My adventures in the Chesterfield County Courts

A New Adventure...

2011-09-28T20:34:00.000-07:00

My daughter Jasmine is autistic and I have decided to address some issues that face parents who have children with special needs. A recent one came up in my own life and I have spoken to several parents who have dealt with the same issue. Once I get things rolling I will write about it...

Our Bill is Now a LAW!

2011-09-28T20:03:00.000-07:00

I know this announcement is a little late, but life needed my attention... But yes, you heard right! SB 1141 aka. HB 2361 is now § 19.2-386.32... The bill did not pass as it was written, but what did survive of the initial proposal will hopefully aid in the recovery of a child who has been internationally abducted. The law was effective July 1, 2011. Let's take a look at all the steps that had to be taken for this law to be created!

* 01/12/11 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11 11101219D
* 01/12/11 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
* 01/13/11 Senate: Assigned Courts sub: Civil
* 01/31/11 Senate: Committee substitute printed 11104839D-S1
* 01/31/11 Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (15-Y 0-N)
* 02/01/11 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N)
* 02/02/11 Senate: Read second time
* 02/02/11 Senate: Reading of substitute waived
* 02/02/11 Senate: Committee substitute agreed to 11104839D-S1
* 02/02/11 Senate: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB1141S1
* 02/03/11 Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)
* 02/07/11 House: Placed on Calendar
* 02/07/11 House: Read first time
* 02/07/11 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
* 02/21/11 House: Reported from Courts of Justice (22-Y 0-N)
* 02/23/11 House: Read second time
* 02/24/11 House: Read third time
* 02/24/11 House: Passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
* 02/24/11 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (98-Y 0-N)
* 02/24/11 House: Reconsideration of House passage agreed to by House
* 02/24/11 House: Passed House BLOCK VOTE (99-Y 0-N)
* 02/24/11 House: VOTE: PASSAGE #2 (99-Y 0-N)
* 03/03/11 Senate: Enrolled
* 03/03/11 Senate: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB1141ER)
* 03/03/11 House: Signed by Speaker
* 03/06/11 Senate: Signed by President
* 03/26/11 Senate: Governor's recommendation received by Senate
* 04/05/11 Senate: Placed on Calendar
* 04/06/11 Senate: Senate concurred in Governor's recommendation (40-Y 0-N)
* 04/06/11 House: House concurred in Governor's recommendation (96-Y 0-N)
* 04/06/11 House: VOTE: ADOPTION (96-Y 0-N)
* 04/06/11 Governor: Governor's recommendation adopted
* 04/06/11 Senate: Reenrolled
* 04/06/11 Senate: Reenrolled bill text (SB1141ER2)
* 04/06/11 Senate: Signed by President as reenrolled
* 04/06/11 House: Signed by Speaker as reenrolled
* 04/06/11 House: Enacted, Chapter 852 (effective 7/1/11)
* 04/06/11 Governor: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0852)

Thank you to everyone who supported this bill, with a special thank you to Senator Martin, Senator Quayle, and Delegate McClellan.

$29.95 +Tax

2011-03-27T12:32:00.001-07:00

Today I say farewell to my twenties and hello to the thirties. I came across this witty little piece written by Andy Rooney about turning thirty. It's comical, especially the ending and so I thought I'd share it with you! Enjoy!

Turning 30
by Andy Rooney

As I grow in age, I value women who are over 30 most of all. Here are just a few reasons why:

A woman over 30 will never wake you in the middle of the night to ask, "What are you thinking?". She doesn't care what you think.

If a woman over 30 doesn't want to watch the game, she doesn't sit around whining about it. She does something she wants to do. And, it's usually something more interesting.

A woman over 30 knows herself well enough to be assured in who she is, what she is, what she wants and from whom. Few women past the age of 30 give a damn what you might think about her or what she's doing.

Women over 30 are dignified. They seldom have a screaming match with you at the opera or in the middle of an expensive restaurant. Of course, if you deserve it, they won't hesitate to shoot you, if they think they can get away with it.

A woman over 30 has the self-assurance to introduce you to her women
friends. A younger woman with a man will often ignore even her best friend because she doesn't trust the guy with other women. Women over 30 couldn't care less if you're attracted to her friends because she knows her friends won't betray her.

Once you get past a wrinkle or two, a woman over 30 is far sexier than her younger counterpart.

Older women are forthright and honest. They'll tell you right off if you are a jerk if you are acting like one! You don't ever have to wonder where you stand with her.

