State ex rel. Asberry v. Payne
Decision Date | 20 May 1998 |
Docket Number | No. 97-1915,97-1915 |
Citation | 693 N.E.2d 794,82 Ohio St.3d 44 |
Parties | The STATE ex rel. ASBERRY v. PAYNE, Judge. |
Court | Ohio Supreme Court |
In May 1984, Dale Spencer, Jr. ("Dale Jr.") was born. The Lawrence County Court of Common Pleas, Probate Division, took custody away from his biological mother, Karen Wilson. From 1984 until March or May 1997, Dale Jr. lived with relator, his maternal grandmother, Frances Asberry. In March or May 1997, Dale Jr. began living with his biological father, Dale Spencer, Sr. ("Spencer"). According to Asberry, she supported Dale Jr. from his birth until Spencer obtained custody of Dale Jr. by deception in 1997. Spencer and Dale Jr., however, claimed that Dale Jr. voluntarily left Asberry's residence because he was tired of her drinking, yelling, and swearing.
In April 1997, Spencer filed a complaint in the Lawrence County Court of Common Pleas, Juvenile Division, requesting a judgment finding him to be the natural father of Dale Jr. Wilson failed to respond to Spencer's parentage action. Asberry did not receive notice of the parentage proceeding. In June 1997, respondent, Juvenile Division Judge David Payne, entered a judgment finding Spencer to be the natural father of Dale Jr. and awarding Spencer continued custody of Dale Jr.
Asberry subsequently filed her own pro se petition in the juvenile court. She requested custody of Dale Jr. Asberry also requested the appointment of counsel because she was unable to afford to hire an attorney. Asberry's sole income is $489 in monthly Social Security benefits. Wilson agreed that placement of Dale Jr. with Asberry would be in Dale Jr.'s best interest.
At a pretrial hearing in Asberry's custody case, Asberry again requested an appointed attorney. Judge Payne denied Asberry's request by stating the following:
Asberry then contacted an attorney from the Southeastern Ohio Legal Services Program concerning her right to counsel in the juvenile court proceeding. On September 11, 1997, the attorney advised Judge Payne that if he did not appoint an attorney to represent Asberry, he would file an action for an extraordinary writ in this court. The attorney also requested a continuance of the juvenile court proceeding pending the writ action, but Judge Payne informed him that he would consider such a request only from Asberry or any attorney she hired to represent her in the custody proceeding. The attorney stated that he was not representing Asberry in her custody case.
Judge Payne proceeded to conduct the hearing on September 11. After Asberry again requested an attorney and told the juvenile court that she was on disability and could not afford an attorney, Judge Payne again refused to appoint one because "[t]he court's policy * * * is not to appoint counsel in a custody case of this nature." On the same date as the custody hearing, Asberry, through attorneys from the Southeastern Ohio Legal Services Program and the Ohio State Legal Services Association, filed this action for a writ of mandamus to compel Judge Payne to appoint counsel for her in the custody proceeding. Following the issuance of an alternative writ, Judge Payne issued an order designating Spencer as the legal guardian and residential parent of Dale Jr. 1 The parties filed evidence and briefs, and the Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation, the Association for Children for Enforcement of Support, Action Ohio, and the Ohio Domestic Violence Network filed an amici curiae brief in support of Asberry.
The cause is now before this court for consideration of the merits of the petition for a writ of mandamus.
Southeastern Ohio Legal Services Program, Gary M. Smith and Mark J. Cardosi; Ohio State Legal Services Association and Thomas W. Weeks, Columbus, for relator.
J.B. Collier, Jr., Lawrence County Prosecuting Attorney, and Jeffrey M. Smith, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, for respondent.
John S. Marshall, Columbus, urging granting of the writ for amici curiae, the Ohio Legal Assistance Foundation, the Association for Children for Enforcement of Support, Action Ohio, and the Ohio Domestic Violence Network.
