Presumed Father In The Modern Family.

The biological father of a four-year-old was 45 years old when he met the child’s mother, who was 19 at the time. The biological father had an extensive criminal history and the mother had just been released from jail when she moved in with him. At his request, the mother began prostituting herself.  After the two were arrested for shoplifting, he was incarcerated and she was released on bail. Thereafter, the mother learned she was pregnant, and she believed the biological father to be the father, sending him an ultrasound picture. Another man was present at the child’s birth. The mother and the other man married two months later. The trial court found the mother’s husband received the child into his home, held the child out to be his and demonstrated an abiding commitment to the child’s wellbeing, but concluded the biological father was the presumed father. On appeal, the appellate court discussed the two competing legal presumptions involved. Under Adoption of Kelsey S. (1992) 1 Cal.4th 816, [4 Cal.Rptr.2d 615, 823 P.2d 1216], “if an unwed father promptly comes forward and demonstrates a full commitment to his parental responsibilities—emotional, financial, and otherwise—his federal constitutional right to due process prohibits the termination of his parental relationship absent a showing of his unfitness as a parent.” Under Family Code section 7611, subsection (d), a “presumed parent receives the child into his or her home and openly holds out the child as his or her natural child.” The appellate court reversed the judgment of the trial court, stating: “[A] father whose own bad decisions preclude him from carrying out his paternal responsibilities does not satisfy the high bar set by Kelsey S.,” and that the trial court erred in granting presumed father status to the biological father. In re D.S. (Cal. App. Sixth Dist.; October 27, 2014) 230 Cal.App.4th 1238, [179 Cal.Rptr.3d 348].)