Dr. Shawn McCall
Dr. Shawn McCall has been on our radar for quite some time- as someone deeply entrenched in the “alienation industry.” His online reviews speak volumes and we have spoken to one mother who was charged $65,000 for a report yet it was thrown out - it was not even used by the judge. That is an unconscionable amount of money for any type of custody evaluation let alone one tossed out by a judge.
In the case of Maya and Sebastian Laing, Judge Rebecca Connolly of Santa Cruz County, California scheduled an emergency hearing on October 20, 2022 based on accusations of “alienation” which has been debunked and denounced by every credible organization around the world. Dr. Lynn Steinberg, a self-proclaimed “alienation expert” testified at this hearing while the father’s proposed expert witness (to counter her testimony and to counter the report from Dr. Shawn McCall) was denied.
Father’s Attorney: For the record, Your Honor, I am objecting to both Dr. Steinberg's testimony, as well as the testimony from the transportation company, since again, no notice was given of either witness, and I have not had an opportunity to review any materials from them or to be able to cross-examine them.
THE COURT: Well, you will be able to cross-examine them when they're here on the stand.
Attorney: But I haven't been able to review any material.
THE COURT: Okay. Thank you.
Court transcripts show that Dr. McCall made a “level 3 recommendation,” and we question how much that recommendation cost? The entire premise of the “intervention” recommended by Dr. McCall and the family court professionals centers on the children’s refusal to have a relationship with their mother but on his “menu of proposed options” is to send them to boarding school which would remove them from both parents. How is this in the children’s best interest? If they refuse a relationship with one parent we remove them from both or, we remove them from their preferred parent despite everyone acknowledging the trauma this will cause?
Father’s Attorney in closing arguments:
“I would ask the Court to issue a statement of decision on both the factual and legal grounds under Family Code 3022.3, why the Court felt that there was a need for an emergency hearing without an actually scheduled evidentiary hearing where we could follow procedure, and be able to call witnesses to counter the evidence that Dr. McCall presented. As the Court knows, I wanted to have our expert testify, that was denied, who would be able to indicate what research shows, and indicating another approach that could have been taken, rather than the one proposed by Mom.”
Just hours later, Judge Rebecca Connolly ordered the children to Lynn Steinberg’s 4-day reunification program. Approximately 50 community members, friends, and neighbors gathered at the home where Maya and Sebastian were actively posting videos on Instagram and begging for help. Shortly after their last Instagram message was uploaded, they were violently removed from the home and transported to Steinberg’s program in Los Angeles. Community members filmed this horrific assault and those videos have surfaced and been viewed over 20 million times by people around the world.
I continue to search for something logical in this case, anything that helps me to make sense of what happened to Maya and Sebastian Laing but logic is missing. It all comes down to them making allegations of abuse against their mother - and refusing to have a relationship with her. Their mother lodged allegations of “parental alienation” and the wheels were set in (a predictable) motion.
It’s been over a month and no one has heard from Maya and Sebastian. Maya is set to turn 16-years-old in January - we question why her voice isn’t being heard? We continue to demand #JusticeForMayaAndSebastian
As we continue to look deeper into this case with an emphasis on the professionals involved, we have discovered a lawsuit against Dr. Shawn McCall which was settled out of court, but is deeply disturbing. If this is the type of behavior exhibited by those who are supposed to act in the best interest of children and make recommendations that are in the best interest of children, our family court system is in an extreme state of crisis.
