The proposed bill amends Arkansas law regarding the presumption of joint custody in cases involving domestic abuse. It specifically changes the terminology from "domestic violence" to "domestic abuse" and establishes that if a party has committed domestic abuse against the other party or a family member, the court must consider the impact of this abuse on the child's best interest, regardless of whether the child was physically harmed or witnessed the abuse. The bill introduces a rebuttable presumption against placing a child in the sole custody of a parent found to have engaged in domestic abuse, shifting the burden to that parent to prove that custody would not endanger the child.

Additionally, the bill outlines that courts must assess the risk of harm to the child when awarding unsupervised parenting time to a parent who has not rebutted the presumption of danger. It mandates that courts provide findings on whether the abusive parent poses an ongoing risk and may impose safety conditions or require completion of a domestic violence intervention program for visitation. These changes aim to enhance the protection of children in custody arrangements where domestic abuse is a factor.

Statutes affected:
HB 1848: 9-13-101(c)