Dumitrascu v. Dumitrascu ( 2022 )

Appellate Case: 21-1341 Document: 010110684665 Date Filed: 05/16/2022 Page: 1
FILED
United States Court of Appeals
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT May 16, 2022
_________________________________
Christopher M. Wolpert
Clerk of Court
VIOLETA DUMITRASCU, on behalf of
A.M.B.D.,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
v. No. 21-1341
(D.C. No. 1:21-CV-01813-PAB)
ALIN DUMITRASCU, (D. Colo.)
Defendant - Appellant.
_________________________________
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
_________________________________
Before BACHARACH, BALDOCK, and EID, Circuit Judges.
_________________________________
This appeal arises from an international custody dispute between Alin
Dumitrascu and Violeta Dumitrascu regarding their minor child, A.M.B.D. The
district court found that Alin wrongfully retained A.M.B.D. in the United States and
ordered A.M.B.D.’s return to Romania under the Hague Convention on the Civil
Aspects of International Child Abduction, Oct. 25, 1980, T.I.A.S. No. 11,670, 1343
U.N.T.S. 89 (Hague Convention), and its implementing legislation, the International
*
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously to honor the parties’ request for a decision on the briefs without oral
argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(f); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is therefore
submitted without oral argument. This order and judgment is not binding precedent,
except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. It
may be cited, however, for its persuasive value consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1
and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
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Child Abduction Remedies Act, 22 U.S.C. §§ 9001–9011. Alin challenges the
district court’s threshold finding that A.M.B.D. habitually resided in Romania.
Exercising jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, we affirm.
I. Background
Alin and Violeta are both Romanian by birth and have family in Romania.
Alin moved to the United States in 2006 and became a United States citizen. Violeta
is a Romanian citizen.
The two met online in 2007 and married in Romania in 2015. They then
moved to Colorado in 2016, and Alin successfully sponsored Violeta’s application
for a green card.
Violeta later became pregnant with A.M.B.D. The couple decided to travel to
Romania for her birth in part to avoid hospital fees in the United States. They
traveled to Romania in early August 2019, where they stayed with Alin’s father;
though at that point they “intended to return to the United States at some point to
raise the child.” Aplt. App., vol. 2 at 20. Violeta gave birth to A.M.B.D. on
September 4, 2019, and the couple lived in Romania for about ten months after
A.M.B.D.’s birth.
During that time, their “plan for the future diverged.” Id. “When A.M.B.D.
was five weeks old, [Violeta] got a job [in Romania] because someone had to earn
money and [Alin] did not want to work in Romania.” Id. Violeta’s green card also
expired, the United States denied her application for an extension, and she developed
reservations about returning to the United States. “She therefore made plans for the
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family to live in Romania.” Id. at 21. As part of these plans, she applied for “the
First House program, a Romanian program to assist young families in buying their
first home.” Id.Alin intended for the family to return to the United States. He got Violeta’s
permission to travel to the United States with A.M.B.D. so he could obtain a social
security card for the child. “He also planned to work on getting [Violeta] a green
card, to bring her over to the United States, and to earn money through a job.” Id. at
22. To facilitate this trip, Violeta signed an affidavit that stated: “I agree and
consent[] that [A.M.B.D. can] travel to the United States of America, starting with
July 6, 2020, until December 31, 2020, together with Alin Dumitrascu, as parent of
minor.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).
Alin took A.M.B.D. to the United States in July 2020. But he did not help
Violeta apply for a green card. And he did not return A.M.B.D. to Romania by the
December 31 deadline to do so. Violeta then filed for divorce in Romania and
launched these proceedings seeking A.M.B.D.’s return to Romania.
The district court found that Romania was A.M.B.D.’s habitual residence
when Alin retained her in the United States. It therefore evaluated whether Alin’s
retention of A.M.B.D. breached Violeta’s custody rights under Romanian law,
concluded that his retention did, and ordered A.M.B.D.’s return to Romania pending
custody proceedings there. Alin challenges the district court’s finding that A.M.B.D.
habitually resided in Romania.
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II. Discussion
“Under the Hague Convention . . . , a child wrongfully removed from her
country of ‘habitual residence’ ordinarily must be returned to that country.”
Monasky v. Taglieri, 140 S. Ct. 719, 722–23 (2020). “[A] first-instance
habitual-residence determination is subject to deferential appellate review for clear
error.” Id. at 723. But we review the district court’s “conclusions regarding
principles of domestic, foreign, and international law de novo.” Watts v. Watts,
935 F.3d 1138, 1144 (10th Cir. 2019) (internal quotation marks omitted). And
A.M.B.D.’s return to Romania does not moot this appeal because “the return of a
child under the Hague Convention does not moot an appeal of the return order.”
Monasky, 140 S. Ct. at 725.
