In the Interest of C.W.

519 A.2d 1030, 360 Pa. Super. 136, 1987 Pa. Super. LEXIS 6767
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedJanuary 7, 1987
DocketNo. 610
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 519 A.2d 1030 (In the Interest of C.W.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In the Interest of C.W., 519 A.2d 1030, 360 Pa. Super. 136, 1987 Pa. Super. LEXIS 6767 (Pa. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinions

BROSKY, Judge:

This is an appeal from the Decree entered by the trial court which terminated the natural mother’s (hereinafter appellant’s) parental rights with regard to her eight year old daughter.

Appellant presents the following issues for our consideration: (1) whether the natural mother, by conduct continuing for at least six months, evidence a settled purpose of relinquishing parental claim to her minor daughter; (2) whether the natural mother, for a period of at least six months, refused or failed to perform parental duties; (3) whether the conditions which led to the removal of the child from the custody of the natural mother continued to exist; (4) whether any basis for the termination of the natural mother’s parental rights was established by clear and convincing evidence; and (5) whether the procedures followed by appellee and the trial court substantially violated any equitable principles which would deny justice to appellant. Because we find appellant’s contentions to have merit we reverse the decision of the trial court.

The facts of this case have led the parties down a long and tortured path before coming to rest before this Court. The minor child was born on March 14, 1978 at the U.S. Naval Center, Portsmouth, Virginia, to appellant and Albert Leslie White, her father, then on active duty in the U.S. Navy at Portsmouth. At the time of her marriage to Albert Leslie White, appellant had another daughter, born June 15, 1975 who made up their marital home in Norfolk, Virginia. Appellant left there with her two daughters when the child in question was one month old. Appellant returned to Pennsylvania and secured her own apartment. Appellant also secured a job and hired Marie Saul as a babysitter for which she was paid. Although this caretaker arrangement was entered into agreeably it apparently soured, prompting appellant to file a petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus against Marie Saul. The issue was amicably resolved and an Order was entered on November 7, 1979 granting custody of the child to appellant.

[139]*139Just before the child’s second birthday she was taken from appellant by Marie Saul and Jean Silvis. Appellant took her back into her possession for eight days when a representative of Lawrence County Children’s Services came to appellant’s house, took the child to Marie Saul’s and left her there. From that time on appellant never had possession of her child except for visitations.

In the meantime appellant’s mother, Jean Silvis, filed a petition requesting custody of the minor. Her petition alleged that the child resided with Marie Saul from January 25, 1980 until July 5, 1980, and that she resided with Jean Silvis from July 5, 1980 until the filing of the custody petition. Jean Silvis subsequently filed a second petition, this one for temporary custody, in which she alleged that appellant forcibly removed the child from her home on July 23, 1980. By Order dated October, 1980, the court granted custody of the child to the Lawrence County Children’s Services (hereinafter, appellee), with visitations between appellant and her daughter, frequently at times and sporadic at times, as circumstances called for. Visits were scheduled at first twice a week. They began in appellee’s office and progressed to overnight visits which went fairly well. In early 1982 visits become less frequent and on May 19, 1982 appellant met with appellee and agreed to a plan of reconstituting the parental relationship. Visitations continued with a pattern of renewed interest through August, 1982. At that time appellant’s fiancee (present husband) was severely injured and hospitalized. That Fall appellant and her fiancee were married and moved to North Carolina to live. Appellant has continued to reside there until the present time. She has had contacts with the social service agency in North Carolina and that agency found the influence of appellant’s new husband over appellant to be positive and found the home upon inspection satisfactory.

By reason of newly adopted Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare regulations requiring a six month placement and disposition review hearing, Lawrence County Children’s Services on June 9, 1983 petitioned the court for a [140]*140review hearing which was scheduled for the 20th day of June, 1983. At that hearing, the Master recommended that the child be returned immediately to appellant who was then living in North Carolina. The court refused the Master’s recommendation and instead directed that the child be returned to appellant pursuant to three conditions: (1) the transfer was to be done gradually; (2) appellee was to create a plan to facilitate the child’s transfer; and (3) psychological counseling was to be made immediately available to the child. Following a review hearing and the taking of additional testimony, including an in camera hearing and testimony of a child psychiatrist, an Order was entered on May 3, 1984 directing that legal custody of the child remain with appellee. The caretaker responsibilities remained with Marie Saul.

On December 19,1984, appellee instituted a petition seeking the involuntary termination of appellant’s parental rights. Following a hearing which included an in camera interview of the minor child, the trial court held that appellant failed to maintain any meaningful contact with her daughter from May 25, 1984 to January 8, 1985. Appellant’s parental rights were then terminated.

Because all of the issues raised by appellant are directly related to each other and to the fact situation giving rise to the involuntary termination of appellant’s parental rights, we find it unnecessary to address them individually.

We begin our discussion by looking first at the standard of review in a proceeding which terminates parental rights. Our scope of review is limited to determining whether the trial court’s finding a clear necessity for termination of parental rights is supported by competent evidence. In re Adoption of M.M., 492 Pa. 457, 424 A.2d 1280 (1981); Interest of LaRue, 244 Pa.Super. 218, 366 A.2d 1271 (1976). Although an appellate court may not reweigh credibility, Adoption of S.H., 476 Pa. 608, 383 A.2d 529 (1978), the trial court’s inferences, deductions and conclusions are subject to review. Matter of M.L.W., 307 Pa.Super. 29, 452 A.2d 1021 (1982).

[141]*141The Pennsylvania statute which allows the involuntary termination of parental rights provides, in pertinent part:

(a) General rule. — The rights of a parent in regard to a child may be terminated after a petition filed on any of the following grounds:
(1) The parent by conduct continuing for a period of at least six months either has evidenced a settled purpose of relinquishing parental claim to a child or has refused or failed to perform parental duties.
(2) The repeated and continued incapacity, abuse, neglect or refusal of the parent has caused the child to be without essential parental care, control or subsistence necessary for his physical or mental well-being and the conditions and causes of the incapacity, abuse, neglect or refusal cannot or will not be remedied by the parent.

23 Pa.C.S.A. § 2511(a)(1) and (2).

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Related

In Re Adoption of Hamilton
549 A.2d 1291 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1988)

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Bluebook (online)
519 A.2d 1030, 360 Pa. Super. 136, 1987 Pa. Super. LEXIS 6767, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-the-interest-of-cw-pasuperct-1987.