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Charles B. v. Charles B

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Fourth Department
Dec 21, 2007
46 A.D.3d 1430 (N.Y. App. Div. 2007)

Opinion

No. CAF 06-03751.

December 21, 2007.

Appeal from an order of the Family Court, Onondaga County (Martha Walsh Hood, J.), entered December 13, 2006 in a proceeding pursuant to Social Services Law § 384-b. The order, insofar as appealed from, terminated the parental rights of respondent Charles B., III based on a finding of permanent neglect and freed the subject children for adoption.

FRANK H. HISCOCK LEGAL AID SOCIETY, SYRACUSE (MARY P. DAVISON OF COUNSEL), FOR RESPONDENT-APPELLANT.

ANTHONY P. RIVIZZIGNO, COUNTY ATTORNEY, SYRACUSE (SARA J. LANGAN OF COUNSEL), FOR PETITIONER-RESPONDENT.

Present: Scudder, P.J., Smith, Centra, Lunn and Peradotto, JJ.


It is hereby ordered that the order so appealed from be and the same hereby is unanimously affirmed without costs.

Memorandum: Respondent father appeals from an order terminating his parental rights based on a finding of permanent neglect and freeing the subject children for adoption. We reject the father's contention that petitioner failed to establish permanent neglect by the requisite clear and convincing evidence ( see generally Social Services Law § 384-b [g]; Matter of Star Leslie W, 63 NY2d 136, 142-143). The record establishes that the father chose to have no contact with his children for a period of almost five months and that his visitation was sporadic for a period of over seven months, for periods of time both before and after THE five-month period. We thus conclude that petitioner established that, for a period of more than one year, the father failed "substantially and continuously or repeatedly to maintain contact with or plan for the future of his children (Social Services Law § 384-b [a]; see Matter of Raychael L.W., 298 AD2d 930, lv denied 99 NY2d 504; Matter of Latasha W, 268 AD2d 340, 341). We further reject the contention of the father that Family Court abused its discretion in terminating his parental rights. The record "established] that the child [ren]'s best interests dictated [that they] be freed for adoption by [their] foster parent of four years" ( Matter of Aliya Cheray Love L., 39 AD3d 364, 365). Finally, the father did not request a suspended judgment and thus failed to preserve for our review his alternative contention that the court should have entered a suspended judgment ( see Matter of Rosalinda R., 16 AD3d 1063, 1064, lv denied 5 NY3d 702).


Summaries of

Charles B. v. Charles B

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Fourth Department
Dec 21, 2007
46 A.D.3d 1430 (N.Y. App. Div. 2007)
Case details for

Charles B. v. Charles B

Case Details

Full title:In the Matter of CHARLES B., V, and Another, Infants. ONONDAGA COUNTY…

Court:Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, Fourth Department

Date published: Dec 21, 2007

Citations

46 A.D.3d 1430 (N.Y. App. Div. 2007)
2007 N.Y. Slip Op. 10309
848 N.Y.S.2d 470

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