In both cases cited by the article, the determination by the court was ultimately vindicated. In Rockefeller's case, the court recognized the the danger the man posed. And he did pose a danger. Without even getting into the sordid allegations regarding his past, keep in mind he intentionally hit the social worker with his SUV.

Maybe the reason it takes a hothead to draw attention to the problem is because there isn't a problem. Of course, people leave court after having a contested custody battle feeling like they were wronged. There's really no good way to have a stranger decree how you're going to raise a child. But to infer some sort of bias from the fact that fathers are unsatisfied with custody arrangements is simply reading into something that's not there.

Keep in mind also that 98% of cases are settled by the parties. Even the McGreevy's, who had an incredibly contentious divorce, settled the custody portions of the case. So you're talking about 2% of all contested cases where the judge makes the decision. And generally speaking if you're reaching that point, there's going to be at least one expert report, and possibly as many as three. There's going to be witness testimony. There may be interviews with the children. To come back, based on a 200 word summary of the case (likely provided either by one of the parties, or the lawyer to one of the parties), without reviewing that evidence, and to question the final judgment is somewhat absurd.

It's easy to attack the typical every other weekend arrangement for parenting time. But look at what that schedule actually provides. For a school age child, the kid is spending most of his/her time at school. The child's free time comes mainly on the weekends, which is split between the parents.

Divorce is hard. Child custody disputes are hard. I've worked in the field long enough to recognize how difficult it is for the people tasked with making those decisions. I also can't tell you how often I've seen a judge be criticized (often within the same hour) as being biased toward both mothers and fathers. Most of the people I've worked with have expended every effort to ensure their work is unbiased.