Kimberly Y. HARRIS, Appellant, v. John G. GOVERNALE, Appellee.
No. S-14808.
Supreme Court of Alaska.
Nov. 1, 2013.
1052
John G. Governale, pro se, Anchorage, Appellee.
Before: FABE, Chief Justice, WINFREE, MAASSEN, and BOLGER, Justices.
OPINION
MAASSEN, Justice.
I. INTRODUCTION
Kimberly Mendez (formerly Kimberly Harris), planning a move from Alaska to Florida with her husband, sought an order granting her primary physical custody of her daughter. The superior court awarded primary physical custody instead to the girl‘s father, John Governale, who remains in Alaska. Kimberly appeals, contending that the superior court erred by overlooking or minimizing John‘s issues with domestic viоlence and substance abuse, his inability to meet their child‘s emotional needs and foster her relationship with Kimberly, and the relative instability in his domestic life. Kimberly argues in the alternative that even if the superior court was correct to award primary physical custody to John, it erred in its allocation of visitation time and expenses. We affirm on most issues. We remand for reconsideration of the best interests analysis in light of one incident of domestic violence that the superior court erred in analyzing, and for reconsideration of the allocation of visitation expenses.
II. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS
John and Kimberly shared physical custody of their daughter from her birth in 2004 until July 2007, when they entered into an agreement by which John had primary physical custody and Kimberly had certain visitation rights. In 2008 Kimberly married Joshua Mendez, a staff sergeant in the United States Air Force. In June 2008 she filed a petition for a domestic violence protective order against John and a motion seeking full custody of their daughter. A long-term domestic violence protеctive order was issued. John and Kimberly settled their custody dispute in May 2009, agreeing to share physical custody and that Kimberly would dismiss the domestic violence protective order.
In November 2011, John and his girlfriend Anecia had an altercation in their home which resulted in John‘s arrest on a charge of assault in the fourth degree. The charge was ultimately dismissed, but the couple immediately separated, and John, with his daughter, moved into one unit of a duplex owned by his parents. In 2012 the Air Force transferred Kimberly‘s husband Joshua tо Florida. Kimberly again filed a motion for primary physical custody, asserting that it was in the child‘s best interests to move to Florida with her.
Instead, the superior court awarded primary physical custody to John following trial. The superior court found this to be in the child‘s best interests because John was better able to provide her with long-term stability. The superior court based its ruling primarily on the facts that John had had primary physical custody of the child in the past and that she had formed a strong bond with John‘s parents, her patеrnal grandparents. The superior court found that the evidence was neutral as to the other best interests factors, including the existence of domestic violence or substance abuse in either household.
Kimberly appeals, arguing that the superior court gave too much weight to John‘s period of sole physical custody while failing to take into account the instability in his domestic situation and the bond that their daughter had formed with Kimberly‘s husband Joshua. Kimberly also argues that John had problems with domestic violence and alcohol abuse that the court failed to weigh, and that the superior court erred in finding that John was able and willing to encourage the mother-daughter relationship. Finally, Kimberly argues that the superior court erred in disregarding testimony from a teacher regarding the child‘s fear of discipline in John‘s home.
Kimberly argues in the alternative that if John is entitled to primary physical custody,
III. STANDARD OF REVIEW
“The superior court has broad discretion in deciding child custody issues.”1 We will not reverse a custody decision unless the “court has abused its discretion or the controlling factual findings are clearly erroneous.”2 “The superior court abuses its discretion if it considers improper factors in determining custody, fails to consider statutorily mandated factors, or assigns disproportionate weight to some factors while ignoring others.”3 A factual finding is clearly erroneous if, after reviewing the record, we are left with thе definite impression that a mistake has been made.4 We review for abuse of discretion the superior court‘s determination that a particular issue was not fully and fairly litigated in a prior proceeding for purposes of the application of collateral estoppel.5 We also review for abuse of discretion the superior court‘s orders on visitation.6
