Hinds County Attorney, Bridgett Clayton, has qualified to run for Hinds County Chancery Judge!
“After much prayer and consideration, I am honored and excited to announce that I qualified for Hinds County Chancery Court Judge, District 5-3, on today.”
“I am ready to serve the citizens of Hinds County with God serving as a Lamp unto my feet and the Light unto my path as I seek election for this judicial seat to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly before my God. Micah 6:8”
I am requesting your prayers and support during the campaign as well as on Election Day which is November 3.
Please be on the lookout for future campaign information. Thank You!
Matthew Thompson is a Chancery practitioner and knows-well the power, authority and responsibility that Chancellor’s have and the knowledge and wisdom they should possess. Attorney Bridgett Clayton has all of those qualities and then-some!
Please support Bridgett Clayton for Hinds County Chancellor!
Judges take an oath to uphold the Law. Most do, but some do not. The Code of Judicial Conduct are the standards for the ethical and professional conduct of judges.
So what do you do when the Judge rules against you?Sometimes it’s a judgment call and not a violation of the law. In these circumstances you can file a Motion for New Trial and/or an Appeal with the Mississippi Supreme Court.
But what about when the judge clearly violates the law? Can you sue the Judge? Usually, no. Judges have what is known as Judicial Immunity that protects them from civil liability for violating the law. If the actions are criminal there could be penalties, but typically not for civil violations.
However, if a Judge violates the Judicial Canons and violates your rights you do have options. What else can be done? You can Contact Mississippi Judicial Performance and file a COMPLAINT.
Judicial performance is an entity created by the Mississippi Constitution that seeks;
To enforce the standards of judicial conduct, To inquire into judicial liability and conduct, To protect the public from judicial misconduct and disabled judges, and To protect the judiciary from unfounded allegations.
All proceedings before the Commission are of a civil nature, not criminal, as the purpose of the Commission is to be rehabilitative and educational as well as disciplinary.
Any citizen, litigant, attorney, law enforcement official, judge, public official, or other individual who has knowledge of possible judicial misconduct may file a complaint with the Commission. Complaints may also be filed anonymously. Additionally, the Commission may file a complaint on its own motion based upon matters it learns of in other ways, such as from mass media and information obtained during the course of an investigation.
All complaints must be submitted to the Commission in writing. The Commission does not accept oral complaints. You may use a complaint form or write a letter to the Commission. A complaint form filed with the Commission should be typewritten or printed so that it is easily readable.
Complaints should include all information available regarding your case, the case number, Court it is in, the parties names, and any witnesses to the violation(s).
The complaint should include the specific conduct complained of and the violation alleged.
Matthew Thompson is an attorney in Mississippi and knows most Judges try to do it right…but for those that willfully do not do it right, Judicial Performance can address your concerns.
The Noncustodial Parents’ Bill of Rights and Responsibilities which shall be provided to all noncustodial parents.
The Department of Human Services shall extend the following rights to noncustodial parents:
(a) Advance notification of all hearings concerning proposed modifications of child support;
(b) Advance notification concerning the representation of the noncustodial parent in court proceedings, which does not require an attorney;
(c) That the noncustodial parent shall have the same rights as the custodial parent concerning the receipt of any notification;
(d) Advance notice of information regarding scheduled meetings concerning the child;
(e) Advance notice of all meetings concerning all the agency’s crucial decisions regarding the child; and
(f) The ability to communicate with department personnel or representatives twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week, for the purpose of aiding the noncustodial parent.
This is not a sea-change, nor profound. The non-custodial parent is already entitle to notice, the right to counsel, the right to information, notice of meetings and decisions. The last item, the ability to communicate 24/7 seems unreasonable, but maybe that just means you can leave a message or send an email. Who knows?
Non-custodial parents already have rights! **Of note, there has yet to pass a Parent’s Bill of Rights in Mississippi law** However, even without that, parent’s have a fundamental right, guaranteed by the US Constitution to raise their child as they see fit.
Matthew Thompson is custody attorney in Mississippi and has represented hundreds of moms and dads in family courts throughout the state.
“I’ll take this all the way to the Supreme Court!”
A fair amount of family law cases are appealed in Mississippi. All are appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court, most are assigned to the Mississippi Court of Appeals (COA). This means the COA will decide your appeal.
An appeal, typically, does not result in an outright win. Most appeals are denied, as the chancery courts in Mississippi have a tremendous amount of discretion. There must be a showing of abuse of discretion and/or manifest error for an appeal to be successful. But, even then it may only be a paper victory.
An appellate win usually results in a remand. Meaning sent back to the same Judge for a new hearing on the issue(s) that the lower Court got wrong, and it’s usually with instruction on what and how to try the matter.
This often results in delay, more court and frequently no actual change in the outcome. The other tough thing in family law appeals is that time marches on.
The appeal of a custody matter could look vastly different two-years later and the Court, while “correcting” the past error, cannot ignore the now-current circumstances.
Be carefully with appealing your case. Talk to your attorney about potential outcomes and whether or not it will change the result.
Matthew Thompson is a Mississippi appeals attorney and has participated in over 30 appeals.
The irony is it’s only triggered when a court awards “paramount” custody to one parent over the other. “Paramount” custody does not legally exist, not in Mississippi Statutory Code.
Paramount is not a commonly used term in custody agreements and does not appear often in reported or appealed cases.
I know a judge who will ignore this law completely as he does not award “paramount” physical custody.
