How many times does a parent have to prove their children need protection before the system takes their safety seriously?

How many court dates? How many attorneys? How many thousands of dollars? How much evidence? How many sleepless nights? And how much does a child have to endure before someone finally says enough is enough?

I never imagined I would spend years of my life asking these questions. I never imagined I would find myself questioning the very system I had been told to trust to protect my children.

But here I am.

I'm a mother. I'm raising a family, building a life, running a business, and doing all the things parents do every single day. But behind the normal chaos of life, I've spent years navigating Georgia's family court and criminal justice systems, trying to understand how protecting my children became such an exhausting, expensive, and seemingly endless battle.

And the more I've experienced, the more I've realized something.

This isn't just about my children anymore. It's about every child whose safety depends on decisions being made in a courtroom.

The Story That Brought Me Here
In May 2024, my children's father was arrested and charged with cruelty to children and offenses involving providing nitrous oxide to our minor children.

But our story didn't begin with that arrest.

Years before, a custody order had established specific requirements, including supervised visitation and two passing hair follicle drug tests.

Those requirements were supposed to provide safeguards for our children.

Yet the incident that led to the May 2024 arrest raised serious questions about whether the supervision requirement was being followed in the first place.

And what happened next left me questioning how our court system evaluates children's safety.

Less than 24 hours after my children's father was released on bond, we were back in family court.

During that proceeding, he submitted one hair follicle drug test and additional urine tests, despite the previous order requiring two passing hair follicle tests.

The testing evidence presented was approximately 16 months old.

Sixteen months.

Those tests were conducted before the very incident that had just resulted in criminal charges involving our children.

The judge accepted the submitted tests.

The matter was discussed in the judge's chambers with attorneys present, but without a court reporter recording the discussion. A written order was subsequently issued removing the previously established supervised visitation and drug-testing requirements.

I was left trying to understand how we had gotten there.

How had the requirements of the original order been evaluated?

How were the new allegations involving our children considered?

How could testing conducted more than a year before those allegations arose address the concerns we were facing at that moment?

And if the protections that were already in place had not prevented the alleged incident, why were we removing them instead of examining whether additional safeguards were needed?

I understand that an arrest is not a conviction. I understand that allegations must be evaluated fairly and that every parent has legal rights.

But I also believe children have a right to safety, and that serious concerns about their well-being deserve careful, timely, and documented consideration.

I wasn't asking the court to take away someone's parental rights without due process. I was asking how we could ensure my children's safety while those rights were being considered.

That is a question I believe every parent deserves an answer to.

The Part Nobody Talks About
There is another side to navigating family court that doesn't get nearly enough attention.

The cost.

Not just financially, although I can tell you firsthand that attorneys, hearings, missed work, and years of legal proceedings can take an enormous financial toll.

I'm talking about the emotional cost.

The anxiety that follows you home from court. The sleepless nights wondering whether you've done enough. The constant documentation, phone calls, emails, and appointments.

The feeling that you're expected to understand a legal system you never wanted to become familiar with.

The frustration of hiring professionals because you need help, only to walk away feeling unheard.

The guilt of wondering whether you should have done something differently, said something differently, or somehow found more money to keep fighting.

And meanwhile, you're still supposed to be a parent.

You're still packing lunches, helping with homework, showing up for ball games, going to work, paying bills, and trying to give your children a childhood that isn't consumed by everything happening around them.

Good things can still be happening in your life while you're fighting battles nobody else can see.

I love my life. I love my family. I have so much to be grateful for.

But that doesn't erase what we've experienced or make the questions surrounding our court proceedings disappear.

And I refuse to believe that families should simply accept these experiences as an unavoidable part of protecting their children.

This Is Bigger Than One Family
I know my experience is not the only one.

There are parents across Georgia who have raised serious concerns about their children's safety and struggled to understand how those concerns were evaluated.

Parents who have spent years navigating custody proceedings.

Parents who have watched protective orders change and wondered what evidence supported those decisions.

Parents who are trying to navigate criminal proceedings involving their children while separate family court orders continue to govern custody and visitation.

And parents who simply cannot afford to keep returning to court.

Not every allegation is true. Not every custody dispute involves abuse. And not every unfavorable court decision represents a failure of the legal system.

But those realities should not prevent us from examining whether the safeguards available to children and families are sufficient.

When credible evidence of abuse or endangerment emerges, there should be a clear process for evaluating the risks, documenting the findings, and explaining decisions that affect a child's safety.

That shouldn't depend on how much money a parent has.

It shouldn't depend on whether a family understands every legal procedure.

And it shouldn't leave parents wondering which courtroom is responsible for addressing newly emerging safety concerns.

