Las Vegas NowCourt Says Divorced Dads Group Too Anti-Woman

Court Says Divorced Dads Group Too Anti-Woman

(Aug. 31) -- An organization formed to help men get through the pain of divorce has been deemed too anti-woman to serve the family court system. The group -- Equal Rights for Divorced Fathers -- has helped thousands of local fathers with divorce and custody battles. But the founder of the group has drawn fire because of his harsh comments about women. Eyewitness News first broke the story in July.

The I-Team obtained undercover video of meetings chaired by Ernest del Casal in which he made numerous disparaging remarks about women in general, about female judges and lawyers in particular, and even made jokes about beating up women when they get out of line. Ernest del Casal, who is a candidate for the Clark County School Board, has for years received referrals form the family courts -- not anymore.

The organization co-founder is very blunt in his weekly meetings and most of his vitriol is saved for women. Whether it's the t-shirts he sells to raise funds or the jokes he tells about battered women. His opinion of women's organizations isn't too high either. And in front of lawyers and judicial candidates, he speaks of some certain female judges. "She's a mean-spirited lesbian that doesn't like me," del Casal has said.

Del Casal makes no apologies for his remarks. He says they help to break the ice with the dozens of divorced dads who come to him for help each week. Del Casal figures he's helped tens of thousands of dads get through their divorces. And judging from the many calls the I-Team's stories generated that might be a conservative estimate. But when news of the I-Team's undercover videotapes filtered back to the family county system, court administrators were taken aback.

During a tape of Face to Face with Jon Ralston, family court officials vowed to reevaluate their relationship with del Casal's organization. For years, the family courts sent men to del Casal for his advice on how to navigate the system.

Family court staff member, Rochelle Reznick now says court administrators have given del Casal the boot, that he will no longer get referrals from the court because of his harsh attitudes about women.

Del Casal has said before that he could care less because he has more business than he can handle. He even sent a thank you note to the I-Team for airing the stories. "You're an investigative reporter. You wanna beat me up that's fine. All it's gonna do is bring more people," del Casal said.

Family court officials are concerned that del Casal's jokes and remarks could lead to violence against women, or at a minimum, lead to more animosity as couples go through their divorces, which, at best, is a tough time for any family.

The I-Team has no doubt that he has helped a lot of dads get through their situations. The question is -- does he have to do it like he's been doing?