Ladies, I apologize. For all those men who say, "Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free." Here's an update for you. Nowadays 80% of women are against marriage, why? Because women realize it's not worth buying an entire Pig, just to get a little sausage.

Still waiting....

2011-03-08T07:57:00.001-08:00

So time ticks on as I still anxiously await our bill to become law. I check LIS a couple times a day, everyday, hoping to see that it has become a law, but it hasn't happened yet. I'm guessing it will happen when I'm having the worst day of my life and I need a pick me up... You have to love those moments! In the meanwhile I'm just continuing to work on my never ending custody case... Continue to keep me in your prayers.

((Jeopardy Theme continues to play))

2011-03-02T08:02:00.000-08:00

I must be the most impatient person in the world! I am anxiously awaiting the signature of Gov. McDonnell on HB2361. I am excited that it has reached it's last hurdle, but I won't be able to rest easy until it jumps over it! In the meantime, I have my paralegal classes to keep me busy and my growing interest in the developments in the Middle East. Currently over 10 countries have ships off Libya's coast and oil and commodity prices are steadily rising. Things aren't looking good.

Anyway, I will keep you posted about the bill. I'm anticipating a signature by the end of the week, but by the look of the list on LIS, Gov. McDonnell has a lot of signing to do!

Our bill has been signed by the Speaker and the President!

2011-02-24T16:09:00.001-08:00

Great news! Our bill has been signed by the President and the Speaker... what does this mean? The next step is for our bill to be placed on Governor McDonnell's desk for his signature and then it will be a law! I am so excited about our bill. It was definitely a learning experience and we didn't get exactly what we asked for, but we did get something that's extremely important and that's the forfeiture of all assets of the abductor in international child abduction cases.

Of course the success of this law will depend on interpretation and whether it can be enforced as intended. But below is the journey our bill has taken to get where it is:

01/12/11 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11 11102905D
01/12/11 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/21/11 House: Assigned Courts sub: #2 Civil
01/26/11 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (9-Y 0-N)
01/31/11 House: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (22-Y 0-N)
01/31/11 House: Committee substitute printed 11104760D-H1
02/02/11 House: Read first time
02/03/11 House: Read second time
02/03/11 House: Committee substitute agreed to 11104760D-H1
02/03/11 House: Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB2361H1
02/04/11 House: Read third time and passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
02/04/11 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (98-Y 0-N)
02/07/11 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed
02/07/11 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
02/09/11 Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments (14-Y 0-N)
02/11/11 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/14/11 Senate: Read third time
02/14/11 Senate: Reading of amendments waived
02/14/11 Senate: Committee amendments agreed to
02/14/11 Senate: Engrossed by Senate as amended
02/14/11 Senate: Passed Senate with amendments (40-Y 0-N)
02/15/11 House: Placed on Calendar
02/16/11 House: Senate amendments agreed to by House (97-Y 0-N)
02/16/11 House: VOTE: ADOPTION (97-Y 0-N)
02/22/11 House: Enrolled
02/22/11 House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2361ER)
02/22/11 House: Signed by Speaker
02/23/11 Senate: Signed by President

One more step and we have a law!

2011-02-15T19:05:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have been MIA for so long but life went and got busy on me :) Anyway, good news, actually GREAT news! It appears that our bill, HB2361 is reaching the finish line and should be signed by Governor McDonnell hopefully next week. This has definitely been a learning experience and a very interesting journey and I've enjoyed every moment of it.

It was empowering to speak before the house especially for someone like myself who still struggles with self confidence. Being in an abusive relationship can destroy a person and at one point "Brandy Charles" was destroyed... But thank God "Brandy Bond" is back and stronger than ever! Speaking of... My transformation is complete! Last week I received my social security card with the name "Brandy Mariah Bond" printed on it. To some that might sound insignificant, but when your stripped of your identity by an abusive spouse, it feels great to rid yourself of the last name attached to the pain and become who you were before the abusive marriage.

Please keep your eye out for the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT... :)

Our bill is on its way!

2011-02-04T17:25:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I posted, but life became busy all of a sudden with classes starting and my ongoing legal battles. My latest battle is trying to make sure that my rights in the discovery process are not violated. It's situations like these that propose the biggest challenge for a pro se litigate. Despite the law being written "for the people", it can most often only be interpreted by attorneys. Unfortunately, when you don't have money, as I don't, all one can do is cross their fingers and interpret it the best they can. But enough about that. OUR BILL IS ON ITS WAY TO BEING PASSED!

