See below:
Another helpless victim of domestic violence has slipped through the cracks of an imperfect system for protecting the helpless.
Another helpless victim of domestic violence has slipped through the cracks of an imperfect system for protecting the helpless.
The victim was 7-month-old Aaden Moreno, whose body was found in the Connecticut River Tuesday night after a three-day search.
The infant boy may* have been thrown from the Arrigoni Bridge in Middletown by his father, Tony, 21, who jumped from the bridge Sunday but survived.
Judge Unfairly Condemned In Baby's Death
On the surface, the baby's death is even more tragic and poignant in light of the fact that Superior Court Judge Barry C. Pinkus decided not to grant a restraining order to the child's mother, Adrianne Oyola, 19, because he was not convinced that Mr. Moreno posed a continuous physical threat to his girlfriend and their child as required by statute.
Ms. Oyola told the court that she feared for her and her child's safety. The judge observed that she and Mr. Moreno had a chaotic relationship and should not live together.
But, he said in refusing to grant the restraining order to Ms. Oyola, "I'm just not convinced that there's a continuous threat of present physical pain or physical injury."
It should also be noted that later on the day the restraining order was denied, Ms. Oyala and Mr. Moreno followed Judge Pinkus' advice and worked out a custody agreement. They agreed to joint custody of Aaden.
Would little Aaden be alive today if Judge Pinkus had issued the restraining order? Perhaps. But judges can't predict the future with certainty, as Chief Court Administrator Patrick L. Carroll III observed Wednesday.
It would be too easy to blame Judge Pinkus, an experienced family jurist, for Aaden's death. He followed the law. More than nine times out of 10 such a decision would not have produced such a ghastly result.
State Sen. Dante Bartolomeo of Meriden said the judge's failure to issue a restraining order represents a "horrendous failure of the system."
Well, it was a horrendous result. Does the statute need to be loosened to make it easier for judges to grant such orders?
*IS THERE SOME DOUBT WHO THREW THE CHILD OFF THE BRIDGE? [divorce in connection question]
Copyright © 2015, Hartford Courant
Copyright © 2015, Hartford Courant
LINK: http://www.courant.com/opinion/editorials/hc-ed-middletown-tragedy-20150708-story.html
Here is the response of the CCADV on this particular question of whether Judge Pinkus considered the law in the Aaden Moreno case:
“I’m just not convinced that there’s a continuous threat of present physical pain or physical injury,” Judge Pinkus said, according to a transcript of the hearing. “I think the two of you don’t have a good relationship.”
Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence Director of Public Policy Liza Andrews says the classic warning signs of domestic violence were present in this case.
“There were very clear indications of both present physical violence as well as threats of physical violence,” she said.
Oyola claimed Moreno “has shoved me, pushed me, forcefully poked my chest and forehead.”
See the link below for the full story and transcript of the hearing:
The Courant is in bed with the judiciary as you have duly noted before. Courant reporters are on the Judicial Media Committee. We will never get accurate reporting or free press from the Courant. All they do is damage control for the Judiciary. Just like the CT Law Tribune. Still another big problem with the State of Connecticut. You would think that there would be laws in place to prevent all this conflict of interest and distortion of the truth disseminated to the public.
ReplyDeleteDon't Family Court judges have practically absolute judicial discretion!
ReplyDeleteAlso, these family court judges have a much lower standard of proof, i.e. reasonable doubt rather than beyond a reasonable doubt? What more do they need statutorily?
ReplyDelete