A jury has convicted a Florida dentist of murder in the death of his former brother-in-law, a professor killed in 2014 after a bitter custody battle with the dentist's sister.

“We miss our grandchildren terribly and grieve their loss of our support and visitation and affection.”Under Florida law, grandparents are allowed to petition courts for visitation with grandchildren under very narrow circumstances. Ad“The Family Law section has been faced with this issue for what feels like decades,” West Palm Beach attorney Abigail Beebe, representing The Florida Bar’s Family Law Section, told the Senate committee. But the Florida Supreme Court struck down a state law that said courts should use a similar standard when considering grandparents’ petitions for visitation. A potential state law expanding grandparents’ rights might be upheld as constitutional if it requires a court to consider a detriment to the child, such as abuse, abandonment or neglect, she said. Sen. Darryl Rouson, who also worked on a 2015 law dealing with grandparents’ rights, said grandparents are a crucial part of children’s lives.