Why won’t the police enforce my custody order?

Many people are surprised to learn that the police often do not enforce custody orders. In many situations, officers will tell the parents that the dispute is a “civil matter” and that they need to return to family court.

Police officers are understandably reluctant to remove a child from one adult and hand the child to another unless a court order clearly directs them to do so: they generally do not want to interpret ambiguous court orders or decide which parent is right.

The clearest type of order is a pick-up order specifically directing law enforcement to take custody of a child and deliver the child to another person. These orders are usually issued after a parent has refused to comply with an earlier custody order. Because the order expressly tells law enforcement what to do, officers are much more likely to carry it out, although they may still try to arrange the transfer in a way that minimizes stress for the child.

The next strongest situation is when the custody order clearly states which parent has custody at a particular time. If an officer can readily determine that one parent is violating the order, the officer may help enforce it. This is especially true when the child can be transferred peacefully without entering a home or using force.

However, if the custody order is unclear, there are multiple orders, or the parent withholding the child gives a reasonable explanation—such as claiming the child is in immediate danger—the officer is unlikely to decide who is legally correct. Instead, the officer will usually say it is a civil matter, which is a way of telling parents to return to court and ask a judge to resolve the dispute.