Domestic abuse is often cited as the reason for an Ohio divorce. Those in abusive situations are encouraged to call the police as soon as an incident occurs. For one woman, however, calling the police only made her situation worse as her abuser, her husband, was a police officer. In addition to filing for divorce, she is suing the police department for which he works for $15 million.
The two were married nearly 20 years ago and brought two children into the world. She said she made sacrifices in her own life and career so he could advance in his. Their marriage started to unravel once he became a member of the police union’s board. She claims that amidst all the accusations of violence against herself and her children, members of the police force have rallied around her husband and have done nothing to help her. She never filed any charges against her husband in any instances of abuse.
At one point she was in danger of losing her job when she said she brushed against her husband in passing, and he filed assault charges against her. She is an international flight attendant and was afraid to leave the country because of the pending allegations. Nearly a year ago she went before a judge, requesting an order of protection from her husband. The judge would not grant the request because she did not want the husband’s job to be negatively impacted and simply told the husband to stop drinking at home, which he did for two weeks.
Divorce cases like this can be a nightmare for a partner trying to get out of the marriage. Because there are jobs where employees close ranks in support of one of their own, it can seem nearly impossible to win a case adhering to the letter of the law. A skilled Ohio attorney will work to cut through the barriers and use both the facts and the applicable law when presenting a case in court.
Source: New York Daily News, “NYPD captain’s wife claims he abused her, says dept is ‘blue mob’“, Ellen Moynihan and Thomas Tracy, March 17, 2018
