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Friday, May 1, 2015

FINDING OUT THE TRUTH: THE COLLEEN SAVINO STORY, PART III

In looking at a custody case like the one Savino v. Savino, it can be really difficult to be sure who is telling the truth.  So many cases are just a "he said, she said situation" and there is a lot of white noise which makes it hard to tell.  

However, what I think is particularly persuasive for a writer like me is the ultimate outcome.  During the time that I have known Colleen Kerwick she has always stated how important it is for the father to share in the life of her child.  She has repeatedly stated she would never want to eliminate him from her child's life, and in the custody report she specifically stated, "I don't want him out of my son's life, but I need to be involved too."  

Furthermore, much to my annoyance she has come out firmly in support of shared parenting which would give 50/50 parenting time to both parents.  

In contrast, I can see that Kenneth Savino has repeatedly attempted to have Colleen arrested, seized total control of their child based upon a fake amber alert, and has done whatever he could to push her out of their child's life.  I don't know what the context was for Dr. Sidney Horowitz in 2012, but in 2015, I can confirm that when it comes to Colleen's statements that she was abused, her statements that Kenneth was trying to remove her from the life of their child, time has proven them to be true.  

It is sort of a situation where murder will out!  

As a trained therapist, I am not sure why Dr. Horowitz didn't pick up on this except for the common money making goal so many mental health professionals have that persuades them to go by the model "both are wrong" no matter what contrary evidence exists.  There is no doubt that Dr. Sidney Horowitz was at considerable pains to tweak the results the way he wanted them to go.

One point I am clear on is that Dr. Horowitz didn't care to acknowledge that Colleen Kerwick was a victim of domestic violence and sorry to say, in writing up his evaluation, he pretty much painted her as a liar because she reported the abuse she'd experienced.  I can relate to what Colleen went through here, because when I reported the abuse I was enduring, the evaluator in my case did pretty much the same thing. 

I think this denial occurs simply because mental health professionals can't bear to acknowledge that abuse occurs in a great many middle class homes.  But also age plays a role here--both Colleen and I married considerably older men.  Doctors such as Horowitz, and the psychiatrist in my case, like to characterize women like us as manipulative bitches who are financially and emotionally exploiting our much older and more well established ex-husbands because it taps into a primordial fear that the majority of successful men like themselves have buried deep down in their psyche.  

Specifically, Colleen was 17 years younger than her ex-husband and I am 15 years younger than mine.  Inevitably that age difference makes a poor impression on these male doctors who just assume that if a woman marries an older man, it must be for some nefarious purpose.  

Thus, it is striking that Dr. Horowitz' report never mentions that Colleen Kerwick was employed as an aviation attorney and is a fluent Irish speaker, but does mention that Ken Savino "is employed in the wealth management business."  By withholding information on Colleen's professional background, Dr. Horowitz appears to imply that Colleen is the kind of woman who intended to sit at home eating bon bons and counting Kenneth's money while Ken Savino was at work!  

Isn't that what those cute younger babes do--marry up!  

And how do women like Colleen manage to exploit their husbands like that?  They do that with their superior cleverness; thus, even though both Colleen and Kenneth had almost identical scores on the IQ tests they both took, Dr. Sidney Horowitz describes Colleen as having above average intelligence and then describes Kenneth as having only average intelligence.  

Dr. Horowitz also skewed and misrepresented test results in order to make it look as though Colleen Kerwick was a deceptive individual but Kenneth was not.  For instance, Dr. Horowitz used the Paulhus Deception Scale to measure the degree of faking in the psychological testing.  In regard to Colleen, he reported that Colleen scored in the 99.98% for impression management and scored 70.75% in self-deception, the latter actually being a somewhat average score. In his assessment of these scores, he indicated they should lead anyone to view her remarks with "a great deal of" caution.  

On the other hand, Kenneth Savino scored in the 84th% for impression management, and Dr. Horowitz conveniently withholds the score he received for self-deception, but says it was average--so why doesn't he just share the results with us?  (More about that later)  Keep in mind, also, that Ken Savino's score on impression management is only 16 percent lower than Colleen's score, and it is still in the very high range. Nonetheless, Dr. Horowitz would have us believe that, in contrast to Colleen, based on these results, we can approach what Kenneth says "with some degree of caution".  

Dr. Horowitz makes Kenneth look as though he is so very honest in contrast to Colleen.  But is this what the tests really indicate?

I have an explanation for Colleen's high score in terms of impression management.  It is the consequence of her European background which places an extensive emphasis on impression management.  I feel I can say this because my parents were European as well.  

