Christian v. Randall

Duane Christian (plaintiff) wanted to modify a child-custody arrangement that gave his former wife, Mark Randall (defendant), custody of their four daughters. The children had lived with Randall continuously in Colorado for six years after the divorce. Colorado family law provided that a court should not modify a prior custody decree unless it found that a change had occurred in the circumstances of the child or his custodian and that the change was needed to serve the best interests of the child. Colorado law further required a court to maintain the original custody decree unless the child’s current environment endangered her physical health or significantly impaired her emotional development, and the advantages of modification outweighed the harms. Moreover, there was a provision providing that a court should not consider conduct that had no effect on the relationship with the children. There was a plethora of evidence showing that the daughters were doing well and wished to remain with Randall. This included an investigative report prepared by Delta County Family and Children’s Services noting that all the girls had good report cards, had many friends, and enjoyed school. It also expressed the interviewer’s opinion that the girls were being adequately cared for and had a good relationship with Randall. The eventual trial court order alluded to Randall’s gender transition, from female to male, and the fact that Randall had married a woman. However, there was no indication that this affected Randall’s relationship with the girls. The trial court record also expressed concern that the girls were mentally disturbed, but there was no evidence in the record to support that finding. The trial court ultimately granted Christian’s petition. Randall appealed.