Jewish American Heritage Month

Posted By richards on July 10, 2015

Judge orders custody switch, citing concerns that the mother's influence might jeopardize the children's religious upbringing.

A 32-year-old mother from Monsey, N.Y., has lost custody of her children due largely to what a judge described as the mothers inadequate religious observance.

Kelly Myzner

In a ruling dated April 22, 2013, Judge Sherri L. Eisenpress, of Rockland County Family Court, ordered the custody transfer despite the childrens expressed wishes. The judge acknowledged that the mother has been the childrens primary caretaker, that the children were extremely bonded to her, and that she appeared to be far more involved and vigilant about their care than the father. Still, the judge worried that the mothers lax religious observance would tremendously confuse and harm the children.

Complicating the case are allegations of physical and sexual abuse brought by the mother against the father, and the judges speculation that the complaintswere only a ploy to alienate the children from their father. Myzner claims that she had no such intentions, and the court ruling acknowledges that the father regularly used corporal punishment coupled with a bad temper.

On May 14, after an unsuccessful bid for a stay on the order, the children were removed from Myzners custody. Due to pending investigations against the father on abuse complaints, the children were placed in foster care.

I am in complete shock, Myzner said, a day after her children were taken. I cant sleep. I cant stop shaking. I miss my kids more than words can describe. Im just praying that they feel safe and that the truth will come out.

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Myzners tale of frustration with the Hasidic community began nearly a decade ago, when she first befriended a Satmar family in Brooklyn, at age 23. Raised in Brick, N.J., in one of the towns few Jewish but secular families,the Satmar world was new to herand, at first, strangely appealing.

I thought I found truth, beauty, and a community in Hasidism, she says. She had often felt different from her neighbors growing up, and she hadnt quite understood why. As a child, Myzner says, we had swastikas painted on our driveway. There were children who were not allowed to play with me because I was Jewish. The Satmars, with their dedication to faith and tradition, offered a compelling perspective from which to view her own experiences.

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Ex-Hasidic Mother Loses Custody of Children - By Shulem ...

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