Family Court Survival Guide

Bridget Marks Case (New York):

Bridget Marks became pregnant with twin daughters as a result of an affair with a married man. When he found out she was pregnant, she says he wanted her to get an abortion, and once the children were born, he refused to sign an acknow-ledgement of paternity, therefore relinquishing any legal responsibility. She continued her relationship with the man after the birth of the girls, knowing he was married.

Bridget says she tried many times to end their relationship, but he always threatened her with taking away the girls. "Over a period of time I discovered that he was reckless and inappropriate with the children and every time I sought to break the relationship off, he would threaten me with taking the children away," she tells Dr. Phil. She finally broke up with him, and he was allowed visitation with the girls.

After sexual abuse allegations by Bridget, the father filed for custody of the girls, and the drawn-out custody battle ensued. The court determined that Bridget lied about the molestation, and therefore they gave custody of the children to the father. On June 1, 2004, Bridget was devastated to hand over her 4-year-old daughters to their father.

Bridget defends her molestation accusations. "I did not lie. I was a fit mother. I am a fit mother whose children came home with stories," Bridget tells Dr. Phil. "I took them to professionals to investigate whether or not what they said was true. I was given an affidavit by an M.D., a child psychiatrist from Columbia University saying that my daughters had been inappropriately touched, or that she thought that there was about a 60-70 percent chance that they had been touched. She gave me an affidavit to go to the court and to tell the court that the father should only have the strictest access to the children under court supervision."

Dr. Phil notes that a court appointed psychiatrist did an evaluation and determined that she had coached the children.

"He did not examine the children after the second allegation, so he basically, without even examining the children or asking them any questions, determined that it was false," Bridget explains to Dr. Phil.

April 1, 2005

An "overwhelmed" Bridget Marks won the fight of her life yesterday when an appeals court gave her back custody of her two little girls.

"This is a wonderful, wonderful day," an ecstatic Marks told The Post shortly after learning the state Appellate Division had restored custody of her twin 5-year-olds, Amber and Scarlett.

"My prayers have been answered."

Her lawyer, Tom Shanahan, said Marks and her girls "got their lives back today."

The unanimous four-judge decision overturned a controversial ruling by Manhattan Family Court Judge Arlene Goldberg giving custody of the twins to their father, casino king John Aylsworth.

The father had impregnated the former Playboy model while cheating on his wife, and then barely saw the children until they were 3. But he was awarded custody last year after Goldberg found Marks had been turning the kids against him.

The ruling resulted in an ugly public spectacle last June, when a sobbing Marks handed the hysterical girls over to her ex-lover and his wife in a gut-wrenching scene that was caught on camera on East 72nd Street.

Shanahan quickly filed an appeal and said Marks has been calling him in tears every Tuesday and Thursday —— the days the Appellate Division issues its decisions.

The custody switch takes effect as soon as Marks, 39, returns from a ski trip she'd ironically taken to escape from the stress of losing the girls. "I could hardly breathe," she said of learning the good news. "I was just overwhelmed."

Aylsworth's lawyer didn't return a call for comment.

Goldberg's decision to strip Marks of custody was largely based on the report of a court-

appointed evaluator, who found the mom had made up claims that Aylsworth had touched the children inappropriately.

The Appellate Division judges agreed that Marks likely made up the allegations, which was "abhorrent."

But the judges note that even the evaluator who recommended Marks lose custody conceded she was a "good mother."

The judges also found Aylsworth's claim that he "will parent the children '24/7' rings hollow," because he's often away for work, and the bulk of the kids' time would be spent with Aylsworth's wife or paid caretakers.

One appeals judge, David Saxe, said Goldberg's ruling was more of "a punishment to the mother for her misconduct than an appropriate custody award in the children's best interests

Click Here to read the New York Appellate Court's Decision to give back Bridget Marks custody of her children.

"Familes for Justice" has spearheaded an effort for reform of Matrimonial Court in New York.

Articles and history of the Bridget Marks Case

Families for Justice Web Link

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