Costa Rican Women Using Restraining Orders to Swindle Expatriates--'Her word rules, and he goes to jail' (Part I)
September 26th, 2007 by Glenn Sacks, MA for Fathers & FamiliesSigh--no comment needed...
Her word rules, and he goes to jail
Some women swindle with domestic violence law
By Garland M. Baker
Special to A.M. Costa Rica
Women are kicking their mates out of the house in record numbers in Costa Rica. Some of them are enjoying it and using the law designed to protect women against domestic violence to swindle expats [American expatriates]. Many expats come to Costa Rica in search of a relationship and end up shooting themselves in the foot by making bad choices.
Police in Heredia say women are abusing Law 8589 Article 7. The article states, “In order to protect the victims, they will be able to request, from the start of the complaint, the protective measures contemplated in the law against domestic violence, as well as the necessary precautionary measures foreseen in the penal code of procedure.”
Yes, an expat male — or any male in Costa Rica for that matter — can be tossed out of his own home by his wife or girlfriend by merely having a complaint filed against him by the woman if she says he was being abusive. Abusive, as it stands today, can mean anything, including just raising one's voice.
Two weeks ago a woman put her expat boyfriend in jail all night when he raised his voice to her adult son — he is over 18 years of age — for popping bubble pack and painting satanic symbols on the wall. The son, who has tested positive for drugs in the past, became vocally abusive, so the expat called 911. When the police arrived, the girlfriend and her son asked the police to take the expat to jail. Officers did so without question. The woman also said that he struggled with the son and bumped into her.
The man who was jailed is the legal owner of the home.
The girlfriend took a coat to the expat that night because it was very cold in Heredia. Either she had a guilty conscience or she was looking for information. While at the jail, she spoke with the police, and they gave her pointers on what she should file with the judge the next morning in court.
In the morning, the police escorted the tired man from his jail cell to the court. He was lucky, he had a cell phone, and the police let him use it in the patrol car. He called an attorney who met him at court.
The judge told the man that the police would take him to his own house where he could pack two suitcases of essentials but that he had to vacate his home immediately.
A police officer escorted the expat and his attorney into the house. While the retired man gathered his belongings, the police officer told the attorney that throwing men — mostly foreign men — out of their homes in Heredia was their daily routine. He said they use to chase robbers and other bad people, but now they were bored because mostly they just deal with domestic violence cases. The police officer further said: “Women in Costa Rica are taking advantage of this new law. They throw out their boyfriend and then steal their things and leave.”
Other women do not leave. They start court cases against expats for damages or palimony to wear them down to get a payoff. The lucky ones get off with the women taking a few TV sets and the home computers. At least in these cases the expat can move back into his house.
When the girlfriend does not leave the home, expats have a serious problem. They have to file other court cases to get the unwanted tenant out of their house. These processes can take months to years. Usually, domestic violence injunctions — called medidas here — are for six months. Normally, a judge will not rescind a medida, and the frustrating part is that no one takes an accused man seriously. In most cases, the medidas expire before a judge ever makes a decision.
In this case, that of the expat put in jail and thrown out of his house, the man is staying in a hotel. The girlfriend and her son used the words, “my husband” and “my stepdad” in their court complaint. But, in fact, they have no legal relationship with the man. This case looks like it is going to be a long one. The expat feels frustrated and helpless. He may just pack up and leave Costa Rica.
Read the full article here. Thanks to Marc Angelucci for drawing my attention to it.
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September 26th, 2007 at 3:49 am
When will government, press and social service start warning men about such problems? A good question!
In today's society mere-males are not seen as human enough to deserve such warning or such basic human kindness.
September 26th, 2007 at 4:23 am
I keep a file of these artiles and show them to any girlfreind who wonders why
i wont let her move in
September 26th, 2007 at 9:17 am
So, is the swindling of foreigners a good thing or a bad thing? Cuz, based on the graphic of karate-chopping sexy chicks, I can't really tell.
Or maybe it's just me? Cuz, you know, the expats are said to be making "bad choices", so obviously they are to blame for whatever huckster manages to fleece them.
September 26th, 2007 at 11:40 am
The "bad choice" is to risk residing with a woman in a world where, apparently, the U.S. has begun to export its family court business model for the economic exploitation of males.
So much for advising men to try other countries to find a good and peaceful life with a woman.
This makes it clear that this disease can spread rapidly to other countries, and the financial incentives for attorneys and the government quickly evolve to be not so much different from those in the U.S.
Implications: This problem will not be escaped by men in the Western world until they (legally) face down the family courts man-looting operation and completely take away their charter. Family courts in America need to be shut down, permanently -- before they infect too many other innocent countries.
September 26th, 2007 at 11:58 am
I'm glad at least this is being written about. So many articles you find paint women as the victim, most often when their not, it's ridiculous.
I have yet to see a political party that has anything about men's rights, or lack thereof. Apparently, women are the only gender.
For example, the liberal democrat party called for UN action in Sudan, fair enough. But 'especially for women and children'
What have Sudanese men done to deserve exclusion from safety?
The ironic thing is, the refugee communities are almost entirely females with children, because the men are killed in every Janjaweed raid, instantly and without question. But apparently life is much worse for the women who aren't killed?
September 26th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
AP, these tactics are found throughout the western world, America is not special nor the cause.
September 26th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
Callum, I totally agree about Sudan. In Sudan, the women are raped, but allowed to live. The men are wiped out to the last man. But all we hear about are the surviving women and how hard their lives are, not the dead.
September 26th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
So much for Costa Rica being a paradise for the rich, midlife-crisis set, eh?
September 26th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
Yeah, you'd just wish they'd do something about it.
Problem is, since they cocked up Iraq, military action aint happening too soon, even though in this case it's actually necessary.
September 28th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Dang! Foreign women are turning into feminists just like their American sisters. What are you guys going to do now?
October 2nd, 2007 at 9:45 am
The exact same thing happens here all the time. Let's face it, males are quickly being placed in second-class citizen status in much of the world. More and more it seems like the male value is being measured in the number of ways he benefits the female population, instead of his personal merit as an individual.
All you hear on the local and national news is stories of the great strides women are making, the new programs for women or girls only, the studies in women's health--- everything seems to be centered around enhancing and improving the female life.
On the other hand it's just the opposite with the male because most of what you hear about males seems to be very negative. Men are still being blamed for all the woes of the world and all the shortcomings of every female.
October 2nd, 2007 at 12:58 pm
Feminism has provided an opportunity for women to show their true character. The fraud and facade of feminity has been shredded, and the "little ladies" are revealed for what they are -- opportunistic parasites. Well, men, forewarned is forearmed!