Department of Social & Health Services v. L.H.

195 Wash. App. 673
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedAugust 30, 2016
DocketNos. 48121-9-II; 48161-8-II
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 195 Wash. App. 673 (Department of Social & Health Services v. L.H.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Department of Social & Health Services v. L.H., 195 Wash. App. 673 (Wash. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

Johanson, J.

¶ 1 The Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) filed a petition to terminate L.H.’s parental rights to her youngest child, E.D. L.H. appeals the juvenile court’s ruling denying her motion to continue the termination trial and its order terminating her parental rights. She argues that (1) the juvenile court abused its discretion by denying her motion to continue the trial, (2) substantial evidence does not support two of the juvenile [678]*678court’s findings, and (3) the juvenile court misapplied the best interest of the child standard. We affirm the juvenile court’s termination of L.H.’s parental rights regarding E.D.

FACTS

I. Background

A. First Dependency

¶2 L.H. had her first child in 2006, when she was 18 years old or younger, and then she had a second child two years later. Shortly after the birth of the second child, L.H. exhibited signs of being an unfit parent. She suffered from mental illness and drug and alcohol addiction, and she lacked the ability to maintain a stable household.

¶3 Child Protective Services placed L.H.’s two children into protective custody, and DSHS filed a dependency petition soon after. Although the children were returned to L.H. more than once, they were removed again. While they were in L.H.’s care, the children were not in good health; the youngest child was in the first percentile for weight, and DSHS determined that he was failing to thrive. Also, L.H. permitted her children to live in unsanitary conditions and she violated court orders.1

¶4 From 2009 to 2011, during dependency proceedings pertaining to her two children, DSHS provided an extensive number of in-home and out-of-home services to L.H., including mental health counseling; domestic violence treatment; in-home help with cooking, parenting, and household skills; and financial assistance in the form of housing vouchers and aid with utility payments. L.H. was able to obtain an apartment, and both the children were returned to her care. But shortly thereafter, L.H. again demonstrated an inability to provide a safe home environment.

[679]*679¶5 L.H. continued to allow unauthorized persons in the residence, failed to appear at therapy sessions, and did not avail herself of in-home services. In 2009, L.H. completed alcohol abuse treatment, but she relapsed the following year. In 2011, L.H. relinquished her parental rights to one child, and the juvenile court placed the other child with that child’s father.

B. Birth of E.D. and Start of Dependency

¶6 After the loss of her two children in 2011, L.H. made no appreciable lifestyle improvements. L.H. used methamphetamine and committed criminal offenses. She lost her housing voucher for failing to pay a portion of the rent and causing disturbances for which the police had to be called.

¶7 In 2013, L.H. successfully completed an inpatient drug treatment program, but she relapsed shortly thereafter. At this point, L.H. was pregnant with her third child, E.D., but she continued to use methamphetamine. Throughout this period, L.H. failed to maintain gainful employment.

¶8 In November 2013, L.H. was arrested and charged with several felonies. In February 2014, L.H. gave birth to E.D. while she was incarcerated awaiting resolution of her criminal charges. Two days later, DSHS filed a dependency petition as to E.D. and placed E.D. into foster care.

C. Drug Court and Incarceration

¶9 Social worker Emily Alvarado requested that L.H. remain in the community where she could continue to avail herself of DSHS’s services. Alvarado was hopeful at this point that reunification with E.D. could be accomplished. L.H. entered drug court and was permitted a special exception whereby she would have been allowed to visit with E.D. and receive mental health treatment during the work release phase of her drug court agreement. But L.H. committed two infractions during the first phase of the program: for attempting to obtain methamphetamine and for [680]*680assault. As a result, L.H. was terminated from the drug court program. In September 2014, when E.D. was nearly seven months old, L.H. was convicted as originally charged.

¶10 For these crimes, L.H. received a prison-based drug offender sentencing alternative, RCW 9.94A.660, sentence that required her to serve 36.75 months of confinement followed by 36.75 months of community custody. L.H.’s projected release date was December 2015. L.H. was then transferred to prison, where she remained at the time of the termination trial. Once L.H. was at prison, the juvenile court permitted L.H. visitation with E.D., which began in October 2014. L.H. had 14 two-hour visits. During these prison visits, L.H. did not have to provide food, change diapers, or meet other daily needs of an infant. On December 16, when E.D. was 10 months old, DSHS filed the termination petition. E.D.’s foster family wished to adopt her.

¶11 During her incarceration and during the dependency/termination proceedings, L.H. had several meaningful visits with E.D. She also wrote letters and sent gifts to E.D., and she attended a number of programs, including chemical dependency programs, general educational development courses, parenting classes, and mental health courses. Counselors, social workers, and other staff noticed L.H.’s improvements and spoke highly of her progress.

¶12 But L.H.’s mental health issues persisted. On at least four occasions in 2014 and 2015, L.H. consulted with Steven Baltz, a psychiatric nurse practitioner at the prison facility. According to Baltz, L.H. exhibited signs of depression, discussed her issues with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety in crowds, and, most notably to him, looked like a very sad and depressed person.

¶13 In March and April 2015, L.H. also saw Dr. Rodney Davis, a psychologist at the women’s prison. L.H. discussed her difficulty with anxiety and experiences with panic attacks. Although Dr. Davis noted that L.H. displayed a genuine interest in learning how to cope with these issues, [681]*681he also concluded that L.H.’s anxiety issues were “more significant than [he] had previously realized.” Ex. 37. In his view, her challenges appeared to have “complex sources in her life experience [and] definitely include [d] traumatic stress.” Ex. 37.

D. Community Parenting Alternative and Motion To Continue Termination Trial

¶14 Meanwhile, after a trial continuance, the juvenile court scheduled the termination trial for July 2015. In the spring of 2015, L.H. became interested in placement into a community parenting alternative (CPA) program, and she began to take the steps necessary to be accepted. L.H. had the support of both her counselors and Alvarado. By early June, L.H.’s application had been approved at the first of three tiers of the review process, and the program was actively looking for placement prospects for her. The CPA program would have created additional visitation opportunities and could have prompted L.H.’s early release into a group home.

¶15 On July 1, as the CPA program board was considering her for placement, L.H. moved to continue her trial date for four months.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
195 Wash. App. 673, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/department-of-social-health-services-v-lh-washctapp-2016.