“When you report child abuse in SC family court, they won't  protect your children. They're protecting strategy over safety at all costs!"

To: South Carolina State Legislators, Family Court Judges, Department of Social Services, Law Enforcement Agencies, and Federal Civil Rights Authorities

Enough is Enough: End Child Abuse in Family Court!

We, the undersigned, are protective parents, survivors, advocates, and citizens demanding urgent action to reform a system that is failing our most vulnerable—our children. 

Across South Carolina, protective parents are being silenced, discredited, and punished for doing what any safe parent would do: believe their children and seek help. Children of divorced parents are subjected to, and are disclosing, various forms of abuse by one parent. These disclosures are then confirmed by forensic interviews, medical professionals, and trauma-informed therapists. Yet time and again, our family courts, DSS, and law enforcement either ignore this evidence or actively work to discredit it for the sake of protecting a perpetrating parent's "rights."  The protective 'safe' parents are losing their jobs, life savings, homes, mental health, and most importantly, their kids. And the kids are being sent back to the homes of their abusers unsupervised, unprotected, and traumatized.

“Family court judges are often trained to prioritize co-parenting—but when abuse is present, that can become lethal. The data speaks for itself.”— Dr. Christine Cocchiola, LCSW, expert on coercive control and child trauma

 

These Are Not Isolated Cases—They Are a Pattern

South Carolina: Timothy Ray Jones Jr. In 2014, Lexington County father Timothy Ray Jones Jr. murdered his five children, ages 1 to 8, after being granted primary custody. DSS had investigated him multiple times and documented serious concerns about neglect and danger. Despite this, the court left the children in his care.

Jones later confessed to killing them, leaving their bodies in Alabama. He was sentenced to death. In 2024, the children's mother received a $1.5 million settlement from the state for DSS’s failure to act.

Washington State: Travis Decker In May 2025, Travis Decker failed to return his daughters—Paityn (9), Evelyn (8), and Olivia (5)—after a court-sanctioned custody visit and years of their mother pleading the courts for protection. Their bodies were later discovered near an abandoned truck in a remote area of Washington. The girls had been suffocated. Decker was the subject of a nationwide FBI manhunt. Another  mother that  had raised significant safety concerns in family court, which were dismissed.

Kayden Mancuso:  Pennsylvania Seven-year-old Kayden was murdered by her father in 2018 during an unsupervised visitation ordered by the court, despite her mother’s repeated warnings about his violent history. Kayden’s Law, created in her memory and passed federally through VAWA, was designed to ensure safety is the top priority in custody decisions. South Carolina has not yet passed Kayden's Law.

“No child should be put in harm’s way because the courts failed to take abuse seriously.”  — Kristen Mancuso, Kayden’s mother

Mica Miller:  South Carolina In 2024  Mica Miller died during divorce proceedings after enduring years of coercive control and emotional abuse. Her case prompted proposed legislation known as Mica’s Law, which would criminalize coercive control and recognize psychological abuse as a serious form of domestic violence.

“Just because you cannot see the bruises, doesn’t mean the abuse isn’t real.” — Survivor testimony, Mica’s Law hearing, Columbia, SC  

 

What Protective Parents Are Experiencing 

• Family court judges are granting custody or unsupervised visitation to abusive parents, even when children disclose abuse and it is corroborated by medical professionals.
• DSS opens investigations but closes them prematurely, even in cases with confirmed drug exposure, bruising patterns, psychological harm, and forensic evidence.
• Law enforcement refuses to prosecute, citing 'family court matters' as a reason to avoid getting involved. 
• Guardians ad litem are appointed with no accountability, often showing extreme bias, ignoring evidence, and siding with powerful attorneys rather than prioritizing child safety. 
• Mothers are being accused of mental instability and “parental alienation,” a widely discredited theory used in family courts to silence and punish parents who report abuse.
• Children continue to be abused, neglected, and re-traumatized when forcefully returned to the homes of their abusers, despite their pleas for safety. 

“When you report child abuse in SC family court, they won't  protect your children, they'll protect strategy over safety. They don’t want to protect your children, they want to punish you for speaking out - for challenging equal rights at all costs.” — Protective mother, South Carolina (name withheld)  

 

The Data Supports the Crisis

• Over 58,000 children each year are court-ordered into the custody of an abusive parent in the United States.
(Source: Leadership Council on Child Abuse and Interpersonal Violence)
 

• According to the Center for Judicial Excellence, over 850 children have been murdered by a parent during a custody dispute since 2008.

• 
In South Carolina, 43% of women murdered in domestic violence cases had previously reported abuse to law enforcement or the courts.
 

 

What We Demand 

We call on South Carolina lawmakers, courts, and agencies to take immediate action:

1. Adopt and enforce Kayden’s Law in South Carolina. 
2. Courts must prioritize the safety of children over parental rights and limit testimony to trauma-informed experts with experience in abuse and domestic violence.
3. Pass Mica’s Law to criminalize coercive control and protect survivors from psychological and emotional abuse.
4. Hold DSS, law enforcement, and courts accountable when they fail to act on medical, forensic, and therapeutic evidence.
5. Eliminate the use of “parental alienation” in cases involving abuse allegations.
6. Create an independent oversight board to review family court and DSS decisions when serious concerns are dismissed.
7. Require independent legal representation for children, separate from guardians ad litem.
8. Establish emergency intervention protocols for children exposed to physical abuse, drug use, or psychological trauma, including supervised visitation and mandatory reporting to law enforcement.
 

 

We Are Not Just Fighting for Custody—We Are Fighting for Their Lives

Protective parents are being silenced, punished, and traumatized while abusers are protected by the very systems meant to ensure safety. Judges are citing “parental rights” while ignoring forensic evidence. DSS is closing cases where children disclose abuse, and law enforcement is deferring to family court—even in criminal matters.

This is not justice. It is abandonment. 


 

We Are No Longer Silent

We are survivors. We are the voice of every woman and child who has been threatened and coerced into silence.

“ A child’s safety should never be a courtroom gamble.” — National Safe Parents Coalition

We demand change. We demand it now.  

 Sign this petition. Share it. Speak out. Our children are watching and they are depending on us.