Judge orders change to pickup locations but keeps parenting schedule in appeal

Judge David D. Wolfe modified how transportation will be handled under an existing juvenile-court parenting plan but left the schedule itself unchanged in an appeal hearing involving Kayla Elizabeth Brock and Bradley J. Meyer.

Brock had filed an appeal from a juvenile-court order that named her the primary residential parent and gave Meyer alternate weekend visitation. Brock told the court she missed the juvenile-court hearing because she was ill and said the Friday 5 p.m. exchange at Exit 40 on I‑24 interferes with her work schedule; she said she typically works 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends. Meyer testified that he lives in Carthage and that he and his wife have arranged to cover Fridays so he can exercise visitation; he said the distance and repeated delays had limited his time with his daughter.

Why it matters: The modification changes who must travel for exchanges rather than altering how much time the parents get with the child, and the judge emphasized that equalizing transportation was intended to reduce conflict and preserve the child’s relationship with both parents.

At the hearing, the judge told both parents that under state law Meyer has rights to visitation and to be informed about the child’s welfare. The judge said the court would "put this child's best interest first," ordered that the visitation schedule remain as the juvenile court adopted, and changed the transportation arrangement so that "either he or his wife will pick the child up at your home here in Stuart County" at the start of the father's alternate-weekend visits, and the mother or her family must pick the child up from the father's home in Carthage at the end of those visits. The judge also ordered that neither parent make derogatory remarks about the other or allow others to do so to the child during exchanges.

During testimony Meyer raised concerns that the daughter had posted on social media alleging she had been molested and that she had engaged in self‑harm; Meyer said those matters had been reported by a mandated reporter and that he had not been informed earlier. The judge acknowledged those allegations but said the appeal before him concerned the parenting-plan terms adopted by the juvenile court and not collateral allegations; he said any separate or emergent safety issues should be addressed through the appropriate channels.

Brock told the court her vehicle had overheated and she had difficulty making the juvenile-court date; she said she had since retained an attorney, Charles Parks, but that counsel was not present at this hearing. The judge gave both parties an opportunity to work out alternative arrangements and warned that contempt remedies (including custody changes) are available if court orders are violated.

The judge said the modified transportation arrangement will begin on the next scheduled visitation and instructed the clerk to prepare a written order memorializing the change.

Clarifying details from the hearing: the child is 11 years old; Brock said she typically works 3 p.m.–9 p.m. on Friday–Sunday shifts; Meyer lives in Carthage (about three hours away, according to his testimony); the juvenile-court parenting plan specifies alternating weekends and holiday provisions and had set a meeting point at Exit 40 on I‑24 at 501 Hickory Hills Boulevard, Whites Creek, Tennessee. Brock explained she missed the juvenile hearing because of illness and a vehicle overheating issue; she also told the court she had five unexcused school days this year but later said the child had not missed many days overall.

The court did not rule on any separate allegations of abuse at this hearing; the judge said those concerns would need to be addressed through proper reporting and any proceedings that follow. The judge instructed both parties to cease hostile or derogatory communications about the other in the child's presence and noted that future violations could prompt contempt proceedings or changes in custody.

The court moved on after instructing the clerk to prepare a written order reflecting the transportation modification and the continued visitation schedule.