Tara Raymond can't bear being separated at home from her identical twin sister, Sheena.
In school, they share a classroom and often eat lunch together. But they go home to separate parents every day - Sheena to their mother, Tara to their father.Probate Judge James R. Lawton separated the lively 10-year-olds on Feb. 14 in a temporary custody arrangement. He plans to re-examine the custody ruling at the end of the school year in June, although he said it could happen sooner.
His decision has baffled child-welfare advocates.
"I think the judge is clearly not acting in the best interest of these children," said Jetta Bernier, executive director of the Massachusetts Committee for Children and Youth, a private, nonprofit organization.
She said she hopes the parents will feel pressured to come to an agreement that keeps the girls together. Tara also wants to be reunited with her sister under the same roof.
"I'd like to see it happen today or tomorrow," Tara said earlier this week.
The parents, Dana Raymond and Jeanne Ardizoni, divorced about a year ago. They had been taking two-week turns with the children before the mother filed to change the arrangements.
Raymond, an unemployed cable television and telephone installer who at one time had custody of both girls, wants them back. He says he can provide a good home for them and may seek a motion for reconsideration soon.