| Matter of Kyanna T. (Winston R.) |
| 2012 NY Slip Op 07119 [99 AD3d 1011] |
| October 24, 2012 |
| Appellate Division, Second Department |
| In the Matter of Kyanna T., an Infant. Administration for Children'sServices, Respondent; Winston R. et al., Appellants. (Proceeding No. 1.) In the Matter of JamellaR., an Infant. Administration for Children's Services, Respondent; Winston R. et al., Appellants.(Proceeding No. 2.) In the Matter of Ken T., an Infant. Administration for Children's Services,Respondent; Winston R. et al., Appellants. (Proceeding No. 3.) In the Matter of Isiaiah R., anInfant. Administration for Children's Services, Respondent; Winston R. et al., Appellants.(Proceeding No. 4.) |
—[*1] Lisa Lewis, Brooklyn, N.Y., for appellant June R. Michael A. Cardozo, Corporation Counsel, New York, N.Y. (Edward F.X. Hart and TahirihM. Sadrieh of counsel), for respondent. Patrick R. Garcia, Brooklyn, N.Y., attorney for the child Kyanna T. Joan N.G. James, Brooklyn, N.Y., attorney for the children Jamella R., Ken T., and IsiaiahR.
In related child abuse and neglect proceedings pursuant to Family Court Act article 10, themother appeals, as limited by her brief, (1) from so much of a fact-finding order of the FamilyCourt, Kings County (Olshansky, J.), dated March 19, 2010, as, after a hearing, found thatWinston R. sexually abused the child Kyanna T., that the mother failed to protect Kyanna T.from the abuse, that she neglected Kyanna T., and that she derivatively neglected Jamella R., KenT., and Isiaiah R., and (2) from so much of an order of disposition of the same court datedFebruary 22, 2011, as, after [*2]a dispositional hearing, placedKyanna T. in the custody of the Commissioner of Social Services of the City of New York, andplaced the mother under the supervision of the New York City Commissioner of Children'sServices until July 21, 2011, and Winston R. separately appeals, as limited by his brief, (1) fromso much of the same fact-finding order as found that he sexually abused the child Kyanna T.,derivatively abused the child Jamella R., and derivatively neglected the children Ken T. andIsiaiah R., and (2) from so much of the same order of disposition as placed Kyanna T. in thecustody of the Commissioner of Social Services of the City of New York, and placed the fatherunder the supervision of the New York City Commissioner of Children's Services until July 21,2011.
Ordered that the appeals from so much of the order of disposition as placed the mother andWinston R. under the supervision of the Commissioner of Children's Services until July 21,2011, are dismissed as academic, without costs or disbursements, as the period of supervision hasexpired; and it is further,
Ordered that the appeals from the fact-finding order are dismissed, without costs ordisbursements, as the fact-finding order was superseded by the order of disposition and isbrought up for review on the appeals from the order of disposition; and it is further,
Ordered that the order of disposition is affirmed insofar as reviewed, without costs ordisbursements.
The appeal from so much of the order of disposition as placed the mother and Winston R.under the supervision of the New York City Commissioner of Children's Services until July 21,2011, must be dismissed as academic, as the period of supervision has expired (see Matter of Lisbeth H. [Noemy H.],83 AD3d 836, 836 [2011]; Matterof Daniel W., 56 AD3d 483, 484 [2008]). The adjudications of abuse, derivative abuse,neglect, and derivative neglect, however, constitute a permanent and significant stigma whichmight indirectly affect the appellants' status in future proceedings. Therefore, the appeals fromthe portions of the order of disposition which bring up for review the findings of abuse,derivative abuse, neglect, and derivative neglect in the fact-finding order are not academic (see Matter of Crystal S. [Elaine S.], 74AD3d 823, 824-825 [2010]; Matterof Derek P., 43 AD3d 938, 938-939 [2007]).
The petitioner established by a preponderance of the evidence (see Family Ct Act§ 1046 [b] [i]), that Winston R. sexually abused Kyanna T. in the presence of the childJamella R. The petitioner further established by a preponderance of the evidence that the motherneglected Kyanna T. by failing to take actions to protect her or to investigate whether JamellaR.'s allegations of the sexual abuse were true, and by permitting Winston R. to continue to residewith Kyanna T. after she was informed by the child Jamella R. that such abuse had taken place(see Matter of Heather S., 19 AD3d606, 608 [2005]). Kyanna T.'s out-of-court statements were corroborated by her swornin-court testimony, the out-of-court statements by the child Jamella R. who witnessed the abuse,and by expert testimony (see Matter ofAlaysha E. [John R.E.], 94 AD3d 988, 988-989 [2012]). In light of the conflictingtestimony presented at the hearing, the factual findings of the Family Court turned largely on itsassessment of the credibility of the witnesses, which is entitled to great weight (see Matter of Lauryn H. [William A.],73 AD3d 1175, 1176 [2010]).
A finding of sexual abuse of one child does not by itself establish that other children in thehousehold have been derivatively abused or neglected (id. at 1177). Here, however,Winston R.'s abuse of Kyanna T. in the presence of Jamella R. evinced a flawed understanding ofhis duties as a parent and impaired parental judgment sufficient to support the Family Court'sfinding that Winston R. derivatively abused Jamella R. and derivatively neglected the childrenKen T. and Isiaiah R. (see id.; Matter of Grant W. [Raphael A.], 67 AD3d 922, 922 [2009]).Furthermore, the finding that the mother derivatively neglected the children Jamella R., Ken T.,and Isiaiah R. is supported by the evidence of her neglect of the child Kyanna T. That evidenceestablished that the mother lacked an understanding of her parental responsibilities (seeMatter of Heather S., 19 AD3d at 608).
The record further demonstrates that the Family Court did not err in excluding Winston R.and the mother from the courtroom during Kyanna T.'s testimony. The Family Court [*3]properly balanced the respective interests of the parties andreasonably concluded that Kyanna T. would suffer emotional trauma were she compelled totestify in their presence (see Matter ofElisha M.W. [Ronald W.], 96 AD3d 863, 864 [2012]; Matter of Deshawn D.O. [Maria T.O.],81 AD3d 961, 962 [2011]; cf. Matter of Heather S., 19 AD3d at 609). Moreover,because the attorneys for Winston R. and the mother were present during Kyanna T.'s testimonyand cross-examined her on their behalf, the constitutional rights of the mother and Winston R.were not violated by their exclusion from the courtroom (see Matter of Elisha M.W. [RonaldW.], 96 AD3d at 864; Matter of Deshawn D.O. [Maria T.O.], 81 AD3d at 962; Matter of Q.-L. H., 27 AD3d 738,739 [2006]). Skelos, J.P., Balkin, Leventhal and Cohen, JJ., concur.