Faces of Family Court Crisis

 

“The evaluator at our refugee camp was absoulutely convinced  we were Bosnian

because our injuries matched those of Bosnian war survivors.

Who had ever heard of American refugees?

Children should not have to run away from America in order to escape child abuse.”  

~ Jennifer Collins

http://vimeo.com/8593689

Wear The Colors Black & Blue So Children Don't Have To ~ Jennifer Collins CA3

 
 
 

Getting Ready to Tell All - My Own Book "WHEN MOMMY LET GO"

SOLD TO THE HIGHEST BIDDER

I know that abusive fathers are creeps. I also have one of those too! Despite the beatings and all the other abuse that is too horrendous to talk about, my furry isn’t directed at him. Yeah… he screwed up. He was abused. Now he’s abusing. What’s new???

The real issue is that there was a deliberate attempt to conspire to conceal the abuse from numerous court officials. WHY???

If my mom retained custody, visitation denied to our abusive father and we were rightfully protected then the money trail would end there. How would the county maintain their funding?

By reversing custody to the very person who was abusing us meant years of Custody Evaluators, Psychological Evaluations, Guardian ad Litems, Visitation Supervisors, etc…. and a guaranteed income for the county for next 10 years.

I didn’t want to believe that I was sold to the highest bidder but it looks like that is the exactly what happened.

~ Jennifer

Those guilty: Judge Michael Davis, Judge Charles Porter, Susan De Vries, Jennier Livingston Rojer, Michelle Millenacker, Don Anderson, David Kleine, Jim Sias, Kathy McEnvoy,  Hennepn County Family Court Services, Minneapolis, Minnesota  

Jennifer Collins Resopnds to Joan Meiers Article "When Abuduction is Liberation"

I love the article When Abduction is Liberation written by Joan Meier. The comments were closed so here's my response:

My father was extremely abusive. “Abusive” meaning he beat me, kicked me, fractured my brothers skull by repeatedly slamming him into a wall, beat our pregnant mother so severely that he put her in the hospital several times during the first month they were married. He testified in court that he broke her nose 3 times and dislocated her shoulder while my brother and I watched in horror. There is no doubt here! These are his very own words! He admitted it under oath and he even told our family priest that he was beating my mother and my brother and asked for help for his “anger problem.”

But something went so terribly wrong in the family court room. The judge didn’t understand why my mother was still so afraid of our father since they had been separated for two years. He admitted that he just didn’t get why our mother was “shaking like a little bird.” He knew our father was abusive. He found it in his order! Yet in open court he looked directly at our young mother and said “It’s about time you get over the abuse!” Then he reversed custody and handed us over to a known abuser. How is this possible? The judge never spoke with me or my brother, yet his decision ruined our lives.

We were ripped out of the arms of our loving mother and handed over to the man who was beating us! To make it even worse we were denied all contact with our mother; no visits, no phone calls, not even letters. We loved our mom so much and suddenly she was just gone. Our inner core was shaken when our father told us that she didn’t want us anymore. We were devastated and we are still haunted and damaged from this trauma. The abuse continued. We told the guardian ad litem and other court officers that our father was still hurting us. We even showed them the bruised, but they covered it up. Eventually we were allowed to have supervised visits with our mother. We begged her to rescue us and after 18 months and 8 days she did just that.

We fled the United States without any identification. During a layover in Amsterdam we were arrested for not having passports. We were put in jail together and at a hearing we were permitted to apply for refugee status. We spent 3 long years in refugee centers and the Immigration Department fought our request. They didn’t want to be inundated with American refugees. During our asylum hearing the tribunal of judges asked to speak with the children. This was the first time a judge ever met with us. They asked us exactly what happened to us in America and they listened to our answers.

We were granted asylum and remained hidden and protected in The Netherlands for 17 years. The FBI found us and when all kidnapping charges against our mother were dismissed, we returned to the United States a little over a year ago. I am saddened to see that the family court system is even worse. I have been contacted by hundreds of children and battered mothers begging for my help. I don’t know how to help them. I realize how lucky we were that a little country like Holland had the nerve to stand up to the United States of America to protect two little kids who weren’t protected in their own country. I will be forever grateful.

~ Jennifer Collins

No Way Out But One - The Documentary About Our Story Already Selling Out on Amazon!

 

My mom kept her last promise:

 

 "I promise someday the world will know what those horrible people did to you!"

 

  The video is already selling out on Amazon!

