In Re P.J., 2008-A-0047 (1-16-2009)

2009 Ohio 182
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJanuary 16, 2009
DocketNos. 2008-A-0047 and 2008-A-0053.
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 2009 Ohio 182 (In Re P.J., 2008-A-0047 (1-16-2009)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In Re P.J., 2008-A-0047 (1-16-2009), 2009 Ohio 182 (Ohio Ct. App. 2009).

Opinions

OPINION
{¶ 1} Appellants, Sandra Juncker and Desi McCandies, appeal the judgment of the Ashtabula County Court of Common Pleas, Juvenile Division, granting permanent custody of their two minor children to appellee, Ashtabula County Children Services Board ("Children Services Board"). *Page 2

{¶ 2} Appellants are the biological parents of two children, P.J. (born in 2005) and D.M. (born in 2006). The children resided with their mother, Sandra, in Ashtabula County, Ohio. The children's father, Desi, is currently incarcerated in North Carolina.

{¶ 3} In addition to the two children at issue in the instant appeal, Sandra has two other children, K.J. (born in 2002), whose biological father is Brandon Harden, and A.J. (born in 2004), whose biological father is Terry Hanger, Jr. A.J.'s biological father was granted legal custody on November 14, 2007, and K.J. was placed with his biological father in North Carolina.

{¶ 4} On November 22, 2006, the Children Services Board filed a verified complaint for protective supervision. The complaint alleged that P.J. appears to be neglected as defined in R.C. 2151.03(A)(2). Further, the complaint stated that while pregnant with D.M., Sandra had three positive drug screens, to wit: 7/13/06, positive for THC; 10/31/06 and 11/7/06, positive for cocaine.

{¶ 5} The Children Services Board was granted protective supervision of the minor children and, thereafter, emergency temporary custody.

{¶ 6} On January 30, 2007, Sandra stipulated to probable cause existing at the time of the removal of the children from the home.

{¶ 7} A case plan was developed on February 6, 2007 for the parents of P.J. and D.M. On February 12, 2007, the children were adjudicated dependent.

{¶ 8} On October 2, 2007, the Children Services Board filed a motion for permanent custody, and the motion was granted at a hearing on January 30, 2008. At the hearing, the following individuals testified: Heather Wiley, a caseworker from the Children Services Board; Gloria Hudnell, a senior counselor at Lake Area Recovery *Page 3 Clinic; and Kathleen Welch, the foster mother of P.J. and D.M. Neither appellant attended the hearing.

{¶ 9} According to the testimony of Ms. Wiley, Sandra had moved to Florida and had not contacted her children since April 20, 2007 and, further, Sandra has had minimal involvement with working the case plan since she moved out of the state of Ohio. In addition, Ms. Wiley testified that prior to his incarceration in April 2007, Desi had not complied with any aspects of the case plan, including refusing to complete a drug screen and not attending any of the visits scheduled with his children at Rooms to Grow. Moreover, she indicated that Desi will be incarcerated for at least four more years.

{¶ 10} When the children were placed in the custody of the Children Services Board, D.M. was approximately one month old and P.J. was approximately one year old. Initially, the children were placed with a maternal aunt but, because of health reasons, the children were moved to a foster home, where they since have remained.

{¶ 11} Ms. Wiley stated that Sandra, in July 2007, requested that an interstate home study be completed on Ms. Faye Partee, a paternal aunt residing in North Carolina. Ms. Partee did not respond.

{¶ 12} Then, on November 20, 2007, Ms. Partee requested an interstate home study. Ms. Wiley testified that, in November 2007, she received notification from Columbus that they received the interstate home study, and it would be transferred to North Carolina. As of the date of the hearing, she had not spoken with Ms. Partee.

{¶ 13} Gloria Hudnell, a senior counselor at Lake Area Recovery Clinic, stated that Sandra was diagnosed with cannabis dependence and cocaine abuse, and *Page 4 although she attended three, one-hour counseling sessions, she never returned to the clinic for counseling.

{¶ 14} Kathryn Balog, the visitations supervisor at Rooms to Grow, testified that Sandra attended nine of the scheduled 16 visits, while Desi did not attend any of the scheduled visits.

{¶ 15} Kathleen Welch, the foster mother, stated that the children began living with her family when D.M. was four months and P.J. was 15 months. The children have lived with the foster parents for approximately ten months. Ms. Welch expressed an interest in adopting the children. At the time the children began living with her family, P.J. was experiencing social anxiety and delayed speech; however, she is progressing well. Further, Ms. Welch indicated that Sandra has not had any contact with the children since April 2007.

{¶ 16} The magistrate filed her decision on January 30, 2008, recommending that the Children Services Board be granted permanent custody of the children. The magistrate found that Sandra and Desi have failed continuously and repeatedly to substantially remedy the conditions which initially caused the children to be placed outside of the home. Further, the magistrate determined that Sandra demonstrated a lack of commitment toward the children by failing to regularly support, visit, or communicate with the children and has demonstrated an unwillingness to provide an adequate, permanent home for them. It was determined that Sandra abandoned the children. Desi is currently incarcerated and will be unavailable to care for the children for at least 18 months after the filing of the motion for permanent custody or dispositional hearing. *Page 5

{¶ 17} The magistrate also found that the granting of permanent custody to the Children Services Board was in the best interest of the children.

{¶ 18} Both Sandra and Desi filed objections to the magistrate's decision.

{¶ 19} On July 10, 2008, the juvenile court overruled appellants' objections and adopted the magistrate's decision as the judgment of the court.

{¶ 20} Appellants filed timely notices of appeal. Desi asserts the following assignments of error:

{¶ 21} "[1.] The trial court abused its discretion and denied Desi McCandies due process of law and equal protection of the law when it denied his motion to continue the trial to allow for the completion of an interstate investigation of a paternal relative.

{¶ 22} "[2.] The trial court abused its discretion and denied Desi McCandies due process of law when it found that the Ashtabula County Children Services Board was unable to find a suitable relative after the Ashtabula County Children Services Board's case planning did not follow Ohio statutory law."

{¶ 23} Sandra asserts the following assignment of error:

{¶ 24} "The trial court erred in granting the motion for permanent custody as such decision was against the manifest weight of the evidence and resulted in a manifest miscarriage of justice."

{¶ 25} We recognize that the termination of parental rights is "* * * the family law equivalent of the death penalty * * *." In rePhillips, 11th Dist. No. 2005-A-0020, 2005-Ohio-3774, at ¶

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Bluebook (online)
2009 Ohio 182, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-pj-2008-a-0047-1-16-2009-ohioctapp-2009.