Articles Posted in Staten Island

A New York Family Lawyer said that in two related proceedings pursuant to Family Court Act article 10, Appellant appeals, as limited by his brief, from so much of an order of disposition of the Family Court, Kings County, as, after a hearing, only awarded him supervised visitation with the subject child.

The Court, in its decision ORDERED that the order of disposition is affirmed insofar as appealed from, without costs or disbursements.

A New York Child Custody Lawyer said that the appellant contends that he is entitled to unsupervised visitation with his child. Since the Family Court is in the best position to evaluate the testimony, character, and sincerity of the witnesses in weighing the many factors required for a determination of custody, ‘the determination of whether visitation should be supervised is a matter left to the Family Court’s sound discretion and its findings, to which deference is to be accorded, will not be disturbed on appeal unless they lack a sound basis in the record’ ” Here, the Family Court’s determination that supervised visitation would be in the child’s best interests have a sound basis in the record.

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In this case, the defendant stands convicted of murder in the first degree upon an indictment which charges that the defendant willfully, feloniously and of malice aforethought poisoned the deceased, by giving and administered to her a quantity of poison, to wit, strychnine, and as a result of said poisoning said deceased died in December1943.’

A New York Family Lawyer said that the defendant is a pharmacist who for a period of years had been employed at a drugstore operated by the witness. He married the decedent in 1940 when she was twenty years old and he was thirteen years her senior. Although the record does not tell whether during the three years of their life together a child was born of the marriage, it does appear that the decedent was pregnant at the time of her death and that her pregnancy was not accompanied by unusual illness.

A New York Child Custody Lawyer said one evening, when the defendant was on duty at his place of business and the decedent was alone in their apartment she was called upon by her sister. At that time there were no indications that the decedent was ill. Within an hour after her sister left the decedent, the witness who lived on the same floor heard a strange noise which led her to open a door leading into the outside hallway. As she did so she saw the decedent standing in the doorway of the apartment apparently in distress. Upon going to her assistance she noted that the decedent’s body had stiffened, her face was drawn, ‘her eyes were like big saucers, very big, and she kept cringing like that, shivering, her body shaking.’ Her hands were clenched and drawn in toward her chest and her arms were bent from the elbows. After the witness had summoned by telephone the defendant, the decedent’s sister, and the decedent’s attending physician, she was aided by two other neighbors in placing the decedent on a bed. Although the decedent was conscious her legs had stiffened with toes turned in and her hands were in a claw-like position with fingers, wrists and elbows bent. She repeatedly cried out ‘I’m dying,’ ‘The sooner I die the better,’ ‘Let me die now,’ ‘I’m in terrible pain,’ ‘Don’t touch my feet.’ When the doctor arrived he found the decedent in a convulsion.

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A New York Family Lawyer said that, in this Article 78 proceeding the petitioner, a boy 15 years of age, seeks an order prohibiting the respondent, Judges of the Family Court of the County of Kings, from re-conducting a fact-finding hearing upon the ground that to do so would place him in double jeopardy.

A New York Child Custody Lawyer said that, the juvenile delinquency petition made by a police officer, alleged in substance, on information and belief, that on November 19, 1968 the petitioner, while acting in concert with two other youths, did take and operate a Chevrolet truck, without the owner’s consent or permission, and did drive the truck across the street into two other parked vehicles, as a result of which all three vehicles were damaged. It was further alleged that the acts of the petitioner, if done by an adult, would constitute the crime of Unauthorized Use of Vehicle.

A Kings Order of Protection Lawyer said that, the fact-finding hearing, at which both sides were represented by counsel and had indicated readiness to proceed, commenced on January 14, 1969. The police officer testified that while on patrol he received information, gave chase, and apprehended the petitioner who was running on the sidewalk and took him into custody. He did not see the petitioner in the truck. Confronted with this situation the prosecutor asked the court for a moment and then said ‘After further consultation’ but he got no further. The court declared ‘All right. Mistrial.’ Petitioner objected to a mistrial. The court then continued questioning the officer who reiterated his prior testimony. Finally, the prosecutor said he was not ready, ‘That’s the way it stands now’, but added that he did have a witness to establish that petitioner was in the truck. The court said ‘One adjournment. Mistrial granted. Adjourned.’ It then developed that the missing witness was the son of the owner of the truck who was not present because he was tending to the business. The owner indicated a willingness to telephone his son to see if he was able to come down. The petitioner’s attorney stated to the court that a double jeopardy question was involved. The hearing ended with the court’s statement ‘Adjourned to 2/7/69. Mistrial granted. Police officer needs a witness.’ The court endorsed that language on the back of the petition.

