February 10, 2023 by Natalie Cochran
Sexual Assault and Child Abuse – Lone Star Legal Aid Helps Mother Protect Three Children from Sexual Assault
Mariah married her military husband Sean and raised two children together, and one from Sean’s previous relationship beginning when the child was two years-old. This child is now a teenager, and recently, he came out as transgender and said he wanted to go by Calvin. Mariah was working hard to provide Calvin with all the support he needed while transitioning. In confidence, Calvin disclosed to Mariah that his father had been sexually abusing him for years. Shortly after, Mariah and Sean’s daughter Andrea, who was a minor at the time, disclosed her dad was doing the same to her. Mariah immediately reported this information to the police. A warrant was issued for Sean, and a few weeks later, military police arrested him at the request of civilian police.
After his arrest, Mariah realized his paycheck was not being deposited into their bank account, and started to panic because Sean was their sole provider. Mariah called the mortgage company to negotiate some relief until she could receive an income. The mortgage company refused to work with her, because only Sean’s name was on the promissory note. Mariah called Lone Star Legal Aid (LSLA) for help.
Brittany Hightower of our Individual Safety Unit accepted Mariah’s case. Hightower made several calls to the military to get Mariah connected with a program advocate to help her with support and benefits for her and the children. Hightower drafted a power of attorney for Sean to sign to allow her to negotiate with the mortgage company, and also represented Mariah in a divorce from Sean, where she was awarded their home. After the divorce was finalized, Mariah’s children wanted to change their last name to Mariah’s maiden name, so they wouldn’t be connected to Sean. Mariah also wanted a protective order for their youngest child, so Sean wouldn’t contact her ever again. Hightower handled those proceedings for Mariah, and offered to do the same for Calvin. Calvin decided he was not ready to take those actions yet, but knows we are available to him should he decide to in the future.
Mariah and the three children are now safe from Sean, who was subsequently sentenced to 25 years in prison.
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the client(s).
