An Illinois appeals court recently dismissed a lawsuit filed by the two adult children of Steven A. Milner and Kimberly Garrity, who divorced in 1995. Both children, Steven II and Kathryn, lived with their father, an attorney, in a $1.5 million house. They alleged that their mother caused emotional distress by sending dumb birthday cards or failing to send care packages when they were in college.
In reporting the story the Chicago Tribune portrayed Steven II and Kathryn—represented by their father and two other attorneys—as spoiled brats. Read:
‘Bad mothering’ lawsuit dismissed on ChicagoTribune.com.
I was all set to think that the case was a frivolous lawsuit driven by Steven Miner, the father, to harass the mother. But then I looked at the actual court decision. If the allegations in their claim are true, the picture is far muddier. The mother, Kimberly Garrity, may be disordered. Maybe both parents are disordered. Read:
Steven A. Miner II and Kathryn R. Miner v. Kimberly A. Garrity, on State.Il.Us
The moral of the story: It’s very difficult to know the truth about family life based on media accounts, or even court documents.
Oh Skylar! Your brother!!!!!
I don’t know why, but the spaths in your life irritate the crap out of me. Every time you mention another thing one of them did, I want to throw something at the wall. I must be relating to you in a way I cannot fully access emotionally, so it comes out as anger.
Okay everyone I am out for the night.
Gonna watch True Blood! Yaya. Bye.
Take care
Panther, yes, it does that to many of us, we can RELATE to what they did to each other. LOL There are several people here that I HATE their X’es and want to punch them!
It is EMPATHY when we feel what another is feeling….so your Aspergers can’t be to bad if you are feeling that “connection.” You have empathy!
“He made sure it was frivolous so that it WOULD get thrown out and his own behavior would never be brought before the court.”
Only that he was the acting lawyer who wasted the court’s time with he and his children’s frivolous accusations, thus making himself out to be a fool, a bad father who raised spoiled brats, and an inept lawyer. If he was a sociopath, psychopath, or just an everyday jerk with a plan, he sure didn’t think that one out too well.
This is an interesting thread. I don’t think the court documentssaid that the mother was guilty of breaking the kids arm, only that she changed her story about how it happened three times. Yes, that’s a red-flag, but, it could also be that she felt negligent for something, like she wasn’t watchinghim closely enough. Her husband, possibly an abusive critical domineering spath,might have been one to blame her for the injury. Lying is not good, but in a case like the one I’ve just laidout, it’s understandable. But this is just conjecture.
I agree with Sky about the frivolity of the theissues at hand. I think it’s a sneer in the x wifes face and designed to torment her. How much more fun to watch her agonize in court and spend thousands of dollars to defend herself, if it’s over a Birthday card….it makes it so obvious that he’s got the power and she’s the butt of a joke, so to speak.
What was goingon that a seven yearold boy would tell her he wantednothing more to do with her? And how did this transpire into his expectation of recieving care packages in college, and cash in Birthday cards?
About the car show: My first impression was that the issue was presented in a skewed fashion. The document implied that K had asked her mother to take her to a car show.She said No and took S11, instead. I thought a more likely scenario was that mom plannedto take S11, and K askedif she could go too. Now, I don’t findthat favoritizing, atall. I believe it’s good mothering to find something you can share with each of your kids, individually, so that that individual child feels special. The nextweek you might spend an evening takingthe otherone to see, “cats” or something.
I’m not sure what the so-called abuse was, that was done to S11 by his mom, they were very vaguein that regard.
I’m with you Panther, I think these kids are entitled brats!!
In this case maybe they got the double whammy…nature AND nurture!!!!
I agree 100% with Skylar. The father was the head spath putting together a new game or drama using the kids as tools to get back at the ex-wife.
She the ex may or may not be a spath. Usually the person who brings about the lawsuit has the money & power to do so and it sounds like the father pulling the strings from the background.
Myers,
welcome to LF, sorry about the road that brought you here, it’s a harsh one.
you said, “…thus making himself out to be a fool, a bad father who raised spoiled brats, and an inept lawyer. If he was a sociopath, psychopath, or just an everyday jerk with a plan, he sure didn’t think that one out too well. ”
Ah, but wait. Remember the part where he said that he advised his kids against the lawsuit? So even here, he is covering his spathy butt. If anyone asks WHY would he go along with it, he would just say, “I told them not to…” (reminds me of Oxy’s son C)
This is how they plan their escape routes. My spath had a similar one. He would explain that it was all a joke. And who can get mad at a cute little prank? Only someone with no sense of humor. right?
He would plant evidence to PROVE that it was a joke. But the evidence could only be found where he knew where to look for it, if it was needed in the end. They suck.
Know one spath and you know them all.
BTW, all the behavior that is attributed to the mother, is heresay – we know nothing about that truth. But what little we can glean about the father, are facts: 1. He is on a team of lawyers that brought the lawsuit for his kids and 2. He says he told them not to do it.
When words contradict the behavior (by admission, not heresay)….spath.
Lastly, the fact that he can do these 2 things and the average human mind simply overlooks it, left confounded in a WTF? moment, rather than an AHA! moment….
’nuff said.
Yeah Skylar, you make a solid case. WTF = GTFO
Remember?
By the way I was just watching Water for Elephants and the moment the star spath came on the show (before he even finished his first few lines) my spath meter went haywire over his character. I was in my room going SPATH SPATH SPATH!
By the end of the movie he tried to strangle his own wife with a tool that he had previously used to beat an elephant. So…I was right. I’m getting good at this.
Just reminded me of our little convo about blurting “spath!” out while watching films.
And YES I love how you point out that they cover their tracks. I HATE THAT because my ex would do this and I’d end up looking nuts every time I tried to do anything to protect myself or stand up for myself.
One thing that I think rings true for those of us who were heavily exposed to spaths happens. We can actually begin to think like spaths and we become experts at playing the game.
This gives us one step up on the competition or the system at large. We can begin to think outside the staus quo and use our brainpower to exceed the general populace.
I often wonder if we evolve into “quasi-spaths” or “spaths-by-proxy!
Spaths by proxy…I love it!