Virtue is one of the most important characteristics that a good parent should instill in their children. Furthermore, if a parent lacks virtue, this could affect their child custody battle in court. For example, the virtue and character of Jill Kelley’s twin sister, Natalie Khawam, has come under scrutiny in the woman’s child custody case. In order to combat accusations of being a liar and psychologically unstable, she had then-CIA director David Patraeus write a letter to the court vouching for Khawam, based upon the three years he interacted with her in Florida.
Along with Patraeus, Khawam also had General John Allen write a letter to the court in support of Khawam and attesting to her good character. Both letters were written in mid-September, while both stated their wishes that the court reconsider its previous ruling on Khawam’s custody rights to her 4-year-old son. The court had given full custody of her son to his father due to Khawam’s alleged propensity to lie as well as her psychological instability.
The court also cited the mother being terminated from four employment positions in a row within the first five years after finishing law school. Khawam countered that she was a victim of domestic violence, although the court deemed her accusations as false and unsubstantiated. The woman also recently suffered financial troubles, causing her to file for bankruptcy in April of this year.
When a parent is accused of having bad character in a child custody case, he or she may have to defend against the accusations by presenting evidence proving otherwise. The type of evidence needed may depend upon what accusations the other party puts forth. This may require significant litigation and court procedure, requiring an in depth knowledge of the laws and local court rules in Florida.
