244 Days.
7 Conversations.
One Emergency Order.
The case that built the Ex Parte Reform Act — a complete procedural record.
On September 17, 2025, an emergency ex parte order was issued against Aundrae Allison in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. He was not present. He was not notified. He was not heard. What followed was 244 days of separation from his children, 167 consecutive days without a single phone call, 42 days in jail on charges later dismissed for lack of probable cause, and a jurisdictional conflict spanning two states — all tracing back to a single order issued in approximately two hours, based on one party's unverified account.
Note: This record is published for educational and legislative advocacy purposes. All documents are part of the public court record. Minor children's names and identifying information have been redacted. Nothing here constitutes legal advice.
What Happened — The Full Story
On September 17, 2025, an emergency ex parte order was issued against me in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. I was not present. I received no advance notice. I had no opportunity to respond before the order was entered and enforced.
The order was issued in approximately two hours — from the time the complaint was filed to the time the judge signed. It was based entirely on one party's sworn statement. No evidence was independently tested. No adversarial hearing was held. No one asked my side of the story.
"The order was issued before I even knew it existed. By the time I found out, my children were already gone."
On September 18, 2025 — the day after the order was entered — my children were removed from North Carolina and taken to Minnesota. That was the beginning of what became a 244-day separation.
The North Carolina case was dismissed on October 6, 2025 — because the party who filed it failed to appear. I was there. I was ready. The case that had been used to remove my children from our home state was ended by the other party's absence from the very hearing she initiated.
But the dismissal didn't bring my children back. Emergency proceedings had already been filed in Minnesota. A second ex parte order was entered there on September 30. Then another emergency order on December 1, which granted sole temporary custody to the other parent and requested law enforcement assistance to locate me and my children.
On December 4, 2025 — one day before my first scheduled custody hearing in North Carolina — I was arrested. That was the last day I spoke to my children for 167 consecutive days.
"167 days. Not a single phone call. Not a single FaceTime. My sons didn't know where I was or what was happening. I didn't know what they were being told."
On December 22, 2025, the Minnesota court vacated its own December 1 emergency order and found that Minnesota did not have jurisdiction over child custody issues pending further proceedings. The same emergency proceeding that had generated allegations, custody orders, and law enforcement assistance requests was substantially rolled back by the same court.
On February 4, 2026, while appearing in North Carolina court, I was arrested on a Minnesota Governor's Warrant. I was held without bond for 42 days — from February 4 through March 18, 2026. During that time, I could not return home, could not exercise any parenting time, and could not communicate normally with my children.
On February 25, 2026, a North Carolina judge entered findings that North Carolina was the children's home state and that North Carolina had jurisdiction. The court also found that no emergency existed warranting an ex parte custody order — a finding that arrived months after the original emergency order had already caused the separation.
On April 24, 2026, the Minnesota criminal case against me was dismissed for lack of probable cause. No conviction. No guilty plea. No finding of guilt. Dismissed.
"Dismissed for lack of probable cause. But by then, I had already lost 167 days with my children. You cannot get that back."
On May 20, 2026 — 167 days after my last conversation with my sons — a North Carolina court ordered daily communication and summer parenting time. After the hearing, I spoke with my children for approximately one hour. It was the first time I had heard their voices since December 4, 2025.
In approximately 244 days, I spoke to my own children seven times.
This is not a story about one bad outcome in one case. This is a demonstration of what the current system permits — and what the Ex Parte Reform Act is designed to prevent. Higher evidentiary standards before emergency orders. Mandatory jurisdictional review to prevent forum shopping. Rapid adversarial hearings so no parent waits months to be heard. Accountability for false statements in emergency affidavits. And a presumption that parent-child contact continues unless a court makes specific, articulable findings at every hearing that it should not.
If these five reforms had been in place on September 17, 2025, this timeline would have looked completely different.
Complete Procedural Timeline
September 17, 2025 through June 2026 — Case No. 25CV602284-590 (NC) and Court File No. 19HA-FA-25-548 (MN)
How This Case Drove Each Reform Principle
Every principle of the Ex Parte Reform Act maps directly to a specific procedural failure documented in this timeline.
Public Court Record
Key filings across both North Carolina (Case No. 25CV602284-590) and Minnesota (Court File No. 19HA-FA-25-548) proceedings. Available to verified journalists, legislators, and policy researchers upon request.
| Date | Document | Court | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sept. 17, 2025 | Ex Parte Domestic Violence Order of Protection Issued without Father present or heard. Granted temporary custody to Petitioner. | Mecklenburg Co., NC | Dismissed Oct. 6 |
| Sept. 24, 2025 | Order Continuing Hearing and Ex Parte Order Hearing continued. Ex parte order extended pending Minnesota jurisdiction determination. | Mecklenburg Co., NC | Order Extended |
| Sept. 30, 2025 | Minnesota Ex Parte Order for Protection Second ex parte order issued. Minor children listed as protected persons. | Dakota Co., MN | Dismissed Nov. 26 |
| Oct. 6, 2025 | Order of Dismissal — NC DVPO Petitioner failed to appear. Father appeared and moved to dismiss. Granted. | Mecklenburg Co., NC | Dismissed |
| Nov. 26, 2025 | Dismissal With Prejudice — Child-Related OFP Petitioner voluntarily dismissed child-related OFP claims. Dismissed with prejudice by court. | Dakota Co., MN | Dismissed W/ Prejudice |
| Dec. 1, 2025 | Proposed Order for Expedited Relief Entered under same case number as dismissed OFP. Granted sole custody to Petitioner. Requested law enforcement assistance. Later vacated. | Dakota Co., MN | Vacated Dec. 22 |
| Dec. 22, 2025 | Order Vacating December 1 Emergency Order Minnesota court vacated its own Dec. 1 order. Found Minnesota lacked custody jurisdiction pending further proceedings. | Dakota Co., MN | Vacated Dec. 1 Order |
| Feb. 25, 2026 | NC Home State Jurisdiction Findings NC declared home state. NC found to have jurisdiction. Court found no emergency existed. | Mecklenburg Co., NC | NC Jurisdiction Confirmed |
| Apr. 24, 2026 | Order of Dismissal — Minnesota Criminal Case Criminal case dismissed pursuant to lack of probable cause. No conviction. No finding of guilt. | Minnesota | Dismissed — No Probable Cause |
| May 20, 2026 | Custody Order — Daily Communication and Summer Parenting Time Court ordered daily 6:00 PM FaceTime. Summer parenting time granted to Father. First contact in 167 days. | Mecklenburg Co., NC | Contact Ordered |
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