I would go as far as to say divorce by itself should always result in split custody. Other proceedings can take custody away. For example, if both parents are

I would go as far as to say divorce by itself should always result in split custody. Other proceedings can take custody away. For example, if both parents are abusive, they should both run the risk of losing custody, regardless of if they are married or divorced. Divorce by itself is irrelevant. I’m not saying we should leave kids with abusers, I’m saying the process of determine whether one or both of the parents are abusive needs to seperate from divorce. This is already happening. Many district attorneys have begun refusing to prosecute abuse claims - or any marital crime - until divorce cases are over. In some cases the abuse adjudication might happen first. But it shouldn’t happen at the divorce hearing. The idea being to separate the civil divorce from a criminal prosecution. Divorce should always seek to maximize parent rights for both parents. Other proceedings can deal with abuse.