Scott’s then filed for emergency guardianship of the boys. Which was denied in Probate Court, but because of the relentlessness of the Scott’s and their unlimited funds that are fueling this circus, we are still stuck in the court system with no definitive end near.

On top of all of that, not only myself, but others close to me, have dealt with an enormous amount of harassment from; surveillance cameras in my home, a tracker in my car, them hiring a private detective to follow me and enter my work establishments, calling other family members of mine, calling my landlord and confronting a neighbor insinuating that my children and I were missing persons in an attempt to find out where we had moved to. Not once, but twice now since this started, I have moved in the middle of the night so they couldn’t find me. My ex-husband, and babysitter have since then been followed and their home staked out as well by the Scott’s. This has been a terrifying time for all of us, but I am finally able to now try and obtain Orders of Protection against the Scott’s.

I have, however, exhausted all efforts to be able to afford the upcoming retainer fees and future fees associated with hiring my lawyer to represent me in the now 4th courtroom associated with this case. Any amount raised to put forth towards this cost would be so greatly appreciated!