State v. In the Interest of L.J.

118 So. 3d 526, 2013 WL 3197342, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 1304
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 26, 2013
DocketNo. 48,341-JAC
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 118 So. 3d 526 (State v. In the Interest of L.J.) 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 v. In the Interest of L.J., 118 So. 3d 526, 2013 WL 3197342, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 1304 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

PITMAN, J.

11Chequilla Jackson (“Jackson”) appeals a judgment from the West Monroe City Court terminating her parental rights to L.J. For the reasons set forth herein, the judgment is affirmed.

FACTS

On January 23, 2011, Jackson gave birth to her daughter “L.J.” At birth, L.J. was drug-affected by cocaine and was placed in the custody of the State of Louisiana by an instanter order signed on February 3, 2011. In addition to testing positive for cocaine, Jackson had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. According to Louisiana Department of Child and Family Services (“DCFS”) reports, Jackson had been noncompliant with her medication. On March 22, 2011, L.J. was adjudicated as a “child in need of care” and custody was maintained with DCFS. Since that time, L.J. has been living in Mississippi with her great-grandmother, great-grandfather and one biological sister, A.J. Jackson’s parental rights to A.J., who was also born with cocaine in her system, were terminated by the State of Mississippi in January 2012 because of Jackson’s drug addiction.

To assist Jackson in reunification with L.J., in March 2011, the Ouachita Parish DCFS developed a case plan, which was approved by the court. The case plan required Jackson to do the following to prove that she could provide a stable environment for LJ.’s care:

1. Obtain and maintain safe and stable housing that is adequate in size and cleanliness, has working utilities, and contains no safety hazards.
[528]*5282. Keep food in her home to feed her children.
3. Allow a DCFS caseworker to visit her home twice per month.
1⅞4. Seek classes to assist her with budgeting and financing to assist her managing her bills.
5. Pay $25 per month for child support for L.J.
6. Complete a drug rehabilitation program and follow all recommendations of the rehabilitation staff and counselors.
7. Submit to random drug screens within 24 hours of the request being made or the screen will be considered a positive screen.
8. Seek services at a domestic violence shelter and follow all the rules and guidelines at the shelter, including seeking the treatment she needs.
9. Attend couples counseling with Otis Dewayne Wiley, L.J.’s biological father, if the two decide to stay in a relationship. Follow all recommendations made in couple’s counseling.
10.Attend parenting classes and follow all recommendations of the staff and counselors.

After L.J. was placed in the custody of the DCFS, Jackson continued to fight her drug addiction, but was slow to work on the requirements of her case plan. Jackson’s progress was monitored by a caseworker with DCFS. According to reports in the court record, there were several months when Jackson’s whereabouts were unknown. In July 2011, Jackson explained to DCFS that she was hard to find because she had been living with different friends and had been incarcerated a few times. The case plan allowed for weekly supervised visits with L.J., but Jackson saw L.J. only twice between March and December 2011.

Jackson presented with positive drug screens twice while L.J. was in the care of DCFS and it was recommended that Jackson participate in an inpatient rehabilitation program in Rayville, Louisiana. She entered the Rayville Recovery Program in September 2011, but failed to complete the treatment after being involved in an altercation with another patient and failing to acknowledge her relationship with a fellow patient in the facility, L.J.’s father, Otis DeWayne Wiley (“Wiley”).

|3In January 2012, Jackson moved to Indiana to attempt to repair her relationship with her own mother. At that time, she was pregnant with twins. Jackson moved into a women’s shelter after an argument with her mother. Her pregnancy was determined to be high-risk and she was placed in the hospital on bed rest for six weeks. At the time of her hospitalization, she had not yet completed an outpatient drug rehabilitation program or the parenting classes required by her case plan. One of Jackson’s twins died at birth and the surviving twin (“H. J.”) is currently in Jackson’s care in Indiana, but is being supervised by the Indiana DCFS. Jackson has admitted that Wiley, who is also H.J.’s father, is involved with the care of H.J. and is a regular fixture in her household. Jackson and Wiley maintain a relationship, but have not received the couples counseling required in Jackson’s case plan.

After her move to Indiana, Jackson and H.J. spent three weeks in a shelter before she received help from Area Four, a case management company in Indiana. Area Four located and paid for an apartment for Jackson and H.J. Jackson relied on a number of services from Area Four to help with her housing and with the care of H.J. The assistance from Area Four was scheduled to end in October 2012.

[529]*529Due to Jackson’s failure to complete the requirements of the court-approved case plan, the State of Louisiana, through DCFS, filed a petition for termination of parental rights and certification for adoption against both Jackson and Wiley on May 18, 2012. At the termination hearing on September 6, 2012, the DCFS caseworker assigned to L.J.’s case testified |4that Jackson admitted to using drugs as recently as December 2011, although she provided two negative drug screens between January and September 2012. Jackson testified that she understood the importance of a rehabilitation program, but then asserted that she would be able to stop the use of illegal drugs on her own without the help of such a program.

During the 19 months that L.J. was in the custody of DCFS, Jackson received two lump-sum disability payments totaling approximately $40,000. That money is being managed by Area Four, since Jackson has not demonstrated the ability to manage her own funds. Despite the requirement that Jackson provide $25 each month to help with the care of L.J., Jackson provided only $100 and a few outfits, according to DCFS reports. At the termination hearing, Jackson herself testified that her contribution for the support of L.J. has been inadequate.

As of the time of the termination hearing, Jackson had failed to complete a drug rehabilitation program, had not attended domestic violence counseling or parenting classes and had not provided any significant contributions on behalf of L.J. while L.J. was in the custody of DCFS.

On September 6, 2012, judgment was rendered in open court terminating the parental rights of Jackson and Wiley, in accordance with Louisiana Children’s Code article 1015(5), which states, in pertinent part:

The grounds for termination of parental rights are:
5) Unless sooner permitted by the court, at least one year has elapsed since a child was removed from the parent’s custody pursuant to a court order; there has been no substantial parental compliance with a case plan for services which has been previously filed by the department and approved by the court as necessary for |fithe safe return of the child; and despite earlier intervention, there is no reasonable expectation of significant improvement in the parent’s condition or conduct in the near future, considering the child’s age and his need for a safe, stable, and permanent home.

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Related

State ex rel. S.A.T.
141 So. 3d 816 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2014)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
118 So. 3d 526, 2013 WL 3197342, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 1304, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-in-the-interest-of-lj-lactapp-2013.