IV. DISCUSSION
A. The Superior Court Did Not Clearly Err In Finding That The Stability And Continuity Factor Favored John.
The superior court in this case determined that the stability and continuity factor favored Kimberly “[i]n the short term” because John‘s living arrangements had been temporarily disrupted when he separated from Anecia, whereas Kimberly‘s move to Florida, while a geographical change, would continue the stable home environment that Kimberly and her husband were already providing. The court found that in the long term, however, the stability and continuity factor favored John. In reaching this conclusion the court placed some weight on the parties’ agreement in 2007-08 that it was then in the child‘s best interests that she be in John‘s sole physical custody, and the court further observed that John had been “a more consistent provider” for the girl over the years and
Kimberly argues that her home life is “obviously more stable” than John‘s and that the superior court failed to give sufficient weight to John‘s “volatile and inconsistent relationship with his live-in girlfriend,” on the one hand, and to her daughter‘s good relationship with her stepfather Joshua on the other. In Rooney v. Rooney, we considered the appeal of a mother who was moving from Wrangell to Sitka and sought to take her son along with her.10 We affirmed the superior court‘s award of primary physical custody to the father, “despite the fact that the separation from [the] mother for long periods of time [would] have a destabilizing effect,” because the presence of supportive family members in Wrangell, the child‘s close relationship with his father, and the father‘s active efforts to “merge” the child with the stepmother‘s family all supported the conclusion “that continuity, in its broader sense, is served by kеeping [the child] in [the father‘s community].”11 In this case, it appears that the superior court gave careful and considered weight to the facts relevant to the stability and continuity factor, including the disruptions in John‘s domestic life, which the court found were likely to be temporary. It is true that the court did not separately evaluate the importance of individual members of the child‘s “community of friends and family” other than John‘s parents,12 but it was not unreasonable for the court to highlight the importance of the paternal grandparents given the evidence that they had had a major role in caring for the child since her birth. We cannot say that the court clearly erred when it concluded that the interests of long-term stability and continuity favored the award of primary physical custody to John.13
B. The Superior Court Did Not Err In Rejecting A Presumption Against Custody Based On A History Of Domestic Violence, But It Did Err In Its Best Interests Analysis When Analyzing One Incident In John‘s Household.
1. Alleged domestic violence against Kimberly
Kimberly first argues that the superior court erred when it declined to find that John had committed acts of domestic violence against her. She contends that John should have been collaterally estopped from arguing otherwise because of the do
Kimberly appears to argue that even without the benefit of collateral estoppеl, the evidence that John committed more than one act of domestic violence was sufficient to outweigh his denials. But the superior court declined to credit Kimberly‘s testimony alleging domestic violence between them, and we do not reweigh the evidence or reassess the trial court‘s determinations of witness credibility.18 Absent a finding that John committed domestic violence against Kimberly, there was no history of domestic violence which would require application of the presumption agаinst custody in
2. The November 2011 incident involving Anecia
Because Kimberly failed to establish that John had a history of perpetrating domestic violence, the presumption against custody in
Although John and Anecia were not living together at the time of trial, the court could easily have concluded that they would do so again; we assume this to be the court‘s premise. John and Anecia had lived together for four years, had a child together, and continued to share major expenses while living apart. Their children were close. Moreover, regardless of whether John and Anecia still lived together, the governing statutes make domestic violence relevant even if it involves persons “who have lived together.”19
There was no dispute that there was a physical altercation involving John and Anecia. The court found “[I]t‘s clear that there was a disturbance, that there was an argu
However, each of the reasons the superior court gave for its inability to weigh the incident in the best interests analysis was legally erroneous. First, the superior court took note of the evidence that John was simply warding off physical contact initiated by Anecia and that self-defense on his part had not been disproved.20 In its written findings, the superior court ruled that because Anecia did not establish that she was “the victim of any assault... the presumption in
Second, the superior court downplayed the incident because it found a lack of evidence that an assault occurred, relying on Anecia‘s testimony to find that she was never in “fear of injury or pain.” But if the court believed that Anecia was the aggressor, then the relevant question would be whether John, not Anecia, feared imminent physical injury.22 John‘s testimony could support such a finding. Furthermore, no matter which person was the aggressor, an attempted assault occurred if the perpetrator attempted to put the victim in fear of imminent physical injury, regardless of success, and attempted аssault is a domestic violence crime.23 And finally, because both John and Anecia suffered some minor injury during the altercation, the evidence could support a finding that an assault occurred regardless of whether either of them feared injury at the time.24
Third, the superior court disregarded the incident because the child was not present when it occurred. But domestic violence in the proposed custodial household must be weighed in the best interests analysis regardless of whether the child was presеnt.25 The statutory requirement, again, is that the superior court weigh “any evidence of domestic violence... in the proposed custodial
The superior court‘s reluctance to weigh this incident of domestic violence in its best interests analysis thus appears to have been based on several legal errors in its analysis. We remand for the court‘s reconsideration of custody in light of this discussion.
