11/22/09-by Paula Brooks (LezGetReal)
In a stunning decision, Rutland Vermont Family Court Judge William Cohen ruled Friday that he is awarding sole custody of 7-year-old Isabella Miller to her non-biological lesbian mother, Janet Jenkins.
For six years, the case has been jumping between courts in Vermont, where Jenkins lives, and Virginia, where her former lesbian spouse, Lisa Miller, now lives.
The couple split up in 2003 after entering a civil union in Vermont, have since then been battling in the courts over custody and visitation rights to their daughter Isabelle, who was born to Miller.
However, Miller soon fled to her home state of Virginia and declared that she was no longer a lesbian. She then engaged the Conservative Christian law firm, The Liberty Council, to attempt to deny her partners the visitation right awarded to her by the Vermont Court by demanding sole custody in a Virginia court.
In 2007, Virginia’s Supreme Court sided with Jenkins and the Vermont courts.
After that ruling Miller and the Liberty Council then appealed to the US Supreme Court, which declined to hear the case.
The Liberty Council returned to the Virginia Circuit Courts to halt the visitation order, but the judge in that case stated that Virginia’s Supreme Court had already ruled.
The Liberty Council then again appealed to the Virginia’s Supreme Court. A Virginia Supreme Court Justice however cited the Parental Kidnap Prevention Act, which requires courts in other states to adhere to pre-existing custody and visitation awards and is meant to prevent just this kind of “Justice Shopping” and refused to hear the case, again giving sole jurisdiction to Vermont.
On January 28th of this year, the case was returned to Vermont, where Vermont Judge William Cohen allowed Miller to retain custody, but ordered unsupervised visitation to Jenkins for four days in March, over the Memorial Day holiday and for five weeks in this summer.
In September after Miller failed to comply with the visitation order, Cohen told her and her lawyers that he was tired of Miller’s repeated disobedience to his visitation orders and warned Miller that she would lose custody if she didn’t comply with the prior orders.
Friday, Cohen said in his order that granting sole custody of Isabella to Jenkins was in the child’s best interest because Miller has consistently refused to comply with prior custody and visitation orders.
“The court concludes that it is in the best interest of (Isabella) that Ms. Jenkins exercise parental rights and responsibilities,” the judge said Friday. “This court stated that continued interference by Ms. Miller with the relationship between (Isabella) and Ms. Jenkins could lead to a change of circumstances and outweigh the disruption that would occur if a change of custody were ordered.”
Judge Cohen did note in his decision that the change in custody would cause some short-term disruption in Isabella’s life because she would need to move to a new home, school, and community. However, Cohen said, the transition wouldn’t be out of the norm for a 7-year-old.
Lisa Miller’s attorneys vowed to appeal the order, but legal experts both in Vermont and Virginia say that Miller may be running out of legal options and caution that Virginia’s court of appeals, where Miller’s lawyers say they will file an appeal to Cohen’s order, have previously upheld the Vermont judge’s decisions and may not look kindly upon another appeal.
2 comments:
I think this issue applies to all parents, gay,straight or crooked..You must think of the children before your own needs. What is in their best interest? This situation can't be healthy for the child. Some people sadly can't put "self" to the side. That is the most important part of parenting. Good post.
You're so right Lori, too many people don't stop to consider what's what's best for the child, and even if they do, they're not willing to DO what's best because they're too busy thinking about what's in it for them.
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