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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, June 24, 2002

Audit targets Family Court system

By Timothy Hurley
Advertiser Maui County Bureau

After losing custody of her two children, Mitzi Sevilla was so enraged that she launched a campaign to point out the injustices she saw in Maui Family Court.

In forming Parents for Justice, the Lahaina woman took out newspaper ads in search of others who felt they were treated unfairly. After one week, she said, she received more than 250 calls.

That was more than three years ago. Today, state auditors are preparing to take a closer look at the entire state Family Court system, thanks to the Legislature and a growing number of voices expressing dissatisfaction with how the court operates.

Lawmakers in April approved a resolution asking State Auditor Marion Higa to conduct an audit of the Family Court system, declaring many users "have lost confidence in the court as a fair arbiter of the issues.''

New groups such as Hawai'i Divorce and Hawai'i Moms and Dads 4 Kids have joined the campaign for what they see as needed reform of the system. They are eager to help out Higa's investigators, having already drafted and distributed complaint forms they plan to make available to the agency.

While an audit may not be the perfect means by which to investigate the court, "We're very happy this is happening,'' said John Holapa, co-founder of the O'ahu-based Hawai'i Moms and Dads 4 Kids. "We hope it keeps the issue alive for the next election.''

The resolution specifically asks the auditor to find out whether the system has a formalized complaint process, how many complaints were lodged against Family Court in the past three years and whether the complaints reached any resolution.

However, others involved in Family Court say the audit is unnecessary and that the situation is being blown out of proportion by disgruntled parties who simply ended up on the losing end of what, in many cases, is an emotionally charged adversarial process.

Because its primary duty is to uphold the best interests of children who are the unfortunate victims in bitter divorce and child welfare cases, the court allows the parties in these cases to keep coming back introducing new information that they think will turn the situation in their favor. The losses and the resentments can add up.

Marsha Kitagawa, public affairs director for the state Judiciary, said emotionally charged issues are at the core of many child custody cases, with one party usually winning at the expense of another. She said it's easy to see how those who don't prevail may perceive a judge as unfair or view an opposing attorney in an unfavorable light, or consider themselves victims of an unjust or ineffective justice system.

She said the request for the audit was based on an erroneous assumption: that there is no recourse for dissatisfied litigants. "We believe protections are available,'' Kitagawa said.

A disputed case, she said, can be reviewed through a motion for reconsideration or appealed to a higher court. Complaints against judges can be filed with the Commission on Judicial Conduct, while the Office of Disciplinary Counsel handles ethics complaints involving attorneys. Those unhappy with laws can work with the Legislature to change them, she said.

However, Kailua physician Philip Foti said he tried to persuade a variety of county, state and federal agencies to investigate the inequities he saw in a Maui custody battle involving his grandchildren.

After several years of getting nowhere, he turned to state Sen. Fred Hemmings, R-25th (Kailua, Waimanalo), to introduce a bill asking the state attorney general to investigate Maui Family Court. When concerns were expressed by residents of other islands, the resolution was broadened to look at the entire state Family Court system.

While Foti doesn't have a problem with the statewide focus, the Maui court has more serious flaws, he said. The problem, among other things, involves "a group of people committed to abusing the court and judges not interested in seeking out the truth.''

Robert Street is a Maui parent who says he continues to get a raw deal from the court. He recently regained temporary visitation rights to his son after a 3 1/2-year battle. He continues to fight to regain custody of his daughter, whom he has not seen in 4 1/2 years.

Street said he's grateful to Sevilla and her Parents for Justice for bringing people together and shining a spotlight on the problem.

Foti said supporting documents sent to lawmakers by Parents for Justice offered the names of more than 100 Maui residents who have reported problems ranging from falsifying documents to witness tampering and coercion.

Diane Ho, a Wailuku attorney who handles many Maui Family Court cases, said the charges she is aware of are preposterous. Ho said most of the complaints have been investigated and dismissed by the proper agencies.

She pointed out that none of the Maui lawmakers introduced legislation calling for an investigation of the court because they are better informed about what's going on locally.

State Sen. Avery Chumbley. D-6th (E. Maui, N. Kaua'i) said those complaining about the court asked him to introduce legislation while he was the Senate's Judiciary Committee chairman. He said he asked state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald Moon to look into the allegations, and he sent his staff to meet with the parties. Chumbley said Moon reported back that he found "nothing of significance,'' so he declined to pursue the legislation.

Foti and other supporters of reform are convinced the Family Court is failing in its most basic mission, and appeals to higher authorities can take years.

"The system, as it's currently being used, decimates the parents and ignores the needs of the kids,'' Foti said.

Holapa said the Family Court needs a new model, one that considers Hawaiian values and the rights of grandparents.

As it stands now, he said, the Family Court system is punitive and adversarial. The court should not be focused on the parent's right to a child, he said, but instead on the child's right to both parents.

"They should be reuniting parents and children,'' he said.