IN THE INTEREST OF C.S., D.S., AND B.S., THE CHILDREN, A.S., THE MOTHER, PETITIONER,
v.
JOHN BIDDLE, III AND CYNTHIA BIDDLE, RESPONDENTS
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The Florida District Court of Appeal quashed a trial court order requiring a mother to make her children available to their grandparents for overnight visits and medical/dental/educational evaluations. The court held that absent a finding of dependency, a trial court lacks jurisdiction to order such preventive services that interfere with parental rights.
The trial court exceeded its jurisdiction when it ordered the mother to make the children available to the grandparents for overnight visitations and evaluations without a finding of dependency. The fundamental parental right to raise children without state interference cannot be abrogated absent a compelling state interest and strict compliance with statutory procedures.
[1] A trial court acts in excess of its jurisdiction when it orders preventive services, overnight visitations, or evaluations of children by grandparents absent a finding of…
[2] The right to raise one's children without state interference is a fundamental right that can only be abrogated by a compelling state interest, such as protecting a child…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“The right to raise one's children without interference from the state is a fundamental right that cannot be abrogated absent a compelling state interest.”
Establishes the constitutional principle protecting parental rights and the standard for state intervention.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMaternal grandparents filed a dependency petition and motion for custody of their three grandchildren. The trial court, after deciding not to place th…
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BLUE, Chief Judge.
The petition for writ of prohibition is granted and the order for preventive services entered by the trial court is quashed. The trial court was acting in excess of its jurisdiction when it ordered that A.S., the mother, make her three children available to their grandparents to permit the grandparents to assess the medical, dental, and educational “situations”; ordered A.S. to deliver the children to their grandparents for overnight visitations; and authorized the grandparents to obtain medical, dental, and educational evaluations of the children, absent a finding that the children were dependent.
The maternal grandparents initiated a dependency action by filing a dependency petition in the circuit court. The grandparents also filed a motion to obtain custody of the children. The order under review was entered at the close of the hearing on the motion for custody.
The right to raise one’s children without interference from the state is a fundamental right that cannot be abrogated absent a compelling state interest. See Beagle v. Beagle, 678 So. 2d 1271, 1276 (Fla.1996). Protecting a child from “demonstrable harm” is a compelling state interest that justifies state intrusion on the right. Id. The legislature has provided a lengthy definition of harm in section 39.01(30), Florida Statutes (2002). Through chapter 39, the legislature has also supplied the framework for state action when children are subject to or threatened with harm. When individuals enlist the judicial system to intervene in a parent/ehild relationship,. the court must scrupulously adhere to the pertinent statutes in determining whether such interference is warranted. After deciding that the evidence did not warrant placing the children in shelter care, the trial judge could not legally order A.S. to perform any action with respect to the children absent a finding of dependency.
This case represents an unfortunate situation in which the grandparents obviously care for the children. However, their status as grandparents does not confer on them any special rights to direct the upbringing of these children or to visit with the children without the parents’ permission. We are hopeful that the parties can look past their differences and work together in the best interests of the children.
Prohibition granted, writ quashed, and case remanded to trial court.
DAVIS, J., and THREADGILL, EDWARD F„ SENIOR JUDGE, Concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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In the Interest of S.D. v. K.S., 869 So. 2d 39 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004)…under review. In the order, the trial court found that it was “appropriate to grant Pinellas County Sheriffs Office the discretion to permit the maternal grandmother and/or the maternal great-grandmother unsupervised visitation.” In AS. v. Biddle, 829 So. 2d 1004 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002), we granted A.S.’s petition for writ of prohibition1 and quashed the order for protective services entered by the trial court. The order required that the custodial parent deliver the children to the grandparents for overnight vis…
Authorities Cited
- Beagle v. Beagle, 678 So. 2d 1271 (Fla. 1996)