"We don't want to label kids unnecessarily, but these kids are not reacting in a normal way," says William Bernet, a Vanderbilt University psychiatrist. "We're talking about kids who have a false belief, a little like a delusion, that the other parent is an evil, dangerous person. To me that looks and sounds like a mental disorder."

"I'm just blown away by the lack of information," says Andrew Vachss, a New York lawyer who represents only children, not parents. "I can't imagine a judge approving of a child going any place that isn't monitored."

PHOTO - [Susan Taylor Martin] - Times: [Pamela Hoch] and [Bob Hoch] run Rachel Foundation, a Texas organization that seeks to "reintegrate" families where a parent has been alienated from his or her children. The Hochs don't use the term "parental alienation syndrome" because of the controversy surrounding it. PHOTO - Photo by ALYSSA CWANGER: [Stephanie Carr], center, sued the Hochs after her daughters Kylie, left, and [Kelli Carr] were taken to Rachel House by their father. Kelli said they were not allowed to eat until they said nice things about him. PHOTO - WILLIE J. ALLEN JR. - Times: Hillsborough Circuit Judge [Ralph Stoddard] allowed a parental alienation syndrome advocate to testify in a case, then rejected the testimony. Dr. [Mitchell Kroungold] is a psychologist in Clearwater. Dr. [Richard Gardner] argued that the trauma of the legal system could be worse than pedophilia.