Mommy Forgotten

by Cyndi
(Los Angeles)

My daughters father and I had a tumultuous relationship. Sad to say, it all ended in violence and with a protection order against my ex. This happened jan 1 2009. He had a choice to stay away according to the order or enroll in a few classes and have visitation rights. He told me (in front of authorities) that I can keep her and F*&( it. He then proceeded to attempt suicide twice.

Since then, hes been on child suport and hasn't paid a penny. I know he works under the table and I know where he lives....even giving this information doesnt help the authorities "find him" to enforce the support order. I feel like I should have the grounds now to petition for abandonment. It's been almost 17 months since hes seen her or provided anything at all for our daughter.

They keep wanting to keep him on child support, but at this point I'd rather feel like I can move on with my life. He still has "joint custody" of her and she doesn't even know who she is. She is 2 years old and hasn't seen him since she was 10 months old. I dont like the idea that after all this, he could come and petition visitation or physical custody at any time.