A. The Date for Determining A.M.B.D.’s Habitual Residence
Alin argues the district court erred by evaluating A.M.B.D.’s habitual
residence immediately before the date he removed her from Romania—i.e., July 8,
2020—instead of the date he retained A.M.B.D. in the United States without
Violeta’s permission—i.e., December 31, 2020.
Violeta agrees the district court should have decided where A.M.B.D.
habitually resided immediately before Alin retained her in the United States. But she
contends the district court did exactly that. 1
1
Violeta also argues this issue—i.e., whether the district court should have
made a finding on where A.M.B.D. habitually resided immediately before her
retention in the United States—was not preserved in the district court and that Alin
therefore waived his argument by failing to argue for plain-error review in his
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We agree with Violeta that the district court found A.M.B.D. habitually
resided in Romania on the date Alin retained her in the United States without
Violeta’s permission. The court titled the section of its order deciding A.M.B.D.’s
habitual residence by reference to A.M.B.D.’s retention, not her removal, asking:
“Where was A.M.B.D.’s habitual residence at the time of her retention?” Aplt. App.,
vol. 2 at 30 (boldface omitted). And the court ultimately found “that A.M.B.D.’s
habitual residence at the time of her removal to the United States on July 8, 2020,
and subsequent retention in the United States, was Romania.” Id. at 31 (emphasis
added); see also id. at 36 (finding “that A.M.B.D. was ‘at home’ in Romania when
she was wrongfully retained” (emphasis added)). We therefore reject Alin’s first
claim of error.
B. The District Court’s Habitual Residency Finding
Alin next contends the district court clearly erred in finding that A.M.B.D.
habitually resided in Romania.
opening brief. “The question we ask” in deciding whether an “issue was preserved
below” “is whether the district court was adequately alerted to the issue.” United
States v. Garcia, 936 F.3d 1128, 1132 (10th Cir. 2019) (internal quotation marks
omitted). In her petition, Violeta asked the district court to find that “[t]he Child was
habitually a resident with [Violeta] in Romania within the meaning of Article 3 of the
Convention immediately before her removal and retention by [Alin].” Aplt. App.,
vol. 1 at 15 (emphasis added). And, as we hold below, the district court made the
requested finding. The district court was therefore adequately alerted to the issue for
us to consider it on appeal. See Garcia, 936 F.3d at 1132 (“[I]f the district court was
adequately alerted to the issue, and perhaps even responded to the issue, then we are
able to review on appeal.” (internal quotation marks omitted)).
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“The Hague Convention does not define the term ‘habitual residence.’”
Monasky, 140 S. Ct. at 726. “A child ‘resides’ where she lives. Her residence in a
particular country can be deemed ‘habitual,’ however, only when her residence there
is more than transitory.” Id. (citation omitted). “The place where a child is at home,
at the time of removal or retention, ranks as the child’s habitual residence.” Id.
“Because locating a child’s home is a fact-driven inquiry, courts must be sensitive to
the unique circumstances of the case and informed by common sense.” Id. at 727
(internal quotation marks omitted). “There are no categorical requirements for
establishing a child’s habitual residence,” id. at 728, and “[n]o single fact . . . is
dispositive across all cases,” id. at 727. Instead, “[t]he inquiry into a child’s habitual
residence . . . cannot be reduced to a predetermined formula and necessarily varies
with the circumstances of each case.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).
A petitioning parent bears the burden of proving a child’s habitual residence in
the applicable country by a preponderance of the evidence. See 22 U.S.C.
§ 9003(e)(1)(A); West v. Dobrev, 735 F.3d 921, 929 (10th Cir. 2013). Alin offers
four reasons the district court erred in finding Violeta satisfied her burden of proving
A.M.B.D. habitually resided in Romania.
First, Alin argues the district court erred in weighing the couple’s intent on
where to raise A.M.B.D. He points to evidence that when they first went to Romania
and for some time thereafter, he and Violeta shared an intent to raise A.M.B.D. in the
United States. And he argues the district court erred by allowing Violeta’s changed
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intent, to raise A.M.B.D. in Romania, to trump his steadfast intent to raise A.M.B.D.
in the United States. 2
Alin is correct that “‘the intentions and circumstances of caregiving parents
are relevant considerations.’” Aplt. Opening Br. at 19 (quoting Monasky, 140 S. Ct.
at 727). “But a court must consider all the facts and circumstances concerning the
couple’s intended stay in the country.” Watts, 935 F.3d at 1145. Here, Alin and
Violeta shared an intent to return to the United States “as a family.” Aplt. App., vol.
2 at 30 (emphasis added). They “never had a shared, mutual intent to live apart.” Id.
at 31. And when Violeta’s green card expired in November 2019, the family could
no longer live together in the United States. The district court weighed the impact of
this changed circumstance on the couple’s prior intent, alongside other facts,
including the couple’s joint effort to secure an affidavit time-limiting A.M.B.D.’s
travel away from the only country she had ever lived in, and found that “the parties’
pre-birth intent [was] outweighed by their intent and conduct thereafter.” Id. at 37.