SENATE HISTORY:

01/12/11 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11 11101219D
01/12/11 Senate: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/13/11 Senate: Assigned Courts sub: Civil
01/31/11 Senate: Committee substitute printed 11104839D-S1
01/31/11 Senate: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (15-Y 0-N)
02/01/11 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N)
02/02/11 Senate: Read second time
02/02/11 Senate: Reading of substitute waived
02/02/11 Senate: Committee substitute agreed to 11104839D-S1
02/02/11 Senate: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB1141S1
02/03/11 Senate: Read third time and passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)

HOUSE HISTORY:

01/12/11 House: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11 11102905D
01/12/11 House: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice
01/21/11 House: Assigned Courts sub: #2 Civil
01/26/11 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (9-Y 0-N)
01/31/11 House: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute (22-Y 0-N)
01/31/11 House: Committee substitute printed 11104760D-H1
02/02/11 House: Read first time
02/03/11 House: Read second time
02/03/11 House: Committee substitute agreed to 11104760D-H1
02/03/11 House: Engrossed by House - committee substitute HB2361H1
02/04/11 House: Read third time and passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
02/04/11 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (98-Y 0-N)

So as you can see... It's definitely on its way!

Making progress in the General Assembly

2011-01-24T21:26:00.000-08:00

Yesterday evening my partner, Karl Hindle and I testified before the Courts of Justice house committee in regards to our proposed bill HB 2361. It was very intimidating at first and the meeting room had a "courtroom feel" to it. Standing at the podium my left leg began to have a nervous quiver like Thumper from the movie Bambi. However I gained my composure and pressed on.

Karl's speech was right on, as usual. I felt that the committee responded well to us and I feel very optimistic about the fate of our bill. I met Delegate McClellan and as I envisioned, she was very pleasant and I admire her for what she does.

This journey has been very empowering for me. In an email this past October my children's father made the smug comment, " You think you can change laws!" Well with the way things are looking, I might be able to do just that!

A successful day in court :)

2011-01-13T11:38:00.001-08:00

Today a hearing was held to decide who would hold our daughters passports. I requested that the court or a GAL hold the passports but the judge stated that the request was irrelevant since Jasmine and Lily went to India and returned. I expressed my concern further and then decided to throw a "curve ball" requesting that our daughters' father's attorney hold the passports. The judge said that she would grant my request.

I have always been a "black and white" person, all or nothing, but I have come to realize that some is better than nothing. In regard to today's hearing... I didn't get "exactly" what I wanted but I did get what I wanted, for our daughters' passports to be held by someone other than us. I feel that their passports will be safe with our children's father's attorney despite the fact that he represents their father.

All in all today WAS successful. And like so many people, strangers have told me, things will get better! The puzzle pieces are coming together and I love it!

Our proposed bill...

2011-01-10T18:56:00.000-08:00

OUTLINE OF PROPOSED
INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUCTION PREVENTION & RECOVERY BILL

The purpose of the proposed legislation is to deter international child abductions (ICA) and to render practical assistance to left-behind parents in the recovery of abducted children.

The proposed bill is a no-cost to taxpayers measure.
This bill will also place the Commonwealth at the forefront of international child abduction protection developments in the United States.

The bill will also contain measures to recognize the plight of children internationally abducted to the Commonwealth of Virginia from abroad.
The bill will also contain criminal penalties for non-compliance as well as provide for better-educated and experienced judges to deal with matters concerning international child issues, by ensuring adherence to existing federal guidelines (the “risk factors”) and by focusing educational efforts on a select pool of judges to deal with these issues.

PROPOSED MEASURES
1. Creation of a Pool of Judges
Currently, all state, circuit and county judges have jurisdiction over international child matters, notably with the use of the primary international treaty, The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (1980). This has led to inexperienced judges dealing with cases for which they are ill-suited by training, experience and temperament.

Creating a pool of judges who will be automatically assigned to hear international child issues will ensure that current educational resources are focused upon a smaller group of judges who will also be able to gain the appropriate level of experience to handle a frequently complex area of law.

2. Judicial Education
As stated in 1. above, creating a select pool of judges to handle international cases of visitation, custody and abduction will improve judicial outcomes for children and parents, as well as serve to improve the reputation of the Commonwealth as a model for handling such cases.
Educational resources will be more focused and of greater depth and value to those judges assigned or selected to constitute the pool. Particularly, greater awareness will be achieved of the issues and the framework which exists at federal and international level to assist in resolution of international child abduction and retentions, both of children abducted overseas and of children abducted from overseas to the Commonwealth.

