News

A long-running child custody case took a dramatic turn Tuesday, when a Massachusetts juvenile court judge awarded “permanent” custody of teen-ager Justina Pelletier to the state Department of Children and Families.

 

The ruling by Judge Joseph Johnston leaves it up to the agency, not the court, to decide whether or when Pelletier should be returned to her West Hartford, Conn., home.

Two informational programs will be held in Boston on Sunday and Monday, April 6th & 7th.  The Sunday afternoon program is for parents, teachers, and therapists.  The Monday breakfast is for physicians and clinicians.

The juvenile court judge in the long-running Justina Pelletier custody case delayed issuing a ruling Friday on a motion to return the teenager to her Connecticut home.

 

A lawyer for the girl’s parents and a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, which has had legal custody of Pelletier for more than a year, said the judge sent word that he will instead notify the parties of his decision by the end of the day on Tuesday.

The juvenile court judge in the long-running custody case of Justina Pelletier said in court Monday that he will rule by the end of the week on a motion to return the girl home.

The motion presented by the court-appointed lawyer for Justina and the lawyers for her parents, Linda and Lou Pelletier of West Hartford, Conn., calls for the parents to be awarded “conditional custody” of their 15-year-old daughter. Judge Joseph Johnston could revoke the parents’ custody if they violate the terms of the agreement, which includes ensuring that Justina receives proper medical care and schooling.

The Massachusetts child-protection agency announced Friday that it is actively pursuing plans to return an ailing teenager at the center of a yearlong custody battle to her home state of Connecticut, in an apparent move to extricate itself from a drama in which the parents allege they have been unfairly stripped of their rights to make medical choices for their daughter.

 

The Department of Children and Families said it is also endorsing a plan to have Justina Pelletier’s medical care transferred back to Tufts Medical Center, which has long been a demand of her parents. Their attempt to move their daughter’s care a year ago from Boston Children’s Hospital to Tufts, where she had been treated previously, is what set in motion the events that led them to lose custody of the teenager.