Custody Battle Waged by Alleged Killer Dad

ALBANY, NY (06/26/2007)(readMedia)-- “As shocked as people might be at former cop Bobby Cutts’ alleged murdering of his nine-months pregnant girlfriend, they ought to be equally shocked by the family court's entertainment of his motions to gain custody of the now-nine year old child he had by a former girlfriend. Even more shocking is the fact that this sort of thing happens all the time to women just like the one he allegedly murdered.

Everyday we are reading reports about violent men killing their wives or their girlfriends, and sometimes their children, whether born or, as in the case of Bobby Cutts, unborn. This most recent horrendous act, along with Cutts’ alleged history of domestic violence against one woman after another, and his custody battle with a former girlfriend, epitomizes the terrible price paid by women who are unlucky enough to have a child with an abusive man.

With little protection by the legal system, statistics suggest that batterers file for custody twice as frequently as non-batterers. Batterers who wage custody battles against the mother of their children win sole or joint custody approximately 70% of the time. To the court system, it does not seem to matter whether the batterer has had prior arrests or convictions of domestic violence. When a man--even an alleged batterer/murderer like Bobby Cutts--files a custody suit, the court system gives him all the latitude he needs to re-abuse his partner, over and over again.

Our office receives calls for help from women across New York State whose lives or whose children's lives are placed in danger because of the family court's disregard for allegations of abuse, and awarding of custody to abusers. We can only breathe a sigh of relief that the courts did not award Cutts custody of the child he fathered earlier, by another woman. If he had won custody, like so many abusive men do these days, we might be hearing about yet two more victims--in this case, a nine year old child and a mother,” stated Marcia A. Pappas, President of the National Organization for Women-New York State.

*

NOW is the largest women’s rights organization in the U.S, with over 500,000 contributing members who seek to advance the rights of all women. NOW-NYS is supported by 40,000 contributing members working to end violence against women.

-30-