A girl caught in a custody battle said she was raped. The court-appointed investigator didn’t believe her.

Though a Washington state judge said a guardian ad litem failed to do her job, by then, the child’s mother says, the damage had already been done.

By: Kelsey Turner

Outlets: InvestigateWest

Published: May 12, 2026

Words: 3,019

Last Updated: 1 month, 4 weeks ago

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When a 7-year-old girl, caught in the middle of a custody battle, said that her uncle raped her and that her dad didn’t protect her, Angela Rinaldo wasn’t convinced.

Rinaldo, a guardian ad litem appointed by the Thurston County Superior Court to represent the child’s best interests, believed that the girl had been coached to make the allegations. She thought that the child seemed too carefree while talking about the rape, her language too advanced, as …

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