 

http://www.amazon.com/No-Way-Out-But-One/dp/B00AZFECCM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1364398482&sr=8-1&keywords=no+way+out+but+one

Thousands Of Dallas Men Rally Against Domestic Violence: ‘It’s Our Problem’

FABULOUS!!!! I am fortunate to have some really great guys in my life; my adoptive father in The Netherlands, Ben Atherton-Zeman, Barry Goldstein, Barry Nolan, Alan Rosenfeld, Lundy Bancroft and of course my brother Zachary Collins. Now I'd like to add Dale Hansen and these guys to my list! Thank you so much for breaking the 'Gender partisan'! 

When I was a kid my father broke my mother’s nose 3 times (He testified to this under oath.) and dislocated her shoulder in front of me and my brother (Again, he admitted this in court.) but the judge found that the abuse to our mother was ...irrelevant pertaining to us kids.

 

He determined that her fear of our father was causing ‘parental alienation’ so he reversed custody to our abusive father. Needless to say our father beat us as well! Eventually our mom ‘kidnapped’ us back, and we fled the country.

 

We were granted asylum in The Netherlands and hid there for 17 years. After the FBI found us we recently returned to the USA.

 

Now hundreds of abused mothers and children are begging me to help them but I don’t’ know how. Sometimes it is discouraging, especially when I receive threats from certain father's rights groups saying that I should be "raped to death" to shut me up.

 

This story restores my faith in “Man Kind” and “Kind Men”! Thank you so much!

 

Jennifer Collins,

Executive Director

Courageous Kids Network

 

http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/03/23/thousands-of-dallas-men-rally-against-domestic-violence-its-our-problem/#comment-842795372

Robin Karr, Another "Holly Collins" Story - But Sadly This Mother Followed The Law!

This was also our story until our mom 'kidnap' us, ran away, fled the USA and received asylum in Europe. (There are so many eerie similarities: The mom looks a lot like my mom, the kids even look like me and my brother. There are false claims of PAS, bogus mental illness accusations to cover up abuse, etc….) Robin Karr
http://www.examiner.com/article/15-years-later-a-mother-s-battle-with-parental-alienation

Now I understand what my mom was going through when the judge reversed custody to our abusive father.

http://www.examiner.com/article/robin-karr-a-great-story-of-courage-and-survival

Holly Collins' Letter to Her Children, the Night Before she went Underground. (June 29 1994)

 

My Dearest Zachary, Jennifer & Christopher, 

I pray to God that tomorrow I shall have you in my arms again. This is our last painful night without each other. I promise to protect you with my life! I have so many regrets and apologies, but you have heard them so many times. Tomorrow is a new start. No longer a victim. I am strong. I am going to succeed. We are going  to be happy. We are going to be safe. We are going to be together. I love you! Love Mommy

Zachary Collins and Jennifer Collins are Joining Forces to Speak up for Abused Children!

After 19 years on the run (to protect her kids from abuse)  Holly Collins’ son Zachary Collins is

moving back to the USA! Lots of emotions! He's Alive. He's Safe. He's Happy.

And.... He's Coming Home! CONGRATULATIONS!

Holly Collins' Children Will Be Heard!

Reel women

Robin Young of WBUR’s “Here and Now’’ will moderate a panel after the screening of “No Way Out But One,’’ a documentary by filmmaker and Boston University professor Garland Waller. The free screening and panel take place Wednesday at 6 p.m. at BU’s College of Communication auditorium at 640 Commonwealth Ave. “No Way Out But One’’ is about Holly Collins, an American woman who flees a life of abuse and goes on the run with her children. She becomes an international fugitive, wanted by the FBI, and the first American to be granted asylum by the Dutch government. Panelists include codirectors Waller and Barry Nolan, Holly Collins, and Eli Newberger of Harvard University and Children’s Hospital.

The screening is part of Women Take the Reel, a festival of films by women presented by Boston University’s Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program and the Graduate Consortium of Women’s Studies.

See www.bu.edu/wgs.


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Wednesday, March 28, 2012

No Way Out But One Screening


NPR's Robin Young hosts the screening of "No Way Out But One", a controversial new documentary that tells the story of Holly Collins, an American woman who kidnapped her own children to save them from a life of abuse. Pursued by the FBI, Holly fled the country and became the first American woman to ever be granted asylum by the government of the Netherlands, due to domestic violence. The film is being presented as part of Women Take the Reel, a Boston-based film festival focused on movies that are all written and/or directed by women. Immediately after the film, Robin will moderate a discussion with the filmmaker Garland Waller; Dr. Eli Newberger of Harvard and Children’s Hospital; and Holly Collins. This event is free and open to the public.


