Anti-batterer custody bill OK constitutionally, SJC rules 
By Doris Sue Wong, Globe Staff, 03/12/98 

The Supreme Judicial Court yesterday removed several legal hurdles to
the passage of a bill that would make it more difficult for parents implicated in spousal
abuse to gain custody of their children. 

Vehemently opposed by several fathers' groups, the measure in recent years has cleared the
House but repeatedly stalled in the Senate. 

The bill would create a rebuttal presumption that a parent who has engaged in a ''pattern or
serious incident of abuse'' should not get custody or visitation rights with their children. 

It has won the backing of a broad range of groups concerned with domestic violence, child
protection, women's issues and law enforcement, and it appeared to be on the verge of
passage last November when the Senate gave its preliminary approval to the measure by a
vote of 36 to 1. 

But Senator Edward J. Clancy Jr. (D-Lynn), the lone dissenting vote, who had succeeded in
past years in killing the measure, persuaded his colleagues to ask the SJC for its opinion
on the constitutionality of the measure. 

Yesterday, the SJC said that while parents have a constitutionally protected interest in
their relationship with their children, when domestic violence has been a significant factor
in the home, it may be in the child's best interests to limit parents' rights. 

The court addressed the issue of one parent making false allegations of domestic abuse
against the other, a key concern of fathers' groups opposing the legislation. In the
decision, the justices said most parents would not lie about abuse because if the lie
were found out, they would risk losing custody of their children. 

The SJC said the bill is proposing nothing extraordinary. 

''There is a growing national awareness that children who witness or experience domestic
violence suffer deep and profound harms,'' the court said. ''To better protect children,
many states have adopted legislation making it more difficult for an abusive parent to
obtain custody of a child in a divorce proceeding.''

 Proponents were elated. 

 Beth Boland, president-elect of the Massachusetts Women's Bar Association, said,
''It really is clarifying that the psychological well-being of children in abusive
homes really trumps the interests of the allegedly abusive parent.''

Senator Cheryl A. Jacques (D-Needham), a lead sponsor of the bill, said the SJC opinion
''has cleared the way for passage of this important legislation,'' which ''will go a long
way toward breaking the cycle of domestic abuse.''

Clancy could not be reached for comment, but the opinion rankled fathers' groups. 

John Maguire of Boston-based Fathers and Families said, ''Most children would crawl on
their hands and knees for a chance to see either parent. This decision is a sad mistake
because it will ensure that thousands of children will lose all-important contact with
their fathers.''