“The community is shocked that the Nelson Coroner has failed to properly acknowledge the contribution of the Family Court to the recent deaths of the Perkin children” Darryl Ward, spokesperson for Families Apart Require Equality (FARE), stated today.

Coroner Ian Smith was reported as saying ‘he had no recommendation to make on the case’ of the deaths of Alice, Maria and Cherie Perkin in September this year. This lack of a recommendation is astounding.

“The Family Court strongly perpetuates the preferential sole custody system, that pits divorcing parents against each other in a desperate battle to be the “primary caregiver” who will keep physical custody of the children. It is this preference for sole custody that has catalysed the deaths of many children in recent years, including the Perkin children.”

“The Family Court should be helping to reduce the tension between parents. Instead they are encouraging a system that increases acrimony, and encourages the formation of sole parent families where one biological parent (usually the father) is effectively excluded”.

“In the Perkin case, the children would almost certainly be still alive today if a win-lose court battle had been avoided. The Court should have encouraged shared parenting, which directs parents to cooperate as nominal equals, and also gives parents a clear message that neither of them can expect to ‘own’ the children.”

“The win-lose battle that the Family Court created almost certainly was what tipped an already depressed Mrs Perkin to kill herself and her three children on the very day the Court made a ruling. Similar circumstances in the Family Court led to the deaths of the three Bristol children in Wanganui in 1995.”

“Too many of New Zealand’s children are dying as a direct result of proceedings controlled by Government officials, such as Family Court Judges. The community looks to Coroners, Judges and other officials for answers. Yet, after a succession of child murders closely associated with the secretive Family Court, another Coroner fails the community by ignoring common sense and reason.”

“The New Zealand public is starting to understand what is wrong. Yet the Coroners, Judges and other officials remain in denial of their contribution to these murders”.

“Regrettably, there will be more Perkin and Bristol murders in future unless the Family Court recognizes its role in creating the social policy that leads to these tragedies. How many more innocent children must die before they realise?” concluded Ward.

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Enquiries to Darryl Ward 025 230 1667

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