Opinion
34162.
ARGUED OCTOBER 11, 1978.
DECIDED JANUARY 4, 1979.
Modification of custody. Fulton Superior Court. Before Judge Alverson.
Lowery Parker, Jr., pro se. J. Melvin England, for appellee.
This is an appeal from an order of the trial court denying the appellant father's motion — made in conjunction with his contempt proceeding against his former wife, appellee — for a modification of child visitation rights. Code Ann. § 30-127 (b) (Ga. L. 1957, pp. 412, 413; 1962, pp. 713, 714; 1976, p. 1050; 1978, pp. 258, 272); Sampson v. Sampson, 240 Ga. 118 ( 239 S.E.2d 519) (1977).
The trial judge's statement, that he didn't think that the appellant had "carried the burden," does not necessarily indicate that he erroneously applied the decisional law prior to the 1976 amendment to Code Ann. § 30-127, supra. See Sampson v. Sampson, supra. Moreover, the evidence authorized his decision based on the existing circumstances, even if they had not changed. See Dorminy v. Dorminy, 242 Ga. 326 ( 249 S.E.2d 49) (1978).
Modification of child visitation rights is a matter of discretion with the trial court ( Gazaway v. Brackett, 241 Ga. 127, 129 ( 244 S.E.2d 238) (1978) and cits.), and, under the circumstances present here, we find no abuse of discretion.
Judgment affirmed. All the Justices concur.