Judge Laughs as Violent Convicted Felon’s Lawyer Crashes Abuse Hearing
By Richard Luthmann
A Beloved Deaf Mom Fighting for Her Children
Tacilyn “Taci” Belisle is a deaf single mother of three with over 3 million followers across TikTok, Facebook, and other social media platforms. She first captured hearts by sharing her family’s journey – from her late daughter’s battle with a rare disease to her young son Ryder’s fight with Sanfilippo syndrome, a fatal form of childhood dementia.
As Ryder’s full-time caregiver, Belisle has become an influential advocate, showing the world their daily struggles and hope.
But behind the uplifting videos and posts, her life has spiraled into a nightmare: a coast-to-coast court battle against her ex-husband, Russell G. Belisle, a man with a violent criminal past.
Now, despite her prominence and a new wheelchair-accessible home in Ohio offering life-saving care for Ryder, Taci finds herself scrambling to defend her children’s future in court. She calls it a “family court circus.”
Taci is desperately struggling to find legal representation as her multiple cases spin out of control. Despite being the full-time caregiver of a terminally ill child, she’s being railroaded by Judge Haley W. Sebens, who has ignored both due process and the UCCJEA—the law meant to prevent precisely this kind of jurisdictional chaos.
Meanwhile, her ex-husband’s scumbag attorneys exploit loopholes and judicial bias to drag her through multiple states’ courts, hoping to wear her down.
With no lawyer and limited resources, Taci says she’s “fighting blindfolded in a rigged system that refuses to follow its own rules.”
“Without proper legal representation, I risk losing the ability to fight for Ryder’s medical care, his stability, and my daughters’ safety,” Taci pleads on her fundraising page.
The very system meant to protect families is, she says, failing spectacularly – allowing a convicted felon to deploy legal maneuvers in multiple jurisdictions that threaten her disabled son’s well-being and her daughters’ security.
If this popular, outspoken Mega Influencer mom can be pushed to the brink by the family courts, she warns, what chance do parents without a platform have?
Convicted Kidnapper Exploits the Courts
Taci’s ex-husband is no ordinary “concerned father.” Russell G. Belisle is a convicted felon – he was found guilty of kidnapping a minor and assault with a deadly weapon – with a documented history of violence, even against his own children. In one incident, their young daughter ended up bruised, prompting a police report, a medical exam, and a CPS alert.
“The father is a convicted felon (kidnapping of a minor and assault with a deadly weapon) … [and] has a documented incident of violence against our daughter that led to a police report, a medical examination showing bruising, and a report to Child Protective Services,” Taci recounted in a recent court filing.
Yet none of that stopped Russell from trying to turn the legal tables on the mother of his children.
Earlier this year, Taci followed Washington’s law to the letter: she formally notified Russell of her intent to relocate from Skagit County, WA, to Akron, Ohio, so that Ryder could receive specialized medical care.
By law, Russell had 30 days to object to the move, but he filed nothing – effectively giving silent consent.
Once that period passed, Taci and the kids moved to Ohio in search of better support for Ryder’s complex needs.
But as soon as Taci and the children were settled in their new Ohio home, Russell pounced. He filed a petition in Washington state, demanding full custody, despite having missed his chance to object.
Shockingly, Skagit County Judge Haley W. Sebens went along with it. In a hearing where Taci was only allowed to appear via Zoom, the judge barred her from sharing any evidence of abuse or medical concerns, limiting her to discussing “legal issues” only.
As Taci later described, “The Washington judge… issued a written order changing custody to the father even though I was allowed to appear only by Zoom and was told I could speak only about ‘legal issues,’ not the facts or safety concerns.”
The result of that one-sided proceeding? A man who once admitted to beating a teenage victim and who left his own child with bruises now holds a court order entitling him to take custody of a medically fragile boy and his sisters.
It’s a scenario straight out of a bad dream – or, as Taci calls it, “a family court circus.”
