The last time I wrote about my Sister's battle within the Family Court, it was to say that the hearings had finally ended and we were awaiting the Judge's decision. I wrote that post on the 22nd of August and it has taken nearly 3-months for the Judge to look over all the evidence and come to a conclusion.
During those 3 months, my sister and my entire family have been in limbo. Nothing more could be said and the fate of my young niece was in the hands of a Judge with a very shady track record. To make matters worse the Social Services continued to play their usual games, ignoring my sister's concerns and neglecting to document important issues.
All that has gone on in the past 12-months has led me to doubt we would ever find justice within the Family Courts but on the 16th of November, my sister received the news that the Judge had ruled in her favour. My sister and I are very close and as soon as she heard the news she phoned to tell me her daughter was coming home!
The word "elation" doesn't even come close to describing how we both felt and to say a weight had been lifted from our shoulders is also an understatement. During the phone call, we shed some tears and I made sure she knew what a lioness of a mother she has been. My sister is a warrior and if it wasn't for her unbreakable will and attention to detail, I am certain this would have turned out differently. I am so proud of her and I can't wait to see her enjoying life as a mother once again.
After our phone call, my sister attended court that same day to hear the Judge make everything official. He confirmed that my sister was no longer under suspicion and that the father was the sole perpetrator of this horrendous abuse. The judge then ordered that the child be returned to her mother and this notion was finally supported by Social Services. At this point, everything was falling into place but as it turned out there was to be one more twist of the knife. Predictably, the Father's solicitor informed the judge that they would be filing an appeal. This was to be expected, but they also requested that the child remains in the care of his mother until this appeal was heard. Sadly, this notion was upheld by the judge on the grounds that if the appeal is won it would be unfair for the child to be removed from her mother a 2nd time. Obviously, this was a shock to us all but it seems that this appeal was going to be difficult to prove. The judge was not at all amused by having his hands tied by this emotional blackmail and told the barrister that the father had very limited time(3-days) to file his appeal. In the meantime, he ordered that the father not be permitted access to the child and that extra access be granted to the mother.
Again we were at the mercy of the Family Court and my niece was to remain in the care of the Granny from Hell. And again we voiced our concerns to the Social Services of how dangerous this situation was, especially considering the mind-frame of the father and his mother. Although the Social Services were now beginning to see things from my sister's point of view they still did nothing about this obvious safeguarding issue. For the next 3-days, we would just have to hold tight and pray nothing else happens.
So, the appeal was filed to the Judge and the judge rightfully rejected it. Now the father has only one move left, and this is to appeal to the high court. In the meantime, my sister and her solicitor filed for the immediate return of her daughter and that hearing took place today...
With the judge and the Social Services supporting my sister's request for the 2nd time, we all expected that my niece would finally be taken out of care and returned home. To our astonishment, this motion was blocked by CAFCASS(The voice of the child, apparently) and not only did they insist on supporting the father's request for his daughter to remain in care, but they also tried to demand that the father be allowed access!!! CAN YOU FUCKING BELIEVE THAT?!! I CERTAINLY CAN'T.
Fortunately, the Judge I originally had my suspicions about does actually seem to live on planet Earth, and not from whatever fucked up place that CAFCASS come from. I am relieved to report that the Judge made no exceptions for CAFCASS's demands and thankfully denied the father access. The Judge also denied the father an extension on the time he has to file his appeal to the high court. As it turned out, the father was supposed to have filed his appeal days ago, but it seems his original barrister has done a runner and left him stranded...HA! KARMA, SWEET KARMA.
Left with just 2-hours to file I would like to think the father had a frantic afternoon, however, in reality, this sick and twisted bloke probably has his appeal written out and was only playing the system for time. Be that as it may, the judge has ordered a swift return to court on Monday and if the appeal is rejected at the high court level we will finally be seeing an end to this awful ordeal...
Thank you all for the support you have shown throughout this terrible situation. I'm sorry for the slightly misleading title but I hope to bring you that definitive good news next week. It seems things are starting to look positive at long last.
