A parent’s criminal record is something a Georgia judge may weigh in deciding custody, and one kind of conviction ends parental power altogether.
What the Statute Says
OCGA 19-9-3(a)(3)(P) lists “criminal history of either parent” among the best interest factors. It is one factor, weighed with the rest.
One conviction does more. Under OCGA 19-7-1(b)(7), parental power is lost by “[c]onviction for the murder or voluntary manslaughter of the other parent of such child.”
Charges Are Not Convictions
In Huff v. Vallejo, 347 Ga. App. 127 (2018), a legitimated father had supervised visits under a temporary order. At a later contempt hearing, with misdemeanor charges still pending against him and immigration proceedings under way, the trial court made his visits unsupervised. With no transcript of that hearing in the record, the Court of Appeals affirmed, holding it could not say “as a matter of law” that unsupervised visits were an abuse of discretion “based upon the mere fact of pending immigration proceedings and criminal charges standing alone.”
A Conviction Can Bring Conditions
In Martin v. True, 232 Ga. App. 435 (1998), a father had pleaded nolo contendere to simple battery on his new wife and had been convicted of driving while intoxicated. The trial court gave the parents joint legal custody and the mother physical custody, and gave the father visitation with conditions, including that neither parent drink while the children were with them. The Court of Appeals affirmed, noting that neither incident happened in the children’s presence.
Related Questions When a Parent Is in Prison
Child support, where to file for divorce, and visits with the incarcerated parent’s own parents are separate questions, covered in our posts on incarceration and child support, on divorce venue when a spouse is in prison, and on grandparent visitation after a parent dies or is incarcerated.
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!