GEORGE JOSEPH LONGO, APPELLANT,
v.
DONNA ROSE LONGO, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
A trial court may not permanently terminate a parent's visitation rights without affording the parent an opportunity to be heard on the issue.
[1] A trial court may not permanently terminate a parent's visitation rights without affording the parent an opportunity to be heard on the issue.
[2] A trial court has the authority to make orders regarding the care, custody, and visitation of children of divorced parents when it is in the children's best interests.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA father sought to hold his ex-wife in contempt for failing to honor his visitation rights. The trial judge, on his own motion, permanently terminated…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Sua Sponte Judicial Action cases and more on FLexlaw
No appearance for appellee.
Longo’s former wife failed to honor his rights of visitation with his teen-age daughters and he sought to hold her in contempt. She sought no diminution of those rights, but at the close of the hearing the trial judge, on his own motion, terminated Longo’s visitation rights permanently.
Longo says that a court cannot grant relief not asked for. This is a sound general statement, arising in other types of cases and carried from there to some Florida cases involving support of children. Before this court Longo cites only Scheer v. Scheer, Fla.App. 1961, 132 So.2d 456, and Petrucci v. Petrucci, Fla.App.1967, 199 So.2d 516. The appellee filed no brief here, so the court has undertaken to unravel the legal problems involved.
“In any action for divorce or alimony, the court has power at any stage of the action to make such orders about the care, custody and maintenance of the children of the marriage, and what security, if any, is to be given therefor, as from the circumstances of the parties and the nature of the case is equitable.” Fla.Stat. § 61.13 (1969), F.S.A. That statute tells us why our hunch about a trial judge’s authority in matters affecting the welfare of children of divorced parents may be sounder than some black-letter proposition derived from cases in which a child’s welfare is not involved. A reading of the record in this case suggests that the trial judge is more concerned for these girls’ welfare than either of their parents or their stepfather. Longo is preoccupied with sex. He wears a bathing suit which shows more of him than ought to be shown, and, as a photographer, he prefers photographing nudes. Into the record here he introduced eighteen photographs of a young girl in a bathing suit, but this is self-serving: he clearly prefers a nude model. There is also testimony from a former baby-sitter that when she was about thirteen Longo took her home and inquired about the development of her breasts. He said that his interest was that of a professional photographer, but nevertheless a judge is justified in believing on this record that Longo has too much of the exhibitionist and voyeur in him to warrant unrestricted visitation with young girls.
The problem is that the order was rendered as a permanent one and no opportunity was given to Longo to address himself to the question whether the best interests of the girls require termination of visitation. It is easily conceivable that some restrictions may be placed on Longo’s privileges which would guard against the harm the trial judge foresees. The order ap*660pealed from is, then, entirely appropriate as a temporary necessity, but may not be made permanent without affording further hearing.
Briefly, the divorce cases suggesting that a trial judge may not act sua sponte in these matters begin with Cortina v. Cortina, Fla.1957, 98 So.2d 334, which involved the amount of support and not the children’s welfare. That case rests on Lovett v. Lovett, 1927, 93 Fla. 611, 112 So. 768, which involved title to land. Cortina was followed in Parrish v. Parrish, Fla.App. 1958, 99 So.2d 715, and Petrucci v. Petrucci, Fla.App. 1967, 199 So.2d 516, Ray v. Ray, Fla.App.1958, 99 So.2d 721, none of which involved a child’s welfare as this case does. In Scheer v. Scheer, Fla.App. 1961, 132 So.2d 456, the Third District Court of Appeal held that permanent withdrawal of visitation privileges from the father was improper without affording him an opportunity | to be heard. But Judge Charles CarrolLstated there: “We do not wish to be understood as holding that in the event of an Emergency the court cannot make such orders for temporary care, custody and for visitation as seem to be indicated,” but that amendment of rights given under a final decree should not be abrogated except upon the usual and ordinary procedure. 132 So.2d at 458. We agree. See Annotation, 16 A.L.R.2d 664; Shallcross v. Shallcross, 1909, 135 Ky. 418, 122 S.W. 223.
When it appears necessary to terminate or impose restrictions on a parent’s visitation with his children for the children’s benefit, the trial judge may make such orders as are necessary for the children’s protection, but they should not be imposed permanently unless a full hearing is afforded.
Accordingly, the order appealed from is affirmed insofar as its content is concerned, but reversed as to its duration, and the cause is remanded for further proceedings consistent herewith.
REED and OWEN, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Hunter v. Hunter, 540 So. 2d 235 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)…458. A review of the record clearly demonstrates that the relationship between the parties and its detrimental effect on the children justified the court’s temporary relief. See Giacoio v. Giacoio, 286 So. 2d 225 (Fla. 3d DCA 1973); Longo v. Longo, 245 So. 2d 658 (Fla. 4th DCA 1971). In announcing his decision, the trial judge stated: "I am deeply concerned about the husband’s continued conduct concerning the medication [of appellant's daughter].... I’ve come to the inescapable conclusion from my point of vi…
-
Vance v. Vance, 274 So. 2d 5 (Fla. 4th DCA 1973)…es. Hardy v. Hardy, Fla.App.1960, 118 So. 2d 106. As concerns the elimination of child support payments, we note that the adjudication was neither an emergency matter nor was the welfare of the minor child in balance. Longo v. Longo, Fla. App.1971, 245 So. 2d 658. Thus the modification being not encompassed by the pleadings or otherwise raised by the litigants must be reversed upon authority of Cortina v. Cortina, Fla.1957, 98 So. 2d 334. See also Scheer v. Scheer, Fla.App.1961, 132 So. 2d 456. Our opinion h…
-
Potter v. Haffner, 561 So. 2d 1 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990)…court.” Consistent with what we perceive as the trial court’s intent, we direct that such custody be temporary and that the mother be given at a very early date upon her motion the opportunity to be heard as to permanent custody. See Longo v. Longo, 245 So. 2d 658, 660 (Fla. 4th DCA 1971); Scheer v. Scheer, 132 So. 2d 456, 458 (Fla. 3d DCA 1961). Our ruling is not to be taken as an expression as to who is or was entitled to custody and is principally in recognition that an additional transfer of custody bef…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Lovett v. Lovett, 112 So. 768 (Fla. 1927)
- Cortina v. Cortina, 98 So. 2d 334 (Fla. 1957)
- Scheer v. Scheer, 132 So. 2d 456 (Fla. 3d DCA 1961)
- Parrish v. Parrish, 99 So. 2d 715 (Fla. 3d DCA 1958)
- Rosalyn RAY v. RAY, 99 So. 2d 721 (Fla. 3d DCA 1958)
- Emilie S. Petrucci v. Petrucci, 199 So. 2d 516 (Fla. 3d DCA 1967)