Start Time: 6:00 pm

Ends Time: 10:00 pm

Location: COM 101

Holly Collins' children are no longer silenced thanks to the documentary No Way Out But One

When I was little I used to ask my mom "Why won't the judge meet with us?" and "Why won't he listen to us?" Our young mother, desperate to protect us promised that someday a judge would listen to us. She kept her promise years later in a foreign country when a judicial tribunal in Holland insisted on hearing what my brother and I had to say.

Now again my mother has made good on her promise to have our voices heard with the recent release of an amazing documentary by Garland Waller and Barry Nolan No Way Out But One.

I just want to thank Garland and Barry and most of all I want to thank our Mom!

No Way Out But One - Screening on October 27 2011

SCREENINGS

October 27th, 7pm at MIT
http://www.wifvne.org/

When I was ripped out of the safety of my mother's arms and given to my abusive father my mother made us a carbon copy of her hand. When I was sad I used to hide under my bed at my father's house and place my hand on my mothers hand and long for the day we would be reunited.

Holly Collins Documentary to Premiere in Boston!

First Festival Screening of No Way Out But One to be at MIT

The Courts Called Her Crazy.

The FBI Called Her a Kidnapper.

Her Kids Called Her a Hero!

Screening of Award-Winning Documentary

Boston, MA – Production has just been completed on No Way Out But One, an independent documentary by Garland Waller and Barry Nolan. The film tells the incredible story of Holly Collins, a kidnapper to some and a hero to many. The film also examines the larger issue of the tragic failure of the family court system to achieve its most important mandate, to protect children.

In 1994, Holly Collins was a desperate mother determined to protect her children from abuse at the hands of their father. Believing that she had no other choice, Holly kidnapped her own kids, left everything behind, and went on the run. She became an international fugitive, wanted by the FBI. She became the first American to ever be granted asylum by the Dutch government as a result of domestic violence.

To capture the full story, the happily married team of veteran producers, Garland Waller and Barry Nolan, traveled to the Netherlands, Washington D.C., St. Paul, Minnesota, and Albany, NY. They used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain never before seen FBI files. They gathered extensive medical evidence, court records, and sworn affidavits. They drew on published research and interviewed witnesses, legal experts and doctors.

Rita Smith, the Executive Director of the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence said of the film: "No Way Out But One is a compelling account of exactly why the family court system in the United States needs to be completely overhauled.“

Eileen King of Justice for Children said: “The quiet flame that lights No Way Out But One is Holly Collin's courage and fierce determination to protect her children from the violent abuse they were suffering in their father's home.”

For her work on the film, Executive Producer Garland Waller has already won the 2011 Distinguished Service Award for Excellence in Film and Media from the Institute on Violence Abuse and Trauma. No Way Out But One has been chosen to kick off this year’s Chicks Make Flicks Screening Series for Women in Film and Video / New England sponsored by the MIT Program in Women’s and Gender Studies on the MIT campus on October 27th at 7PM, Room 6-120 of Building 6. The screening is free and open to the public.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2038674816/no-way-out-but-one-a-story-of-love-and-justice/posts

Holly Collins Returns to the United States after 17 Years in Exile!

A Final Shoot - A Remarkable Ending

"Last night - taking a break from the nearly non-stop editing - Garland Waller supervised the final shoot for No Way Out But One. And she had the chance to share a truly remarkable moment with Holly Collins, the subject of her film.

Just over 17 years after Holly Collins grabbed her children and fled the country to save them from a life of abuse - Holly came home to America.

Holly and her four young Dutch children arrived at Boston Logan Airport just before sunset. Her older children - the ones she saved from a life of abuse - will join her shortly. They will settle in a small little house that is all their own and write new chapters in what has already been an inspiring story.

The film will have its premier at the 16th annual International Conference on Violence Abuse and Trauma in San Diego on September 11th. To all those whose generosity, support, and kindness have helped make this film possible - you are our heroes. And we just can't thank you enough."

~Barry Nolan

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2038674816/no-way-out-but-one-a-story-of-love-and-justice/posts

Help Holly Collins and her children return home to the USA

American family in exile desires to return home.

Holly Collins fled from the United States with her 3 young children to protect them from abuse and the injustice of the American family court system.

Holly and her children are the first known Americans citizens to receive asylum in another country. They lived in secrecy for 14 years until they were discovered by the FBI in 2007. In 2008 all criminal kidnapping charges against Holly were dismissed. Holly pled guilty to one count of contempt of court to which she replied “I admit to having contempt for the court which failed to protect my children.”

