Damon has recently made history being one of the first children to be able to hire his own attorney and file his own motion requesting that his new judge, Judge Christine Goldsmith, finally protect him from his abusive father and allow him to live with his mom. You can help by signing and sharing this petition.  

Despite Damon's bravery in telling many professionals about sexual, physical and emotional abuse by his father, Eric Moelter, he was forced into Eric's full custody by San Diego Judge Lorna Alksne. Judge Alksne refused to do a proper investigation or adjudication of the abuse and ignored, dismissed and covered up evidence. She made a no contact order between Damon and his mom because they will not stay silent about the abuse and stop trying to get protection. On July 11, 2011, Damon ran away from his father's house and has been in hiding ever since. See: Saving Damon.

Damon is telling everyone about the abuse now in the hope that getting public support will help him finally be protected. But this puts him in danger because Eric threatened to kill him if he told anyone. Alycia Mesiti-Allen's father and a Long Beach man are currently charged with murdering their children to silence them about sexual abuse.

Damon is also in danger of being sent to a lock-down behavioral modification program, as the court has threatened to do and Eric has attempted to do in the past (See: Damon to Camp?). These 'treatment' centers use electric shock and other forms of torture to coerce kids to recant sexual abuse, thereby absolving the perpetrator of the abuse and the court of enabling it. As long as Eric has custody, they can send Damon to one of these places. See: Rotenberg Center: Is This Torture or Treatment for Teens? and "Help At Any Cost," by Maia Szalavitz.  

Giving custody of children to an abuser, while taking them away from their protective parent, is a common problem in family courts. A Life Sentence is a new article by a human rights investigative journalist which depicts the problem.  Damons List is a website dedicated to Damon that names and shames many judges and their appointees who are reported to give custody of children to their abusers. Protective parents and their allies are uniting on FB:  Safe Kids International. 

Damon is a straight A student, active in drama, and loved by all his friends at Poway High School.  He misses them, his brothers and mother very much and wants to come home. 

Damon's hearing is June 21st at 9 am in San Diego Family Court, Dept. F3. Please join us in calling on Judge Christine Goldsmith to grant Damon the protection and justice he deserves.