in the Interest of S.R., a Child

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedSeptember 26, 2019
Docket07-19-00164-CV
StatusPublished

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Bluebook
in the Interest of S.R., a Child, (Tex. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinion

In The Court of Appeals Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo

No. 07-19-00164-CV

IN THE INTEREST OF S.R., A CHILD

On Appeal from the 108th District Court Potter County, Texas Trial Court No. 90,882-E-FM, Honorable Douglas R. Woodburn, Presiding

September 26, 2019

MEMORANDUM OPINION Before CAMPBELL and PIRTLE and PARKER, JJ.

The mother of S.R. appeals the trial court’s order terminating her parental rights to

the child.1 She argues the trial court erred in refusing to grant an extension of time

pursuant to section 263.401(b) of the Family Code and argues the evidence was

insufficient to support the trial court’s finding that termination was in the child’s best

interest. Finding no error, we affirm the trial court’s order.

1 To protect the child’s privacy, we will refer to appellant as “the mother,” the child by initials, and the child’s father as “the father.” See TEX. FAM. CODE ANN. § 109.002(d) (West Supp. 2014); TEX. R. APP. P. 9.8 (a), (b). The final order the mother challenges on appeal also terminated the parental rights of the father. The father does not appeal. Background

Appellee, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, became

involved with the family in late October 2017 when it received a report stating police were

called to the home of the mother and her boyfriend following a fight while S.R. was

present. The mother admitted to police she used methamphetamine and, according to

the responding officer, the mother “appeared to be coming down from her high.” The

mother said her boyfriend uses methamphetamine and drinks excessively. The mother

and the boyfriend were arrested for local warrants and booked into the Randall County

Detention Center. S.R. was left with a fictive kin aunt. He was later moved to foster care

where he remained at the time of the final hearing.

The Department filed pleadings including an Original Petition for Protection of a

Child, for Conservatorship, and in the Alternative, for Termination in Suit Affecting the

Parent-Child Relationship a week after it removed S.R. from his mother’s care. The

Department then developed a service plan for the mother. According to that plan, the

mother was required to: abstain from the use of illegal drugs; submit to random drug

screens; obtain stable housing and employment; participate in and complete parenting

classes; participate in a substance abuse assessment with Outreach, Screening,

Assessment, and Referral (OSAR) and follow recommendations; complete a

psychological evaluation; attend domestic violence classes; attend individual counseling;

and attend visits with S.R. A final hearing was held in early November 2018 at which a

Department caseworker and the mother testified.

2 The mother was thirty-three years old at the time of the final hearing. S.R. was

three. S.R.’s father was no longer involved with the family and the mother was dating

another man.

Both the mother and the caseworker testified the mother used methamphetamine

in September 2018 and a “couple of weeks” before the final hearing. The mother told the

court she began using methamphetamine when she was twenty-one years old but said,

“I wouldn’t say I was a complete drug addict.” She said she “smoked a little bit,” her use

was not an “everyday thing,” and that she was “not a drug user. I didn’t use it everyday

(sic).” She did admit to a positive drug screen in January 2018 but said that “doesn’t

mean I was using at that time.” But, when asked at the final hearing, the mother said she

had a substance abuse issue “in a way” and asked for help. Following several missed

visits, the mother’s visits with S.R. were suspended in May 2018, pending the mother’s

submission of a drug screen. The mother did not appear for that screening and visits with

S.R. did not resume.

The mother and the caseworker also testified to the mother’s failure to secure

employment and stable housing. The mother told the court she was not employed but

“might be getting hired by the Burger King . . . .” She also admitted she did not have her

own place to live, instead living with her ex-boyfriend’s relatives. The caseworker testified

the mother had moved around, staying with different people in different places. Both

witnesses also testified to the service plan, its requirements, and the requirements

completed and not completed by the mother.

3 The trial court terminated the mother’s rights on the grounds of endangering

conditions, endangering conduct, and failure to comply with a court order that established

actions necessary to retain custody of the child. See TEX. FAM. CODE ANN.

§ 161.001(b)(1)(D), (E), (O) (West Supp. 2017). The trial court also found that termination

was in the best interest of S.R. TEX. FAM. CODE. ANN. § 161.001(b)(2) (West Supp. 2017).

After a de novo hearing, the referring court affirmed and adopted the order of the trial

court.

Analysis

Applicable Law and Standards of Review

A parent’s right to the “companionship, care, custody and management” of her

child is a constitutional interest “far more precious than any property right.” Santosky v.

Kramer, 455 U.S. 745, 758-59 (1982); see In re M.S., 115 S.W.3d 534, 547 (Tex. 2003).

Accordingly, we strictly scrutinize termination proceedings and strictly construe the

involuntary termination statutes in favor of the parent. Holick v. Smith, 685 S.W.2d 18,

20 (Tex. 1985). However, “the rights of natural parents are not absolute” and “[t]he rights

of parenthood are accorded only to those fit to accept the accompanying responsibilities.”

In re A.V., 113 S.W.3d 355, 361 (Tex. 2003) (citing In the Interest of J.W.T., 872 S.W.2d

189, 195 (Tex. 1993)). The primary focus of a termination suit is protection of the child’s

best interest. Id.

In a case to terminate parental rights by the Department under section 161.001 of

the Family Code, the Department must establish, by clear and convincing evidence, that

(1) the parent committed one or more of the enumerated acts or omissions justifying

4 termination, and (2) termination is in the best interest of the child. TEX. FAM. CODE ANN.

§ 161.001(b). Clear and convincing evidence is “the measure or degree of proof that will

produce in the mind of the trier of fact a firm belief or conviction as to the truth of the

allegations sought to be established.” In re J.F.C., 96 S.W.3d 256, 264 (Tex. 2002) (citing

TEX. FAM. CODE ANN. § 101.007 (West 2014)). Both elements must be established, and

termination may not be based solely on the best interest of the child as determined by the

trier of fact. Tex. Dep’t of Human Servs. v. Boyd, 727 S.W.2d 531, 533 (Tex. 1987); In re

K.C.B., 280 S.W.3d 888, 894 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 2009, pet. denied). “Only one

predicate finding under section 161.001[(b)](1) is necessary to support a judgment of

termination when there is also a finding that termination is in the child’s best interest.” In

re A.V., 113 S.W.3d at 362 (citations omitted). We will affirm the termination order if the

evidence is both legally and factually sufficient to support any alleged statutory ground

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