In Re Marriage of Torres

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Appellant Susan Torres (Ms. Torres) and respondent Samuel Torres (Mr. Torres) are the parents of Simon Torres (Simon), bom February 4, 1988, and Matthew Torres (Matthew), bom May 18, 1991. The family was evicted from their home in California on April 1, 1994. On or about April 8, 1994, Ms. Torres and the children moved to Pennsylvania, where Ms. Torres’s mother and other family members reside. Both children lived in California from birth until they moved to Pennsylvania.

On June 24, 1994, Mr. Torres filed the following documents in the Superior Court of Alameda County: a petition for dissolution of marriage, which included a request that legal and physical custody of Simon and Matthew, then six and three years old, be awarded to him; a schedule of assets and debts; an order to show cause for child custody and visitation, which included a summons for Ms. Torres to appear in court for a hearing on July 14, 1994; a supporting declaration and a request for an ex parte order that Ms. Torres be required to return to California with the children; and a declaration under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA) (Fam. Code, § 3400…