Matter of Adoption of V.A.J.

The principal issue presented on appeal is whether the life imprisonment of the natural father for three felony murders is sufficient justification for failure to support his child and to preclude the application of 10 O.S.Supp.1974 § 60.6(3),1 which permits adoption without parental consent for wilful refusal to support a child according to the parent’s financial ability. The majority opinion holds that: 1) § 60.6(3) is clearly lacking in the expression of any legislative intent that imprisonment for any crime or for any duration is grounds for dispensing with parental consent, and 2)…