Opinion ID: 793263
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Article 13(b) Exception

Text: 43 If Adan does not prove by a preponderance of the evidence that he had valid custody rights over Arianna in Argentina, that would be the end of the matter; the Convention would not apply and Adan would have no basis on which to seek Arianna's return. If, however, Adan satisfies his burden and establishes that he had custody rights in Argentina, the burden would shift to Avans to prove by clear and convincing evidence that the Article 13(b) exception applies. See Feder, 63 F.3d at 222. Because we conclude that the District Court erred in its analysis of the alleged grave risk of harm to Arianna, we request that it address those deficiencies on remand if it concludes that Adan has satisfied his burden of establishing custody rights.
44 The Convention's Article 13(b) exception is narrowly drawn. See Feder, 63 F.3d at 226. Were a court to give an overly broad construction to its authority to grant exceptions under the Convention, it would frustrate a paramount purpose of that international agreement — namely, to `preserve the status quo and to deter parents from crossing international boundaries in search of a more sympathetic court.' Blondin v. Dubois, 189 F.3d 240, 246 (2d Cir.1999) ( Blondin I ) (quoting Friedrich v. Friedrich, 983 F.2d 1396, 1400 (6th Cir.1993) ( Friedrich I )); see Baxter, 423 F.3d at 367 ([T]he Convention's procedures are designed to restore the status quo prior to any wrongful removal or retention, and to deter parents from engaging in international forum shopping in custody cases.). As the U.S. State Department has explained, an 45 intolerable situation was not intended to encompass return to a home where money is in short supply, or where educational or other opportunities are more limited than in the requested State. An example of an intolerable situation is one in which a custodial parent sexually abuses the child. If the other parent removes or retains the child to safeguard it against further victimization, and the abusive parent then petitions for the child's return under the Convention, the court may deny the petition. Such action would protect the child from being returned to an intolerable situation and subjected to a grave risk of psychological harm. 46 Hague Convention Analysis, 51 Fed.Reg. at 10,510; Baxter, 423 F.3d at 373 (same); see Blondin II, 238 F.3d at 162 (noting that a grave risk of harm encompasses situations in which the child faces a real risk of being hurt, physically or psychologically, as a result of repatriation, but not situations where repatriation might cause inconvenience or hardship, eliminate certain educational or economic opportunities, or not comport with the child's preferences). 47 There is little question that, under this standard, the abuse, sexual and otherwise, that Avans contends Adan has inflicted on Arianna would, if true, qualify as an intolerable situation and grave harm for purposes of Article 13. The question, however, becomes whether Avans produced clear and convincing evidence of these allegations, and whether she established, as she must, that `the court[s] in the country of habitual residence, for whatever reason, may be incapable or unwilling to give the child adequate protection.' Blondin II, 238 F.3d at 162 (quoting Friedrich II, 78 F.3d at 1069) (emphasis omitted). 48 We also note that, in considering the Article 13(b) exception, a court must take into account any ameliorative measures (by the parents and by the authorities of the state having jurisdiction over the question of custody) that can reduce whatever risk might otherwise be associated with a child's repatriation. Blondin I, 189 F.3d at 248. Therefore, even if the court finds that authorities in the country of habitual residence are capable of safeguarding the child, it must still carefully tailor its order to counter whatever risk of harm exists — including returning the child in the custody of the parent who removed the child — thus reducing or eliminating the risk of harm that might otherwise be associated with granting [the] petition. Id. at 249.
