Can A Parent Kidnap Their Own Child?
It is possible for a parent to be found guilty of kidnapping their own child. The act is called parental kidnapping. Parental kidnapping, in Nevada, is defined as “willfully detaining, concealing, or removing a child from another person who has lawful custody.” In other words, it is essentially depriving the other parent of their custody rights.
In Nevada, a parent who kidnaps a child is guilty of a Class D felony. Things that generally constitute parental kidnapping, if a custody order exists, are things like the parent moving out of state with the child without the permission of the other parent; or if one parent prevents the other parent from seeing that child by whatever means that they choose to. The only exception to these acts of either moving away from state without permission or preventing the parent from seeing the child is if the parent doing so is acting to protect the child and/or themselves from imminent threat of physical harm. If this is the situation, then you must contact either law enforcement personnel or Child Protective Services within 24 hours of either relocating or taking the child away from the other parent.
Parental kidnapping of a child is a very serious offense. Please be sure that you look to your current court order before making any drastic decisions in regards to withholding your child, so that you don’t have any criminal penalties enforced against you.
If you have concerns regarding a child custody order, do not hesitate to contact our office to discuss your situation at length with our experienced family law attorneys. To schedule a consultation contact our office at (702) 998-1188, info@ljlawlv.com, or schedule a consultation online.
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