Being afraid of this hearing is a reasonable response to any kind of trial. It is a bit scary and there are some unknowns. You are going to stand in a courtroom in front of a judge who doesn’t know you, describe the worst things that have happened to you and your children and you have to do with the other parent in the courtroom. Most parents in your position are frightened.
If there has been domestic violence in your family, the Alec and Lydia Act is your champion and your cheerleader. It has changed what the judge must do at your hearing and what rights you and your children have. Read the Alec and Lydia Act. Understand how it can protect you and your children. Know that the public policy in Arizona is child safety above all else, including parental access.
Here is the short outline of what to expect.
What written decision should I expect?
Temporary orders used to be issued with little or no explanation. Parents walked out of the courthouse with an order and no idea what the judge believed or why. When a parent alleges domestic violence, the judge now has to make written findings at your temporary orders hearing. Those findings tell you what the court accepted, what it rejected, and how it reached the result.
Do I need a police report?
No. Many victim parents assume nothing counts because they never called the police. There is no police report requirement, no arrest requirement and no conviction requirement. You do not need photographs. You do not need someone else to back up your account. Your own testimony is evidence and at a hearing this early in a case when records are still being gathered that matters a great deal.
What if there was never any physical violence?
That is just one of the definitions of domestic violence, the obvious domestic violence. Coercive control is also domestic violence in Arizona under the Alec and Lydia Act. That includes controlling the money and bank accounts, cutting you off from your family and friends, tracking your phone and your car, monitoring your messages, belittling you, swearing at you, screaming and scaring you, threatening a pet, threatening to harm you or themselves and threats connected to immigration status. None of that leaves a bruise. All of it can be described to the judge at a temporary orders hearing. A pattern of this conduct can constitute coercive control and domestic violence.
What can the judge order?
Under the Alec and Lydia Act, a domestic-violence finding triggers the subsection (D) presumption. Subsection (G) requires clear and convincing evidence before the restricted parent may receive legal decision-making or unsupervised parenting time, and a preponderance of the evidence before supervised parenting time may be granted.
Subsection (H) requires safety-focused precautions and may include protected exchanges, supervised parenting time, limits on overnights, suspension of access, intervention, substance testing when appropriate, a bond for the child's safe return, and address confidentiality.
What cannot rebut the presumption?
- That your child was asleep, in another room, or somewhere else entirely when the domestic violence happened.
- That your child never knew about it.
- That your child wants to go with the other parent.
- A class-completion certificate by itself. Subsection (E)(5) requires supporting treatment records and proof addressing rehabilitation.
What is my evidence at the hearing?
- Your timelineEvery incident, the date, where it happened, who was there, and what was said.
- Your communicationsTexts, emails, voicemails and app messages, including the ones about money and the ones sent late at night.
- Your witnessesAnyone who saw an incident, saw an injury, heard your story after it happened, witnessed abusive behaviors.
- The recordsOrders of protection, agency reports, school records, and any medical or counseling records you choose to disclose after considering privilege. Ask counsel about obtaining treatment records if the other parent relies on treatment to rebut the presumption.
- Allege domestic violenceAllege Domestic Violence: The judge’s obligation to make written findings is triggered by the allegations. Child abuse can be domestic violence.
Ask for the specific safeguards for any parenting access that fit what happened in your family under the Alec and Lydia Act. Depending on the findings and proof standards, the order may suspend access, require supervision, or prohibit overnights.
I would be remiss if I didn’t give you some basics: read the minute entry, know the rules, know the statutes and know the evidence rules and admissibility. There is a skill to conducting trials but parents often times just cannot afford an attorney. So this might help you if you find yourself in that situation.