In March 2011 Holly Collins youngest American born child will be turning 18 years old! When he graduates from high school in June 2011 Holly and her children will return home to Marblehead Massachusetts.

Donations can be made out to CPPA with "Collins Fund" in the subject line. Checks can be sent to CPPA, POB 15284, Sacramento, CA 95851.

Donation can also be submitted through PayPal hollycollinshomecomingfund@hotmail.com

No Way Out But One goes to Minnesota

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2038674816/no-way-out-but-one-a-story-of-love-and-justice/posts
"Garland and I are on a flight to St. Paul, MN - to do some of the last interviews - including a number of people who were involved in the case 17 years ago - people who were interviewed by the FBI - and people who helped Holly and Jennifer get all the charges dismissed - save one. Contempt of Court."

"Like a trip through Lewis Caroll’s Looking Glass, the Family Court System of Hennepin County Minnesota is a very strange world all unto itself. That is one of the things we discovered again and again on our final round of interviews for NO WAY OUT BUT ONE conducted in Minnesota last week.

Garland and I have just returned from an intense round of interviews where we spoke to a wide variety of people, from protective mom’s to trial witnesses. We tried to speak to the Judge, the Court appointed social worker, the father, the guardian ad litem and others in the Holly Collins case, but they all refused. Overlooking the shores of a peaceful lake, we interviewed attorney Connie Hope about what it was like for protective moms down in the trenches of the family court wars. She told us something that sadly we had heard before. She often advises her clients in the midst of a custody battle, not to raise the issue of domestic violence, even if there is credible supporting medical evidence. In the strange world of family courts, being a victim of domestic violence can somehow work against a mother’s chances of gaining custody of her children. As it did for Holly Collins. What we heard in Minnesota sadly comports what with we have found in the peer reviewed research about problems in the family court system. You can read a good sampling of that research on the NO WAY OUT BUT ONE web site under the “Issue” button.

Connie also told us that the FBI investigation of the Holly Collins case was extraordinarily intense and cast a chill over the community of those who are concerned about the issues of domestic violence and child abuse.

This trip and the long process of writing and editing the feature length version of NO WAY OUT BUT ONE has been made possible by the generous support of the donors you can see here on the Kickstarter site. Thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts."

~Barry Nolan

The FBI files on Holly Collins

We finally obtained the FBI files through our Freedom of Information Act request!

Even more evidence proving that my mother is a hero!

I love you mom!

The Documentary About Holly Collins - No Way Out But One

NO WAY OUT BUT ONE
A TRUE STORY OF FIERCE LOVE AND BLIND JUSTICE

No Way Out But One is a documentary that tells the story of Holly Collins, an American woman who was driven by fear, love and desperation to kidnap her own children and go on the run in order to protect them from a life of abuse. Wanted by the FBI, Holly left behind everything she owned and everyone she knew in an effort to keep her children safe. She became an international fugitive, eventually making it to Amsterdam. After spending 2 years in a refugee camp out in the middle of nowhere, living shoulder to shoulder with other desperate souls fleeing violence torn hell holes around the world, Holly became the first American woman to ever be granted asylum by the Government of the Netherlands, due to domestic violence. Though it focuses on the desperate measures that one woman felt she had to take to protect her children, it also exposes the problems that protective parents and vulnerable children are facing nearly every day in courtrooms across the country.

Garland Waller

No Way Out But One Web Site

THE PROJECT: No Way Out But One is a feature length documentary currently in post-production. It tells the story of an American woman accused of kidnapping her own children, a woman who fled the country and became the first American to be granted asylum by the government of the Netherlands on grounds of domestic violence. The 13-minute version presented here serves as a trailer for the feature and a documentary short. Read more here

THE STORY: In 1994 Holly Collins became an international fugitive when she took her three children and fled the United States to protect them from abuse. The family courts had ignored medical evidence of domestic violence and gave full custody of Holly's children to the man they named as their abuser – her ex-husband and the children's father. Wanted by the FBI, Holly became the first U.S. Citizen to receive asylum from the Netherlands. Read more here.

THE LARGER PICTURE: In No Way Out But One, Holly Collins shares a story that in many respects is like thousands of others. It is estimated that 58,000 children a year are ordered into unsupervised contact with physically or sexually abusive parents following divorce in the United States. Read more here.

IN THE END: Unlike so many of the other tragic stories happening around the country, Holly was able to protect her children and keep them safe. Despite all the harrowing trials, her story ultimately has a happy ending. Even though she and the kids had No Way Out But One.