Allen v. Arkansas Department of Human Services

384 S.W.3d 7, 2011 Ark. App. 288, 2011 Ark. App. LEXIS 305
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedApril 20, 2011
DocketNo. CA 10-1259
StatusPublished
Cited by26 cases

This text of 384 S.W.3d 7 (Allen v. Arkansas Department of Human Services) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Allen v. Arkansas Department of Human Services, 384 S.W.3d 7, 2011 Ark. App. 288, 2011 Ark. App. LEXIS 305 (Ark. Ct. App. 2011).

Opinion

ROBERT J. GLADWIN, Judge.

] Appellant Mickey Allen’s parental rights were terminated by order filed September 13, 2010, in Desha County Circuit Court. On appeal he contends that there was insufficient evidence to support the trial court’s order. We affirm the order terminating Allen’s parental rights.

Statement of Facts

N.A. and A.A., ages two and one, respectively, were removed from their parents’ home by the Department of Human Services (DHS) on December 17, 2008, after A.A. tested positive for amphetamines, cocaine, and methamphetamines at birth.1 On January 13, 2009, | Jn an agreed order, the trial court found probable cause existed for the children’s removal, that the children were dependent-neglected, and that custody should be continued with DHS. Both parents were ordered to follow the case plan, obey all orders of the trial court, cooperate with DHS, attend and participate in individual and family counseling, attend and complete parenting classes, submit to random drug screens, obtain and maintain stable employment, housing, and transportation, and submit to a drug assessment and follow the recommendation.

By review order of April 8, 2009, the trial court found that neither parent had complied with the case plan. Specifically, appellant had tested positive on January 23, 2009, for cocaine and opiates, and the drug screen taken on April 1, 2009, would not “read” due to the low temperature of the urine submitted. Appellant sought a DNA test to confirm paternity of N.A., and the trial court ordered that DHS was relieved of providing services to him until the DNA test was completed.

At the review hearing on May 12, 2009, appellant tested positive for cocaine, and the trial court found that he had not complied with the case plan in that he had not paid for the paternity testing that he had requested. The trial court ordered supervised visitation for both parents and ordered appellant to continue to follow the orders set for him on January 13, 2009, to call DHS once a week, and to call DHS twenty-four hours in advance for transportation.

A review hearing was held on July 14, 2009, wherein the trial court found that the DNA test proved that appellant was the father of N.A. The trial court found that, since paternity testing had been completed, appellant had attended all visitation and completed | «¡parenting classes. The trial court further found that appellant tested positive for crack cocaine on May 12, 2009, June 17, 2009, and June 30, 2009, but tested negative for all drugs on July 14, 2009. Appellant was ordered to obtain a drug assessment and submit to random drugs screens and test negative.

The trial court found that appellant had only partially complied with the case plan at the review hearing held August 5, 2009, in that he had not visited the children on a regular schedule, had failed to obtain housing and transportation, and had failed to begin his GED classes. The previous orders for appellant continued with the added order for him to obtain his GED. At the review hearing of October 20, 2009, appellant was ordered to continue to follow all previous orders, attend every NA/AA meeting available in Dumas, Arkansas, provide a sign-in sheet as his proof of attendance, and contact Delta Counseling for a counseling assessment.

DHS filed a petition to terminate parental rights on December 1, 2009, and a permanency-planning order was filed on that date changing the permanent goal for the children to adoption rather than reunification. In the order, the trial court found that appellant had been cooperative with DHS, completed in-patient drug treatment, and participated in parenting classes. The trial court further found that appellant tested positive for cocaine on November 18, 2009, and that he was not employed. The previous orders continued for appellant.

By order entered May 12, 2010, from a hearing held March 9, 2010, the mother’s parental rights were terminated. However, the trial court denied the petition to terminate |4appellant’s parental rights, finding that he had completed enough of the case plan and court orders to warrant more time.

On May 12, 2010, a review order was filed wherein the trial court found that returning custody to appellant was not in the best interests of the children, but continued the goal of the case to be reunification with appellant. The trial court further found that appellant was in partial compliance in that he had visited with the children twice since the last court date and had let DHS know that he would miss visitation on March 17. However, the trial court noted that appellant missed seven visitations. Appellant admitted to the trial court that he had not attended the NA/AA meetings and that his driver’s license was suspended. The trial court found that appellant had not made any payments on his fine, was living with his parents, and had recently obtained a house. Previous orders for appellant continued.

DHS filed a second petition seeking to terminate appellant’s parental rights on May 14, 2010. After an extensive hearing, the trial court granted DHS’s petition and entered findings on August 11, 2010, and an order terminating parental rights on September 18, 2010. In its findings, the trial court stated,

I find that the father has failed to follow the Court’s Orders and failed to follow the case plan. Mr. Allen has been unable to maintain stable housing throughout the period of time the children have been in the [DHS]’s custody. He contacted the case worker shortly before court to come and view the home and the testimony and the pictures evidence that he is still not prepared to take custody of his two children. The home was not adequately repaired, not adequately furnished and there was no food in the home. It appeared that Mr. Allen was not even living in the home at the time. I stressed to Mr. Allen at the last review hearing that if he was serious in regaining custody of his children he needed to visit his children on every visiting day. The testimony at the termination hearing was that Mr. Allen had visited very few of his | .^visitation days with the children. Mr. Allen is self-employed, he sets his own schedule and if he was genuinely concerned about regaining custody of his children he should have made every visit. Mr. Allen has not even had the children in his home for one overnight visit since the children were removed a year and seven months ago. Mr. Allen does not have a valid driver’s license and admitted that he still owed fines that have not been paid.... It appears that Mr. Allen only gets busy right before court to try to accomplish things that should have been accomplished months ago. [DHS] has made reasonable efforts to place the children with Mr. Allen, there have been home visits, family visits, transportation, parenting classes, random drug screens, visitation with the children, drug treatment, but the father remains no closer to being able to parent the children.

After the formal termination order was entered, appellant filed a timely notice of appeal, and this appeal followed. Appellant does not contest the trial court’s finding that termination was in the children’s best interest, but argues that there was insufficient evidence that he had failed to remedy the conditions causing removal of the children, thus eliminating the sole ground relied upon by the trial court to terminate his parental rights.

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Bluebook (online)
384 S.W.3d 7, 2011 Ark. App. 288, 2011 Ark. App. LEXIS 305, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/allen-v-arkansas-department-of-human-services-arkctapp-2011.