Hodges v. Hodges

827 So. 2d 1271, 2002 WL 31207142
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedOctober 2, 2002
Docket02-0489
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 827 So. 2d 1271 (Hodges v. Hodges) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hodges v. Hodges, 827 So. 2d 1271, 2002 WL 31207142 (La. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

827 So.2d 1271 (2002)

Lily Elena Handal Nasser HODGES
v.
Daniel Lee HODGES.

No. 02-0489.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

October 2, 2002.
Writ Denied November 8, 2002.

*1272 Philip C. Kobetz, Attorney at Law, Lafayette, LA, for Daniel Lee Hodges.

Katherine L. Hurst, Attorney at Law, Lafayette, LA, for Lily Elena Handal Nasser Hodges.

Court composed of BILLIE COLOMBARO WOODARD, OSWALD A. DECUIR, and MICHAEL G. SULLIVAN, Judges.

DECUIR, Judge.

In this custody dispute, the mother appeals a judgment of the trial court finding her in contempt, awarding sole custody of one child to the father, ordering that joint custody be maintained with regard to the other two children with the father as domiciliary parent, and imposing various restrictions on visitation. The husband appeals that portion of the judgment which denied him authority to relocate the residence of the minor children to Virginia.

FACTS

Dan and Lily Hodges were married in December of 1977. Three children were born of the marriage. They are Camille' born in 1985, Camilla born in 1989, and Daniel born in 1990.

Lily, a Palestinian raised in Central America and Dan, a Virginian, met in medical school in Mexico and married in Honduras. Dan became a doctor of physical medicine and rehabilitation. Lily became a psychiatrist. They lived and practiced medicine in Lafayette, Louisiana from 1989 until May of 1992. At that time they moved to Dan's home state of Virginia. The family resided in Virginia from May of 1992 to August of 1998. Lily carried on a limited and dwindling psychiatric practice, while Dan practiced in both Lafayette and Virginia. He would fly to Lafayette and work two to three days a week.

During this time, the couple's marriage became troubled and Lily's chronic depression worsened. On August 1, 1998, Lily attempted suicide in the family home with the family present. Dan, with the help of Lily's sister, was able to wrestle the gun away and avert a disaster. Shortly thereafter, the family moved back to Lafayette in order for Lily to reestablish her psychiatric practice.

On October 26, 1998, Lily filed for divorce. The parties were divorced on June 28, 1999. Joint custody was established with Dan as the domiciliary parent for all three children. Visitation with the two younger children was alternating seven day periods and visitation between Camille' and Lily was to be "reasonable." The visitation was different for Camille' due to difficulties with her relationship with her mother. Among these difficulties were Lily calling the child a "bitch" and physically throwing her out of the house on numerous occasions. Camille' was thirteen at the time. At the end of the 1998-99 school year Camille' moved back to Virginia where she has continued to live with Dan's parents.

The parents continued alternate visitation with Camilla and Daniel until October of 2000. At that time, Lily quit bringing Camilla to see her father, alleging that she did not want to visit. Dan filed a rule to enforce the joint custody visitation plan, requesting that Lily post a bond to ensure compliance, and requesting attorney fees, costs, and a contempt citation. In the interim, the parties agreed to family counseling with Dr. David Legendre, a Ph.D in family relations, and marriage and family therapy. After eight weeks, Dr. Legendre advised that Lily make Camilla visit her father and referred Lily to Dr. Luke Elliot, a clinical psychologist, to rule out suicidal ideation and eating disorders.

Ultimately, after counseling with the family, Dr. Elliot ruled out suicidal ideation and eating disorders. He also determined that Camilla's claims that her father *1273 was verbally abusive were untrue. Dr. Elliot advised that Lily make Camilla visit her father. Only two such visits occurred and not for the seven day periods ordered by the court. Consequently, Dan continued to move forward with the custody litigation. At that time, Lily advised Dr. Elliot that, in her professional opinion as a psychiatrist, Dan was a sociopath and that the children were unsafe. Dr. Elliot withdrew his recommendation on visitation until the parents could be evaluated by a clinical psychologist. Dr. Elliot then proposed a nine point interim visitation plan which the parties agreed to. Lily did not comply with the agreement.

Dr. Elliot referred both parties to Dr. Christine Angelloz, a clinical psychologist. She determined that Dan was not a sociopath and did not suffer from any psychological disorder. However, Dr. Angelloz diagnosed Lily with chronic adjustment disorder with anxiety and depression, post traumatic stress disorder, and acculturation disorder.

Despite the results of the evaluations, Lily continued to keep Camilla from Dan, insisting he was a sociopath. In addition, her behavior toward Daniel became erratic. On her last visit prior to trial, she poured ice water on Daniel's head and confined him to his room for two days without electricity. On August 28, 2001, Dan filed a supplemental and amending rule requesting sole custody, subject to limited supervised visitation in favor of Lily. Dan also sought authority to relocate to Virginia.

Pursuant to a temporary order, Dan and Daniel relocated to Virginia and Camilla remained with Lily. Subsequently, a trial was held. The trial court designated Dan as domiciliary parent of Camilla and Daniel, and sole custodian of Camille'. Lily was found in contempt of court and ordered to post a bond to ensure compliance with the court order. Lily's visitation was fixed at every other weekend, and each parent was prohibited from telephone contact with the children while in the custody of the other parent. Dan was denied authority to relocate. Dan appealed the denial of authority to relocate. Lily answered the appeal, alleging error in numerous rulings of the trial court.

DENIAL OF RELOCATION

Dan alleges that the trial court erred in denying his motion to relocate the children to Virginia. We agree.

This state's "relocation statute" requires a parent with primary custody to give notice to the non-domiciliary parent of the intent to relocate the primary residence of the minor child within their care. The non-domiciliary parent who is given adequate notice then has the opportunity to initiate a hearing wherein he or she can set before the court any objection to the relocation.

The relocating parent has the burden of proving: 1) the proposed relocation is in good faith; and 2) it is in the best interest of the child. La.R.S. 9:355.13. La.R.S. 9:355.12 sets forth the factors a court shall consider when determining a relocation issue. These factors are:

(1) The nature, quality, extent of involvement, and duration of the child's relationship with the parent proposing to relocate and with the non-relocating parent, siblings, and other significant persons in the child's life.
(2) The age, developmental stage, needs of the child, and the likely impact the relocation will have on the child's physical, educational, and emotional development, taking into consideration any special needs of the child.
(3) The feasibility of preserving the relationship between the non-relocating parent and the child through suitable visitation arrangements, considering the *1274 logistics and financial circumstances of the parties.
(4) The child's preference, taking into consideration the age and maturity of the child.

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Bluebook (online)
827 So. 2d 1271, 2002 WL 31207142, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hodges-v-hodges-lactapp-2002.