38-13a07. Factors to determine risk of abduction.
38-13a07
38-13a07. Factors to determine risk ofabduction.(a) In determining whether there is a credible risk of abductionof a child,the court shallconsider any evidence that the petitioner or respondent:
(1) has previously abducted or attempted to abduct the child;
(2) has threatened to abduct the child;
(3) has recently engaged in activities that may indicate a planned abduction,including:
(A) abandoning employment;
(B) selling a primary residence;
(C) terminating a lease;
(D) closing bank or other financial management accounts, liquidatingassets, hiding or destroying financial documents, or conducting any unusualfinancial activities;
(E) applying for a passport or visa or obtaining travel documents for therespondent, a family member, or the child; or
(F) seeking to obtain the child's birth certificate or school or medicalrecords;
(4) has engaged in domestic violence, stalking, or child abuse or neglect;
(5) has refused to follow a child-custody determination;
(6) lacks strong familial, financial, emotional, or cultural ties to thestate or theUnited States;
(7) has strong familial, financial, emotional, or cultural ties to anotherstate orcountry;
(8) is likely to take the child to a country that:
(A) is not a party to the Hague Convention on the civil aspects ofinternational child abduction and does not provide for the extradition of anabducting parent orfor the return of an abducted child;
(B) is a party to the Hague Convention on the civil aspects ofinternational child abduction but:
(i) the Hague Convention on the civil aspects of internationalchild abduction is not in force between the United States and that country;
(ii) is noncompliant according to the most recent compliancereport issued by the United States department of state; or
(iii) lacks legal mechanisms for immediately and effectivelyenforcing a return order under the Hague Convention on the civil aspects ofinternational childabduction;
(C) poses a risk that the child's physical or emotional health or safetywould be endangered in the country because of specific circumstances relatingto the child orbecause of human rights violations committed against children;
(D) has laws or practices that would:
(i) enable the respondent, without due cause, to prevent thepetitioner from contacting the child;
(ii) restrict the petitioner from freely traveling to or exiting fromthe country because of the petitioner's gender, nationality, marital status, orreligion; or
(iii) restrict the child's ability legally to leave the country afterthechild reaches the age of majority because of a child's gender, nationality, orreligion;
(E) is included by the United States department of state on a current listof state sponsors of terrorism;
(F) does not have an official United States diplomatic presence in thecountry; or
(G) is engaged in active military action or war, including a civil war,towhich the child may be exposed;
(9) is undergoing a change in immigration or citizenship status that wouldadversely affect the respondent's ability to remain in the United Stateslegally;
(10) has had an application for United States citizenship denied;
(11) has forged or presented misleading or false evidence on government formsorsupporting documents to obtain or attempt to obtain a passport, a visa, traveldocuments, a socialsecurity card, a driver's license, or other government-issued identificationcard or has made amisrepresentation to the United States government;
(12) has used multiple names to attempt to mislead or defraud; or
(13) has engaged in any other conduct the court considers relevant to therisk ofabduction.
(b) In the hearing on a petition under this act, the court shall considerany evidence that the respondent believed in good faith that the respondent'sconduct was necessary to avoidimminent harm to the child or respondent and any other evidence that may berelevant to whetherthe respondent may be permitted to remove or retain the child.
History: L. 2007, ch. 75, § 7; July 1.