Questions about sections 21, 22, 28

I have questions in sections 21, 22, and 28 with respect to my specific situation, which involved child custody actions in civil court.

Here are those three questions from the form:

21:
Has a court or administrative agency EVER ordered you to consult with a mental health professional (for example, a psychiatrist, psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, etc.)? (An order to a military member by a superior officer is not within the scope of this question, and therefore would not require an affirmative response. An order by a military court would be within the scope of the question and would require an affirmative response.)

22:
In the last seven (7) years have you been charged, convicted, or sentenced of a crime in any court? (Include all qualifying charges, convictions or sentences in any Federal, state, local, military, or non-U.S. court, even if previously listed on this form).

28:
In the last ten (10) years, have you been a party to any public record civil court action not listed elsewhere on this form?
Provide details of the nature of the action
Provide a description of the results of the action

Clearly, my answer for 28 is “yes”. But, let me get advice on the other questions as related to my situation:

Post-divorce, my ex and I have been to court several times requesting custody modifications. Since 2010, all of the actions / requested have been instigated by my ex, against me, in attempts to regain custody. Most recently, in 2017, my ex took the following actions: 1) filed an emergency ex parte motion to regain custody, 2) filed a police report against me, 3) contacted child protective services and made accusations against me of child abuse, 4) filed a motion for emergency custody, and 5) filed a motion for permanent custody.

The disposition of these actions are:

  1. the ex parte was filed illegally. The motion had already been denied, and her attorney was caught “judge-shopping”. (This will give you an idea of what I was battling.). My attorney had the illegal order vacated at 8am the next day, and eventually her attorney was given a reprimand and fine by the state bar association for judge-shopping

  2. The police and CPS jointly investigated. I was never charged. I was never even questioned. I never made any criminal court appearances. The report was simply never advanced based on information gathered.

  3. CPS investigated. As they are an administrative agency, they made several recommendations. These were not “orders” and there were never any “court orders”, but I followed all their recommendations. In the end, the disposition of the case was that none of the accusations were substantiated.

  4. My ex-wife’s motion to for emergency custody was denied. Specifically, the conclusion of law was: “based upon the evidence presented, evidence did not support the pleadings filed”. Furthermore, I made a counter-motion to move the civil case out of her county, and into my county, and my motion was granted. Thus, the entire civil case history is now in the jurisdiction of my county.

  5. My ex-wife dropped the motion for permanent custody.

So…:

I think my answer to 28 is “yes”. How should I summarize my situation?

What about 22? Are accusations in civil court that were not substantiated - are these “charges”?

What about 21? While CPS is an administrative agency, there were no “orders” and only recommendations that I followed. For example, I self-enrolled in an anger management class, and I saw my therapist to provide evidence that I was capable of parenting through this situation.

Looking for advice on how to handle my specific situation regarding how to answer sections 21, 22, 28.

Here’s the deal, as I see it . . .

Yes, on 28. This is easy. No, on the others but there could be arguments and providing a description, as you have here, will go a long way toward simplifying your case for those who have to work on it.

No . . . Your ex-wife accusing you of something in open court isn’t the same as being “charged” . . .

Much of this could easily come up during your investigation. Some of the people that the investigator talks to may not know what was really happening. They may not know that you were not actually “charged” with any crimes and you can’t control what they may say about you or what ideas the investigator might get from what they say.

Answer the questions honestly but also be open about everything that happened where you can provide an explanation. You should also have a more detailed explanation of everything when you go in for your interview. You may have to speak to all of this or your investigator may say, "I get it . . . Divorce sucks . . . "

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Concur Divorce stinks. Simply tell them you have child support issues, but everything was resolved in your favor. And keep meticulous records moving forward to keep a running file on the nonsense she is putting you through.

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So far, everyone is right on the mark. You need to report the court action, you simply report the action(s) were continuing from your divorce.

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Solid advice. Thank you for taking the time to provide this very helpful input.