I get the intent of the law, but execution will be misapplied, not applied or create unintended consequences…as words matter in the law.
Supervised visitation is Ordered in rare circumstances.
It is typically when the parent has had significant issues with illegal substances, run-ins with law enforcement, severe defiance of prior Orders, mental health issues or present as a danger to the child. (Or a combo of the above)
These parents, of course, have the right to see their child, but the Court’s obligation is to make sure that the child is safe, at all times.
(a) A person commits an offense if the person takes or retains a child younger than 18 years of age:
(1) when the person knows that the person’s taking or retention violates the express terms of a judgment or order, including a temporary order, of a court disposing of the child’s custody;
(2) when the person has not been awarded custody of the child by a court of competent jurisdiction, knows that a suit for divorce or a civil suit or application for habeas corpus to dispose of the child’s custody has been filed, and takes the child out of the geographic area…without the permission of the court and with the intent to deprive the court of authority over the child; or
(3) outside of the United States with the intent to deprive a person entitled to possession of or access to the child of that possession or access and without the permission of that person.
(b) A noncustodial parent commits an offense if, with the intent to interfere with the lawful custody of a child younger than 18 years, the noncustodial parent knowingly entices or persuades the child to leave the custody of the custodial parent, guardian, or person standing in the stead of the custodial parent or guardian of the child.
(c) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(2) that the actor returned the child to the geographic area…within three days after the date of the commission of the offense.
(c-1) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(3) that:
(1) the taking or retention of the child was pursuant to a valid order providing for possession of or access to the child; or
(2) notwithstanding any violation of a valid order providing for possession of or access to the child, the actor’s retention of the child was due only to circumstances beyond the actor’s control and the actor promptly provided notice or made reasonable attempts to provide notice of those circumstances to the other person entitled to possession of or access to the child.
(c-2) Subsection (a)(3) does not apply if, at the time of the offense, the person taking or retaining the child:
(1) was entitled to possession of or access to the child; and
(2) was fleeing the commission or attempted commission of family violence, as defined by Section 71.004, Family Code, against the child or the person.
(d) An offense under this section is a state jail felony…
What are the penalties for interference with child custody? Up to two years in jail, A fine of up to $10,000, and Loss of custody.
There’s scuttlebutt that MS may consider a parental interference law as a crime in future sessions.
Right now the only real recourse is a contempt action in Chancery court in Mississippi. contempt doesn’t have the same “teeth” that a criminal offense would.
Matthew Thompson is a child custody lawyer in Mississippi and supports custody law changes that protect parents rights and common sense.
A child testifying is an often discussed issue between parents and attorneys in child custody cases.
When parents are getting a divorce the child usually knows more than their parents think. The child most likely witnessed fights, bad conduct and sometimes even dangerous conduct.
In Mississippi law, the leading authority is Jethrow vs. Jethrow, 571 So.2d 270 (Miss. 1990). This case lays the groundwork that the Court should use when assessing child testimony. The basic premise is, as follows;
A child witnesses of tender years*, 12 and under for testimony purposes, testifying is subject to the discretion of the Judge. (*this tender years is different than the “tender years” doctrine favoring a mother when a child is very young, under 2-3).
Before allowing such testimony the Judge “should satisfy himself that the child has the ability to perceive and remember events, to understand and answer questions intelligently, and to comprehend and accept the importance of truthfulness.”
Before excluding the testimony of a child witness of tender years in a divorce proceeding, the chancellor at a minimum should follow the procedure required by Crownover v. Crownover, 33 Ill.App.3rd 327, 337 N.E.2d 56 (1975):
The first hurdle is whether the child is competent to testify.
The Judge should confer in camera (meaning in the Judge’s chambers/office) with the child and determine whether or not the child’s testimony should be heard
The Judge has considerable discretion in conducting proceedings of this type, meaning it’s a judgment call.
The court should not, however, reject outright proposed testimony of a child in custody proceedings, where the omission of such crucial testimony might be harmful to the child’s best interests.
The trial court should take great pains to have an in camera conference with the child to determine the competency of the child,
and determine the competency of any evidence which the child might present.
The court should determine whether the best interests of the child would be served by permitting her to testify, or
Whether the child should be sheltered from testifying and being subjected to a vigorous cross-examination.
The Judge should report the essential material matters developed at the in camera conference on the record.
The Court should state the reasons for allowing or disallowing the testimony of the child, and
The Court should note the factual information which the court developed from the conference with the child which would be considered by the court in its ultimate determinations in the case.
Generally, the testimony of a child called as a witness in a divorce case should not be excluded for reasons other than competency, or evidentiary defects, or for the protection of the child. (24 Am.Jur.2d, Divorce and Separation, A 415). There should not be a summary refusal to inquire as to the competency of the child to testify and also of the competency of the proposed testimony of such child in a change of custody proceeding.
“We reiterate that parents in a divorce proceeding should if at all possible refrain from calling any of the children of their marriage, of tender years at least, as witnesses, and counsel should advise their clients against doing so except in the most exigent cases. The reason and wisdom behind this precaution need no amplification. We also hold, however, as we must that no parent can be precluded from having a child of the marriage in a divorce proceeding testify simply because of that fact.”Jethrow v. Jethrow, 571 So.2d 270, 274 (Miss. 1990)(emphasis added).
A child testifying should be avoided, however if it cannot be avoided the above process will likely be used by the Court to determine if and how the child will testify.
Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody Litigation Attorney in Mississippi.
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