Gray v. Shook

329 S.W.3d 186, 2010 WL 4910127
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 13, 2011
Docket13-09-00255-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 329 S.W.3d 186 (Gray v. Shook) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gray v. Shook, 329 S.W.3d 186, 2010 WL 4910127 (Tex. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinions

OPINION

Opinion by

Justice BENAVIDES.

Appellant, David Gray, appeals the trial court’s appointment of appellee, Ann Wood Shook, as sole managing conservator of his daughter, G.W. By one issue, Gray contends that the trial court abused its discretion because (1) Shook did not offer sufficient evidence of harm to overcome the parental presumption; (2) if the parental presumption was overcome, Shook did not establish harm by a preponderance of the evidence; and (3) Shook offered no evidence of any specific acts or omissions by Gray that would significantly impair the physical health or emotional development of G.W. We reverse and remand.

I. BACKGROUND

David Gray and Lucy Wood are the biological parents of G.W., who was born on July 9, 2003. On January 30, 2007, Gray filed a suit affecting the parent-child relationship stating, “The best interest of [G.W.] will be served by the appointment of [Lucy] as joint managing conservator [of G.W.] with the exclusive right to designate the primary residence of the child....” Gray also requested that “appropriate orders be made for access to the child and the allocation of the rights and duties of the conservators.” On January 23, 2008, Ann Wood Shook, G.W.’s maternal grandmother, filed a petition in intervention stating that she “would show that it is in the best interest of [G.W.] that Intervenor and Respondent [Lucy] be appointed joint managing conservators of [G.W.].” Shook further requested that she “be granted the exclusive right to establish the primary legal residence of the child” and that Gray be appointed possessory conservator of G.W. Gray then amended his petition requesting that he be appointed joint managing conservator with the exclusive right to designate the primary residence of G.W. [188]*188On June 30, 2008, a bench trial was held at which Shook, Gray, Lucy, and Cheryl Green testified.

Shook stated that G.W. has lived in her home in Victoria, Texas since she was born and that when Lucy moved out of Shook’s home approximately two years earlier, G.W. continued living with Shook and her husband. Shook testified that she and her husband have been “raising” G.W. for “about a year-and-a-half.” According to Shook, she has filled the role of co-parent with Lucy, and since G.W. was born, Shook and her husband have “taken part in all aspects of raising [G.W.] together” because Lucy “didn’t know how much part [Gray] would be in her life.” Shook testified that G.W. spends more time with her than with Lucy and that presently, she and her husband are primarily responsible for raising G.W. Shook acknowledged, however, that Lucy was still providing care for G.W. and asked that Lucy be appointed joint managing conservator.

Shook stated that it was in G.W.’s best interest for Gray to be appointed possesso-ry conservator and that it would significantly impair G.W.’s physical health if the trial court appointed Gray managing conservator. Shook testified that she wanted to be appointed managing conservator with the right to determine the residence of the child. According to Shook, if she were not appointed managing conservator, it would significantly impair G.W.’s physical health because

[i]f [G.W.] were to be taken away from her residence, the only home she’s ever known, and moved across the country where she has no family, no support system, I feel — and as an educator and with a degree in counseling, I feel that it would be — and her grandmother, I feel that it would be harmful to her because she has a lot of insecurities now.

On cross-examination, Shook stated that Gray “arrived” after G.W.’s birth and that he did not participate during the pregnancy and did not pay for the medical expenses related to G.W’s birth. According to Shook, from the time of G.W.’s birth until the time of trial, Gray had not had contact with G.W. on a monthly basis. Shook stated that Gray has had approximately three to four visits with G.W. per year in the last five years. Shook testified that Gray lived in Houston when G.W. was born; he then moved to New Jersey, then to Denver, Colorado, and then to Seattle, Washington. Shook said that when G.W. was born, Lucy moved into Shook’s home and that for a short time, Gray took an “active role” and visited G.W. at least every other weekend; however, the visits soon became “sporadic.”

Shook testified that G.W. has started pre-school and that G.W. attends gymnastics, dance class, and play groups with her friends. According to Shook, Lucy usually spends the night at Shook’s house and does not take G.W. away for overnight visits because they do not want to “jerk [G.W.] back and forth.” Shook stated that she does not intend to move away from Victoria.

Shook testified that Gray did not acknowledge G.W. as his child while Lucy was pregnant, but after G.W. was born, a paternity test was performed. Shook stated that when Gray was transferred to New Jersey, he did not visit G.W. “real often” and that during that time, G.W. bonded with Shook and Lucy; Shook explained that bonding means “creating a safe place — a place in the relationship where a child feels safe, unquestionably taken care of.” Shook did not believe that G.W. bonded with Gray during the first year of her life. She stated that after approximately two years in New Jersey, Gray moved to Denver; during that time, he visited [189]*189G.W. two to three times per year. According to Shook, while Gray has lived in Seattle, he has visited G.W. three to four times per year and that in the last year, Gray had seen G.W. “[a] little more regularly.” When asked, “And if you were to define her world of comfort, who are the people that are involved in her world of comfort right now,” Shook replied, “My husband, myselfi,] ... her mother[,] and her [maternal] aunt and her [maternal] uncle.” Shook claimed that Gray had not contacted G.W. by telephone on a regular basis and that to her knowledge, Gray had only called G.W. once since she was four years old. When asked what the impact on G.W. would be if she were removed from Shook’s home and moved to Seattle, Shook stated:

It would be devastating at this point in her life. Her world as a five-year-old revolves around her safety and her security. And she already worries and obsesses over things because of the insecurity of her dad in and out of her life. The only thing constant in her life since birth has been my husband and I and her mother has been there as a presence.

Shook stated that her “position is [Gray] should see [G.W.] more often, that he needs to build a relationship and be a full part of her life, not just visit occasionally” and that it would be “devastating to [G.W.] ” if Gray were allowed to transport G.W. to Seattle because she had “never been more than a night or two without [Lucy], [Shook,] or [Shook’s] husband.” According to Shook, no relationship exists between G.W. and Gray; therefore, Gray’s visitation should be increased gradually “until [G.W.] feels safe and comfortable with him at [the Shooks’] home in Victoria or other places.”

On re-direct examination, Shook stated that although Gray has been interested in visiting with G.W., “[t]he desire for seeing her more than he has been is sudden as of the last hearing.” Shook believed that if G.W. were transported to Seattle, she could suffer physical harm, such as “stomach [aches], throwing up, grinding her teeth.” Shook testified that the trial court had ordered Gray to visit G.W. three times before the end of the year 2007 because Gray had only visited G.W. once that year and that Gray had complied with the order.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
329 S.W.3d 186, 2010 WL 4910127, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gray-v-shook-texapp-2011.