>>17237362
>How does witness protection program work?

unless you've been offered to participate, it's not really realistic to try for that.

best of luck.

>>17237374
Can I save up money and move to a different state without him finding me? I just don't see how it's possible unless my name is changed because he will find me and possibly murder me and take my child with him, with her being subjected as his new abuse victim.

How would I move away without him finding me?

>>17237362
>father is on the birth certificate
>the father never established paternity

Clearly thinks work differently over there than they do here (Australia).

>>17237391
Yes. In USA, a person may sign himself as the father of the child on the birth certificate before even establishing a paternity test.

If he wants custody, the court would require him to establish a paternity test first.

>>17237386
>Can I save up money and move to a different state without him finding me?

it shouldn't be too hard. Quit your job, cancel your recurring bills, pack your shit up and leave. Don't tell anybody where you are going. Ditch your phone and get a new number when you are gone. You can also change your name.

>>17237399
That's crazy. What if a married couple have a baby? Does the father still have to do a paternity test at the hospital?

I mean I guess that's not an empirically bad idea, it's just interesting.

>>17237406
I've just never done this before and don't know where to start. My fear is him going to the authorities to find me and my child's exact location.

How would I ever be able to change my name that fast?

>>17237413
Married couples don't count. If you're married, the child is legally both of the parents. Op's is a wedlock situation. Re-read before commenting.

Go to the cops

>>17237422
I did reread it. I was asking the married question because it was not clear in the OP.

>The father of the child never established paternity and the small child was born out of wedlock.
That doesn't even imply that a married man wouldn't have to do a paternity test, let alone explicitly state it.

>>17237427
Cops won't do anything

I think everyone is misunderstanding the main question;

How can OP escape without him finding her? He will be able to track her whereabouts because wherever she goes (hotel, signs a new lease) her NAME will pop up eventually and he will find her.

She doesn't want this to happen....

>>17237417
>My fear is him going to the authorities to find me and my child's exact location.

The cops shouldn't be able to track you out of state just because he asked. If you leave and he claims you've 'gone missing' they will check out your place and notice you just up and left. Pay for everything in cash and don't talk to anyone about it.

>How would I ever be able to change my name that fast?

I mean, it's pretty easy and quick usually. Should only take an afternoon in court. Look up your state's procedure, or you can do this once you're somewhere safe.

OP what state do you live in? There might be an advice hotline or website for battered women that can give you specific info on what you can and can't do. I want to see you get yourself and your kid away from this guy ASAP, but I would hate to see him pull some bullshit like pressing kidnapping charges because you took the kid across state lines or some other legal technicality shit. If the police in your area aren't helping you out, you need help from someone who knows the local laws enough to keep you from doing something that he can use against you.

>>17237484
I clicked "post" too early. Was gonna finish up by asking if you'd tried googling (your state name) + abuse hotline or domestic violence hotline or something like that. If not, do it and see what comes up.

Stay safe OP. My mom escaped an abusive situation with her first husband (before she married my dad) and she took both my brothers with her when she left. She didn't go across state lines though. But she made it out and you can too, you just have to keep yourself and your kid safe and be smart about this every step of the way.

It can be a very bad idea to just take the kid and try to go into hiding without a custody ruling from a judge that gives you full custody and denies the father visitation.

I'm way too tired to go into detail about this. I would suggest you contact a women's shelter to look for legal assistance both with your custody problem and to get financial aid from the state.

>>17237362
Yes. First stop - battered women's shelter in your town or nearest big city. They'll hide you away while giving you advice on your next steps.

>>17237503
But what if they aren't even married? She said it was her boyfriend who was the kid's dad. Boyfriend means not married. So why would leaving the state be a bad idea then?

