Chapter 19 - The Divorce Hearing
The main trial was not criminal.
It was custody and divorce.
We could have settled.
We settled money.
Not custody details.
Stellan wanted equal overnights immediately.
I wanted slower.
Court heard.
My slap.
His plan.
Agatha.
School.
CPS.
Parenting progress.
Benson did not testify.
Good.
Dr. Price did.
Then Stellan.
He admitted:
He had planned separation.
He collected school notes for litigation.
He lied about a specialist.
He allowed Agatha’s chart.
He knew meals were sometimes removed.
He failed to stop.
Then his lawyer showed improvement.
Changed job.
Completed probation programs.
Successful unsupervised visits.
No incidents for ten months.
Court had to decide present/future, not only punish past.
Correct.
Then me.
I admitted:
I had slapped Agatha.
I completed diversion.
I sometimes gave in to Benson’s tantrums because I hated hearing him cry.
I had dismissed Stellan’s earlier requests for parenting counseling.
I did not know he was planning divorce.
Then:
“Do you believe Stellan loves Benson?”
“Yes.”
“Do you believe he is currently dangerous?”
I swallowed.
“Not in the way he was when he relied on Agatha.”
That was hard.
Good.
Then:
“Do you want him to lose custody?”
“No.”
May you like
I wanted structured return.
That distinction mattered.
