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MTM v. LD2/14/2002
o adopt, which is the subject of this action, on March 21, 2000. A hearing to the district court, without a jury, was held on January 22, 2001, and a Final Decree of Adoption of KJD by the grandparents was entered on February 14, 2001. The father appeals the final decree of adoption.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
[ ] It is within the power and discretion of a trial court to grant an adoption without parental consent, providing all statutory elements are met. "The power to grant or deny a petition for adoption is within the discretion of the trial court." In re Adoption of SMR, 982 P.2d 1246, 1248 (Wyo. 1999). An appellate court will not interfere with a district court's discretionary decision absent a clear abuse of that discretion. Semler v. Semler, 924 P.2d 422, 424 (Wyo. 1996). "'In determining whether there has been an abuse of discretion, the ultimate issue is whether or not the court could reasonably conclude as it did. An abuse of discretion has been said to mean an error of law committed by the court under the circumstances.'" Matter of Adoption of CCT, 640 P.2d 73, 76 (Wyo. 1982) (quoting Martinez v. State, 611 P.2d 831, 838 (Wyo. 1980)). Assessing whether there has been an abuse of discretion involves determining whether the evidence is sufficient to support the district court's decision. Basolo v. Basolo, 907 P.2d 348, 353 (Wyo. 1995). "A finding rendered without sufficient evidence, however, is erroneous and constitutes an abuse of discretion . . .." Kennedy v. Kennedy, 761 P.2d 995, 998 (Wyo. 1988) (citing Miles v. CEC Homes, Inc., 753 P.2d 1021, 1022 (Wyo. 1988)). The burden is on the appellant to show such abuse. Blake v. State, 933 P.2d 474, 477 (Wyo. 1997).
DISCUSSION
[ ] The father's first two allegations can be dealt with relatively quickly. The first concerns his demand for a jury trial in the adoption proceedings. The district court did not commit any error in denying the father's repeated requests for a jury trial because there is no right to a jury trial in adoption proceedings under Chapter 22 of Title 1 of the Wyoming Statutes. Adoption is entirely a statutory procedure and adoptions must be conducted in strict compliance with the governing statute. In re Adoption of Strauser, 65 Wyo. 98, 196 P.2d 862, 866 (1948). Wyo. Stat. Ann. §§ 1-22-105 and 1-22-106 (LexisNexis 2001) clearly contemplate that adoptions are to take place in a hearing before the court rather than a trial before a jury. *fn9 Likewise, Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 1-22-110, the statute under which this particular adoption took place, provides for the court, not a jury, to make the findings necessary for an adoption to take place without consent. As we have long recognized, it is not for this Court to decide what should have been said in a statute. Barber v. State Highway Commission, 80 Wyo. 340, 342 P.2d 723, 725 (1959). Had the legislature intended for there to be a right to a jury trial in adoption proceedings, it could have so provided, as it did in the statutes that govern termination of parental rights in non-adoption cases under Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 14-2-312 (LexisNexis 2001).
[ ] The father contends that denial to him of a jury trial in this case is unconstitutional. We have previously held that the Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution was not incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment and is not applicable to state court proceedings. *fn10 Matter of GP, 679 P.2d 976, 988 (Wyo. 1984). We have also determined that it is not unconstitutional to have different statutory standards for terminating parental rights under Title 14 of the Wyoming Statutes and allowing adoption without consent under Title 1 of the Wyoming Statutes, because the two acts do not have the same purpose, despite the
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