Judge dismisses DFPS, names mother sole conservator and orders supervised step-up visitation for father

A judge in the High Plains Child Protection Court dismissed the Department of Family and Protective Services from the case of Ezra Martinez and returned primary custody to the child’s mother, Adrianna Medina, while placing limits on the father’s visitation pending drug testing and potential treatment.

The judge named Medina sole managing conservator and named Nicholas Martinez a possessory conservator. The court said existing child support and medical support orders will return to effect. The judge outlined a step-up visitation plan: supervised visits by the mother (or someone she designates) on the Saturdays following the first and third Fridays of each month from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. (or at mutually agreed times); drug testing at the father’s expense; a 120-day drug-free period before a 90-day unsupervised trial; and a final roll into a standard possession order if no positive tests occur. The judge also said that if Martinez completes in-custody drug treatment, Medina may choose to allow him to skip steps and go directly to standard possession.

Why it matters: The order balances the court’s intent to return Ezra to his mother’s care with the child-protection concerns tied to Martinez’s long history of drug-related arrests and a recent positive hair-follicle test. Caseworkers and the child’s attorney said the restrictions are aimed at protecting a young child the record shows has special needs.

During the hearing, Christina Hunter, the permanency specialist from Saint Francis Ministries assigned to the case, testified that Martinez signed a family plan in August 2024 but “did not work services” and had a positive hair test for methamphetamine on Sept. 16, 2024. Hunter testified the father “was not interested in getting any kind of drug treatment” and that he did not sustain the random screens requested under the plan; under agency practice, failure to complete a requested screen is treated as a presumed positive. Hunter also described certified criminal-history exhibits showing drug-related convictions and a most-recent conviction and judgment admitted by the court.

The child’s attorney, Steve Zavala, and the Department asked that visits be supervised when Martinez is released from incarceration, saying his history of drug use and intermittent compliance with services made unsupervised time with Ezra inappropriate. Zavala told the court it was not in Ezra’s best interest to return immediately to an unsupervised standard possession order in light of the admissions and positive tests in the record.

Lauren Lucero, attorney for Martinez, asked the court to allow the father to provide a clean hair follicle after release and requested a two-month supervised period before unsupervised visits. Lucero said Martinez is expected to be released from custody in October 2025 and that he has historically exercised some possession time by agreement with the mother. Medina testified that she and Martinez had cooperated on a parenting schedule in the past and that she preferred the six-month stability the Department requested over a shorter supervised window: “I think that the 6 months would be better…Nikki will stay clean for the 2 months that you're asking him to and then go back to doing the same thing,” Medina said.

The judge resolved conflicting requests by setting a structured, step-up plan. The court allowed the mother to request urine testing every 30 days and hair testing every 90 days at the father’s expense while supervised visits are in place; a return to unsupervised visits requires 120 days without a positive test, followed by a 90-day unsupervised trial, and then conversion to standard possession provided no further positives occur. The judge warned that a positive test at any time will revert visits to supervised status.

Exhibits: The court admitted the family plan of service (petitioner’s exhibit 10), certified copies of indictment and judgment related to the current charge (petitioner’s exhibits 1 and 2), and one later judgment/adjudication admitted as exhibit 9. The court declined to admit older convictions beyond the court’s 10-year cutoff for relevance; the parties debated the probative value of pre-2014 records before the judge limited admitting only materials within the 10-year rule.

Court administration: The judge dismissed DFPS from the case and discharged court-appointed attorneys. The court said it will sign and file a formal order and mentioned the docket entry will be available in Odyssey.

The hearing record shows the court sought to preserve the child’s relationship with his father while building safeguards tied to sobriety and drug testing. Hunter emphasized concern for Ezra’s needs, testifying that Ezra is “considered high functioning autistic, and he also has ADHD,” and that children with autism benefit from consistency and stability. The judge placed decision-making authority over the initial supervised visits and testing requests with the mother, granting her the right to request testing and to decide whether to allow Martinez to skip steps if she is satisfied with his progress or treatment completion while incarcerated.

No new orders on support or medical care were issued beyond restoring prior support and medical orders; the judge said those prior orders remain in effect.