Gionis Wins Permission for Visits With Daughter

Pomona orthopedic surgeon Thomas A. Gionis got to see his 2-year-old daughter on Wednesday for the first time since he was arrested more than 3 weeks ago on charges of masterminding an attack on his ex-wife, Aissa Wayne.

Meeting behind closed doors in Santa Ana with lawyers for Gionis and Wayne, Superior Court Judge Ronald E. Owen allowed Gionis to have temporary visitation of Anastasia Wayne for about 8 days of each month so long as a police monitor is present and the pair do not leave Los Angeles and Orange counties, the lawyers said.

In January, Gionis had gained sole legal custody of the child after Owen had declared Aissa Wayne “emotionally immature” at the close of a protracted and bitter custody battle between the surgeon and film legend John Wayne’s daughter.

‘You Are Obsessed’

But that custody order was thrown into doubt April 4, when Gionis was arrested and charged with having orchestrated an attack on Wayne and financier companion Roger Luby at Luby’s Newport Beach estate last fall. Gionis has pleaded not guilty.

Law enforcement officials maintain that Gionis’ intense fear of having to give up Anastasia drove him to direct the attack last fall as a warning to his ex-wife. And Municipal Court Judge Susanne S. Shaw, as she ordered Gionis to stand trial on the assault charges, told him last week, “You are obsessed with losing your daughter.”

As Gionis sat in jail without bail following his arrest, Wayne’s attorneys succeeded two weeks ago in gaining temporary custody of the child.

And her attorneys plan to argue at a May 25 hearing before Owen that the new criminal charges against Gionis should be grounds for reopening the custody dispute altogether and reversing the judge’s January order in favor of Gionis. But in the meantime, Judge Owen agreed with attorneys for Gionis who argued that the surgeon should be allowed to see the child pending the outcome of his criminal case.

“This child is very much bonded to her father and we’re deeply concerned about the effect that this separation (since his arrest) has had on her,” said attorney Albert M. Graham Jr. of Santa Ana. Wayne attorney E. Robert Lemkin of Santa Ana said he did not oppose the idea of visitation in the meeting with the judge. “I think it’s important for the child to see her father,” he said.

But Lemkin did argue that Gionis, who had secured a passport for himself and his daughter soon before his arrest, posed a significant risk of fleeing the country with Anastasia. As a result, Lemkin said, Gionis should be subject to tight court supervision.

According to Lemkin, the judge directed that Gionis should have visitation of the child every Wednesday and every other weekend--but only under monitoring by a retired or active police officer.