Hockley v. Hockley-Arhondakis

46 Pa. D. & C.4th 320, 2000 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 291
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Cumberland County
DecidedMarch 28, 2000
Docketno. 98-2260 Civil Term
StatusPublished

This text of 46 Pa. D. & C.4th 320 (Hockley v. Hockley-Arhondakis) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Cumberland County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hockley v. Hockley-Arhondakis, 46 Pa. D. & C.4th 320, 2000 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 291 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2000).

Opinion

OLER, J.,

This case presents the question of whether a custody order which affords a noncustodial parent minimal periods of partial custody can be enforced where the custodial parent and teenage child refuse to cooperate with the order. The immediate issue for resolution is the sanction to be imposed upon the custodial parent for contempt of the custody order.

[322]*322PROCEDURAL HISTORY; STATEMENT OF PERTINENT FACTS

The plaintiff is Garry Lynn Hockley, an adult individual residing at 432 Hidden Valley Road, New Cumberland, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.1 The defendant is Sherri Hockley-Arhondakis, an adult individual residing at 915 Magnolia Drive, Enola, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.2 The parties are the parents of Garry Lynn Hockley Jr., who was born on June 7, 1986, and is presently 13 years old.3

Pursuant to a November 27, 1995 Adams County order of court, entered by agreement of the parties at a time when Father was stationed with the army in Kentucky, Mother was granted primary legal and physical custody of the child and Father was granted partial custody rights.4 On April 28, 1998, Father filed the present Cumberland County action to expand his custodial rights. The effect of this filing was described, credibly in the court’s view, by Father as follows:

“Q. Mr. Hockley, you heard Sherri testify about your visitation. Can you tell me when it ended?
“A. May 3, 1998.
“Q. And was that concurrently with you filing for custody?
“A: Yes.
“Q. And to your knowledge, why was your visitation stopped?
[323]*323“A. May 4,1 received a phone call from Sherri, telling me that, you’re not going to take my son away from me.5...
“Q. What was your understanding as to why your visitation stopped? You said you got a phone call?
“A. I received a phone call from Sherri in reference, I’m not going to take my son away from her. Just went on and on. I had no intentions of taking [him] from her. I just wanted a stable visitation. That’s why I filed a visitation order (sic).”6

As of the present time, Father has not seen the child for almost two years.7

A custody hearing was held by this court on August 20,1999. At the hearing, two of the circumstances which impressed themselves most forcibly upon the court were the extremely close bond between Mother and the parties’ child, and Mother’s intense hatred for Father. Following the hearing, the court entered the following order, which was not appealed, affording Father minimal partial custody rights:

“And now, August 23, 1999, upon consideration of plaintiff’s custody modification complaint with respect to the parties’ child, Garry L. Hockley Jr. (d.o.b. June 7, 1986), and following a hearing held on August 20,1999, it is ordered and directed as follows:
“(1) Legal custody of the parties’ child shall be shared by the parties.
[324]*324“(2) Primary physical custody of the child shall be in Mother. Temporary or partial physical custody of the child shall be in Father at the following times:
“(a) During the next month, at two sessions with Dr. A. Jose Delerme [the child’s psychologist], the expense of which shall be borne by Father;
“(b) During the succeeding two months, on alternating Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m.;
“(c) During the following four months, on alternating weekends from Saturday at 10 a.m. until Sunday at 7 p.m.
(3) At the conclusion of the seven-month period provided for in paragraph 2 of this order, either party may petition for a modification of this order based on circumstances then existing.
“(4) Neither party shall inflict corporal punishment upon the child.
“(5) Neither party shall make his or her home available to the child during the other’s periods of custody or otherwise accommodate a lack of adherence to the terms of this order.
“(6) Transportation for purposes of exchanges of custody shall be the responsibility of the party who is yielding custody to the other, unless otherwise mutually agreed. 8

After receiving this order, Mother told the child that “the court case that we had did not go in his favor, our favor.”9 Not surprisingly, upon receipt of this construction of the order, the child threw a tantrum.10

[325]*325The order of August 23, 1999 has never been complied with by Mother or child. Although Mother responded, “Very much so,” when asked whether she felt she had control over the child,11 her position was that she was helpless to comply with the order in the face of her son’s opposition to its terms.12 However, the child described an effort on her part as follows:

“Q. Now, what has your mom told you about going to visit with your dad?
“A. Every time that it was scheduled, she would ask me, do you want to go see him? I would say no. She said, the judge said you have to go. I would keep saying, no, I don’t want to go. Then she said, fine.
“Q. So, did she tell you that you had to go?
“A. She said — what she said was that I was supposed to go see him, and she would ask me every time I was supposed to go see him, do you want to go see your dad, and I said no.
“Q. Then she said fine?
“A. She would say, well, I can’t make you.” 13

On the subject of his perception of his mother’s sincerity in encouraging his compliance with the directed contact with his father, the child testified as follows:

“Q. Did she ever encourage you to go, tell you that she wanted you to go?
“A. Yes.
“Q. Did you believe her?
“A. No.”14

[326]*326The court’s perception of the message being conveyed by Mother to the parties’ child is the same as the child’s. Mother was found in contempt of the custody order of August 23, 1999, following a hearing.15 At the conclusion of the hearing, the court encouraged the parties to comply with the custody order.16

A hearing on the issue of sanctions for the contempt was held on March 2, 2000. At the hearing, it was evident that the order remained uncomplied with.17 Evidence presented by Father established that he had incurred attorney’s fees in the amount of $3,165 in connection with the contempt proceedings.18

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Related

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456 A.2d 208 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1983)
Lambert v. Lambert
598 A.2d 561 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1991)
English v. English
469 A.2d 270 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1983)
Guadagnino v. Montie
646 A.2d 1257 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1994)
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719 A.2d 359 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1998)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
46 Pa. D. & C.4th 320, 2000 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 291, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hockley-v-hockley-arhondakis-pactcomplcumber-2000.