Deaf Mom Mega Influencer Taci Belisle’s Custody Chaos: Washington vs. Ohio
Emboldened by the Washington order, Russell and his legal team opened a new front in Ohio. In an audacious move, he filed a habeas corpus petition in an Ohio court, effectively asking Ohio authorities to seize the children and send them back to him immediately. This desperate gambit flagrantly ignores the law: under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), Washington’s courts still have jurisdiction since the custody case is ongoing there.
Ohio isn’t even the “home state” yet, as the move was so recent.
“The father is now attempting to use this habeas corpus petition in Ohio to force the children returned to him, even though the Washington case still exists and he did not lawfully object to the relocation,” Taci explains in a court filing.
It’s essentially legal loophole abuse – dragging her into yet another courtroom, 500 miles away, to fight for her kids all over again. The stakes could not be higher.
Ryder, now 10, is quadriplegic, deaf, and feeding-tube dependent. He needs round-the-clock care and frequent hospital visits that only their new Ohio setup can provide.
“One of the children suffers from Sanfilippo Syndrome and severe medical disabilities… He receives frequent hospital treatment and specialized care in Ohio that was not available near our home in Washington,” Taci’s motion explains.
In Washington, those resources were two hours away and virtually inaccessible. Russell’s push to uproot Ryder isn’t just cruel – it’s potentially deadly.
Rather than slam the door on this brazen jurisdiction-shopping scheme, the Ohio court has so far hesitated to dismiss it.
That means Taci must wage war on two fronts, scrambling to educate an Ohio judge about complex interstate custody law while appealing for basic common sense: Do not yank a dying child out of his care network to reward a father who ignored the rules.
It’s utter chaos – exactly what the UCCJEA was supposed to prevent.
Judges and Lawyers Behaving Badly
If the multi-state custody battle wasn’t hellish enough, Taci says the Skagit County Superior Court’s corruption has managed to make it worse.
At the August 5, 2025, hearing, fearing for her safety and that of her children, she appeared (remotely) before Haley W. Sebens. Taci requested an emergency protection order against Russell – a convicted kidnapper and proven abuser.
The hearing was supposed to be ex parte—a one-sided session where a victim can speak freely to the court without the abuser or his counsel present.
Washington law RCW 7.105.205 expressly allows judges to issue a temporary protection order “without notice to the respondent” for exactly this reason: so survivors can detail abuse without intimidation.
But what happened in that courtroom would make any domestic violence survivor’s blood run cold. Attorney Richard M. Sybrandy (WSBA #25114), representing Russell, waltzed into the hearing without filing any notice of appearance.
By law, he had no standing to be there.
Yet Judge Sebens didn’t stop him; she inexplicably allowed him to sit in on the confidential proceeding—a blatant violation of the protection order process. What followed was nothing short of disgraceful.
“During the hearing, the attorney and the judge engaged in joking and laughter while I was attempting to present evidence of domestic violence and risk of harm,” Taci recounted in a formal misconduct complaint to the Washington State Bar Association.
The unauthorized attorney’s interruptions shattered the sanctity of the proceeding. In fact, Judge Sebens cut Taci off mid-testimony and summarily denied her request for a temporary protective order, leaving her and the children legally unprotected for nearly two weeks.
We asked Attorney Sybrandy for comment. He did not respond as of press time. Here is what we asked:
From: Richard Luthmann <richard.luthmann@protonmail.com>
Date: On Wednesday, November 12th, 2025 at 8:41 AM
Subject: Questions for Comment – Allegations of Misconduct in the Taci Belisle Family Court Case
To: rsybrandy@fidalgo.net <rsybrandy@fidalgo.net>
CC: Dick LaFontaine <RALafontaine@protonmail.com>, Rick LaRivière <RickLaRiviere@proton.me>, Frankie Pressman <frankiepressman@protonmail.com>, Michael Volpe <mvolpe998@gmail.com>, Modern Thomas Nast <mthomasnast@protonmail.com>, juliea005 <juliea005@proton.me>, Michael Phillips <mikethunderphillips@gmail.com>, Jill Jones-Soderman <director@fcvfc.org>, Paul Boyne <paboyne@gmail.com>Dear Mr. Sybrandy,
We are investigative reporters preparing a report on the Belisle v. Belisle family court proceedings in Skagit County, Washington, focusing on serious concerns raised about judicial conduct, attorney behavior, and potential violations of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA).
