R.H. v. C.G.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky

R.H. v. C.G.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky·Decided November 22, 2024·No. 2024-CA-0376·Unpublished

Opinion

RENDERED: NOVEMBER 22, 2024; 10:00 A.M.

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED

Commonwealth of Kentucky

Court of Appeals

NO. 2024-CA-0376-ME

R.H. APPELLANT

APPEAL FROM GREENUP FAMILY COURT v. HONORABLE JEFFREY L. PRESTON, JUDGE ACTION NO. 23-AD-00008

C.G.; COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, CABINET FOR HEALTH AND FAMILY SERVICES; D.G.; G.P.N.P., A MINOR CHILD; AND J.P. APPELLEES

OPINION

AFFIRMING

** ** ** ** **

BEFORE: CALDWELL, COMBS, AND KAREM, JUDGES. CALDWELL, JUDGE: R.H. (“Mother”) appeals from orders of the Greenup Family Court granting petitions for adoption without her consent, as living, biological mother. We affirm the family court.

FACTS

Appellant, R.H. (“Mother”), is the biological mother of G.P.N.P.

(“Child”). J.P. (“Father”) is the biological father. Appellee, C.G. (“Aunt”) is Father’s sibling, co-Appellee D.G. (“Uncle”) is husband to Aunt. Child has been in the care of Aunt and Uncle since leaving the hospital three days after birth, in August 2021.

Mother has an extensive history of drug abuse, beginning when she was still a teenager. Child was Mother’s fifth birth. Mother’s oldest three children were adopted by her own mother and stepfather, with her respective parental rights terminated. The fourth-born child is in the custody of Mother’s paternal grandmother. A sixth child was born to Mother in September of 2023; this was the first Mother brought home from the hospital or to be in her primary care.

Aunt and Uncle filed a Verified Petition for Adoption, initiating the underlying action in Greenup County Family Court, on February 28, 2023.1 On April 4, 2023, a confidential report was filed with the family court by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (“CHFS”). Mother filed an answer on April 22, 2023. A final hearing in the matter was originally scheduled for July 11, 2023.

1 Previously, Aunt and Uncle had been awarded custody of Child in a CI action, and permanent placement of Child in a juvenile action. In the latter, Mother stipulated to have neglected Child.

Mother filed a motion to continue on July 5, 2023. Therein, she asserted she was hospitalized and receiving IV antibiotics 24 hours per day. The motion was granted and the hearing rescheduled.

The final adoption hearing finally occurred on February 6, 2024. The guardian ad litem recommended adoption of Child by Aunt and Uncle, as well as termination of Mother’s parental rights. Testimony was heard from Aunt, Mother, Mother’s counselor, Mother’s paternal grandmother, and Mother’s maternal grandmother.

At the hearing, Mother presented testimony indicating she had demonstrated efforts to overcome her drug addiction and improve her parenting. A mental therapist who treated Mother testified. He said Mother began seeing him on September 13, 2023, pursuant to her participation in a medication-assisted treatment program at OVP Health in Ashland, Kentucky. He indicated drug screen results he had reviewed were appropriate and that he had observed an improvement in her over the months of his treatment. The mental therapist indicated Mother was doing well and complying with her treatment.

Mother’s paternal grandmother also testified. She affirmed having custody of one of Mother’s children, who was five years old on the date of the hearing. She testified she had begun allowing Mother to visit this child approximately a year prior. She testified Mother’s condition and efforts at

sobriety had improved during that time; she described Mother as doing well in taking care of her new baby. Mother’s maternal grandmother also testified. She also described a recent improvement in Mother’s condition, as well as efforts in parenting and sobriety.

At the time of her testimony, Mother had not seen Child in more than a year. The last visitation attempted had been set up by Aunt on the Child’s first birthday, in August of 2022. Aunt testified she had not heard from Mother for quite some time prior to this occasion, which she attributed to Mother’s continuing active addiction. Prior visitations which had occurred were sporadic, Aunt testified, as Mother would often disappear for months at a time, without requesting to see the Child.

At the attempted visit, Aunt drove to her grandmother’s home, where Mother and Father were, so they together could see Child. When she was on her way, Aunt sent a message to let Mother and Father know; she did so again upon her arrival. Aunt sat in the driveway for an extended period waiting for either Mother, or Father, to come outside and see Child. However, neither did so. Aunt eventually left, believing Mother’s condition from active addiction was the reason she did not come out to see Child. Aunt chose to cease communication with Mother at that point. Aunt testified she did so out of fear for the minor Child’s safety, which she believed to be in danger if exposed to Mother while in a state of

active addiction. Aunt testified she was no longer in contact with Father and believed her brother continued to actively use drugs.

Aunt expressed doubt that Mother had ever demonstrated a period of sobriety that would render visitation appropriate. She conceded she had not returned text messages Mother had sent her. She testified she had consulted and relied upon the advice of her attorney and a CPS worker involved in the juvenile case in reaching the decision to ignore Mother’s text messages.

Mother conceded that once, during the pendency of the adoption action, there had been a lapse in her sobriety. However, she insisted this had occurred because she had been abducted and involuntarily drugged by Father and his friends. Father, who is the biological father of Child and to Mother’s sixth- born, did not file an appearance in the action and did not testify. All testimony indicated Father continued to live a lifestyle of active addiction. Aunt testified she had ceased contact with her brother as a result. Father’s relationship with Mother was discussed on several instances.

Mother testified she had ceased all contact with Father. She conceded a lapse in her sobriety had occurred when she last saw Father in May of 2023. However, Mother said she had been abducted by Father and injected with drugs, against her will by Father and his friends. Mother’s maternal grandmother had testified she had reported Mother missing in May of 2023, after she could not

locate her and worried for her safety. Mother testified she had reported this kidnapping to police but that jurisdictional issues had complicated any charges being filed.

Aunt’s testimony had described encountering Mother and Father together on two occasions during May of 2023, one during the period Mother was reported missing. Aunt’s testimony indicated her skepticism that Mother’s drug use at this time was involuntary. Once, in early May of 2023, Aunt saw Mother and Father sitting in a car together, but otherwise alone, outside the home of Aunt and Father’s grandmother.

Aunt testified she encountered the two outside her grandmother’s home again in late May of 2023. This occurrence was during the period Mother was reported as a missing person. Aunt had gone to her grandmother’s home in search of the two after learning from Uncle that he had recognized Mother and Father in a van he passed while driving. As both Mother and Father were reported as missing at the time, Uncle reported what he saw to Aunt. Prompted by this news, Aunt went to her grandmother’s home and observed the van parked on the side street. She pulled up beside it and observed Mother inside.

Aunt testified that she told Mother she needed to contact her family, as they had reported her missing. Aunt described Mother’s appearance as “pretty rough” and having disheveled hair and scabs over her body. Aunt testified that

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