Outrage in the Desert: “They Can’t Just Order Anything!”

Arizona Lawmakers Blast Rogue Judges, Demand Family Court Accountability

This article was first published on Substack on April 15, 2025. Read the original here.

By Julie M. Anderson-Holburn

It’s Outrage in the Desert!

Just one day after a landmark livestreamed hearing on April 14, 2025, the Arizona Senate Republican Caucus issued a press release titled “Committee on Family Court Orders Sheds Light on Stories of System Abuse, Devastating Consequences for Families.” The release confirmed what more than 30 individuals came forward to share: Arizona’s family court system is not just failing families — it is actively harming them.

Although over 30 people attended to testify, fewer than a dozen were able to speak within the two-hour window. Recognizing the overwhelming demand for public testimony, lawmakers have scheduled the next hearing for six hours.

“I have serious concerns that the civil rights of children are being violated. We will not allow these voices to go unheard any longer,” said Senator Mark Finchem. “Real change needs to happen to the family courts in Arizona. We can’t take a problem that is this big and give it a simple solution. It was made clear today by those who spoke of their experience—the system is breaking families, and the role of certain court professionals needs to be evaluated.”

The Joint Legislative Ad Hoc Committee on Family Court Orders, chaired by Finchem and Representative Rachel Keshel, appears poised to lead one of the most consequential family court reforms in the nation.

“As a legislator and a mother, I can’t stay silent while Arizona families are being torn apart behind closed courtroom doors,” said Rep. Keshel. “What we heard in the committee was heartbreaking—but not surprising. Parents are being silenced, children are being traumatized, and the people responsible hide behind the bench or a therapy license. We have a duty to expose this abuse and fix a system that no longer serves the best interests of the child.”

One of the most telling moments during the April 14 hearing came when Kristyn Alcott, a court-appointed therapeutic supervisor, testified in defense of court-ordered therapeutic intervention (TI). Alcott stated that judges can “order whatever they would like,” and if a party disagrees, they can appeal. Senator Finchem responded:

“I was appalled when the only person who testified in favor of court-ordered TI, Kristyn Alcott… said in essence, the court can order whatever they would like, that is why we have a court of appeals. A judge cannot order whatever they would like. They are required to uphold the rule of law.”

As someone who has reported extensively on family court systems nationwide, I fully agree with Senator Finchem’s outrage. The notion that parents can simply turn to the appellate court for relief is not only unrealistic—it is dangerously out of touch. Appeals are often unaffordable, legally complex, and can take years to resolve. Meanwhile, children are placed at risk, families are torn apart, and those responsible face little to no accountability.

What Senators Finchem and Keshel are doing—by challenging dangerous assumptions, creating space for survivors to speak, and pledging legislative reform—is exactly what public service should look like. They have opened a forum for truth, healing, and systemic change.

A second hearing is scheduled for May 12, with four more to follow. Lawmakers plan to evaluate the role of court-appointed therapeutic interventions, regulate custody evaluators, and hold judges and quasi-court officers accountable when they violate the law or exploit families.

Arizona’s families can no longer afford to wait for justice—and neither can the rest of the nation.

(For a detailed account of the April 14 hearing and testimonies from survivors, see the full article below and video linked above.)

Outrage in the Desert: What Comes Next

This was the first of five scheduled hearings. The second hearing is set to run six hours on May 12. Proposed legislation, including HB 2256, would regulate court appointees, enforce credentialing standards, cap financial burdens on families, and mandate judicial accountability.

Meanwhile, what are California legislators and authorities doing about this same crisis?

Related coverage from California and Arizona:

• Arizona’s Family Court Crisis: Lawmakers Hear Harrowing Testimony from Children, Parents, and Survivors
• EXCLUSIVE: The Paralegal Pretenders of Orange County — A Hidden Threat in Family Court
• OCDA and Family Court Extort $7,200 Monthly from Protective Mother Tawny Minna Grossman: Court-Sanctioned Financial Abuse
• Orange County’s Justice Meltdown: Judge Carmen Luege’s Unlawful Orders and Due Process Violations
• OCDA Ignores Good Cause Law, Family Court Violates Due Process in Tawny Minna Grossman Case
• Orange County Family Court Scandal: Judge’s Threats Against Mother Over Media Coverage Become Reality
• Judicial Misconduct in OC? Judge’s Threats Against Mother Over Media Coverage Become Reality
• Weaponized Gag Orders: How an OC Judge Is Silencing a Quadriplegic Mother’s Fight for Justice
• OC Judge Kimberly Carasso Threatens Mistrial, Sanctions, Contempt and Striking Expert Witness Testimony After Investigative Article on Nolan Case
• Orange County Judges Block Public and Media from Court Hearings
• Update: “Tar’s Road to Recovery” Mom Bullied by OC Minors’ Counsel in Fight Over Special Needs Trust
• OC Judge’s Orders Lead to Premature Birth: Baby Sahara Fights for Life
• California Judges: The Good, the Bad, and the… San Joaquin County, Part Two
• UPDATE: Arizona Sisters Forcibly Removed from School by Police After Custody Switch Amid Abuse Allegations
• Welcome to Unveiled and Uncensored: Investigating Family Court Corruption