Almost half of the women murdered in North Carolina and around the country each year lose their lives at the hands of their current or former intimate partners. The dangers faced by adult women in abusive relationships are widely recognized, but the findings of a study published on April 15 in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics suggest that adolescent girls often face the same perils. Relationship problems among teenagers are often dismissed as just a part of growing up, but the study of police reports, medical examiner findings and coroner's records reveal that they often turn deadly.
Study reveals the dangers of adolescent relationships
Joint custody is fast becoming the legal standard
There was a time when family law judges in North Carolina and around the country almost always awarded mothers full custody in divorce cases, but that is no longer true. Shared custody has become far more popular and more common, and judges are now likely to encourage this kind of arrangement. Many courts presume joint legal custody when approaching these issues, and they are generally receptive when petitioned for joint residential or physical custody.
