Petition to Pass Rex’s Law: Protecting Children’s Voices in Custody Cases

 

To: The Washington State Legislature

Sponsored by: Ingrid Johnson

Why This Petition Matters

Children are often the most affected yet least heard voices in family law and custody cases. Currently, many custody decisions are made without proactively including a child’s testimony, leaving them vulnerable to dangerous or harmful environments. Rex’s Law seeks to change that by ensuring that children as young as four years old have a protected, professional space to share their thoughts, fears, and concerns in custody proceedings.

Family Law Attorneys have proven to cause severe damage to children in order to profit from conflict. All too often the victims of unethical Family Law Attorneys are silenced, due to the immense fear of their children being harmed.

Family Law Attorneys benefit from a cronyism system of Commissioners, who are often the colleagues and contemporaries of the attorneys themselves. 

Commissioner decisions in family law only use written law in less than 30% of cases in Washington state. 

Instead relying on cronyism, silencing of pro se litigants, and blatant corruption to decide the fate of our states innocent children. 

Rex’s Law would require that:

 • Courts mandate an unbiased professional evaluation of children in all ongoing custody cases, whether temporary or permanent.

 • Evaluations must be conducted by a licensed pediatrician, therapist, or psychiatrist to ensure children’s voices are heard accurately and without bias.

 • In emergency custody cases, a law enforcement officer trained in trauma-based child testimony will conduct the interview as soon as possible.

 • If a child requests that their testimony remain private from one or both parents, this request shall be respected and protected.

 • Evaluations will ensure that children understand their rights, their words matter, and they are protected from retaliation by either parent or the court.

 

Rex’s Story: A Child Silenced by the System

 

This law is named after my son, Rex, who has spent his young life trapped in a custody battle that has prioritized legal procedures over his safety and well-being.

 

Rex’s father has struggled with severe substance abuse issues for over two decades, leading to frequent blackouts and dangerous behavior. When Rex has sought help—reporting his father’s blackouts and erratic conduct—he has been punished by the very system that should be protecting him.

 

Using litigation as a weapon, Rex’s father has systematically removed every medical professional and advocate from his life, ensuring that Rex has no access to treatment for the trauma he has endured. Rex suffers from PTSD, complex PTSD, anxiety, depression, appetite loss, sleep disturbances, and declining school performance—all stemming from the instability and fear he experiences in his father’s custody. Yet, every attempt to secure medical care or legal protection for Rex has been met with court battles that have nearly bankrupted our family.

 

At just eight years old, Rex reached a breaking point. After one of his father’s severe substance-induced blackouts, Rex confided in a teacher and a childcare provider that he wanted to end his life. In front of these mandatory reporters, he smashed his head against the floor repeatedly—a clear cry for help. But instead of receiving protection, Rex was silenced once again.

 

Our family has endured nearly five years of exhausting legal battles trying to protect him. Despite clear evidence of abuse, we have been forcibly removed from Rex’s life for months at a time whenever he dares to tell authority figures the truth about his father’s home.

 

This is why we need Rex’s Law.

 

Children like Rex should never have to fight this hard to be heard. They should not have to fear punishment for speaking up. If Rex’s Law had been in place, he would have had access to unbiased professionals who could have documented his trauma, protected his voice, and ensured that his best interests—not legal maneuvering—determined his custody arrangement.

 

Take Action

We call on Washington State lawmakers to pass Rex’s Law and mandate child testimony protections in family law cases. Sign this petition to demand that children be heard, protected, and given the voice they deserve in custody decisions.

No child should suffer in silence. Together, we can ensure that children like Rex are protected and heard in family court.

Sign and Share Now!