Governor Roy Cooper
North Carolina Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301

 

Dear Governor Cooper,

I am a single mother that has been fighting a child custody battle in North Carolina for three years. During this time, my constitutional rights as a citizen were violated on multiple occasions.
 

“Every person restrained of his liberty is entitled to a remedy to inquire into the lawfulness thereof, and to remove the restraint if unlawful, and that remedy shall not be denied or delayed.” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec. 21) I am writing this letter to request such a remedy.
 

Three years ago, I went to the family court system to obtain (on paper) full physical and legal custody of my daughter. I already had it in practice for 5 years prior, and I was simply requesting that it be made legal with the State of NC, so that I could legally make decisions on her behalf (including protecting her from neglect and emotional abuse at the hands of her father), as well as begin receiving child support. I approached the system with clean hands and a pure heart (no history of child abuse, child endangerment, drug use, no criminal history of any kind) seeking only to do what was in the best interest of my daughter. Within those three years, the family court system has been weaponized against me, and not once done what was in the best interest of my daughter.
 

After sending written correspondence to opposing counsel outlining how my daughter was being neglected and emotionally abused by her client, opposing counsel proceeded to have an order signed by the judge after the correspondence was sent. That order was signed 2 months after the original verbal order was given by the judge, and purposely omitted key elements of the order specifically referenced in my correspondence, which would have caused her client to be in contempt. That same order where the judge’s signature was obtained under false pretenses, was then used to have me held in contempt and incarcerated. It is a blatant conflict of interest to have opposing counsel type orders in a case where the other party is pro se. Additionally, using that order to have a single mother incarcerated for the “crime: of calling out neglect and emotional abuse toward her child, is disgusting and unjust at best, criminal and unconstitutional at worse.
 

“...the ancient mode of trial by jury is one of the best securities of the rights of the people and shall remain sacred and inviolable.” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec) “No person shall be convicted of any crime but by the unanimous verdict of a jury in open court...” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec. 24) I was convicted and incarcerated at the hands of this order obtained under false pretenses. I was not given a trial by jury, or even a trial in front of the judge that wrote the order and could have verified the discrepancies. I spent 30 days in jail. Police were sent to rip my daughter from her dance practice and deliver her to her father. The judge specifically gave instructions to delay my phone call until after my daughter was picked up so that I would not have the opportunity to speak with her prior.
 

“Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishment inflicted.” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec. 27) I was placed in jail as a first time “offender” with no prior criminal history for 30 days with no bail. I was ordered as a single mother to pay nearly $4,000 in attorney fees to opposing counsel. I was told that I could only get out early if I came to an agreement with my accusers, who would only agree to release me if I gave up full custody of my daughter. I’ve gone from having no criminal record, to being labeled as a felon. I work as a contractor and contract agencies do not hire felons for work in my industry. Additionally as part of my business, I am unable to go after government contracts as a felon either. It is undeniable that this is cruel and unusual punishment. In addition to the fact that I have yet to have done anything wrong, I was wrongfully incarcerated for 30 days, labeled as a felon, ordered to pay attorney fees, and ripped from my job, as the only person providing physical, financial, and educational support for my daughter .
 

My determination to fight for what it in the best interest of my daughter, has been weaponized against me and used to empower my neglectful and psychologically unstable ex-husband (medical records have been submitted to the court confirming this). After 3 years of fighting, I’m at over $10,000 in attorney fees, have less custody of my daughter than I started with, and I still have no child support order.

“There shall be no imprisonment for debt in this state, except in cases of fraud.” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec. 28) According to the order created as a result of my conviction, I now have until 9/28/22 to pay $4,000 in attorney fees to opposing counsel. I fear that if I am unable to pay this, I would be wrongfully imprisoned...again.
 

“The Governor, before entering upon the duties of his office, shall, before any Justice of the Supreme Court, take an oath or affirmation that he will support the Constitution and laws of the United States and of the State of North Carolina...” (N.C Const. Article 1 Sec. 4) I have witnessed firsthand what happens when an entire system of government such as the family law system, is empowered to make decisions based on case law alone, that violate constitutional law and the rights of the people. I have watched as my rights as a citizen of NC and the United States of America, have been violated by attorneys and judges. I have brought these injustices to other attorneys, other judges, the NC bar association, and even filed a NC judicial standards complaint. They have all been useless. No one was willing to address any of these injustices.
 

I know that you are busy, and I would have preferred not to have to bother you with this issue, but after being unable to receive justice through any other avenue I am appealing to you. As a citizen of NC and a mother who loves her daughter, I simply cannot tolerate this injustice any longer.
 

I’ve lived in this state my entire life and I’ve always loved it here. But my experience over the past 3 years has taught me that NC is a state that looks the other way as single moms are bullied by unjust judges, who discriminate against them if they are pro se. NC is a state that supports judges who write orders that harm children rather than doing what is in their best interest. NC is a state where it is easy to manipulate those same judges into signing orders that can be used to incarcerate your opponent. NC is a state where both our civil and criminal justice systems are incapable of dispending anything but injustice.
 

I am humbly requesting that you overturn all of this injustice. I request to have my record expunged. I request to have the attorneys and judges involved in this injustice removed and severely reprimanded. Lastly, I request your aid in getting what I came to the family court system for in the first place, full legal and physical custody of my daughter, and child support.
 

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration to this matter.
 

Sincerely,

Amanda Stowe

 

cc: Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett