Tennessee Court Can Keep Sex Offender From Divorced Children
Tennessee law case summary on parenting plan and child custody modification in Tennessee divorce and family law from the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
Michael G McCall v Jennifer Sue McCall – Amending a Tennessee Parenting Plan Denied – Court may deny access to children to sex offender
Michael McCall, Father, and Jennifer McCall, Mother, are the divorced parents of two minor children. In January of 2011, the parents filed a motion to modify the parenting plan jointly. The original parenting plan was put in place in January of 2010. The parents sought to reduce the amount of child support the Father paid and to amend the residential, holiday and vacation schedules. It was also to allow Robert Lee Amerson to be in the presence of the children.
A hearing was held in March of 2011 and the trial court refused to modify the parenting plan once it learned thatMr.Amersonwas a registered sex offender. The Mother filed a notice of appeal as a result. The Mother asserted the trial court erred in this decision because the victim in the case that Mr.Amerson pled guilty to sexually battery was not a minor. In October of 2011, the appeals court dismissed the Mother’s appeal for lack of final judgment and remanded it to a lower court.
In March of 2012, the Mother filed a motion seeking a ruling on the joint motion filed in January of 2011. The trial court denied the motion to amend the parenting plan to allowMr.Amersonto be in the presence of the children. However, it did grant the reduction in child support and the parenting schedule. It stated thatMr.Amersonwas not to be in the presence of the children as a result. The Mother filed an appeal of this decision.
In the brief provided by the Mother, she states that Tennessee law does not prohibit a person convicted of sexual battery by an authority figure from living in the same home as a minor unless the victim is a minor.
The appeals court noted first that the Father did not appeal this decision. It also noted that the relationship to the parties thatMr.Amersonhas is unclear. It stated thatMr.Amersonwas convicted of rape and pled guilty to sexual battery by an authority figure for an offense that occurred in March of 2006. The appeals court ruled that the most important factor is that of the children’s safety.
In short, the trial court has the right to protect the best interest of the children. The appeals court noted that nothing in the state’s laws suggest that the trial court abused its discretion in the case by denying this request. It also stated that the Mother’s argument is wholly without merit. It therefore affirmed the trial court’s decisions.
No. W2012-00692-COA-R3-CV – Filed June 29, 2012.
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
Memphis divorce lawyer, Miles Mason, Sr., JD, CPA practices family law exclusively and is founder of the Miles Mason Family Law Group, PLC, which handles Tennessee family law matters including divorce, child support, alimony, prenuptial agreements, child custody, parental relocation, child support modification, alimony modification, and divorces including business valuation and forensic accounting issues. A Memphis divorce attorney from the Miles Mason Family Law Group can help. Contact the Miles Mason Family Law Group, PLC at 901-683-1850.
