In re Hunt
Before: Garoutte
Synopsis
Parent and Chihd—Guardianship—Jurisdiction op Superior Court.— The father and mother, being the natural guardians of a minor child, can be deprived of the custody of its person only by a proceeding under section 203 of the Civil Code; and the superior court has no jurisdiction, in any proceeding not inaugurated under that section, to commit the custody of the child of natural parents to a stranger.
Opinion
The Court. The children above named having been brought before the court by writ of habeas corpus, and the court being fully advised as to the matter, it is hereby ordered that said minor children be discharged from the custody of Frank Kane, and restored to the custody of the petitioner.
The father and mother, being the natural guardians of a child, can be deprived of the custody of its person only by a proceeding under section 203 of the Civil Code.
The proceeding by which the superior court has committed these children to the custody of a stranger is wholly unauthorized.
Concurrence — Garoutte
Garoutte, J., concurring. I concur in the judgment, but am not prepared to coincide with the majority of the court upon the important question stated in the opinion as to the effect of section 203, without an opportunity for further examination.
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