Judge grants limited unsupervised Sunday visits for father but bars visits at his home until hazards cleared

A Dickson County judge on Wednesday granted wider unsupervised Sunday parenting time to Daryl Duffy but barred visitation at his home until several safety and behaviour conditions are met.

The judge's order lets Duffy continue a 9 a.m.-to-5 p.m. Sunday visit schedule but requires those visits to occur at his aunt Connie Russell's house rather than at Duffy's residence. The judge also ordered Duffy to remove hazardous debris from his yard within 15 days and to obtain commercial pest control spraying before the court would consider overnight visits at his home. The judge recommended, but did not mandate, a sleep study for Duffy because of instances where he fell asleep during FaceTime calls and visits.

Why it matters: The decision expands Duffy's time with his two youngest children while preserving court oversight of the child's safety. The judge said she's weighing child safety and the mother's concerns against the father's progress in anger-management and parenting classes. The judge described the decision as a step toward restoring fuller visitation if Duffy satisfies the conditions.

The hearing, which lasted several hours, featured testimony from both parents, the paternal aunt who acts as the supervisor of the visits and the guardian ad litem. The court heard documentary evidence and multiple FaceTime screenshots that the mother submitted showing the father asleep during video calls. The judge said the images and other testimony supported continuing oversight while recognizing improvement from the father's completion of services.

Key facts and orders - Parenting time: The judge approved unsupervised visitation on Sundays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. but only at the supervisor Connie Russell's home, not at Duffy's residence. The supervisor need not remain within arm's reach during those visits, but she will be the designated caregiver if a babysitter is needed during the nine-hour period. - Home cleanup: Duffy must remove or secure stacked boxes and debris from his rear yard and carport and otherwise make the house child-safe within 15 days so the court can inspect the home for hazards. - Pest control: The judge ordered a certified commercial pest-control treatment (specifically to address brown recluse concerns reported in the home) before the court will permit overnight or home-based visits. - Sleep study: The judge strongly recommended that Duffy pursue a medical sleep evaluation (not ordered) because of multiple instances of falling asleep during visits or FaceTime calls; a sleep-disorder diagnosis would be persuasive evidence for later modification requests. - Review hearing: A review of the visitation plan was scheduled for July (court set an internal date) so the court can examine progress toward the above requirements and decide on next steps.

What the parents and others said - Daryl Duffy: Testified he has completed anger-management and parenting classes and that the older children help with the younger ones; he asked the court for more time to build a normal parenting routine. - Britney (miss) Duffy: The child's mother described safety concerns at Daryl's home, cited instances where Daryl did not respond promptly to messages about sick children and presented FaceTime screenshots showing him asleep while the children were present. - Connie Russell (supervisor, aunt): Told the court the extended visits had been positive overall and that she was willing to continue supervising and to support Daryl's progress. She acknowledged she has occasionally seen Daryl doze but said she would wake him if that occurred. - Guardian ad litem (Lynn Coffinberry): Recommended a gradual approach to unsupervised visits; expressed that progress had been made but that safety steps and monitoring were still warranted.

Court's reasoning and next steps The judge said the record shows measurable progress on parenting and anger-management for Duffy but also documented incidents (sleeping during FaceTime and a disorderly home yard with stacked boxes and stored vehicles) that justify continuing protective measures. The judge framed the order as a conditional expansion: unsupervised time allowed at a caregiver's home while Duffy addresses safety and medical concerns at his residence. The judge said unsupervised home or overnight visits could be considered later if Duffy completes the cleanup, obtains a commercial pest treatment and provides evidence of safe, consistent caregiving (a sleep evaluation would be persuasive).

The judge added that exchanges remain at an agreed public location and asked counsel to submit formal orders implementing the directions above.

Ending: The court set a mid-summer review date to check compliance. If Duffy meets the conditions and the guardian ad litem reports favorably, the judge said she would consider further changes toward a more typical parenting schedule.