A Vermont judge
has dissolved the civil union of two lesbian former
lovers and awarded custody of their 5-year-old daughter to
one, with regular visitation for the other.
For three years,
the girl's biological mother, Lisa Miller, who now
claims she is heterosexual, has been fighting efforts by her
former partner, Janet Jenkins, to maintain contact
with the girl, Isabella.
The courts have
consistently ruled in Jenkins's favor. In April, the U.S.
Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of a decision by the
Vermont supreme court awarding Jenkins visitation
rights.
In his decision,
Rutland County family court judge William Cohen awarded
custody of Isabella to Miller, who lives in Winchester, Va.
He also granted regular visitation to Jenkins, who
lives in Fair Haven, Vt.
Starting in
August, Jenkins and Isabella are to spend every other
weekend together, alternating between Vermont and
Virginia.
''The purpose of
this specific initial schedule is to facilitate
reunification between [Isabella] and Janet,'' Cohen ruled
Friday. ''The court has suggested that the parties
utilize an outside facilitator to determine a
long-term parenting time schedule.''
In his order,
Cohen wrote that Miller had said she would abide by the
visitation order, which came after a trial to end the civil
union, akin to a divorce. Miller's attorney in
Virginia, Phil Griffin, did not return a call Monday.
In 2000, Miller
and Jenkins traveled from Virginia to Vermont where they
were joined in a civil union. In 2001, Miller conceived a
child through artificial insemination while the couple
was together. Isabella was born in April 2002. The
three moved full-time to Vermont in August 2002.
But just over a
year later, they separated and Miller moved back to
Virginia and denied Jenkins's demands for visitation rights.
(AP)
