In Re AB

924 N.E.2d 666, 2010 WL 1253073
Indiana Court of Appeals·Decided April 1, 2010·No. 49A02-0908-JV-710·Published

Opinion

924 N.E.2d 666 (2010)

In the Matter of the Involuntary Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of A.B., Minor Child and Her Mother, D.B., and Her Father, B.B., Appellants-Defendants,
v.
Marion County Department of Child Services, Appellee-Petitioner and
Child Advocates, Inc., Co-Appellee (Guardian ad Litem).

No. 49A02-0908-JV-710.

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

April 1, 2010.

*668 Steven J. Halbert, Victoria L. Bailey, Indianapolis, IN, Attorneys for Appellants.

Kimberly Spindler, Indianapolis, IN, Attorney for Appellee.

OPINION

BARNES, Judge.

Case Summary

D.B. ("Mother") and B.B. ("Father") appeal the termination of their parental rights to their daughter, A.B. We affirm.

Issues

The restated issues before us are:

I. whether there is sufficient evidence to support the termination of Mother's parental rights; and
II. whether there is sufficient evidence to support the termination of Father's parental rights.

Facts

Mother gave birth to A.B. on February 24, 2008. Father, who was not married to Mother, was A.B.'s alleged father. On February 27, 2008, the Marion County Department of Child Services ("DCS") filed a petition alleging A.B. was a child in need of services ("CHINS") after A.B. tested positive for cocaine. Mother originally denied having used cocaine and claimed that she had been exposed to cocaine secondhand through Father's use of it. Later, however, Mother admitted that she had used crack cocaine five days before A.B.'s birth "because she was stressed and because she couldn't find a job, [and] didn't have money to buy supplies for the baby." Tr. p. 25.

On the date the CHINS petition was filed, Mother admitted to it. The trial court removed A.B. from Mother's custody and entered a dispositional decree as to her. Father did not appear for this CHINS hearing, although it was soon learned that he was living with Mother and was aware of the CHINS proceeding but declined to accept service of process for it. Father did not want to appear in court because he had outstanding arrest warrants.

Mother's dispositional decree required her to, among other things, obtain a stable and legal source of income, obtain and maintain suitable housing, undergo and successfully complete homebased counseling, undergo and successfully complete a drug and alcohol abuse assessment, and submit to random drug testing. At first, Mother was cooperative with homebased counseling and submitting to random drug testing. After about two months, however, Mother stopped participating in the homebased counseling and drug testing. The DCS thus terminated those services as unsuccessful. Additionally, Mother never made an appointment to undergo a drug *669 and alcohol abuse assessment. In April 2008, a counselor confronted Mother about the results of a drug test, and Mother stated that cocaine must have gotten into her system when she had touched some cocaine Father had left in the house.[1]

On June 18, 2008, the trial court held a "default" hearing with respect to Father, after attempts to effect personal service failed and service by publication was accomplished. The trial court entered a dispositional order as to Father on that date, again finding A.B. was a CHINS. The order directed that no services be provided to Father until he appeared in court and demonstrated "a desire and ability to care for the child." Ex. 8.

Father first appeared in court on September 3, 2008, at a permanency hearing. At that time, the trial court appointed a public defender to represent Father. It also stated that it was entering "a denial on his behalf and sets pretrial." Ex. 9. Also, at some point prior to this hearing, Father and Mother had moved to Ohio. DCS's attempts to arrange for Father and Mother to receive services in Ohio were unsuccessful, in part because the Ohio equivalent of DCS would not provide services to them until they had resided there for six months. Mother and Father moved back to Indiana in October 2008; Father moved back to Ohio again in November 2008. Also, Father also failed to appear at the pretrial hearing scheduled for October 15, 2008.

In October 2008, Mother met with her DCS case manager about attempting to recommence services. The case worker re-referred Mother for visitation, random drug screening, and a drug and alcohol abuse assessment. Mother began doing the visitation and random drug screenings but then stopped doing both. She also again failed to undergo a drug and alcohol abuse assessment. The caseworker did not re-refer Mother to homebased counseling because she did not have a stable residence.

On December 30, 2008, the DCS filed a petition to terminate both Mother and Father's parental rights to A.B. The trial court held a hearing on the petition on April 7, 2009. As of that date, Father had not seen A.B. since she was in the hospital after being born. On April 14, 2009, the trial court entered its judgment terminating Mother and Father's parental rights, accompanied by findings and conclusions. Mother and Father filed a joint motion to correct error, which the trial court denied. They now appeal.

Analysis

"When reviewing the termination of parental rights, we do not reweigh the evidence or judge witness credibility." Bester v. Lake County Office of Family & Children, 839 N.E.2d 143, 147 (Ind.2005). "We consider only the evidence and reasonable inferences that are most favorable to the judgment." Id. Where, as here, a trial court enters findings and conclusions granting a petition to terminate parental rights, we apply a two-tiered standard of review. Id. First, we determine whether the evidence supports the findings. Id. Then we determine whether the findings support the judgment. Id. We will set aside a judgment only when it is clearly erroneous. Id. A judgment is clearly erroneous when the findings do not support the trial court's conclusions or the conclusions do not support the judgment. Id.

A petition to terminate the parent-child relationship must allege:

(A) one (1) of the following exists:
*670 (i) the child has been removed from the parent for at least six (6) months under a dispositional decree;
(ii) a court has entered a finding under IC XX-XX-XX-X.6 that reasonable efforts for family preservation or reunification are not required, including a description of the court's finding, the date of the finding, and the manner in which the finding was made; or
(iii) after July 1, 1999, the child has been removed from the parent and has been under the supervision of a county office of family and children for at least fifteen (15) months of the most recent twenty-two (22) months;
(B) there is a reasonable probability that:
(i) the conditions that resulted in the child's removal or the reasons for placement outside the home of the parents will not be remedied; or
(ii) the continuation of the parent-child relationship poses a threat to the well-being of the child;
(C) termination is in the best interests of the child; and
(D) there is a satisfactory plan for the c

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In Re AB, 924 N.E.2d 666, 2010 WL 1253073 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010).

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Related

Bester v. Lake County Office of Family & Children
839 N.E.2d 143 (Indiana Supreme Court, 2005)
State Ex Rel. Dale v. Superior Court of Boone County
299 N.E.2d 611 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1973)
Moore v. Jasper County Department of Child Services
894 N.E.2d 218 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 2008)
In re the Termination of the Parent/Child Relationship of J.T.
742 N.E.2d 509 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 2001)