Mother and father are the biological parents of L.W. The parties were never married. Father had been very abusive in their relationship. Mother filed a parentage petition. The child was a toddler.
The facts include that father had successfully interviewed for a job that required frequent travel. As a result, father was sporadically present after L.W.’s birth. The trial court awarded the mother residential custody of L.W. Father was awarded unsupervised visitation.
The court also modified the mother’s order of protection against the father. This allowed for personal, mail, and telephonic contact to the extent that the trial court felt was strictly necessary to effectuate the terms of the visitation order. Mother filed a motion for rehearing. After a hearing on the motion for rehearing only, the court affirmed its decision as to visitation and modification of the order of protection. Mother appealed.
The Appellate Court reversed the Trial Court. It found that the trial court abused its discretion in creating a schedule for the father that failed to provide for a gradual reintroduction of the father to his very young son. And by modifying mother’s order of protection to allow for personal contact with father. Therefore, the cause was remanded for a redetermination of visitation. Because of the father’s conduct toward the mother.
Wittendorf v. Worthington, 2012 Ill.App.4th 120525.
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