>>17237362
1) Get a storage unit. Ideally it should be in a location that is not convenient for either of you to reach (because he will assume that it IS convenient for you).
2) Find a day when you can be certain your boyfriend will be out of the house for the whole day.
3) Hire professional movers. Explain your situation, schedule for the day you found in Step 2, and have them move your stuff directly to the storage unit. They know how to handle abuser-escape cases.
4) Leave a note for your husband, telling him to keep anything you may have left behind. This is important, because it means he cannot use "returning your stuff" as an excuse to find you.
5) Call the police and arrange for a local battered women's shelter to pick you up. The police, and generally ONLY the police, know how to do this (so that the shelters remain difficult for abusers to find).
6) While you are waiting for the pickup, send a quick message to your friends and loved ones: anyone who might come looking for you without being hostile. Give the news to them straight: you'll be all right, but you are escaping an abuser and need to go dark for a while. This will prevent them from contacting him to find out about you, and it also means that even if they do, he hasn't gotten in the first word.
7) After you've sent your message, encrypt your cell phone with a long and complex password (just mash your fingers on the keyboard; you don't want to remember this password). Then reboot the phone, and deliberately enter the wrong password as many times as you can before your ride arrives (1111 works well). If the phone decides it's stolen and wipes itself, you can stop. Leave the phone behind, even if you didn't finish (he'll probably finish the job for you by guessing passwords he knew about).

Stay at the shelter until the trail goes cold. They have resources to help you get set up elsewhere, and start the process of a restraining order. I also urge you to press crinimal charges.

>>17238010
One last thing: if your abuser finds you, he may be able to argue in court that you kidnapped your child. The defense you want to use is called necessity: yes, you took the child, but it was tbe only way to protect her from a known abusive figure in her life, and thus, it was not a crime.

His name is on the birth certificate. He is legally the father. Paternity tests are not required when his name is on the birth certificate. He has every right to seek joint custody. "She doesn't want that" is not a valid reason to deny a father access to his own child. She needs to show evidence of the alleged abuse. She needs to show that denying him access is in the child's best interests (not her own best interests).

>>17237362
How did is his name on the birth certificate with having established paternity? When my daughter was born, her mother and I had to sign an acknowledgement of parentage before my name was put on the birth certificate.

You might just want to check again about whether or not he has established paternity.

I'm in USA

>>17238069
You are correct. If his name is on the certificate, then paternity has been legally established. I think OP is saying a DNA test was never performed, but isn't realising that such a test is not required.

>>17238031
>His name is on the birth certificate. He is legally the father. Paternity tests are not required when his name is on the birth certificate.

And kidnapping the child is custodial interference, white people go to jail for that.

If you pack up the kid and run, not only can he bring you to court for custody of his child, he could make a strong case for SOLE custody.

>>17238297
That's the big reason to keep the police and shelters involved. Create records and trails that will support a necessity defense.

>>17237440
this is a pretty big red flag.
Are you lying to us about something?

>>17237362
>If a mother of a small child is being abused by her boyfriend, who happens to be the father, and is also on the child's birth certificate, can she go into hiding and take the child with her to another state?

Legally? Not without taking legal action first, as in filing assault charges and a restraining order, and filing to be granted full custody. The mother can't legally just up and leave; the other person on the child's birth certificate has parental rights.

>The father of the child never established paternity and the small child was born out of wedlock.

Doesn't matter. His name on the birth certificate. Paternity is assumed unless s proven false.

>Can he ever take her to court to get split custody, which she doesn't want to happen?

Yes, but if she presses abuse charges first, she's very likely to get full custody. That being said, if he wants to see the child, she'll have a bitch of a time trying to prevent it. Again, both parents have rights, even when t one is abusive to the other.

>Will the government help her for the first couple of months or so until she finds a job?

There are women's shelters that will offer housing and help her and her child to stay fed and stay safe while she looks for a job

>Or does this require money being saved up?

She'll want all the extra cash she can get, but leaving a dangerous situation is more important than leaving it 100% prepared.

>How does witness protection program work?

The witness protection program is for those who have witnessed certain crimes by certain perpetrators, and who, in an effort to convict these certain perpetrators, have been asked to testify in court against those individuals. The witness protection program helps ensure the safety of these people who would testify, both during and after the trial. It is unlikely you have witnessed a crime committed by a certain perpetrator that a prosecuting attorney is bent on convicting. Not just any crime by any perpetrator will do.

>>17238697
op wont file charges because shes lying and would risk defamation

I would cry.

>>17238677
Maybe OP's husband is a cop himself?

>>17238779
there are very specific protocols they would have to follow to ensure that didn't become an issue.
she could just go to any liberal media centre, they love to help out cases like these.
also..
>Don't have any good friends and no family to rely on.
Not even her family would by the story, thats really saying something about OPs known character