You are specifically named in multiple filings and complaints as having appeared without notice at an ex parte protection-order hearing before Judge Haley W. Sebens on August 5, 2025—an appearance that, according to witnesses, was unauthorized under Washington law (RCW 7.105.205).
I’d like to offer you a fair opportunity to comment before publication. Please respond to the following:
Authority to Appear: What legal authority, if any, permitted you to enter a confidential ex parte hearing without filing a notice of appearance or being served with any notice of hearing?
Judicial Impropriety: Did Judge Sebens invite or permit your presence at that hearing? Were any off-record discussions held between you and the judge before or during the proceeding?
Conduct in Court: Multiple sources allege that you and Judge Sebens engaged in laughter or joking while Ms. Belisle attempted to present evidence of domestic violence. Do you deny this occurred?
Client’s Criminal History: Your client, Russell G. Belisle, is a convicted kidnapper and violent felon. Do you believe it was ethical or appropriate to oppose a protection order under those circumstances?
UCCJEA Jurisdiction: Why did you pursue further custody actions in Ohio after the Washington court retained jurisdiction under the UCCJEA? Was this an intentional attempt to forum shop?
Bar Complaint: How do you respond to Ms. Belisle’s formal complaint to the Washington State Bar Association alleging professional misconduct and misrepresentation?
Public Accountability: Given the high public interest in this case—particularly concerning disability rights and the treatment of domestic violence survivors—would you like to issue a public statement defending your actions?
We intend to go to press shortly. If we do not receive your responses by press time, we will incorporate them into a follow-up.
Thank you for your attention to this matter!
Regards,
Richard Luthmann
Writer, Journalist, and Commentator
Tips or Story Ideas:
(239) 631-5957
richard.luthmann@protonmail.com
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Taci has since filed the Bar complaint against Sybrandy for misrepresentation and professional misconduct. She also publicly condemned Judge Sebens’s conduct, saying the judge “mocked the process and enabled intimidation inside her courtroom.”
The scene – an alleged victim pleading for safety while a judge and a lawyer share laughs – is the very picture of a justice system gone rotten.
“If a convicted felon’s lawyer can stroll into an ex parte hearing, joke with a judge, and derail a mother’s plea for protection,” Taci warns, “then what hope does any other woman have?”
In the world of family court, it seems, power protects its own. And in Skagit County, that power wears a robe and carries a law license.
“If It Can Happen to Me, It Can Happen to You.”
Taci Belisle’s story is a terrifying wake-up call about the state of family courts. Here is a mother who did everything right: cared for her special-needs child, followed the law in relocating for legitimate medical reasons, and reached out for help when threatened.
Yet she’s being treated like a villain—forced to defend herself in marathon legal battles while her abuser gains ground. Judges have muted her voice, lawyers have bent rules to corner her, and two states’ courts are now entangled in her ex’s web of litigation.
“The system is not built for single, full-time caregivers of medically complex children,” Taci wrote, as legal fees and stress mounted.
Indeed, she has turned to her followers for support, raising funds just to afford an attorney and stand a fighting chance. Her rallying cry is simple: This should not be allowed to happen.
If a public figure with over a million followers and media attention can face having her disabled son taken away by a man with a kidnapping conviction, what about the countless parents quietly facing similar nightmares? Many are voiceless and vulnerable, ground down by a system that too often rewards the most aggressive litigant rather than the most deserving parent.
Belisle’s fight is far from over – as of this writing, her children remain with her in Ohio under a temporary reprieve, but the court battles rage on. Her story has all the makings of a sensational drama, but for Taci and her kids, it’s heartbreakingly real.
“Every day,” she says, “I’m fighting to give my children a chance at the life they deserve.”
And she’s determined to make sure the world is watching – so that no one else has to endure this travesty of justice in the shadows.
Justice for #Ryder and family! He, his sisters and Mom have been through enough! She has cared for him day and night with no relief. Their father abandoned them for 2 years. What gives him any rights now?