3. Mandatory Reporting System
Currently, there is no reporting system or central repository of information on international child abduction at state or federal level. This results in confusion and disagreement on the scale of the problem of international child abduction cases. The US Department of State’s Office of Childrens Issues does not collect or collate statistics which have generic or specific value; many cases fall between the cracks in the current framework as a consequence, indeed many go unreported.
It shall be mandated that international child abductions to and from the Commonwealth be collated by a central repository body.

4. Mandatory Reporting & Law Enforcement
Upon a child not being returned to the jurisdiction, on the following day the left-behind parent shall be allowed to make, and law enforcement compelled to accept, a missing child report.
The missing child report shall be made to State Police.
Upon a child being internationally abducted to the jurisdiction, State Police shall be compelled to accept directly from the overseas left-behind parent a missing child report, or may accept one through foreign law enforcement or other administrative or law enforcement agency.

Reports shall be filed in person, by email, by telephone or by fax or any other communication medium available.

Immediately, State Police shall:
i. Enter the child as a missing child into the federal NCIC;
ii. Notify the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC); and
iii. Notify the State designated repository (see 3. above).

5. Criminal Aspects
Outgoing cases: after a 30-day grace period for the voluntary return of the child, the removal/retention shall be deemed a criminal offense.
Incoming cases: within 30 days of abduction to the Commonwealth of Virginia, the child shall be voluntarily returned. Failure to return shall be a criminal offense. Further removal of the child out of state shall be an additional criminal offense (to tackle state-hopping behavior).

6. Freezing & Liquidating Property & Assets of Abductors and Accomplices
The cost of recovering children is enormous; frequently running to hundreds of thousands of dollars for both resident and alien left-behind parents. The assets of abductors and those who render assistance and succor shall be liable to be immediately frozen upon reporting to State Police. If, after 30 days, the child is not returned, those assets are to be considered forfeit and may be liquidated to provide the left-behind parent with the funds necessary to mount recovery of their child.

Our Drafted Bill

2011-01-10T18:35:00.000-08:00

HAPPY 2011 Everyone! ... At least I hope it will be :)

2011-01-03T17:42:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a splendid New Years Eve. I had a fun-filled evening surrounded by friends! Even though my age is beginning to catch up with me, I managed to have a festive, "dry" celebration! It was a moment of pure bliss saying "good riddance" to 2010 and "HELLO 2011!" 2010 was a burden whose load became more heavy as each month passed. It began on a sad note with the passing of my Grandma Cassell and things were just slowly added until I reached the motherload: October, November, and December.

The glass wasn't 1/2 empty the entire year... Some good things happened... I had my first publishing in a magazine! I did about a 15 photo spread for a nationwide magazine, 100,000 copies printed which was anything but shabby for a dame who only owned her D90 since last May :)

Anyway, I'm just glad to see 2010 gone! Looking back all my troubles began in 2000: car accident, cancer, marriage, divorce... And maybe I'm just having a 10 year streak of bad luck? Anyway, I just have a good feeling about 2011. I'm looking forward to the legal classes I'm taking this semester and I'm no longer going to be navigating the legal system blindfolded. After all, isn't the blindfold for the judge???

Well that's my year in a nutshell/Happy New Year post! I hope that everyone has a safe, happy, and prosperous New Year and I just pray that the Lord lighten my load and let things begin to turn around for me! HAPPY 2011!

Pretrial...

2010-11-29T10:34:00.001-08:00

Today I had my pretrial and I finally have attorney! I have been pro se since 2007 and even though the attorney will be only representing me for my criminal contempt charge, it will be one last thing I have to tend to.

Being the optimistic person I am, I think things will work out in the end. These court hearings are mere puzzles pieces that are slowly being put together and when the time comes that the last piece is put in it's place, I will look at the final product and tell myself, "so that's what it is!"

Patience is necessary for things to fall in place, but unfortunately it is the one thing I have very little of. I'm about instant gratification and am very reactive and will do anything possible to get that instant result. But patience and logic is the key. I'm slowly finding the pieces and now I just need to figure out where they go!

WE HAVE A SPONSOR!!!!

