Tug-of-love mother faces assault charge

Diane Jelicich, the woman behind a much-publicised custody battle, is due to face an assault charge in court tomorrow - three days after leaving the country with baby daughter Caitlin.

The charge relates to a domestic incident at Kumeu on December 22. It was withdrawn by police when Mrs Jelicich left the country in January but was re-laid when she returned to fight for the return of her daughter to Wales under under Hague Convention proceedings.

She is scheduled to appear in the Waitakere District Court tomorrow although police are aware she has left the country.

A decision on whether to withdraw the charge or issue a warrant to arrest Mrs Jelicich will be made in court.

Mrs Jelicich left Auckland with Caitlin on Monday, a few hours after a judge ruled that they could return to Wales.

Stephen Jelicich said he did not know his 9-month-old daughter had left the country until after she was gone.

He said legal options were available to prevent Caitlin leaving New Zealand but proceedings were not filed before Mrs Jelicich took a flight to Sydney.

"I've taken a bit of advice and there doesn't seem to be any real prospect ... of being able to get her back to New Zealand so it's a matter of being able to go over there somehow."

Mr Jelicich said he would have to apply through the British courts for access to Caitlin if he went to Wales.

He did not know how long that would take and whether he could stay in Wales for the duration of court proceedings.

He said he was tens of thousands of dollars in debt and would not be entitled to help from the British Government. In a written decision released on Monday, Judge Sarah Fleming found that Caitlin was habitually resident in Wales, where she was born and lived until her parents brought her to New Zealand last October on a family holiday.

Judge Fleming rejected a defence argument by Mr Jelicich that Caitlin could be at risk if she went to Wales.

Mrs Jelicich's mother, Lillian Ellis, was yesterday reported as saying her daughter had phoned her to say friends in Auckland had "put her on the first plane back".

"It's just such a relief. We haven't discussed what happens next with the legal process, were just looking forward to seeing her and Caitlin," she said in The Scotsman.

* Mr Jelicich said documents released by the Family Court about proceedings in the custody case failed to mention a hearing which set off a chain of events that led him to take his daughter into hiding.

Mr Jelicich has provided the Herald with a court document from the hearing, which was not mentioned by the Family Court when it released information about the case.

The hearing was held on December 21 before Judge Tony Fitzgerald to hear an application from Mr Jelicich to prevent Caitlin being removed from the country.

No ruling was given and the judge directed the parties to file further affidavit evidence by January 10. However, a hearing was held three days later, on Christmas Eve, before another judge, at the request of Mrs Jelicich.

Mr Jelicich said he was given 24 hours notice of the hearing and just hours to prepare his evidence, which included details of an alleged assault by Mrs Jelicich in the intervening days. The hearing overturned an order preventing Caitlin from being removed from the country.

Mr Jelicich appealed against the decision and a judge on January 6 declined to interfere with the order.

He went into hiding with Caitlin during the weekend of January 8-9.