How Kayden's Law May Affect Your Custody

Kayden's Law was recently enacted in Pennsylvania and has had a wide-ranging impact on Pennsylvania Custody cases. The law was enacted after the murder of seven-year-old Kayden Mancuso, by her father, Jeffrey Mancuso, in Manayunk, PA. After her daughter's murder, Kathy Sherlock, her mother, fought tirelessly to convince lawmakers of the need to create laws that would protect children like Kayden.

The issue in Kayden's case, as in many custody cases, is that Jeffrey had a history of violence. That violence was not factored in to the custody decision, as there had been no history of violence specifically toward Kayden. With the passage of Kayden's law, the Court is now required to review every allegation of physical violence whether it involves a party to the case, the child, or a complete stranger and regardless of how old the accusation is. The Court must now hold a hearing to determine whether the accusation is credible. If, after a hearing, The Court determines that there is an ongoing risk of abuse of the child by a party by a preponderance (most) of the evidence, the Court must order supervised visitation.

The Court is, further, required to favor the use of professional supervision. A professional supervisor is a person or facility that offers supervised visitation services and usually reports back to the Court. The use of professional supervision means that visitation may become very expensive. And that cost may not be placed solely on the party being accused of abuse. The Court will frequently order parents to split the cost of visitation. That could mean hundreds or even thousands of dollars of added expenses each month.

As part of the passing of Kayden's Law, however, States that adopt the law are being given up to $500,000.00 of funding to help with implementation and to assist victims of Domestic Violence. There is discussion regarding whether or not those funds can be used to provide affordable solutions for supervised visitation along with other services for families. The Court is also permitted to perform an evaluation of whether there are professional supervisors that are located within a reasonable distance of the parties and that the parties can afford. If there is no decent option available, the Court can find a private supervisor (usually a friend or family member of one or both parents). That person will sign an acknowledgement form requiring them to follow the rules of supervision and the terms of custody, and to be colloquied. A colloquy is a series of questions that the Court asks to ensure that the person or people understand what they are agreeing to and the consequences if they don't comply.

Kayden's Law also added the crime of Simple Assault to the list of crimes that the Court must consider regarding custody decisions and made changes to the factors that a Judge must consider in a Custody Trial. Judges have been receiving extensive training to update them regarding these new stricter requirements, and classes are popping up for attorneys across the State to help them prepare their cases to ensure that their clients are prepared for the changes that Kayden's Law may have on their cases. Parents with existing custody orders where there was ever a finding or accusation of abuse may want to consult with an attorney to see how or if this new legislation may impact their own custodial time.