5D02-1026 5D02-1262 H.P. v. DCF

State: Florida

Court: Florida Fifth District Court

Docket No: 5D02-1026

Case Date: 01/06/2003

Preview:IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA FIFTH DISTRICT JULY TERM 2002

H.P. FATHER OF H.P., JR., and J.P., CHILDREN, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, et al., Appellees/Cross-Appellants. _____________________________/ Opinion filed January 10, 2003 Appeal from the Circuit Court for Orange County, Janet C. Thorpe, Judge. Ryan Thomas Truskoski of Ryan Thomas Truskoski, P.A., Orlando, for Appellant/Cross-Appellee, H.P. James A. Sawyer, Kissimmee, for Appellee/Cross-Appellant, Department of Children and Families. Timothy A. Straus of Moyer, Straus & Patel, P.A., Altamonte Springs, for Appellee/Cross-Appellant, E.W. V-S. PETERSON, J. H.P., the natural father, and the Florida Department of Children & Families (DCF) appeal the trial court's order awarding custody of two minor children to E.W. V-S., the natural mother, who is a resident of Massachusetts. In 1994 a Massachusetts court dissolved the father and mother's marriage and custody CASE NOs. 5D02-1026 & 5D02-1262

was awarded to the father who changed his residence to Florida shortly after the dissolution. Several years later, in 2001, the Florida trial court adjudicated the children dependent after finding that the father had physically abused one of the minor children on more than one occasion. A disposition order was entered placing the children with a third-party followed by a post-disposition motion by the mother asking that she be awarded custody. A hearing on that motion resulted in the trial court finding that: 1. Although a home study is required prior to placing a child in the custody of a nonoffending parent, the information furnished by the mother that included verification of household income, photographs of her home and background checks certified by Massachusetts law enforcement constituted a home study for the purposes of the relevant statute. 2. Department of Children & Families v. Benway, 745 So. 2d 437 (Fla. 5 th DCA 1999) was not dispositive of the instant case. 3. The delays inherent in the Interstate Compact on Placement of Children (ICPC),

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