In Wood v Vranicar & Wood v Smith, case no. 05-CI-3127, a Mandy Jo’s Law case under KRS 411.137 tried to the Fayette Circuit Court in a dispute over the wrongful death proceeds arising from a child’s death resulting from negligent treatment at a hospital and the mother’s challenge to the father’s right to a share of the proceeds, the court found that the father had not abandoned the child during her lifetime and there was evidence of an intent to support his minor children, while his limited education and employment opportunities affected his ability to exercise visitation privileges.  The burden of proof was on the mother to establish by clear and convincing evidence that the father had abandoned the child, and the court was not moved by the prior criminal record of the father, drug-related convictions and his current status of serving time.  The parents were ordered to share in the proceeds equally under KRS 411.137.