In the Interest of E.L.S. , a Child

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: December 17, 2015
• Docket: A15A2060
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ December 17, 2015

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A15A2060. IN THE INTEREST OF E. L. S.

This Court granted the parents’ application for discretionary review of the juvenile court’s order terminating their parental rights to E. L. S. After careful review of the record, including the transcript of the termination hearing, which was not available at the time the application was granted, we find that the juvenile court’s order is supported by clear and convincing evidence. Additionally, because the parents failed to raise any constitutional argument in the trial court below, they failed to preserve their sole appellate argument that they were denied equal protection of the law. See In the Interest of A. R. A. S., 278 Ga. App. 608, 608 (1) (629 SE2d 822) (2006); In the Interest of A. A., 253 Ga. App. 858, 862 (3) (560 SE2d 763) (2002). (“A constitutional issue cannot be considered when asserted for the first time on appeal but must be clearly raised in the trial court and distinctly ruled upon there. Contentions regarding a constitutional issue which were not made below are thus not passed upon here.”) (citations and punctuation omitted). Accordingly, we dismiss the appeal as improvidently granted.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 12/17/2015 Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.