Mark Stephens didn’t just fail to do the work — he gave up before he even started.

When the court spelled out the path, his attorney warned him clearly: mental health evaluations and domestic violence evaluations were not optional. They were the necessary first steps toward rebuilding trust and proving he was safe to parent. Any father who truly believed he was wrongly accused would have jumped at the chance to clear his name. Instead, Mark refused to start. He decided before the race began that the finish line wasn’t for him.

And yet, he still points his finger everywhere else. Melissa is to blame, of course — always Melissa. His excuse? That fifteen years ago she once voiced a small, cautious concern about how vaccines were administered to children all at once. Somehow, that fleeting worry is the root of every toxic belief system he holds today. He can’t possibly own them himself.

That’s Mark’s pattern in a nutshell: He doesn’t abuse — “YOU abuse!” When confronted, he flips the script, attacks, and evades.

When the GAL interviewed him, he was verbally aggressive.
When asked at Kartini Clinic about eating disorders, his answer was: “I just know you are known for getting kids taken away from their fathers.”
When Dr. Julie O’Toole, the founder of Kartini, asked if he’d read her book Give Food a Chance, Mark smirked and dismissed it: “Yah, I read it. Weird book.” Pressed for an example of what was “weird,” he quickly changed the subject. What he didn’t realize in that moment — and what makes his dismissal even more absurd — is that he was speaking directly to the author herself. He didn’t just insult the book; he revealed that he had no understanding of who he was talking to, no grasp of the expertise in front of him, and no interest in engaging with the knowledge that could have helped his son.
When faced with ARFID, a condition formally recognized in the DSM, he insisted it was “made up by Kartini to boost profits.”

Excuses. Deflection. Aggression. Anything but accountability.

The truth is this: Mark never had any intention of doing the work. He quit before he began, because deep down he knows what those evaluations would reveal. He knows that his refusal tells the real story. And his children, the court, and every professional around him can see it.

Mark, you didn’t lose because of conspiracies. You didn’t lose because of Melissa. You didn’t lose because of doctors, clinics, or court bias.
You lost because you refused to try.