We decline Alin’s invitation to re-weigh the evidence on appeal. See United States v.
Gilgert, 314 F.3d 506, 515–16 (10th Cir. 2002) (“On clear error review, our role is
not to re-weigh the evidence . . . .”).
2
To the extent Alin argues Violeta could only prevail by showing a shared
parental intent to raise A.M.B.D. in Romania, we reject this argument as contrary to
Monasky. See 140 S. Ct. at 726 (holding that “the determination of habitual
residence [for an infant] does not turn on the existence of an actual agreement”
“between the parents on where to raise their child”).
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Second, Alin argues that “[o]utside of [Violeta’s] unilateral actions, the district
court had little to rely on to support its conclusion that A.M.B.D.’s habitual residence
was Romania.” Aplt. Opening Br. at 37. We disagree. The evidence shows
A.M.B.D. was born in Romania, lived there for ten months—accumulating various
possessions 3 and building relationships with extended family in Romania during that
time—and only left Romania via a travel document that limited her legal absence to
less than six months. 4 Also, both of her parents could legally live in Romania,
whereas only her father could legally live in the United States. These facts support a
finding that A.M.B.D. was “at home,” Monasky, 140 S. Ct. at 726, in Romania.
Cf. United States v. Chavez, 734 F.3d 1247, 1250 (10th Cir. 2013) (“A finding of fact
is not clearly erroneous unless it is without factual support in the record, or unless the
court after reviewing all the evidence, is left with a definite and firm conviction that
the district court erred.” (internal quotation marks omitted)).
Third, Alin highlights evidence that could support a finding A.M.B.D. was
habitually resident in the United States. He points to the couple’s joint efforts to
secure U.S. citizenship for A.M.B.D., a delay in A.M.B.D.’s trip to the United States
3
Alin argues the district court erred when it “found that A.M.B.D. had a
bicycle in Romania” because Violeta testified that the bicycle in question did not
belong to A.M.B.D., but instead belonged to the family. Aplt. Opening Br. at 40.
This argument misconstrues the district court’s finding, which was that “[t]he
family’s belongings in Romania include . . . a bicycle.” Aplt. App., vol. 2 at 20
(emphasis added).
4
Alin does not challenge the district court’s finding that Romanian law
required him to return A.M.B.D. to Romania by December 31, 2020.
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by about a month due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Violeta’s efforts to help Alin
secure employment in the United States, and a catalogue of A.M.B.D.’s possessions
in the United States. But this evidence does not lead us to “a definite and firm
conviction that the district court erred,” Chavez, 734 F.3d at 1250 (internal quotation
marks omitted).
Starting with A.M.B.D.’s citizenship, the Hague Convention’s writers
“deliberately chose ‘habitual residence’ for its factual character, making it the
foundation for the Convention’s return remedy in lieu of formal legal concepts like
domicile and nationality.” Monasky, 140 S. Ct. at 727. And Alin does not cite any
evidence that A.M.B.D.’s legal citizenship bore any relation to where she was “at
home,” id. Regarding the delay in A.M.B.D.’s trip to the United States, even if
A.M.B.D.’s flight had not been delayed, her earlier departure on a limited-duration
trip would not sway the habitual residence analysis. Violeta’s efforts to help Alin
find a job and A.M.B.D.’s accumulation of possessions in the United States might
lend support to the conclusion A.M.B.D. had taken up habitual residence in the
United States, but they do not compel it on the factual record before the district court.
Fourth, Alin argues the district court erred by failing to discuss evidence
pertaining to A.M.B.D.’s acclimation in the United States during the period between
July 8 and December 31, 2020, in its section addressing A.M.B.D.’s habitual
residence. But as a general rule, “the district court is not required to make findings
as to every detail. Findings are sufficient if they indicate the factual basis for the
court’s general conclusion as to ultimate facts and are broad enough to cover all
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material issues.” Hjelle v. Mid-State Consultants, Inc., 394 F.3d 873, 880 (10th Cir.
2005) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted)). Cf. Nulf v. Int’l Paper Co.,
656 F.2d 553, 561 (10th Cir. 1981) (observing that “a trial court is not a dictating
machine” and that “[i]ts findings do not have to contain evidence supporting every
possible viewpoint”) (discussing Fed. R. Civ. P. 41 and 52). And in this case, the
district court’s order makes it clear the court was aware of and considered evidence
of A.M.B.D.’s acclimation in the United States after July 8, 2020, by discussing some
of that evidence in a later section of its order. See Aplt. App., vol. 2 at 45
(recounting undisputed witness “testimony that A.M.B.D. has had a happy childhood
with her father and grandparents in Colorado”).
III. Conclusion
We affirm the district court’s order.
Entered for the Court
Bobby R. Baldock
Circuit Judge
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