When Real Solutions Can Be No Solutions

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If you’re married with children and have ever considered getting a divorce, one hour spent in San Diego Family Court may cause you to reconsider. Family Court is its own kind of judicial hell, underfunded and overburdened, run by a group of well-intentioned judges with such enormous caseloads the law doesn’t even require them to read all the briefs they receive. The court is rarely subjected to scrutiny of any kind, including that of the media.

The clients are angry and bitter; most come from dysfunctional relationships and families. Many can’t afford a lawyer and wind up representing themselves in a system they don’t understand. At the end of the day, it’s the children who usually lose, with custody battles disintegrating into hate-filled plays for power.

In the midst of this chaos is Real Solutions Center for Children, a private, nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to help those kids. It doesn’t necessarily work out that way. Last year, Real Solutions received nearly $200,000 from the county to help provide court-ordered supervised visitation. When a child’s emotional or physical safety is believed to be at risk, judges require supervised visitation, in which the parent without custody visits his or her children under the watchful eye of a trained supervisor.

Family Court judges recommend Real Solutions Center for supervised visitation more than any other agency. That’s because Real Solutions uses a sliding fee scale—so if you’re poor, you can afford to see your children.

Wesley Mason, the family law supervising judge at the time this article was being researched, says if parents can’t find a mutually acceptable relative to supervise their visits, it’s off to Real Solutions. Judges continue to refer clients there, despite complaints of unsanitary conditions at the Hillcrest office, despite the center’s near-constant teetering on the edge of financial collapse, despite the half-dozen parents who say they intend to file lawsuits against the organization. And despite mounting evidence that Real Solutions’ director and cofounder, Susan Griffin, has lied about her qualifications and credentials.

Qualifying to be a visitation supervisor requires little more than a clean driving record. But Real Solutions’ director is far more than just a supervisor. Griffin directs the organization, writes clinical assessments and gives her professional opinion about the well-being of the children using Real Solutions’ services.

Visit reports submitted to the court by Real Solutions personnel are sometimes the last hope of parents who desperately want to maintain contact with their children. These reports include the actions, words, body language and emotions expressed at the visit. Family Court judges use them—along with testimony, documentation and deliberation—in making decisions about custody and visitation rights.

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