C. The Superior Court Did Not Clearly Err In Finding That Substance Abuse Did Not Affect The Child‘s Well-Being.
D. The Superior Court Did Not Clearly Err In Finding That John Was Able To Meet The Child‘s Emotional Needs.
Kimberly argues that the superior court clearly erred in finding that John was able to meet their daughter‘s emotional needs,30 relying on testimony by a teacher that the child was afraid of getting in trouble from John because of her disruptive behavior at school. This argument is without merit. John testified that in order to deal with his daughter‘s misbehavior at school, he would “take privileges away” and make her “contemplate... whether or not it‘s even worth it to do that“: “She[] get[s] grounded for the most part. She loses play time.” There was no evidence that John mischaracterized his disciplinary methods. Nor was there any evidence that this disсipline adversely affected his ability to care for the child‘s emotional needs or that it should otherwise weigh against him in the best interests analysis. We see no clear error in the court‘s determination that the parents are equally able to meet their daughter‘s needs.
E. The Superior Court Did Not Clearly Err In Finding That John Was Able To Encourage The Child‘s Relationship With Kimberly.
F. The Superior Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion In Scheduling Visitation.
The superior court granted Kimberly visitation during alternating Christmases and Thanksgivings, each spring break, and each summer vacation with the exception of ten days at the beginning and end of the summer. Kimberly argues that the superior court abused its discretion in three ways in fashioning this schedule. She argues first that the superior court erred by alternating Christmases instead of dividing each one between the parents. But by alternating holidays rather than dividing them up, the superior court sought to minimize the time and inconvenience of holiday travel while ensuring that Kimberly and her daughter had an extended holiday period together, either Christmas or Thanksgiving, each school year in addition to spring break. This was a rational allocation of time and not an abuse of discretion.
Kimberly argues that the superior court also erred by allowing John to retain custody during the first ten days and the last ten days of the summer. The superior court explained that it was important to allow Jоhn to enjoy part of the summer with his daughter without the pressures of school. Kimberly argues that this rationale improperly focused on John‘s needs, not the child‘s, but it is consistent with the child‘s best interests to have some recreational time with her father during the summer months. Indeed, Kimberly suggested an identical allocation in the event she were awarded primary physical custody. This aspect of the award was not an abuse of discretion either.
Third, Kimberly argues that the superior court erred in awarding her only five days of visitation if she comes to Alaska to visit, contending that this is a very brief allocation “for a parent who has traveled almost 5,000 miles from Florida to Alaska.” But this provision becomes relevant only if Kimberly visits Alaska while the child is in school, as the holiday and vacation periods are otherwise allocated to one parent or the other. If Kimberly relocates to Anchorage permanently, the order makes clear that physical custody will again be shared. While extended visits by Kimberly short of permаnent relocation could necessitate a modification to the schedule, we cannot say that providing five days of visitation for any visits to Alaska that are not otherwise addressed in the order was an abuse of discretion, given the broad discretion the superior court has in this area.31
G. It Was Error To Allocate Visitation Expenses Before Making An Award Of Child Support.
Finally, Kimberly argues that the superior court erred in requiring that she pay 75% of the estimated travel expenses for the proposed visitаtion. We agree that the court erred procedurally.
STOWERS, Justice, not participating.
V. CONCLUSION
We VACATE the custody order and REMAND for reconsideration of custody and