2010-11-23T13:10:00.001-08:00

My friend Karl Hindle and I have created a bill and have been searching for a delegate or senator to sponsor the proposal. After 2 meetings and a couple of emails, we finally have one, Senator Frederick Quayle from Virginia's 13th District. Our proposal is now in the process of being written into a bill and once that happens we'll need to gain some support! But I am so happy that things are falling into place. Not only will the bill help with prevention, but it will help with recovery of children both abducted from and into the state of Virginia, while creating a better reporting system. More to come once things are set in stone!

10:50 departure, November 1st 2010

2010-11-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

It is now 10:51pm and my daughters' flight was to take off at 10:50PM, I can't explain what I'm feeling at the moment... Helpless? I had to fight tooth and nail to get the itinerary from their father as he sent me this email:

date Fri, Oct 29, 2010 at 8:28 PM
subject Fwd:
mailed-by aol.com

hide details Oct 29 (3 days ago)

>

> Brandy, I don't feel comfortable with you coming to the airport. You have been acting very erratically and hostile and in a neurotic way and I don't want you to make the kids nervous before taking off. Plus I asked you if I could see the girls for halloween and you selfishly said no. The girls begged last weekend to come and pick them up on halloween night. I allowed you to spend halloween with them but that day was allocated to me to leave for India, so I demand to see the kids for half an hour of halloween.
> You took the right to deprive me of their graduation and of lilys first day of school.
> In the same way I decided that I won't allow you to the airport with us.
> If you show up I will consider it harassment and call airport police.
> Plus I will pick up the girls on Monday after their school. Right before I leave for the airport with them I will stop by your house so you can say bye. If you don't like it, too bad.

This is who I am up against. He plays the victim often and paints a beautiful picture that makes the world think he's such a caring father who has the best interests of his children in mind.

The following is my response to the email my childrens' father sent on October 29th.

date Sat, Oct 30, 2010 at 10:57 PM
subject Re:
mailed-by gmail.com

hide details Oct 30 (2 days ago)

I haven't won yet...

2010-08-27T21:29:00.000-07:00

Today was my hearing for the appeal I had filed in response to a ruling in juvenile court. Even though I presented what I felt was a strong argument, the judge ruled in my daughters' father's favor and my daughters are to be issued passports and to leave for India on October 28th... The judge did state that he felt there was a slight risk of abduction, however, it was not significant enough to deny the trip or to even post a bond. Of course I object to this ruling and efforts will begin in do time to make arrangements to ensure my daughters safe return. In the meanwhile... I am going to take some much deserved downtime these next few days... recollect my thoughts, come to terms with today's events, and then get back to work. Also, I would like to kick my efforts to gain support for HR 3240 into high gear. I did receive a phone call from the office of congressman Forbe's in Virginia, and they would like to arrange a meeting so that we could discuss HR 3240 and international parental child abduction in general.

Happy Birthday Jazzy!

2010-08-08T17:55:00.000-07:00

August 7th was my oldest daughter, Jasmine's, birthday... Since summer is her father's visitation time, I only got to spend 3 hours with her. But it was better than last year as I did not get to see them for their birthdays. My celebration began with a bouquet of balloons, a giant unicorn balloon with gold, pink, and purple balloons. After that I took her out to eat where the staff sang happy birthday to her and she got eat a special sundae. Lastly I took her on a little boat ride down our historic canal. Even though it wasn't much because of time reasons, she had a great time and I got to spend time with them.

This week I plan to take both of them to a baseball game to see fireworks and then Lily's birthday is the 13th where I plan to take her to get a pedi and manicure. Goodness I love my babies!

Slow day...

2010-07-30T16:39:00.000-07:00

I was up late last night, burning the midnight oil... So many thoughts and ideas running through my head. I did finish and print my Stop International parental Child Abduction cards and I can't wait to start handing them out. Made a few important phone calls regarding my case, but got nowhere. With only 28 days to go until my hearing in the Circuit Court of Chesterfield County, I have A LOT of work ahead of me.

I did receive a letter from a left behind parent who was just recently reunited with his son. He has sent letters to all judges involved in my case and I hope that the letters will make a significant impact on my case. Speaking to left behind parents makes my fear more of a reality. I don't know how they press on day after day.

Luckily, my father's dad is now in the area and I have seen my girls several times this summer, as compared to last summer when he simply dropped them off at his mom's in NY the entire summer. Their father stayed in Alexandria, VA, while my daughters were in NY the entire summer. I did not see them for 2 months...

Next week I will be kicking it into overdrive because I have a very long "to do" list. :)