49 Although the District Court found Avans more credible than Adan and stated that Adan's demeanor was quite consistent with the manner in which he is portrayed by the respondent [and is] not inconsistent with what she claims he did, the District Court nonetheless found that Avans did not sustain her burden of proof because: (1) her allegations of Adan's actions toward Arianna, even if true, were not evidence of child abuse; (2) she did not provide corroboration of the child abuse, such as medical examinations or police reports from Argentina; and (3) her testimony that Adan had effectively rigged the Argentine judiciary and police against her through bribery was not substantiated. Although we express no opinion on whether the quantum of Avans' evidence proves a grave risk of harm, we do believe the Court abused its discretion in the manner in which it considered her evidence and tailored its order. We therefore direct it to remedy these errors on remand if it concludes Adan has sustained his burden of proving he had and was exercising valid custody rights under Argentine law at the time Arianna was removed. 50 As noted, the District Court Judge made no written findings of fact, and therefore we must extract findings from his oral decision at the hearing. The transcript reveals that the Court did not reject Avans' testimony that she had been repeatedly abused, raped, and threatened with a gun, 6 and the Court did not mention Avans' testimony that Arianna would return from even brief visits with her father with wet hair and would tell her mother that Adan bathed with her, Avans' further testimony and accompanying police report that Adan screamed in the child's ear to force Avans to agree to return to Argentina, or the photograph Adan took of Arianna with her underwear covering her face. The Court did reject portions of Avans' testimony that Adan had abused Arianna, not because it found that the incidents she described did not occur but because: (1) Arianna's statement that her father was putting something hot in her butt c[ould] be anything; (2) Avans' discovery of a pubic hair in Arianna's vagina means nothing because in the absence of medical evidence it could have resulted from the child . . . lying on a dirty bed; and (3) Arianna's statement that her father love[d][her] with his tongue was not significant because parents sometimes lick their children and sometimes the tongue may have gone too far. 51 In our view, the District Court's analysis of Avans' testimony is both incomplete (in that it does not take into account large portions of her testimony that suggest a grave risk of harm to Arianna if she is returned to Argentina) and reflects an overly compartmentalized view of child abuse. Even assuming there is an innocent explanation for each allegation of abuse in isolation, taken together they are far less easily explained. Perhaps it is true that a child's report that her father put his tongue in her mouth is potentially innocent, but when coupled with reports that he also put[] something hot in her butt, took baths with her on several occasions, raped her mother in front of her, took a photograph of her with her underwear covering her face and mailed it to her mother, and that a pubic hair was discovered in the child's vagina, such an incident is far less susceptible to innocent explanation. Just as a finder of fact in state court must analyze the totality of the circumstances in determining the credibility of child abuse allegations in a criminal case, see, e.g., State v. P.H., 178 N.J. 378, 840 A.2d 808, 819-20 (2004), so too is it appropriate that a District Court consider the totality of the circumstances in determining whether alleged abuse occurred in a case brought under the Convention. The District Court's treatment of the child abuse allegations in this case leads us to conclude that it did not consider the totality of the circumstances as we understand that phrase. 7 52 We note a similar problem with the District Court's consideration of Avans' contention that the Argentine courts and authorities were unable or unwilling to protect her. The Court concluded that Avans did not produce sufficient evidence that Argentinian courts are without the skill, the expertise, or the concern to deal with the matter involving these parties. Avans testified about her numerous experiences with Argentine law enforcement when police officers refused to offer her any assistance, and the fact that Adan violated a temporary restraining order issued by an Argentine court after the police refused to enforce it. Adan did not contest these allegations in his testimony, and the District Court did not discount Avans' testimony; rather, the Court found Avans' allegations related to Adan's alleged bribery of judges and police officers to be unsubstantiated. It therefore failed to consider and reject the majority of Avans' proof related to the inaction of Argentine courts and police. Although she bore the burden of setting forth clear and convincing evidence to substantiate her claims under Article 13, the District Court bore the responsibility to evaluate adequately her evidence and explain in a reasoned way why that evidence was unavailing. Its analysis in this case falls short of that standard. 53 If, upon proper consideration of these matters, the District Court concludes that Avans has not satisfied her burden of proving a grave risk of harm to Arianna or that the Argentine authorities will not protect her, it should enter an appropriate order requiring Arianna's return to Argentina. This requires careful tailoring to ameliorate any risk of harm to Arianna that may result from granting the petition and a consideration of alternative arrangements that will safeguard her well-being pending effective action by Argentine authorities. The District Court's June 7, 2005 order was not satisfactory in this regard. It simply stated that Respondent shall return the child to Argentina immediately, but did not state in whose custody she should be returned, or what actions should be taken to assure that she is safe. Indeed, based on the District Court's order, we have no way of knowing what would have happened to Arianna upon her return to Argentina, which is especially troubling given the distressing allegations at issue, many of which the District Court Judge accepted or, at least, did not reject. Although the Convention seeks to facilitate the prompt return of wrongfully removed children to their country of habitual residence, it does not condone deciding that a child is another country's problem and dumping her there, and nor do we. 54 Given the state of the factual record, we instruct the District Court on remand to: (1) make detailed, written findings of fact on all allegations of abuse and harm visited upon Avans and Arianna by Adan, and on the protective efficacy of the Argentine courts and police, evaluating the witnesses' complete testimony and all other evidence in the record; 8 (2) consider the totality of circumstances related to the alleged child abuse, rather than simply considering and explaining away each allegation in isolation; and (3) if the Court decides that Avans has not satisfied her burden of proving a grave risk of harm and the inability of Argentine authorities to protect the child, carefully tailor an order designed to ameliorate, as much as possible, any risk to Arianna's well-being. 9 We reiterate that such analysis is only necessary if the District Court determines that Adan has satisfied his burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence, that he had and was exercising valid custody rights over Arianna at the time she was removed.