Unlike Americans who believe they can let everything hang out and express their authenticity, European culture emphasizes making a good impression on others, exercising good manners and adhering to proper social expectations as among their highest values when it comes to behavior.  You never, never air your private and personal matters in public.  Naturally, then, as a native of Ireland, Colleen would score highly on impression management.  I'll bet I would too.  It is very important to note that as a result of these cultural differences many Europeans dislike Americans.  

If Dr. Sidney Horowitz failed to be sensitive to cultural differences when he conducted the forensic evaluation, even though he is required to do so, this is certainly a problem.  But still, as I said, keep in mind that in regard to impression management even though Colleen's score is extremely high, Kenneth's score really isn't that far behind!

So what about Kenneth Savino's mysterious self-deception score?  Later in the report, we are told that in the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) Mr. Savino had a very high level of self-defensiveness which measured in the 89.74% which Dr. Horowitz stated could make him  "minimize, deny, or even be unaware of his shortcomings"--this sounds suspiciously similar to the self-deception score that Dr. Horowitz didn't want to share with us earlier on.  

So if you looked at the test scores properly Colleen is very high in impression management, but fairly low in self-deception.  In contrast, Kenneth is somewhat lower in impression management than Colleen, but considerably higher in self-deception than Colleen--approximately 20% higher.  

So when Dr. Horowitz speaks of Colleen and says you should be considerably more cautious about believing her than you would be in believing Kenneth, he is full of garbage because his own test results prove otherwise.  If you are going to look at the numbers, the two actually balance each other out, although Kenneth clearly has a considerably lower capacity for insight.  

The only way you can actually figure out what is going on is to look at the context, and for that all we have to do is look at the reality of the abuse that Colleen Kerwick experienced. 

Dr. Sidney Horowitz cast a shadow of doubt on Colleen Kerwick's statements in regard to abuse because she came in with a bound notebook full of emails as evidence of his abuse, which I understand Dr. Horowitz chose to ignore. I mean, God forbid she bring in actual concrete evidence.  

Also, she came in with her domestic violence counselor, Ms. Shanthi Roe and other support persons.  In a mocking and skeptical manner, Dr. Horowitz states, "Ms Kerwick Savino would have this evaluator believe that Mr. Savino is a manipulative, mosogynistic, controlling and hostile individual."  [Surprisingly enough, or not, however you see it, Dr. Sidney Horowitz never expresses a similar skepticism regarding the lurid accusations Kenneth Savino made about Colleen!]

Still, the reality is that Dr. Sidney Horowitz own test results regarding Kenneth Savino absolutely support Colleen Savino's remarks.  To quote Dr. Horowitz' report regarding Kenneth Savino, "The respondent's [Kenneth Savino's] interpersonal style seems best characterized as being domineering and over controlling.  He has strong needs to control others and... likely has little tolerance for those who disagree with his plans and desires.  Others view him as being rather overbearing and dictatorial.  Although able to express some degree of warmth, his need to be in control in relationships probably taxes the endurance of those who are close to him."  

In commentary a little further on, Dr. Horowitz states, "He appears to compensate for [anxiety and self doubt] by acting in a controlling (if not bullying) fashion in an attempt to bolster his hindered self-esteem."  

This means that despite Dr. Sidney Horowitz mockery of Colleen Savino's observations regarding her ex husband, in fact the test results indicate that her statements were perfectly accurate despite the need to view her observations with -- what does the report say? -- a great deal of caution.  What is more, Kenneth Savino's own behavior since he took these tests, which I described earlier in this blog, also back up what Colleen has stated.

Finally, Colleen reported that Kenneth Savino had an extensive history of mental health difficulties prior to and during their marriage, but surprise surprise, Dr. Horowitz suppressed that evidence by playing phone tag with Mr. Savino's psychiatrist and never actually speaking to him.  That's a great way to skew a custody evaluation in favor of the father.  Just prevent data from his mental health background from ever making it onto the record!  

In this clever way, by simply manipulating the psychological test results to cast an unwarranted shadow of doubt on Colleen Kerwick's truthfulness and downplaying or hiding the data on Kenneth Savino's abusive behavior and mental health difficulties, Dr. Sidney Horowitz was able to present the classic results typical of custody evaluations that underlie the majority of high conflict divorces, results that indicate "both are wrong".  

Unfortunately, both were not wrong, and this is what led to so much tragedy and suffering in this case for both Colleen and her child.

To be continued...

12 comments:

  1. You might as well be writing a fairly tale. Your information is so inaccurate it's mind boggling. And, violating privacy laws! There's a new low for your blog.

