Troops Must Also Fight for Custody

Ex-spouses use deployment as an argument against military parents

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 30, 2008 3:44 PM CST

(Newser) – They already risk their lives daily in Afghanistan and Iraq, but members of the US military increasingly face a different kind of fight on the home front: custody battles. As military divorce rates rise, so too do the number of ex-spouses of troops using deployment as a legal argument in attempts to regain custody, the Washington Post reports.

When troops with custody “go away for 15 to 18 months, it opens the door to these challenges,” said an attorney representing one military mom. Some states, like Virginia, have statutes barring any custody changes while a parent is deployed, but many do not. "They say, 'Just let it go and fix it when you get home,' " said the mom, referring to her superiors. "But most of the time when you do that, it is too late." Congress plans to hold hearings on this next year.

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (2)]

This image provided by the US Army shows Army Spc. Monica Brown, who received a silver star at an award ceremony at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Thursday, March 20, 2008. (AP Photo/US Army - Spc. Micah E. Clare)

British soldiers stand by a destroyed car in central Basra, Iraq, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. (AP Photo/Nabil al-Jourani)

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If I had not deployed, I know I never would have faced this situation. I don't think it should be held against you, and I don't think my time away, or me deploying, affects my ability to be a mother or provide for my kids. - Army Sgt. Stephanie Greer

We are seeing a substantial increase in cases challenging the custody of military parents and when they come back from mobilization or deployment, compared to virtually none 10 years ago.
- Mark E. Sullivan, lawyer and retired Army Reserve judge advocate

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Troops Must Also Fight for Custody