In re Jonathan G.
Opinion of the Court
In two related child protective proceedings pursuant to Family Court Act article 10, the mother appeals from two dispositional orders of the Family Court, Queens County (Berman, J.) (one as to each child), both dated December 17, 1997, which, upon fact-finding orders of the same court, both dated August 4, 1997, made after a hearing, finding that the children Jonathan G. and Joseph R. were abused, placed the children with the Commissioner of Social Services for a period of one year. The appeals bring up for review the fact-finding orders dated August 4, 1997.
Ordered that the appeals from so much of the dispositional orders dated December 17, 1997, as placed the children in the care of the Commissioner of Social Services for a period of one year are dismissed, without costs or disbursements; and it is further,
Ordered that the dispositional orders dated December 17, 1997, are affirmed insofar as reviewed, without costs or disbursements.
The appeals from so much of the dispositional orders as placed the children in the care of the Commissioner of Social
Contrary to the mother’s contention, the petitioner proved by a preponderance of the evidence that she had abused her children (see, Family Ct Act § 1012 [e] [i], [ii]). Where, as here, the issue is whether a parent has allowed a child to be abused, “the trier of fact is required to determine whether a reasonable and prudent parent would have acted, or failed to act, under the circumstances as presented. The test is, therefore * * * an objective one” (Matter of Scott G., 124 AD2d 928, 929; see, Matter of Carrie R., 156 AD2d 756, 757). The evidence in this case established that the mother allowed the children to be abused by their stepfather. She failed to protect the children from their stepfather’s violent conduct or to act as a reasonably prudent parent would under the circumstances (see, Matter of Michael R., 228 AD2d 684; Matter of Lauren B., 200 AD2d 740). Altman, J. P., Goldstein, H. Miller and Smith, JJ., concur.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.