Wood v. Wood

835 So. 2d 568, 2002 WL 31235524
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 27, 2002
Docket2002 CU 0860
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 835 So. 2d 568 (Wood v. Wood) 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
Wood v. Wood, 835 So. 2d 568, 2002 WL 31235524 (La. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

835 So.2d 568 (2002)

Lachelle Gerald WOOD
v.
William Gerald WOOD.

No. 2002 CU 0860.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

September 27, 2002.

*570 J. Edward Thompson, Slidell, Counsel for Plaintiff-Appellant Lachelle Gerald Wood.

Sondra A. Cheek, Bogalusa, Counsel for Intervenors-Appellees Gerald and Rita Wood.

Before: FOGG, FITZSIMMONS, DOWNING, KLINE[1] and LANIER[2], JJ.

FITZSIMMONS, J.

This appeal seeks review of a trial court judgment modifying a consent judgment between a domiciliary parent and paternal grandparents. The judgment granted additional visitation between the paternal grandparents and their granddaughter. The natural father is incarcerated. We reverse and remand.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In February 1995, appellant, Lachelle Wood, filed a Petition for Divorce in an effort to dissolve her approximately three-and-a-half year marriage to William Wood. Additionally, she sought temporary custody of their minor child, E.M.W. In May 1995, the parties entered into a consent judgment of custody. That judgment awarded joint custody to the parents, Lachelle and William Wood, designated the mother, Lachelle Wood, as the domiciliary parent, and awarded visitation of one weekday to appellees, the paternal grandparents, Rita and Gerald Wood. The judgment further provided the father, William Wood, with visitation in Utah.[3] The same judgment also awarded the mother child support and ordered the father to provide medical insurance. Thereafter, the marital union of Lachelle and William Wood was terminated by a judgment of divorce dated October 9, 1995.

In February 1999, the mother filed a rule to change the joint custody arrangement to a sole custody award. The mother alleged that joint custody had become detrimental to the child, E.M.W. As supporting reasons, the mother alleged that the father had a recent history of criminal sexual abuse and was incarcerated in Utah.[4] After a hearing, the trial court issued a judgment on May 24, 1999 that restricted the paternal grandparents' visitation and ordered the grandparents not to allow the child contact with the incarcerated father. On June 28, 1999, after service was made upon the father, his visitation was suspended, and a judgment awarding the mother sole custody of E.M.W. was granted.

*571 In August 2000, the grandparents filed a Petition for Intervention seeking a modification of the prior orders concerning their visitation with E.M.W. In response, the mother filed an answer and reconventional rule for contempt and for modification of visitation. She contended that the grandparents violated prior court orders by allowing E.M.W. telephone contact with her father and had planned a Utah visit between E.M.W. and her father. For these reasons, the mother sought supervised visitation at the mother's discretion. On November 6, 2000, the mother and the grandparents entered into a stipulated judgment. The judgment maintained the mother's sole custody designation and permitted visitation with the grandparents on the first weekend of each month, on one Sunday every other month, and one day and one night on all major holidays. In addition to ordering the grandparents to continue paying $200.00 monthly support, the judgment again prohibited the grandparents from allowing any contact between E.M.W. and her father.[5]

On November 29, 2000, the grandparents filed a rule for contempt alleging that the mother refused to comply with the visitation schedule outlined in the November 6, 2000, judgment. The grandparents also prayed that the November 6, 2000, judgment be modified to specify a meeting place for exchange of visitation and to specify times of visitation. On January 12, 2001, the grandparents filed a Motion for Continuance in an effort to arrive at an amicable visitation schedule. In July 2001, the grandparents filed another rule to show cause contending they were unsuccessful in arranging with appellant a specific time for a summer vacation. Thus, they sought a modification of visitation that would designate a specific time for summer vacation. Following a hearing, the trial court granted the grandparents' request for modification and ordered one week visitation for the summers of 2001 (commencing July 31, 2001) and 2002.

NONPARENT VISITATION

From the ruling granting additional visitation to the grandparents, the mother, Lachelle Wood, has filed the instant devolutive appeal. The issue is whether the trial court abused its discretion in modifying the consent judgment to permit the paternal grandparents additional visitation with E.M.W.

DISCUSSION

Troxel v. Granville, 530 U.S. 57, 120 S.Ct. 2054, 147 L.Ed.2d 49 (2000), is the most recent authority on this subject-matter from the United States Supreme Court. In Troxel, the Supreme Court recognized that one of the byproducts of the changing infrastructure of society at large, and the family unit in particular, is an accommodation in the law for extending visitation to nonparents. While recognizing many benefits of this practice, the Supreme Court rejected any visitation scheme that trampled upon the sacred and paramount rights of a fit parent to dictate the best interests of his or her children. Troxel, 530 U.S. at 63-67, 120 S.Ct. at 2059-61.

Specifically, Troxel involved a request by paternal grandparents, following the death of their son, for visitation with two granddaughters born of the relationship between their son and a companion whom he never married. Troxel, 530 U.S. at 60, 120 S.Ct. at 2057. The girls' mother did not oppose all visitation, but objected to the amount sought by the Troxels. Troxel, *572 530 U.S. at 61, 120 S.Ct. at 2058. The Troxels' request for visitation was made under authority of a Washington statute. The statute provided that: "Any person may petition the court for visitation rights at any time including, but not limited to, custody proceedings. The court may order visitation rights for any person when visitation may serve the best interest of the child whether or not there has been any change of circumstances." Troxel, 530 U.S. at 61-62, 120 S.Ct. at 2057-8. The United States Supreme Court found the Washington statute "breathtakingly broad" and declared it unconstitutional as applied. Troxel, 530 U.S. at 67 & 73, 120 S.Ct. at 2060-61 & 2064. In doing so, the justices placed particular emphasis upon parents' constitutionally protected fundamental right to make decisions concerning their children, the presumption that parents act in the best interest of their children, and the failure of the Washington statute or court to give some "material" or "special" weight to the parent's own determination on the issue of visitation. Troxel, 530 U.S. at 65-72, 120 S.Ct. at 2060-63. The Supreme Court noted that the contested statute rendered a custodial parent effectively voiceless in deciding what is in the child's best interest, while simultaneously extending unfettered discretion to the trial judge to make such a determination. In the opinion of the Troxel court, the Washington statute allowed the trial judge to "disregard and overturn any decision by a fit custodial parent concerning visitation whenever a third party affected by the decision files a visitation petition, based solely on the judge's determination of the child's best interests." Troxel, 530 U.S. at 67, 120 S.Ct. at 2061.

Subsequent to Troxel, in Galjour v.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Crystal Rose Moffett v. Marcus Delaney Moffett
Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2022
Amy Cancienne Cave v. Michael Langdon Cave
Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2021
Beebe v. Delcambre
194 So. 3d 1214 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2016)
Shauna Michelle Beebe v. Shaun Aaron Delcambre
Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2016
Francis v. Francis
97 So. 3d 1091 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2012)
Garner v. Thomas
13 So. 3d 784 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2009)
McMillin v. McMillin
6 So. 3d 414 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2009)
Barry v. McDaniel
934 So. 2d 69 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2006)
Stracener v. Joubert
924 So. 2d 430 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2006)
In Re Washington, Unpublished Decision (12-21-2004)
2004 Ohio 6981 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 2004)
Babin v. Babin
854 So. 2d 403 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2003)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
835 So. 2d 568, 2002 WL 31235524, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wood-v-wood-lactapp-2002.