Photo: Jonathanma / StockXchng

Recent media coverage of cases like David and Sean Goldman and Michael and Liam McCarty has brought some attention to the issue of parental abduction but sadly, the subject is still misunderstood by many people.

There is not much data available on parental kidnapping but even the most conservative estimates show several thousand children each year taken out of the United States by a parent and many more abducted within the US. Still more children are taken from their custodial parent in another country and brought to the US illegally.

What is parental abduction?

Parental abduction is the taking, retention, or concealment of a child or children by a parent in derogation of the custody rights, including visitation rights, of another parent or family member.

Parental abduction is a crime

Many people look at parental abduction as simply a custody dispute, a civil matter. The fact is that parental kidnapping is a violation of international and federal laws and state laws in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands. For more information on applicable laws, see The Criminal Justice System's Response to Parental Abduction.

The children are used as both objects and weapons in the struggle between the parents which leads to the brutalization of the children psychologically, specifically destroying their sense of trust in the world around them.

Dr. Dorothy Huntington - Parental Kidnapping: A New Form of Child Abuse

Effects of parental abduction on children

Abducted children are forced to live as fugitives. In many cases, the abducting parent will give the children new names, cut or dye their hair or otherwise try to change their appearance, and forbid them to tell anyone their real name or where they used to live. Abducted children are told that their other parent doesn't love them or even that the other parent is dead. They are cut off from extended family and lose their identity, heritage, and sense of self.

Abducted children may have to move frequently in an attempt to stay under the radar. They may not be allowed to attend school at all or may suffer academically from frequent moves. Abducted children are at greater risk for numerous psychological problems including Reactive Attachment Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.

Clearly, abducted children suffer psychological harm, but in many cases they are also in grave physical danger. Abducted children, chasing parents, and recovery agents have all been injured and killed in the process of seeking and recovering children. The children may suffer medical neglect because the abducting parent is afraid that doctors or couselors will identify them and frequent moves and false identities may make it difficult or impossible to obtain adequate medical care.

Why do parents kidnap their children?

Undoubtedly, there are legitimate cases of abuse where the courts have failed to protect the children and one parent feels that the only option is to take the children underground for their own safety. These cases are complicated because if the abducting parent is caught, he or she runs the risk of losing custody to the abuser. Concerned parents should always work within the system and make sure that any moves are made legally.

Many cases of parental kidnapping occur when an inter-cultural relationship ends. A parent who was raised in a different country may wish to return to their homeland and take the children with them. A parent may want to see the children raised in the same culture or religion that the parent was raised.

Some parents fear losing custody of their children in court and choose to take the children on the run in order to stay involved. Some parents feel threatened or become frustrated when the other parent refuses to abide by a joint custody order. Most often, parents abduct their children in an attempt to hurt the other parent or exact revenge for real or perceived wrongs.

As parents, it is our privilege to love our children, however, it is a child's right to know both of their parents' love.

--Peter Thomas - Author, Chasing the Cyclone

Thousands of children each year are ripped from their loving parents through parental abduction. The left-behind parent is destroyed and the children suffer severe emotional, psychological, and even physical harm. Understanding the issues surrounding parental abduction is the first step toward preventing this tragedy from occuring.