Blythe B. v. Boyd C.

This is an appeal from a judgment declaring a minor child free from the custody and control of his natural father pursuant to Civil Code section 232.

Plaintiffs filed a petition for the adoption of minor D.S.C. and later filed a petition to declare D. S. C. free from the parental custody and control of defendant under section 232, subdivisions (a)(1) and (a)(4). 2 A *19 hearing on the custody and control petition was held with all parties, including the minor, represented by counsel. The evidence introduced at the hearing consisted of a probation report and a psychiatric evaluation of defendant and defendant’s testimony.

Presented in the light most favorable to plaintiffs, the evidence relevant to the custody and control petition is as follows:

Defendant was paroled from state prison in February of 1975. He was then 32 years of age and had been incarcerated since the age of 19 with the exception of brief periods of release totaling approximately 1 year and 3 months. He had just finished serving 11 years for armed robbery, during which time he was involved in an escape from jail and in an attempted escape from prison. Prior to his robbery conviction, defendant had…