Bill to Protect Custody for Deployed

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Associated Press | May 17, 2007

U.S. Lawmakers Pass Amendment to Protect Custody Arrangements of Deployed Soldiers

The House passed an amendment Wednesday that aims to prevent Soldiers deployed to war from permanently losing custody of their children because of the absence.

Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, offered the amendment after reading an Associated Press story that revealed that servicemembers with custody of their children before deployment have returned home to see temporary changes become lasting - losing their children because of their duty.

The amendment, which was passed by voice vote as part of a defense policy bill, would reinstate the custody arrangements of a Soldier's children in place before the Soldier left for war. It would provide an exception for temporary orders issued in the best interest of the child.

"This additional protection is needed to provide them peace of mind that the courts will not take away their children because they answered the country's call to service," Turner said.

Related Article: Deployed Troops Battle for Custody

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