How the Alec & Lydia Act is Rewriting Arizona Family Law

Arizona just passed the biggest family law change in two decades. The Alec and Lydia Act reshapes how family court handles domestic violence, coercive control, and child custody, requiring judges to document specific findings before granting parenting time. Billie Tarascio sits down with Hope Hooton, the child safety advocate behind the law, to talk about what failed, what changed, and what it means for Arizona families facing abuse.

Hope Hooton is a child safety advocate, author, and podcast host, and the founder of The Alec and Lydia Act. In May 2024, her two children, Alec and Lydia, were murdered by their father during court-ordered parenting time, after a family court granted 50/50 unsupervised custody despite documented lethality risk markers. She turned that loss into landmark legislation now making Arizona one of a small number of states to recognize coercive control in custody decisions.

What you will learn:

- How Arizona family court granted unsupervised custody despite an order of protection

- Why judges are now required to write specific findings in temporary orders

- What coercive control is and why it qualifies as a lethality risk

- How domestic violence against a partner signals danger to children

- The lethality indicators that family courts often overlook

- Why Arizona leads the country in family court filicide cases

- How the Alec and Lydia Act differs from Cadence Law

- What changed in the legislation after concerns about false allegations

- Why mental health did not make it into the final bill

- How child safety first laws are reducing harm in other states

- What this law means for victims afraid to leave abusive relationships

Chapters:

 00:00 Introduction to Hope Hooton and Legislative Changes

 03:07 Hope's Personal Experience with Family Court

 05:50 The Impact of Court Decisions on Children

 08:39 The Tragic Outcome and Legislative Response

 11:05 Creating the Alec and Lydia Act

 13:54 Differences Between Alec and Lydia Act and Cadence Law

 16:39 Challenges and Cultural Shifts in Family Court

 19:33 Lethality Risks and Child Safety

 22:13 Future Legislative Goals and Community Support

Connect with Hope Hooton:

Email: hopeinthepain@gmail.com

Socials: Hope In The Pain

Podcast: Voices Against Filicide

Book: There's Still Hope: A Journey of Adversity, Tragedy, and Unshakable Faith (available on Amazon in ebook, softcover, and Audible)