Edward R. Gularte III v. Liliana Bahena
Case No: 1467971
Hearing Date: Tue May 29, 2018 10:30

Nature of Proceedings: Req. for Order: Child Custody/Visitation

Petitioner’s Req. for Order: Child Custody/Visitation

Attorney for Petitioner, Robert Goodman

Attorney for Respondent, Geoff Newlan

Ruling: The first question is whether mother has surrendered the child to father pursuant to the current order. The Court will not hold any evidentiary hearing while mother has not complied with the outstanding order, whether she agrees with it or not. Once mother complies with the order the Court will hold the evidentiary hearing mother requests. However, there is no time estimate and no list of witnesses in the file to enable the Court to determine when such a hearing can go forward. Please be prepared to supply that information at the hearing.

Background:

Father was awarded sole legal and physical custody of the minor child with no visitation to mother on April 6, 2018, based upon his declaration that mother had not allowed him any visitation (Sunday afternoons only) for over a year and had disappeared with the minor child.

The case was last on calendar on 4/10/18 and continued to 5/22 at the request of father’s lawyer, Mr. Goodman, who at that time had no communication with mother. The Court notes that mother had received copies of everything in the file that has been filed since 1/2/2017 to 4/10/18. Also notes that she knew father was searching for the child at least on April 10, 2018 pursuant to her declaration filed with her ex parte application.

On 5/25 mother filed an ex parte application asking that the Court give her sole legal and physical custody and no visitation to father until an incident of alleged domestic violence that occurred in 2016 could be solved. The Court denied that request and specifically noted that father had been awarded temporary physical custody with no visitation to mother.

Mother sought an ex parte order on 5/25; the Court ordered the matter on calendar for May 29 pursuant to mother’s Ex Parte Order.

Father’s Status Report

Father filed a Status Report on 5/25 requesting sole legal and physical custody.

Mother’s Status Report

Mother requests that at the Tuesday, May 29, 2018, hearing this Court grant her custody of her daughter pending further order of the court. She also requests that the court take oral testimony at that hearing, or as soon thereafter as possible, to get to the bottom of who is telling the truth about why Father has not seen his child for the last one and one-half years.

The timing of father’s filing papers on March 9, 2018, showing he was aware of something that had (he thought) happened the day before, brings into question its veracity. Mother asks only that her daughter be returned to her until the court can receive evidence to make the right decision for her daughter. She did not know about the motion by design and when she learned of the orders, she contacted lawyers until she found one to take her case and then immediately brought a motion to tell her side of the story.

Both parties agree that their daughter Love who is almost four (4) years old (b. 6/30/2014) has not seen her father since about January 2017 when she was only two and one-half (2 ½) years old. It is in this child best interest to reside with her mother until the court can determine what happened, who to believe, and whether should revert back to the 12/19/2014 order or something else. There are medical records, Child Welfare Records, and telephone records that will shed light on all of this. Mother had the same phone number this entire time (until about November 2017) and she will testify and the records will show that she was not contacted by Father. Father’s phone records will show he had a new phone number and that he did not contact Mother with that device over all of these months