What We Are Asking Georgia Lawmakers to Change
We are calling on the Georgia General Assembly to review and strengthen child-safety accountability standards in custody and visitation proceedings.

Our central request is the establishment of a clear, enforceable process for timely, documented child-safety reviews when credible evidence of serious abuse, neglect, or endangerment emerges, particularly when courts are considering modifying existing protective measures.

We are asking lawmakers to address five areas:

1. Mandatory, Documented Child-Safety Reviews
When credible evidence of serious child abuse or endangerment is presented, including criminal charges involving a child, there should be a clear procedure for promptly evaluating potential safety risks.

Criminal charges should not automatically establish guilt or terminate parental rights. But serious new allegations should receive appropriate consideration before existing safety protections are removed.

2. Transparency When Protective Orders Are Modified
When a court removes or substantially changes previously ordered safety requirements, families should receive a written explanation of how the relevant evidence and the child's safety were considered.

This is especially important when a prior order established specific conditions, such as drug testing or supervised visitation.

Courts should have clear standards for documenting why those conditions are no longer necessary or why a modification is appropriate.

3. Better Coordination Between Criminal and Family Courts
Criminal courts and family courts have different responsibilities, but their decisions can affect the same children.

Georgia should examine how relevant information about serious allegations, criminal proceedings, and existing protective orders is communicated between courts.

Children's safety concerns should not become lost between separate legal proceedings.

Any coordination process must also protect confidentiality, ensure reliable information is used, and respect due process.

4. Accessible and Timely Emergency Review Procedures
When new evidence raises immediate concerns about a child's safety, families need a clear and meaningful process for requesting urgent judicial review.

Existing procedures should be evaluated to determine whether they are accessible, timely, and effective, particularly for families who cannot afford repeated litigation.

5. Greater Accountability and Reliable Court Records
When courts make significant decisions affecting previously ordered child-safety protections, there should be an adequate record of the decision and its legal basis.

Georgia should examine whether current requirements for written findings, records of proceedings, and judicial oversight provide sufficient transparency and accountability.

These reforms should preserve judicial independence and due process while ensuring families can understand the decisions affecting their children.

This Is Not About Taking Away Parental Rights
I want to make something very clear.

This petition is not about automatically taking children away from parents.

It is not about assuming someone is guilty because they have been accused of a crime.

It is not about punishing judges for making difficult decisions or suggesting that every parent who disagrees with a ruling has been treated unfairly.

It is about ensuring that children's safety receives meaningful consideration when those decisions are made.

Parental rights matter.

Due process matters.

Evidence matters.

And children's safety matters.

These principles should work together, not against one another.

We should be able to protect a parent's constitutional rights while also establishing transparent, consistent procedures for evaluating credible threats to a child's well-being.

Why I'm Speaking Out
I've spent years trying to navigate these systems for my own children.

I've sat in courtrooms. I've hired attorneys. I've followed procedures. I've documented concerns. I've asked questions and searched for answers.

And somewhere along the way, I realized I couldn't keep telling myself that this was simply something our family had to endure.

Because what happens to the next family?

What happens to the parent who doesn't have the resources to keep going?

What happens to the child whose safety concerns aren't adequately addressed?

What happens when an existing protection is modified and a family cannot understand why?

I cannot change what my family has already experienced.

I cannot get back the time, money, or peace of mind that years of legal proceedings have cost us.

But I can ask questions.

I can speak about what we've experienced.

And I can advocate for a system that is more transparent, consistent, and responsive to children's safety concerns.

My children are the reason I started speaking. But they are not the only children who deserve to be heard.

Georgia's Children Deserve Better
I am asking Georgia lawmakers to examine the gaps between existing child-protection laws, family court procedures, and the practical experiences of families navigating these systems.

I am asking for meaningful, evidence-based reforms that strengthen safety reviews, improve transparency, and provide clearer avenues for accountability.

And I am asking Georgia families to be part of this conversation.

Whether you've experienced family court firsthand, work within the legal system, advocate for children, or simply believe that protecting children is a responsibility we all share, this issue deserves your attention.

I'm not asking you to take my side in a custody dispute. I'm asking you to stand up for a system where children's safety is carefully considered, where protective decisions are explained, and where families have meaningful ways to seek help when serious concerns arise.

Because a child's safety should never depend on how much money a parent has left to fight.

Because childhood doesn't stop while adults navigate legal proceedings.

And because we should never have to wait for something worse to happen before asking whether our safeguards are enough.

Sign this petition to call on the Georgia General Assembly to strengthen child-safety reviews, transparency, and accountability in Georgia family courts.

Let's make sure the families who come after us have a clearer path forward.

Our children deserve protection. Our families deserve transparency. And our courts deserve a system of accountability that earns the public's trust.