PAUL ROSEBORO v. KIMBERLY HARRISON

 

NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE

APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY

APPELLATE DIVISION

DOCKET NO. A-3030-05T33030-05T3

PAUL ROSEBORO,

Plaintiff-Appellant,

v.

KIMBERLY HARRISON,

Defendant-Respondent.

______________________________________________________________

 

Submitted March 28, 2007 - Decided April 23, 2007

Before Judges C.S. Fisher and Messano.

On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division, Family Part, FV-160674-03.

Paul Roseboro, appellant pro se.

Respondent did not file a brief.

PER CURIAM

Plaintiff, Paul Roseboro, sought modification of a domestic violence final restraining order (FRO) previously entered in his favor against defendant, Kimberly Harrison. On January 13, 2006, both parties appeared before Judge Michael K. Diamond on plaintiff's request to modify his child support obligations on behalf of his daughter, Zhane Roseboro, then ten years old, or alternatively to obtain custody of the child.

Plaintiff's application in support of the request to modify child support indicated that plaintiff was "disabled and not working and on heavy medication." He claimed this was all a result of defendant's actions which "alienat[ed] the child from [him]." At the hearing before Judge Diamond, plaintiff claimed that defendant's "false charges" against him had resulted in the loss of his job and various physical and psychological maladies. He claimed that an application for permanent disability was pending before the Social Security Administration.

In August, 2005, plaintiff had retained the services of attorney Frances Leddy. In correspondence to defendant, Leddy explained that plaintiff was prepared to "surrender[] and terminat[e] all of his parental rights to Zhane." To accomplish this goal, Leddy prepared a consent order which both parties executed in October. In November, however, Leddy wrote plaintiff and defendant and indicated that the Family Court did not believe the consent order was appropriate.

Trying to explain these apparent inconsistent positions -- voluntarily attempting to terminate his parental rights to Zhane in November and seeking full custody of her in January -- plaintiff stated,

Either I get full custody, Judge, or if she's not going to comply and let me visit with my child unsupervised then I want to walk away from it because I can't -- I can't let this thing kill me, you know. It almost did at this point.

Plaintiff's visitation rights had been the subject of numerous prior court proceedings.

Confronted with this explanation of plaintiff's request, Judge Diamond quite correctly concluded that he was "not going to consider any change of custody until Dr. Dasher," -- the court's psychologist or psychiatrist who had provided therapeutic counseling to the family -- "comes back and says yes, no or whatever." The judge succinctly asked plaintiff rhetorically, "How can I give [you] custody of a child that you wanted to give up your rights to two months ago?" The judge denied the request as "totally baseless."

Turning to the request to modify support, Judge Diamond noted first that plaintiff owed "$10,000 in child support" and that, pursuant to a prior order, was required to pay $500 toward the arrears within a matter of days. He considered plaintiff's proof regarding his disability and noted that plaintiff's medical proofs consisted of undated letters from his doctor. He concluded that plaintiff had failed to demonstrate a basis for modifying the prior child support orders or the FRO.

We have carefully considered the record below in light of plaintiff's contentions which, without specificity, claim the motion judge erred. We affirm substantially for the reasons expressed by Judge Diamond. R. 2:11-3(e)(1)(A). The balance of plaintiff's argument is without sufficient merit to warrant any further discussion in a written opinion. R. 2:11-3(e)(1)(E).

Affirmed.

Both parties appeared pro-se before the Family Part. Plaintiff appears pro-se in this appeal; defendant has failed to file any brief.

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4

A-3030-05T3

RECORD IMPOUNDED

April 23, 2007