State Court: Mandatory Parenting Courses Allowable

By Stephanie Reitz Associated Press

HARTFORD (AP) — A state law requiring Connecticut couples to take parenting education courses as a condition of their divorce cases is constitutional and protects children’s interests, the state Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The high court, in a unanimous ruling, rejected an appeal by Bristol resident Thomas Dutkiewicz stemming from his 2006 divorce.

Dutkiewicz said forcing parents to attend the classes is akin to convicting a person without a trial, since the law does not consider whether a person already is a good parent.

He also said it infringes on constitutional guarantees of freedom of choice in family matters and violates parents’ right to choose what is best for their children.

The Supreme Court upheld a trial court’s decision that the classes achieve “a compelling state interest by aiming to maintain familial harmony through a difficult transition.”

Justices also concluded the classes do not represent any “intrusion on the parent’s decision-making authority” since parents can embrace or ignore the lessons.

State law requires divorcing parents to sign up for the $125 classes if they have children under 18. The six-hour programs are run by family service agencies, counseling programs, and other court-approved entities statewide.

They are required for all parties involved in divorces, dissolving civil unions, annulments, legal separations, and child custody or visitation cases.

Dutkiewicz, a truck driver, filed his appeal after he and his ex-wife were ordered to attend the classes as part of their 2006 divorce. Attendance can be waived if both spouses and a judge agree, as occurred in the Dutkiewicz divorce.

However, he appealed the case to challenge the state law, which he called similar to “getting a sentence without a trial.”

“Like anger management [classes], there should be some evidence or proof that the class would even be needed,” he said Monday. “I’m disappointed, because basically they’re saying they can impose anything without any judicial review.”

Dutkiewicz also is president of Connecticut DCF Watch, an organization he started in 2003 with other parents to monitor state and national child welfare services.

He said Monday that he questions why the law on parenting education classes is so automatic and inflexible.

For example, he said, it does not consider cases in which infant children would be unaware of a divorce; or when a parent can prove they already have the communication skills to help their child through the transition.

“I’m a cancer survivor. I didn’t need the state to tell me how to address that with my children, so why this?” Dutkiewicz said.

The state Judicial Branch brochure given to the participants says the classes “include information about children’s developmental stages, helping children adjust to parent separation.”

They also focus on “cooperative parenting, conflict management and dispute resolution techniques, guidelines for visitation and parent access, and stress reduction for children.”