Christian therapist seeking to reunite sons with father accused of abuse sparks controversy

A Christian therapist’s attempt to reunite his sons with their father, who is accused of trying to drown his older brother and sexually abusing his sisters, has stirred controversy in Colorado.

The children’s mother, Rachel Pickrel-Hawkins, accuses the therapist — Christine “Chris” Bassett, a licensed marriage and family therapist with Lighthouse Christian Counseling — of abusing the sons during therapy. And Pickrel-Hawkins is refusing to cooperate with court-ordered therapy, the Denver Gazette reported.

For her opposition to so-called “reunification therapy,” a judge initially sentenced Pickrel-Hawkins to seven weekends in jail for contempt of court. The mother spent two weekends in jail.

But after loud, public outcry, the judge suspended the remainder of her sentence during a hearing Thursday, the Gazette reported, and halted reunification counseling until the father’s criminal case is resolved.

Reunification therapy is designed to restore the relationship between a parent and child who have become estranged, often during divorce proceedings. In many cases, it operates on the theory of parental alienation, which holds that the trusted parent caused the alienation by brainwashing the child.

Most experts say the theory is nonsense. Moreover, research has shown that reunification therapy is harmful to children in families where domestic violence has taken place. An abuser can use the therapy as a weapon to force terrified children into contact, researchers wrote.

After news of Pickrel-Hawkins’ capture broke, lawmakers and dozens of members of the public gathered at the Colorado Supreme Court building to ask the state’s highest court to intervene. A fundraiser for her legal fees raised more than $80,000.

The editor of the Gazette, which broke the news, wrote that the article about the controversy “provoked more outrage than I have ever seen any story arouse.”

On July 29, authorities arrested Hawkins on charges of raping his daughter, persistently sexually harassing that daughter and two adopted daughters, and attempting to drown a son, now an adult. The alleged abuse reportedly spanned nearly two decades.

An attorney for Hawkins did not respond when The Roys Report (TRR) contacted for comment. He has previously denied the charges, which come after a two-year investigation, the Gazette reported. Hawkins, a retired Aurora police officer, is seeking sole custody of his minor sons.

The dispute over the boys’ treatment comes amid a growing investigation into Colorado’s family court system. Previous reporting by ProPublica found that custody evaluators in the state who had been accused of domestic violence were still advising courts in cases involving alleged domestic violence and child abuse.

Following ProPublica’s revelations, the state has banned courts from ordering “reunification camps,” in which the estranged parent and child are separated for weeks at a time and the child is not allowed to contact the trusted parent.

The legislators behind that law blamed the courts for failing to reform and enforce the ban, the Gazette’s editor wrote. And the controversial theory of parental alienation still permeates Colorado family court cases.

According to the Gazette’s reporting, Hawkins’ attorney has attempted to discredit Pickrel-Hawkins in court documents, calling her “highly manipulative” and saying the allegations are without evidence.

That’s despite earlier findings by the county’s child protection agency, which reportedly confirmed that Hawkins had sexually abused the daughter and physically abused the son.

Meanwhile, Pickrel-Hawkins has alleged that the two boys suffer from “severe anxiety” and worsened PTSD symptoms following therapy sessions with Bassett, the Gazette reported.

An attorney has filed a complaint with Child Protective Services against Bassett, alleging abuse and coercive control, the Gazette reported. A representative from the Larimer County Department of Human Services, which handles child welfare complaints, said TRR that the department could neither confirm nor deny the allegations.

Attorneys for Pickrel-Hawkins did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story. Nor did Bassett’s office.

Mother accuses Bassett of abuse

In interviews with the Gazette, Pickrel-Hawkins claims Bassett’s methods are abusive and misguided.

Pickrel-Hawkins said she told Bassett about the child molestation and child abuse charges against Hawkins. But that same day, Bassett told one of the boys that he needed to forgive his father, Pickrel-Hawkins told the Gazette.

The mother also reported that one of the two boys was found curled up in a fetal position on the floor in Bassett’s office during a session on June 25, four days before their father’s arrest. Bassett allegedly told the boy’s mother to stop discussing what was happening to the boy.

The child protection complaint alleges that Bassett roughly grabbed and squeezed one boy’s arm and withheld water from the boys until they gave water to Hawkins, who was also present at the session. The complaint also alleges that Bassett forbade the sons to wear watches to time the sessions.

Bassett has been a member of Focus on the Family’s Christian Counselor Network for many years, a database of licensed counselors who the organization believes are “Christian therapists who counsel from a biblical perspective.”

Her practice, Lighthouse Christian Counseling, prides itself on helping people “navigate life’s challenges in the context of their faith.” Bassett’s profile states that she attends Vintage City Church, a nondenominational church in the area.

Bassett was disciplined by the Colorado Licensing Commission in 2021 for a therapist ethics violation, records show. Of the 1,929 marriage and family therapists licensed in Colorado, only 42 have filed disciplinary cases, according to a list from the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations.

On Thursday, Pickrel-Hawkins’ attorney also accused Bassett of falsely convincing another mother that her children’s father was a safe co-parent. In that case, the father killed the children, ages 8 and 6, before killing himself in December 2022, the Gazette reported.

The judge reportedly asked Bassett on Thursday if she had ever “misjudged the safety of a parent.” Her response: “I’m sure that probably happened.”

Sarah Einselen is an award-winning writer and editor from Texas.