Court Continues to Deprive 
Children of their Father
Ken Newell Dragged Into Court Again 

By Ed Oliver
December 1, 2000

Ken Newell’s ex-wife dragged him into Dedham Probate Court yesterday in an attempt to secure a permanent restraining order even though he has been cleared of all of the 26 false charges she has lodged against him. The old restraining order expired yesterday.

It was another 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. day in the courthouse for Newell and his attorney, Chester Darling, as they sat around and waited … and waited. The father, whose only fault is a desire to see his children, had to miss a day of work and pay an attorney for an entire day. The wife does not work and receives free legal help from the taxpayers. This is typical of what occurs in all of the courts in the Commonwealth.

The vindictive ex-wife was flanked by a free poverty lawyer from Greater Boston Legal Services. She got more than she bargained for, however, when Judge Robert Langlois declared he was “a big fan of due process” and ordered a trial for the end of December. He also granted attorney Darling a rare opportunity to depose and question the woman who has lodged dozens of frivolous accusations against the beleaguered father in the past two years.

In a futile attempt to block the deposition, her lawyer argued that under the 209A law, discovery should be done only under extraordinary circumstances. She also said discovery should be limited so the defense wouldn’t “rehash” things. The judge reminded her however that she was seeking a permanent restraining order. He said he would not grant that without discovery and Darling would be allowed to question the ex-wife, Catherine Belmosto, about anything concerning the case.

The face of the poverty lawyer visibly fell when the judge asked the ex-wife why she wanted a restraining order. Her first answer was because Newell “stood less than ten feet away” from her in the crowded courthouse hallway yesterday. Belmosto, who, along with the lawyers from Greater Boston Legal Services, is a case study in abuse of the restraining order law, has severe psychiatric problems that the courts have diagnosed but have chosen to ignore. She receives monthly payments from Social Security because of them. 

It got worse. Another alleged threat by Newell offered to the judge was a time she pulled into a mall parking lot in Plymouth at 9 p.m. and allegedly saw Ken Newell’s car there. “He has no reason to be in Plymouth,” she said. In perhaps a prelude of things to come in her upcoming deposition, Belmosto couldn’t keep her story straight in front of the judge when she gave different versions of the parking lot story in the space of a minute.

All the while, Ken Newell sat listening in shock and amazement as his ex-wife conjured up fresh allegations against him without a shred of proof. In the past, she could simply walk out victorious because of the bias in the courts that says women never lie and men are dangerous creatures. Her luck, and that of the lawyers from Boston Legal Services, might have finally run out because of the publicity given to her by Massachusetts News.

Seeking to limit the damage caused every time the ex-wife spoke, the poverty lawyer stood to tell the judge that Newell still showed his animosity by “constantly speaking to radical fringe father’s groups” and to Massachusetts News. The judge did not see a problem with Newell speaking to the media.

According to Newell's account which has been chronicled in previous issues of MassNews, Belmosto abused the restraining order law and court system to avoid psychiatric treatment, label him a batterer, gain custody of the children and receive government support and free legal services for her divorce.

On the way out of court yesterday, Newell expressed his fear that Belmosto would have him arrested on another false charge before the trial at the end of December. Although the judge extended the restraining order for another year yesterday, the evidentiary hearing will determine whether the judge will vacate the order, extend it or make it permanent.