Mother jailed for breaching a Parenting Order…

A mother who breached a Parenting Order and took her son on a 3-week road trip has been jailed for 2 ½ months.  A Parenting Order had been in place since March 2019 and had allowed the mother 3 days with her son, followed by 5 days in his father’s care. 

The mother picked up her son in Hamilton as agreed, but when she was due to drop him back to his father, she called and told him that it would not happen.

The woman then went on the run.  In Putaruru, she received a set of stolen number plates.  She was later stopped in Levin, after the public had called police about her erratic driving.  The woman provided false details to police at the time she was pulled over, so was not arrested.

By the time the police had discovered she had given false details she had gone again.

In Wellington, she crashed her car and fled the scene before police arrived.  She then went to the South Island. 

Between Picton and Oamaru she committed three petrol thefts before she was finally arrested.

At the time of her arrest, she had enrolled her son at a local kindergarten without the father’s permission. 

The Judge held that not only did the offending involve a breach of a Parenting Order, but also putting her child in serious danger in a car crash, committing offences while the child was in her custody, and giving false information to police.

This is an extreme case of a breach of a Parenting Order, but shows that the risk of prison or a fine is very real if parents are deliberately breaching a Parenting Order. 

It is very important that you have advice from your lawyer as to what you can and cannot do under a Parenting Order and that you are aware of the consequences if you do not follow the Order.


Leading law firms committed to helping clients cost-effectively will have a range of fixed-priced Initial Consultations to suit most people’s needs in quickly learning what their options are.  At Rainey Collins we have an experienced family law team who can answer your questions and put you on the right track.




Shaun Cousins
Family Lawyer
Wellington