State in Interest of SC v. DNC

639 So. 2d 426, 1994 WL 285489
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 22, 1994
Docket26104-JA
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 639 So. 2d 426 (State in Interest of SC v. DNC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State in Interest of SC v. DNC, 639 So. 2d 426, 1994 WL 285489 (La. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinion

639 So.2d 426 (1994)

STATE of Louisiana in the Interest of S.C., L.C., J.C. and B.N., Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
D.N.C., Defendant-Appellant.

No. 26104-JA.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Second Circuit.

June 22, 1994.

*427 James E. Calhoun, Natchitoches, for appellant.

George McGowin, Alexandria, for appellee.

James Womack, Winnfield, for minor children.

Before MARVIN, LINDSAY and BROWN, JJ.

BROWN, Judge.

A mother of four appeals the termination of her parental rights as to her two youngest children. The two oldest children had been placed with their legal father. For the reasons expressed below, we affirm and remand.

FACTS

The journey ending with the June 1993 judgment granting the request of the State of Louisiana to terminate the mother's parental rights began on December 9, 1989. On that date the mother brought her two-month-old infant (BN, d.o.b. 10-10-89) to the Jackson Parish Hospital because of an abnormally low weight. At that time the mother was hallucinating and obviously unable to care for the infant. The infant responded to nourishment and treatment, indicating that her condition was caused by neglect.

On the following day, December 10, 1989, the mother left the hospital without the infant and returned to Winnfield. She returned to the hospital later that day and appeared to be intoxicated and/or under the influence of drugs. Hospital personnel insisted that she leave or submit to a blood screen. The blood screen revealed the presence of Xanax and ethyl alcohol.

On December 13, 1989, the State of Louisiana, Department of Health and Human Resources, filed an affidavit of abuse/neglect and obtained an instanter order placing the infant, BN, and her siblings, SC (d.o.b. 05-05-78), LC (d.o.b. 06-14-80) and JC (d.o.b. 04-15-86), in the custody of the state. After a hearing on December 15, 1989, the trial court found the children in need of care and ordered that they remain in the state's custody.

The three older children were placed with their legal father. The infant was placed in foster care. Because of the father's inability *428 to care for JC, age three, he too was placed in a foster home.

The state filed a petition seeking to have the four children adjudicated in need of care. An adjudication hearing was held on May 7, 1990, and on May 30, 1990, the trial court found the children to be in need of care and that their continued custody with the state was necessary.

On April 22, 1991, the infant's natural father executed a voluntary act of surrender to the state. On October 11, 1991, after unsuccessful efforts to rehabilitate and reunite mother and children, the Department of Social Services[1] filed a petition to terminate the parental rights of the mother regarding the two youngest children, BN and JC. As to JC, an affidavit alleging that he had been abandoned by his legal father was also filed.

Hearings were held on March 2, 1992, and May 7, 1992. On June 30, 1993, judgment was rendered. JC was declared to be an abandoned child with regard to his father, whose parental rights and obligations were terminated. The parental rights and obligations of the mother with regard to both JC and BN were terminated and the children were declared available for adoption.

The mother has appealed.

DISCUSSION

Termination of Parental Rights

The trial court found two grounds supporting the termination of the mother's parental rights under LSA-R.S. 13:1601(B) and (D), which were in effect at the time the Department of Social Services filed its petition. By the date of the hearing, however, this law had been repealed and replaced by the Louisiana Children's Code. LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1015(4) and (5) are consistent with and do not substantially change the former provisions. State in the Interest of V.T., 609 So.2d 1105 (La.App. 2d Cir.1992), writ denied, 614 So.2d 1269 (La.1993).

The finding of one of the grounds set forth in the code is sufficient to justify the termination of parental rights. State in the Interest of A.M.M., 622 So.2d 1217 (La.App. 2d Cir.1993). Because LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1015(4) is directed at situations in which the children have remained in the parental home, State in the Interest of V.T., supra, LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1015(5) is the applicable provision.

LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1015 provides, in part:

The grounds set forth in the petition must meet all of the conditions of any one of the following paragraphs: ...
(5) Prior adjudication as a child in need of care and removal from the parental home
(a) One year has elapsed since a child was removed from the parent's custody pursuant to a court order in a child in need of care proceeding and placed either in the custody of an agency or individual.
(b) The parent is now unfit to retain parental control, and there is no reasonable expectation of his reformation in the foreseeable future.
(c) The department has made every reasonable effort to reunite the child with his parents to no avail but now recommends that reunification would not be in the best interests of the child.

In a termination of parental rights case, the state must prove all of the elements of its case by clear and convincing evidence. LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1035; State in the Interest of L.L.Z. v. M.Y.S., 620 So.2d 1309 (La.1993); State in the Interest of V.T., supra. That evidence must allow the conclusion that termination is in the best interest of the children. LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1039; State in the Interest of A.M.M., supra.

A trial court's factual determinations will not be set aside in the absence of manifest error. State in the Interest of V.T., supra; State in the Interest of K.D., 586 So.2d 692 (La.App. 2d Cir.1991).

Children in Need of Care

JC and BN were placed in the custody of the state on December 13, 1989. The children were placed in foster homes and *429 have been maintained in the state's custody for the entirety of these proceedings. On May 30, 1990, the children were adjudicated in need of care. The state's petition to terminate the mother's parental rights was filed on October 11, 1991. A termination hearing was held on March 2 and May 7, 1992. The judgment terminating parental rights was signed on June 30, 1993. The requirements of LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1015(5)(a) of a prior adjudication and removal are satisfied on this record. See State in the Interest of A.M.M., supra; State in the Interest of TK, 568 So.2d 636 (La.App. 3d Cir.1990).

Fitness as a Parent

The term "unfit" includes parents whose medical or emotional illness, mental deficiency, behavior or conduct disorder, severe physical disability, substance abuse or chemical dependency makes the parent unable or unwilling to provide an adequate permanent home for the child at the present time or in the reasonably near future based upon expert opinion or based upon an established pattern of behavior. LSA-Ch.C. Art. 1003(10)(c).

A medical report of the mother's treatment at Central Louisiana State Hospital in Pineville, Louisiana, in 1988, is in the record. After taking an overdose of Xanax and Halcion, she was hospitalized at Central for approximately two weeks. She was diagnosed with Histrionic Personality Disorder, which is marked by the tendency to be dramatic and use exaggerated gestures. HPD is often observed in persons with hysteria, neuroses and some psychoses.

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Bluebook (online)
639 So. 2d 426, 1994 WL 285489, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-in-interest-of-sc-v-dnc-lactapp-1994.