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    1. I'll tell you what a low is. A low is when a mental health professional twists and manipulates data in order to get the results he or she wishes to get because he or she was either paid in cash to do so or given reassurances of future work as compensation for his or her conscious wrongdoing in the preparation of report. When we are talking about Dr. Sidney Horowitz, this is not the first time that his work has been under scrutiny. I've seen much worse than Dr. Horowitz, still, he had to be aware of how bullying and aggressive and dishonest attorneys would use his work. Any mental health professional has to keep that in mind.

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    2. It's amazing to me that you hold yourself up as an expert in all matters. You have missed your calling. You must be the smartest person in the world because you are never wrong or misinformed. How does it feel to be such a perfect person.

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    3. The proof is clear to see. Ken Savino did not want Colleen in their child's life. Ms. Kerwick has always supported shared parenting.

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    4. In this case, what you can find in the motions are consistent attempts on Ken Savino's part to take custody away from Colleen Kerwick based upon frivolous grounds. That's not a matter of expertise so much as it is a matter of the facts. I have never stated that I am a perfect person, but I can read motions just like anyone else. I can also count them. And the evidence shows, not me, that Ken Savino is a bullying, aggressive, and unethical litigator. Of course, the point is not to prove one side better than the other as Colleen points out, but to consider the best interests of the child which, for her, have always been in the forefront. What needs to happen is that Mr. Savino should learn how to co-parent for the best interests of the child which I'm aware Colleen is only to willing to do.

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  2. Colleen believes that all parents should be involved in their children's lives. The criteria for removing a child (akin to removing freedom) has to be beyond a reasonable doubt. If someone is abusive, they belong in jail. Colleen is willing to be the only parent, but she wants peace for the child first and foremost. There will never be peace if she seeks sole custody. Kenneth, on the other hand, wanted Colleen to be the exclusive parent of the child until she served him with separation papers. After Kenneth responsively filed for divorce, he left the marital home and went on vacation by himself to New Hampshire for a week, leaving Colleen alone with the child. He clearly endorsed her as the primary parent when Colleen agreed to waive child support.... Then the court would not allow her to waive child support and ordered Kenneth to pay her a small sum of money of around $300 per week for the child. Four months later, he started his aggressive campaign for sole custody and repeatedly requested child support from her. Colleen puts the child first and wants an order she can live with. Kenneth wants turmoil and money.

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    1. What I find quite striking is that the court system essentially allows men to play these kinds of games and they know exactly what is happening when they are played.

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    2. The judges have hundreds of cases before them and are probably hoodwinked. Normal fathers would not take a child from its mother with decidedly unfounded allegation after allegation to save $300 a week. Normal fathers would not generate conflict for their children via highly unreasonable positions no mother could live with. Ken wanted to make Colleens life so difficult that he would chase Colleen away so that he could claim she abandoned Nicholas and emerge as the hero of the story (with a bonus of child support from her as his own retirement plan)... Or else he's like the playground bully who is madly in love with the girl he teases and annoys for attention. Whatever he's doing, its not for his son. No loving father would work so obsessively hard to take a child from his mother.

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  3. If you people knew anything about this situation you would realize that Ms. Kerwick has created all the conflict and continues to do so to this day. She is lucky she has any access to this child. And, shame on you for publishing private information. It shows how irresponsible your "blog" is.

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    1. Coming from the folks that masterminded a totally fake Amber alert and lied to the Court pretty much stating they'd gotten one when they hadn't as a means to seize custody from Ms. Kerwick, I find such a statement totally and completely laughable. You need to make these kinds of remarks to people who are much, much more stupid. Unfortunately, if you don't speak out about injustice, it will continue to fester. Folks who want privacy really have to act with integrity in order to get it. So far, in this case, those supporting Mr. Savino have not acted in such a way as to deserve privacy.

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    2. I don't think you've mentioned also how Budlong & Barrett who represented Mr. Savino threatened and bullied the owner of this blog. People who are acting with integrity do not need to bully and harass and threaten. So absurd remarks like the above get the treatment of all greatly absurd remarks--one great big laugh.

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  4. Ken Savino was terminated from his job and sanctioned by he Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority for "selling away". He was encouraging clients to invest in a business so that he would get stock options in return. Leveraging other peoples money for personal gain. He ended up in a huge dispute with his whole company he was named as a partner in Northstar Wealth Partners and Broker Dealer LPL financial. A few years earlier he was in a huge dispute with every single person in his previous company Savino Sturrock & Sullivan and his previous broker dealer Lincoln Financial. In fact, he has been in epic conflict with every single person he has ever had a personal or business partnership with. In every single one of these cases he has claimed that everyone else was the problem. Clearly Colleen Kerwick (a peace & love artsy creative type with a bit too much hope that everyone will learn to play nice) is not the problem here but in Ken's world everyone is out of step in the marching band except Ken.

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