A Benton County father found in contempt for violating a custody agreement that barred him from promoting Mormonism to his two sons lost his appeal at the Arkansas Court of Appeals on Wednesday.
Joel Mark Rownak and Lisa Monette Rownak agreed in their 2005 divorce to raise their children “in the Protestant faith.” The decree bars them from promoting another religion without the other’s consent.
A legally sound ruling.
“Joel Mark Rownak and Lisa Monette Rownak agreed in their 2005 divorce to raise their children “in the Protestant faith.†The decree bars them from promoting another religion without the other’s consent. ” Probably good for an appeal all the way up, but in the courts where I practice, more times than not, a deal is a deal. The father agreed to it.
I find significance in the admission that Mormonism is not a Protestant faith.
I am concerned about the breadth of the ruling. I can see enforcing an agreement that has certain objective factors for “raising the children in the Protestant faith.” For instance having a child baptised in the Mormon Church would be an objective violation of the agreement. However, barring a parent from “promoting” another religion without the consent of the other parent entangles the court in issues of free speech and freedom of religion.