One of the things that parents sometimes run into with child custody orders is an ex-spouse who interferes with the orders. For example, one parent may regularly say that he or she is sick or that the kids are sick, so they don’t have to drop them off on time. Another example would be refusing to send a child home or refusing the child’s requests to call the other parent if the court order and parenting arrangement allowed it.
Police and sheriffs respond to domestic complaints many times each year, but people can do better and save these emergency workers time and energy. While separations and divorces are hard, a court order is there to make sure you do what you’re meant to do. If you aren’t, then you’re interfering with custody and could end up back in court. Parents who regularly interfere with custody for no good reason may lose custody or go from a custodial to noncustodial parent.
Louisiana has clear laws. Interference is any time a parent intentionally decoys, takes or entices the child from the other parent with the intent to prevent the other parent from taking rightful custody at the court-appointed times. Essentially, the parent isn’t following the court-appointed scheduling. The one exception is that parents may do what they need to do if they can show reasonable evidence that the child would be in danger if left with the custodial parent.
These are some things to keep in mind about child custody interference. There are few times when it’s acceptable, so remember your rights and to petition the court for any major changes.
