Gag Order Imposed in Custody Case

A juvenile court commissioner has placed a gag order on all parties involved in the custody battle over 3-year-old Amanda Conklin, the Reseda girl who prosecutors say saw her father kill her mother in August.

Amanda was made a ward of the court after her father, Harry J. Conklin, 39, was arrested on charges that he shot and killed his 38-year-old wife. Shortly afterward, Amanda’s maternal aunt, Brenda Barry, was given temporary custody of the girl.

A hearing was held Wednesday to determine if Conklin, recently released from jail after charges against him were dismissed, has visitation rights to see his daughter until a June 3 hearing at which he will seek permanent custody.

The result of the Wednesday hearing was unavailable because Commissioner Gary Polinsky imposed the gag order, which prohibits all those involved from speaking to anyone else about the case.

Polinsky could not be reached for comment on why the order was made.

The district attorney’s office asked on Feb. 15 that the murder charge against Conklin be dismissed when a judge ruled that Amanda was not competent to testify against her father because of her age. Prosecutors said at that time that, without the girl’s testimony, they did not have enough evidence to bring Conklin to trial.