Court Rules Child's Best Interest Should Prevail in Some Custody Cases

By Julia Spalding

Published on February 27, 2006

The Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that an orphaned child's best interest takes precedence over the parents' will in some custody battles. At the center of the ruling is a 22-month-old girl whose father, Pfc. Stephen Sherwood, shot and killed his wife, Sara, and himself in August, after she told him she had been involved in an affair while he was serving in Iraq.

The justices ordered a lower court to reconsider who should be named guardian of the child. Previously, the court had ruled that Stephen Sherwood's mother be named guardian, as both Sherwoods had directed in their wills, and because the child would not be harmed by it. However, Sara Sherwood's sister and brother-in-law, who have been caring for the child since the shootings and are also seeking guardianship, appealed the lower court decision.

The unanimous Supreme Court decision stated that the standard in determining guardianship in such a case should be based on the child's best interest, not whether or not the decision would cause harm. Supreme Court Justice Alex Martinez wrote that the courts must consider all the relevant circumstances when people who are currently caring for a child contest guardianship.

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