Burdette v. Dietz
| Decision Date | 11 June 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. CA,CA |
| Citation | 711 S.W.2d 178,18 Ark.App. 107 |
| Parties | Mary Beth Moore BURDETTE, Appellant, v. Richard L. DIETZ, Administrator, Adoption Services, Arkansas Social Services, Appellee. 85-483. |
| Court | Arkansas Court of Appeals |
Naif Samuel Khoury, Fort Smith, for appellant.
Marlene S. Moore, Harrison & Hewett by Mark Hewett, Fort Smith, for appellee.
Appellant, Mary Beth Moore Burdette, the natural mother of Robert Eugene Burdette, age nine, brings this appeal from a judgment of the Sebastian Probate Court, appointing the appellee guardian of the person and estate of the child, with authority to consent to adoption.
The minor child has been in the care and custody of Family and Children's Services, Arkansas Social Services, since June 29, 1984. Appellee, Richard L. Dietz, Administrator of Adoption Services for Arkansas Social Services, filed a petition pursuant to Ark.Stat.Ann. Section 56-128 (Supp.1985), seeking appointment as guardian of the person and of the estate of the minor child, with authority to consent to adoption.
Appellant appeared in person and by counsel and opposed the granting of the petition. The minor child appeared in person and by a guardian ad litem. Notice to the natural father, whose address was unknown, was duly published and a copy of the notice was mailed to the father at his last known mailing address.
For reversal, appellant first contends that the evidence does not support the order appointing appellee guardian with power to consent to adoption. The rule is well established that, in a proceeding to appoint a guardian with power to consent to adoption, evidence justifying the appointment must be clear and convincing. See Dietz v. Bevill, 276 Ark. 500, 637 S.W.2d 555 (1982). The trial court found that the evidence was clear and convincing that both parents were unfit, within the meaning of Ark.Stat.Ann. Section 56-128 (Supp.1985), and that it was in the best interest of the child that the parental rights of the natural parents be terminated, and that a guardian be appointed with power to consent to adoption.
The evidence included the following: During a period of about five years, appellant lived in ten different locations with at least five different male roommates; that the child was not provided with appropriate hygiene care and cleanliness; that on at least one occasion, the child had scabies; that he was sent to school unbathed; that at times his entire body was as dirty as the feet of a person who had been walking outside all day barefoot; that he appeared to be malnourished; that he had been mauled on one occasion by one or more of the numerous dogs kept in the home; that the home was not clean; that dog urine and feces were found on the floor of the home; that the child was permitted to sleep on a heavily soiled and stained mattress on the floor of the living area; that during the last year the child was with appellant he was absent from school 22 1/2 days and was significantly tardy an additional 104 days; that the Arkansas Department of Human Services provided assistance and counseling to the natural mother for a period of six months, and there was little or no improvement with regard to the care and well-being of the child. The evidence contained...
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Porter v. Arkansas Dhhs
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