This is an action to recover damages for negligence and malpractice.

A New York Family Lawyer said that in the first, third, fifth, and seventh causes of action, plaintiff sought to recover damages for the alleged negligence and malpractice of defendants in the performance of their work in the divorce and custody litigation.

Defendants were psychologists and social workers, some of whom were appointed by the Supreme Court as neutral experts in the plaintiff’s divorce action, and others by the Family Court in a neglect proceeding which was brought against the plaintiff’s wife to aid the court in making determinations about custody of, and visitation with, the plaintiff’s children. In support of their respective motions to dismiss, defendants submitted affidavits concerning their work in the previous litigation and the orders pursuant to which they were appointed to aid the courts.

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A New York Family Lawyer said the decree of divorce was entered to dissolve the bonds of matrimony existing between a couple, restoring each to the status of a single person, awarding to the mother the care, custody and control of their minor children, and directing the father to pay to the mother $10 a week for the care, maintenance and support of each minor child.

The divorce decree was based on the ground of three year’s separation obtain by the mother with the father’s agreement by his execution and filed waiver, and appearance in the action.

The mother shortly remarried and her children remained with her. The step father appeared to be close to them and have had almost no contact with the father over the intervening years.

In a family related case, a habeas corpus proceeding with respect to custody of petitioner’s eight-year-old son, the appeal is from an order of the Family Court, Kings County, A prior interim order had been made by the Supreme Court, Kings County, referring the proceeding to the Family Court and granting temporary custody of the child to appellants, with two-hour periods of visitation on Saturdays and Wednesdays to petitioner at appellants’ home. A New York Family Lawyer said the order under review modified said prior order of the Supreme Court so as to grant visitation to both parents of the child, at or away from appellants’ home, for three hours on Saturdays, subject to certain conditions. According to a Kings County visitation attorney, the permission to appeal from the order of the Family Court is hereby granted. Thus, the court Order was reversed, without costs, and petitioner’s application to modify the order of the Supreme Court denied.

In addition, a New York Custody Lawyer said the Court stated that it was an improvident exercise of discretion to modify the visitation provisions ordered by the Supreme Court in view of petitioner’s past conduct, an apparent inability on the part of her husband to control her actions at times, and a failure of proof that circumstances had changed since the date of the Supreme Court’s order so as to adversely affect the welfare of the child. Our determination is, of course, without prejudice to the issues to be determined after trial, which, as of the time of the making of the order under review, was scheduled for September 17, 1971.

A Staten Island Family Lawyer said an another family case, in a proceeding pursuant to Family Court Act article 6 for grandparent visitation, the grandmother appeals from an order of the Family Court, Kings County, dated February 24, 2009, which, after a hearing, dismissed the petition.

A couple was married and had four children together. The husband left the marital residence and a divorce action was commenced the following month. A New York Family Lawyer said following a trial on the issues of equitable distribution, child support and maintenance, a memorandum decision was issued. Although the husband had stipulated to the wife having child custody, he moved for a change of child custody to him, with the wife to be given only supervised visitation based upon what he claimed to be the wife’s bizarre and dangerous behavior which was calculated to destroy the children’s relationship with him.

The husband referred to the wife’s persistent and uncorroborated allegations that he was sexually abusing their children, her continuing to make new claims of abuse even though all other claims had been determined to be unfounded. He suggested the possibility that the wife herself may have caused the youngest child’s vaginal and rectal area to become reddened prior to the wife’s bringing her to the hospital. A New York Custody Lawyer said the husband further noted the wife’s ongoing interference with visitation by various other means, including making accusations of sexual abuse and warning him not to engage in such activities in the presence of the children. In the husband’s view, a change in child custody was critical to the children’s well-being and mental health.

The wife opposed the application, and the matter was subsequently referred for a hearing. Since the original Law Guardian had died after having issued his report in the matrimonial matter recommending that the husband have unsupervised visitation, the court appointed a new Law Guardian for the children as well as a psychiatrist to conduct forensic examinations and to make a recommendation as to child custody.

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