IN RE CBH, No. A03A1062.
| Decision Date | 08 August 2003 |
| Docket Number | No. A03A1062. |
| Citation | 262 Ga. App. 833,586 S.E.2d 678 |
| Parties | In the Interest of C.B.H. et al., children. |
| Court | Georgia Court of Appeals |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
Mark J. Nathan, Savannah, for appellant.
Thurbert E. Baker, Atty. Gen., William C. Joy, Senior Asst. Atty. Gen., Shalen S. Nelson, Asst. Atty. Gen., Beckmann & Lewis, Leo G. Beckmann, Jr., Savannah, for appellee.
The mother of C.B.H. and C.L.G. appeals from the juvenile court's order terminating her parental rights.1 She claims that the court erred in finding that the children's deprivation was likely to continue or would likely not be remedied. She also contends that, after determining that her parental rights should be terminated, the juvenile court erred in not awarding custody to either her parents or her brother. After reviewing the record, we conclude there was no reversible error and affirm.
On appeal from an order terminating parental rights, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the juvenile court's ruling and determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found by clear and convincing evidence that the natural parent's right to custody should be terminated. In the Interest of D.B.P., 262 Ga.App. 1, 584 S.E.2d 256 (2003).
So viewed, the evidence shows that the children, C.B.H. and C.L.G., both boys, were aged three and seven respectively at the time of the petition to terminate. At the time of the hearing on the petition, the mother was serving a five-year prison sentence for theft by deception, shoplifting, and writing a bad check.
The first case manager assigned to this case by the Department of Family and Children Services (Department) testified that the Department first became involved with the children in January 2000. She stated that there were several unsubstantiated incidents with the children before the first substantiated allegation, which was that the children were being molested by their stepfather.2
The next time the Department was called about the children was when police found C.B.H. alone in the car while the mother was inside a convenience store playing a video game. After this incident, C.B.H. was placed in a foster home and C.L.G. remained with the maternal grandparents. C.L.G. was subsequently removed to foster care as well. The juvenile court found the children were deprived and that order was never appealed. The caseworker stated that she tried to work with the mother on a reunification plan but the mother was uncooperative and would not go for the required drug screening. The caseworker testified that the children were not left in the care of the maternal grandparents because they told her they could not care for the children long-term because of their health. The caseworker also stated that the mother and grandmother did not get along and there was a domestic violence charge arising out of one of their altercations.
The current case manager for the children testified that when she received the case, the mother was in jail on an arson charge. There was a reunification plan in place for the mother; under the plan, the mother was supposed to complete a psychological evaluation, attend parenting classes, visit regularly with the children, obtain and maintain stable housing and employment, enter a drug treatment program, and submit to random drug screens. At some point, it appears the mother was released from jail because she did undergo psychological testing and attended parenting classes. She visited with the children. But, she had three positive drug screens in a two-month period and also had problems maintaining housing and employment. The evidence shows that the mother had five jobs in the six months before she was arrested again in November 2001. Although the mother never completed a substance abuse assessment, she did have several negative drug screens before her arrest. The mother pled guilty to theft by deception, shoplifting, and writing a bad check, and was sentenced to five years with a release date of November 2006. The caseworker said she felt it would be detrimental for the children to remain in foster care indefinitely and she thought they were prime candidates for adoption. She stated that as of the time of the hearing, the mother had been in prison for almost a year and the children had seen her only once during that time.
When asked about possible placement with a relative, the caseworker testified that a background check of the mother's brother showed several DUI convictions. She testified that he was asked to complete an alcohol treatment program but did not do so. The brother also testified and acknowledged that he was unemployed and was not "financially stable" enough to have the children in his home.
The mother testified that she was presently in prison and was unable to parent the children at this time. She said that she could possibly be paroled as early as January of next year. She also stated that she had received her GED while in prison, and had taken anger management classes. She said the likelihood of her committing further offenses when she was released was "slim." She said she would like the children to be placed with her parents or her brother until she was able to care for them.
The maternal grandmother said that she wanted to have the children in her home and was able to care for them. She denied ever stating that she could not care for the children. The maternal grandfather, when asked if he was physically and mentally able to care for the children, replied that he was sure that he and his wife, together with their son and his wife and brother-in-law and his wife, between the three families, could take excellent care of the children.
The foster mother stated that the children were very attached to their mother, and the guardian ad litem testified that he believed the mother should be given another chance at reunification.
The court-appointed special advocate said she had worked with the family for two years. She stated that the maternal grandparents told her they were not capable of taking care of the children because of medications they were on and because they could not physically handle them. She stated that she tried to find some relative to take the children but no one volunteered. Finally, after being in foster care for over a year and a half, she said she was recommending a permanent home for the children. The children's advocate said that she tried to work with the mother and help her with the reunification plan but the mother "thought [she] was out to get her" and did not cooperate. The advocate said she would not recommend placing the children with the grandparents. She stated that although they said they wanted the children when their daughter was present, they said very different things when their daughter was not present.
The court found that the children were deprived and the deprivation was likely to continue. The judge held that it was in the children's best interests to have a permanent home and granted the petition for termination. This appeal followed.
Termination of parental rights under OCGA § 15-11-94 requires a juvenile court to find that there is clear and convincing evidence of parental misconduct or inability and that termination is in the child's best interest. Subsections (a) and (b)(4)(A) of that Code section require a court to determine parental misconduct or inability by finding each of four factors: (1) the child is deprived; (2) the lack of proper parental care or...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
In re J.S.B., A06A0522.
...is appropriate for a trial court to consider a parent's past conduct in determining whether the deprivation is likely to continue. In the Interest of C.B.H.7 As previously stated, the mother was shown to have difficulty developing parenting skills, resulting in her failure to seek immediate......
-
In re K.J.M., A06A2208.
...appropriate for a juvenile court to consider a parent's past conduct in determining whether the deprivation is likely to continue. In the Interest of C.B.H.11 Here, K.J.M. suffered multiple bone fractures in at least two separate incidents given the fact that the hospital determined that he......
- In re E.G.
-
In re S.N.
...aware" of any such waiver. 8. In the Interest of R.S.H., 269 Ga.App. 292, 297(a), 603 S.E.2d 675 (2004); In the Interest of C.B.H., 262 Ga.App. 833, 836(1), 586 S.E.2d 678 (2003). 9. (Citation and punctuation omitted.) In the Interest of D.I.W., 215 Ga.App. 644, 646(1), 451 S.E.2d 804 (1994......