Asberry asserts in her sole proposition of law that she is entitled to a writ of mandamus to compel the appointment of counsel for her in her juvenile court custody proceeding. In order to be entitled to the writ, Asberry must establish that she has a clear legal right to the appointment of counsel, that Judge Payne has a clear legal duty to appoint counsel for her, and that she has no adequate remedy in the ordinary course of law. See State ex rel. Howard v. Ferreri (1994), 70 Ohio St.3d 587, 589, 639 N.E.2d 1189, 1192-1193.
Although the United States Constitution does not require the appointment of counsel to indigent parties to all juvenile court proceedings, "[a] wise public policy * * * may require that higher standards be adopted than those minimally tolerable under the Constitution." Lassiter v. Durham Cty. Dept. of Social Serv. (1981), 452 U.S. 18, 33, 101 S.Ct. 2153, 2163, 68 L.Ed.2d 640, 654. Ohio, through R.C. 2151.352, provides a statutory right to appointed counsel that goes beyond constitutional requirements. In re Mull (Mar. 24, 1997), Seneca App. No. 13-96-38, unreported, at 5, 1997 WL 155412 (); In re Kriak (1986), 30 Ohio App.3d 83, 84, 30 OBR 140, 140-141, 506 N.E.2d 556, 557. Asberry claims a clear legal right to the appointment of counsel in her custody proceeding under R.C. 2151.352. Judge Payne counters that R.C. 2151.352 does not afford indigent parties like Asberry the right to appointed counsel in custody actions brought by private persons in juvenile court.
R.C. 2151.352 provides:
(Emphasis added.)
Judge Payne initially contends that R.C. 2151.352 does not confer a right to appointed counsel on Asberry because the phrase "pursuant to Chapter 120. of the Revised Code" limits the right to appointed counsel to those cases specified in R.C. 120.06(A). R.C. 120.06 provides for legal representation by county public defenders of indigent adults and juveniles charged with the violation of state statutes and municipal ordinances that could result in the loss of liberty. State ex rel. Kura v. Sheward (1992), 75 Ohio App.3d 244, 251, 598 N.E.2d 1340, 1345. For the following reasons, Payne's contention is meritless.
First, statutory interpretation of R.C. 2151.352 does not support Judge Payne's assertion that the right to appointed counsel in R.C. 2151.352 is limited by R.C. 120.06. The paramount consideration in construing statutes is legislative intent. State ex rel. Purdy v. Clermont Cty. Bd. of Elections (1997), 77 Ohio St.3d 338, 340, 673 N.E.2d 1351, 1353. In determining legislative intent, we must first review the language of the statutes in dispute. State ex rel. Herman v. Klopfleisch (1995), 72 Ohio St.3d 581, 584, 651 N.E.2d 995, 997. To the extent that R.C. 2151.352 and R.C. Chapter 120 both involve the right to counsel for indigent persons, they involve the same subject matter and should be construed in pari materia, giving full force and effect to both. State ex rel. Sinay v. Sodders (1997), 80 Ohio St.3d 224, 227, 685 N.E.2d 754, 758. Applying these standards, it is evident that the phrase "pursuant to Chapter 120. of the Revised Code" does not limit the circumstances in which a person is entitled to appointed counsel under R.C. 2151.352; it instead incorporates statutory procedures to provide appointed counsel. Adoption of Judge Payne's construction would render R.C. 2151.352 superfluous.
Second, interpretation of R.C. 2151.352 to restrict the right to appointed counsel to the cases specified in R.C. 120.06 does not comport with our statutory duty under R.C. 2151.01(D) to construe R.C. Chapter 2151 to ensure parties a fair hearing at which their legal rights are recognized and enforced.
Third, Judge Payne's interpretation of R.C. 2151.352 conflicts with precedent. In State ex rel. Butler v. Demis (1981), 66 Ohio St.2d 123, 126-127, 20 O.O.3d 121, 123, 420 N.E.2d 116, 118-119, this court expressly held that the right to appointed counsel under R.C. 2151.352 is not limited to the proceedings specified in R.C. 120.16(A):
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