Legal Opinion
Feist Lemieux-Feist v. State
South Dakota Supreme Court
Decided December 29, 2010No. 25530PublishedCited by 4 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
MEIERHENRY, Justice.
[¶ 1.] We must decide in this case whether South Dakota’s third party custody statutes are constitutional. The two statutes in question are SDCL 25-5-29 and 25-5-30. The circuit court found these statutes unconstitutional because they do not specifically require “a finding of parental unfitness prior to awarding custody to a non-parent.” We hold that the statutes can be construed constitutionally, and therefore, the circuit court must be reversed.
FACTS
[¶2.] Zachary Lemieux-Feist (Father) and Ashley Fousek (Mother) had a daughter (A.L.F.). Father and Mother had a strained…
2Cases cited14 opinions
- Troxel v. GranvilleSupreme Court of the United States · 2000
- Meyer v. NebraskaSupreme Court of the United States · 1923
- Pierce v. Society of SistersSupreme Court of the United States · 1925
- Prince v. MassachusettsSupreme Court of the United States · 1944
- Quilloin v. WalcottSupreme Court of the United States · 1978
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3Cited by4 opinions
- Stehly v. Davison CountySouth Dakota Supreme Court · 2011
- Veldheer v. Peterson & MandelSouth Dakota Supreme Court · 2012
- Beach v. CoismanSouth Dakota Supreme Court · 2012
- Stehly v. Davison CountySouth Dakota Supreme Court · 2011