Opinion ID: 1141299
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Preference of N.P.S.

Text: The superior court found that [N.P.S.]'s preference is to live with Xavier. N.P.S. indicated such a preference in his meeting alone with the superior court judge in chambers, although he also expressed a wish to stay with his brother, who lived with Jenny. The GAL also reported that N.P.S. would like to live with Xavier, because he is `the only father I ever knew.' [2] Jenny makes several arguments that question the significance of the statements. First, she maintains that N.P.S. expressed a preference for Xavier to the superior court judge in chambers only because the judge's questions were leading. The record does not bear this characterization out. The question the judge asked was if you could have the choice of where you wanted to be, to live, where would you live? Jenny suggests that N.P.S. apparently feels compelled to give people the answer he believes they want to hear. This theory is plausible, but equally plausible is the possibility that N.P.S. is afraid to tell his grandmother Jenny Sims that he would rather live with Xavier Medley, and Jenny points to no evidence that makes her theory more persuasive than others. The GAL reported that N.P.S. is afraid of his grandmother, but did not indicate that N.P.S. fears Xavier. The superior court was in the best position to evaluate this issue. Finally, Jenny contends that even if the superior court's determination was reasonable at the time it was made, subsequent events cast doubt on its correctness. N.P.S. wrote two letters: one stated a desire to stay in Toksook, and one stated, I can only live with one and I wont [sic] to live with both ove [sic] them. These conflicting letters do not render the superior court's determination as to N.P.S.'s preference clearly erroneous.