The
Vermont
Supreme
Court
ruled
Aug.
4
that
Vermont
courts,
not
courts
in
Virginia,
have
exclusive
jurisdiction
in
a
two-state
custody
dispute
involving
a
lesbian
couple
and
their
four-year-old
daughter.
The
decision
was
handed
down
in
the
case
of
Lisa
and
Janet
Miller-Jenkins,
Virginia
residents
who
moved
to
Vermont
and
were
joined
in
a
civil
union.
After
the
couple
separated
in
2003,
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
moved
back
to
Virginia
with
the
child,
Isabella,
and
claimed
she
was
no
longer
a
lesbian.
“We
applaud
that
a
court
got
it
right
today,”
said
Jay
Squires,
board
chair
of
the
Equality
Virginia
Education
Fund,
who
is
serving
as
Janet
Miller-Jenkins’
co-counsel.
“Both
state
and
federal
laws
say
that
a
court
order
grant-ing
custody
can’t
be
overturned
by
going
to
another
state
court
and
shopping
for
a
second
opinion.”
He
added
that
the
decision
is
consistent
with
the
federal
Uniform
Child
Custody
Jurisdiction
Act
&
Parental
Kidnapping
Protection
Act,
which
are
designed
to
prohibit
“this
type
of
forum
shopping.”
The
unanimous
Vermont
decision
granting
visitation
rights
to
Janet
Miller-Jenkins
contradicts
several
rulings
issued
by
Virginia
courts
that
cited
the
state’s
anti-gay
laws
in
granting
full
custody
to
Lisa.
Lead
counsel
for
Janet
Miller-Jenkins
was
Joseph
Price,
of
the
Washington,
D.C.,
firm
Arent
Fox
and
a
member
of
the
Equality
Virginia
Education
Fund
Board.
Price
called
the
decision
“well-reasoned”
and
said
it
took
Janet
Miller-Jenkins’
rights
as
a
primary
caregiver,
or
“parent-in-fact”
into
account.
He
said
Vermont
and
Virginia
state
courts
have
statutes
they
can
use
to
determine
custody,
even
if
the
parent
is
not
related
to
the
child,
such
as
when
a
grandparent
sues
for
custody.
“Even
without
a
civil
union
[Janet
Miller-Jenkins]
was
a
parent-in-fact,”
he
said.
“She
was
providing
support
that
a
parent
would
normally
provide,
such
as
nurturing,
food,
clothing
and
care,
just
as
any
father
would,
even
if
she
was
not
the
biological
parent.”
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
is
the
child’s
biological
parent.
Her
lead
counsel,
Mathew
Staver
of
the
Liberty
Counsel,
said
his
client
was
disappointed
by
the
decision.
“They
said
Lisa
gave
no
reason
why
visitation
was
not
attempted,”
he
said.
“There
were
times
that
were
offered
by
Lisa
to
have
Janet
visit
and
Janet
did
not
make
herself
available
for
those.”
Janet
and
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
declined
to
be
interviewed
for
this
story.
Va.
ruling
expected
soon
With
the
help
of
the
Liberty
Counsel,
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
filed
a
petition
July
1,
2004
in
Frederick
County,
Va.,
seeking
full
custody
of
Isabella
and
declaring
Janet
Miller-Jenkins
had
no
parental
rights.
The
Virginia
trial
judge
used
the
Affirmation
of
Marriage
Act
to
rule
in
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins’
favor.
Lambda
Legal
and
the
ACLU,
with
the
support
of
the
Equality
Virginia
Education
Fund
and
Arent
Fox,
appealed
the
decision
on
Janet
Miller-Jenkins’
behalf.
The
Virginia
Court
of
Appeals
stayed
its
ruling
pending
a
decision
from
Vermont.
Both
Price
and
Staver
said
they
expect
the
Virginia
court
to
rule
soon.
The
Marriage
Affirmation
Act
makes
illegal
any
“partnership
contract
or
other
arrangement
between
persons
of
the
same
sex
purporting
to
bestow
the
privileges
or
obligations
of
marriage.”
“This
is
the
classic
kind
of
case
crying
out
for
Supreme
Court
review:
two
diametrically
opposed
state
court
decisions
on
an
incredibly
important
issue,”
Vermont
law
school
professor
Michael
Mello
told
the
Associated
Press.
Renouncing
the
‘lesbian
lifestyle’
Contrary
to
reports
that
his
client
went
court
shopping
in
Virginia
after
the
initial
Vermont
decision,
Staver
said
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
never
fled
and
was
in
Virginia
the
entire
time.
“She
only
lived
in
Vermont
temporarily,”
said
Staver.
“Lisa
then
returned
to
Virginia,
where
she
was
before
any
court
action
started.”
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins’
relocation
to
Virginia
makes
enforcing
the
Vermont
decision
difficult
for
everyone
involved,
especially
Isabella.
Staver
said
Janet
Miller-Jenkins
and
the
child
do
not
know
each
other
well
and
that
Lisa
will
continue
to
abide
by
the
Virginia
court
decision,
which
says
there
is
no
validity
to
the
Vermont
court
orders.
Price
said
that
until
the
Virginia
appellate
court
rules,
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
can
stay
in
Virginia
with
Isabella.
“Right
now
there
is
no
way
for
it
to
be
enforced,”
said
Price.
“Lisa
is
being
held
in
contempt
of
court
[for
taking
the
child
across
state
lines].
The
hope
is
that
the
Virginia
trials
court
will
reverse
its
decision
that
says
it’s
OK
for
her
to
do
that.
I
think
the
Virginia
court
will
come
to
the
same
conclusion
—
that
Vermont
has
jurisdiction
and
the
Virginia
court
has
no
legal
reason
to
interfere
with
decisions
in
Vermont
courts.”
Staver
said
Lisa
Miller-Jenkins
renounced
what
he
called
her
“lesbian
lifestyle”
when
she
became
a
Christian.
“The
Liberty
Counsel
defends
traditional
marriage
as
between
a
man
and
a
woman,”
he
said.
“In
this
case
there
are
national
implications
regarding
the
sovereignty
of
states
to
set
their
own
marriage
policies
regarding
same-sex
unions,
whether
marriage
or
civil
unions.”
Staver
insists
his
client
is
no
longer
a
lesbian,
but
even
if
she
was,
he
said
the
Liberty
Counsel
would
have
taken
the
case
because
of
the
legal
implications
involved.
“Lisa
became
a
Christian,”
he
said.
“She
didn’t
want
to
be
in
the
lesbian
lifestyle
anymore.”
The
Liberty
Counsel
is
affiliated
with
Rev.
Jerry
Falwell’s
Liberty
University
in
Lynchburg,
Va.
Price
...
