Child Custody and Three Case Studies of Mortality: When Child Custody Litigation Should Involve Risk Assessment

Abstract

This article presents three case studies; two cases involving suicide of a parent during or shortly after custody litigation and one case of an infant death. Common themes of mental illness and substance abuse are identified, together with a legal and child‐protective system that failed to address documented and known risk factors that formed a nexus with the deaths. The importance of collaboration between the legal and mental health systems and in‐house mental health staff is stressed so that evidence‐based risk assessment can occur and reduce the mortality risk. The article concludes with a court's response to proactively identify risk factors and triage at‐risk litigants to appropriate treatment resources in the public and private mental/substance abuse treatment sectors.