Q: What code sections pertain to a mother taking a child over state lines without the father's permission. The father only
has joint legal custody and the couple was never married. I can not afford an attorney. There is a court hearing set in Juvenile and Domestic court in Chesterfield, Va. The police will not step in as they see it as a civil matter. Please help. I have spent over $15,000 in prior custody suits against this mother. She has jeopardized this child's life on numerous occasions and this is the last straw.
A:
Va. Code § 18.2-49.1. Violation of court order regarding custody and visitation; penalty.
A. Any person who knowingly, wrongfully and intentionally withholds a child from either of a child's parents or other legal guardian in a clear and significant violation of a court order respecting the custody or visitation of such child, provided such child is withheld outside of the Commonwealth, is guilty of a Class 6 felony.
B. Any person who knowingly, wrongfully and intentionally engages in conduct that constitutes a clear and significant violation of a court order respecting the custody or visitation of a child is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor upon conviction of a first offense. Any person who commits a second violation of this section within 12 months of a first conviction is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor, and any person who commits a third violation occurring within 24 months of the first conviction is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
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