His Name Wasn’t Bad Enough

In a recent unreported case the Maryland Court of Special Appeals upheld a Circuit Court decision which found that a father’s conviction of a sex offense involving his wife’s 14-year-old sister did not warrant a change of his child’s name. The Court of Special Appeals determined that the sex offense did constitute the type of “extreme circumstances” which allowed the court to consider a name change. However, when considering all factors, including the support of the father’s extended family a name change was not warranted.