Kilgore v. Department of Human Resources, 57902
| Decision Date | 03 October 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 57902,57902 |
| Citation | 151 Ga.App. 19,258 S.E.2d 680 |
| Parties | KILGORE v. DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES. |
| Court | Georgia Court of Appeals |
B. T. Edmonds, Jr., Albany, for appellant.
Roy M. Lilly, Jr., Thomasville, Arthur K. Bolton, Atty. Gen., Carol Atha Cosgrove, Asst. Atty. Gen., for appellee.
This appeal is from an order of the Juvenile Court of Decatur County terminating appellant's parental rights to her three minor children. The Department of Human Resources first became involved in the affairs of appellant and her children in June of 1975, when appellant was serving a sentence for writing bad checks. Her two children, age 3 years and age 11 months, had been left in the care of their invalid grandmother in conditions described as filthy and unhealthy. A department caseworker found the 3-year old dressed only in a disposable diaper and not toilet trained. Her eyes were encrusted and sore. The 11-month old was similarly dressed and appeared retarded. The department removed the children to a foster home, where they improved considerably.
In November 1975 appellant gave birth to a third child while in prison. This child was placed under foster care until after appellant's release from prison in early 1976, when he was returned to her. Investigation revealed that appellant and her mother then lived with the youngest son in a very small trailer which had defective wiring and lacked hot water. There was no sewage hook-up, a condition which allowed waste from the trailer to run directly on the ground, and living conditions were generally described as being worse than those discussed previously. During the period, appellant spent much of her time in Bainbridge with a boyfriend.
In February 1976 appellant was again arrested on bad-check charges and returned to prison. Her youngest child was returned to foster care. Appellant was again released from prison in December 1976 but did not see her children until February 1977, after being contacted by a caseworker. At this time appellant was living with a man with a drinking problem. She married this person in August 1977, despite having had him arrested for assault the previous month. From the time of her latest release from prison until December 1977, appellant held five different jobs.
At the final hearing on this termination proceeding, appellant was not present. A letter from her, which was presented at court by her husband, indicated that she was traveling with a new boyfriend in Canada, Ohio, and Kansas. Psychological examination of appellant in 1977 revealed an antisocial personality with patterns of poor judgment that bring her into conflict with institutions such as the legal system and family. This diagnosis was similar to one made four years earlier. A psychologist testified at the hearing that improvement in such a condition generally takes several years and requires very high motivation. Held :
1. Code Ann. § 24A-3201(a) provides that "(t)he court by order may terminate the parental rights of a parent with respect to his child if . . . the...
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Chancey v. Department of Human Resources
...Wynn v. DHR, 149 Ga.App. 559, 254 S.E.2d 883 (1979); Avera v. Rainwater, 150 Ga.App. 39, 256 S.E.2d 648 (1979); Kilgore v. DHR, 151 Ga.App. 19, 258 S.E.2d 680 (1979); Cox v. DHR, 151 Ga.App. 257(3), 259 S.E.2d 664 (1979); Henderson v. DHR, 152 Ga.App. 74(2), 262 S.E.2d 241 (1979); Shover v.......
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M. A. C., In Interest of
...of similar factual situations in which a termination of parental rights has been deemed justifiable: Kilgore v. Dept. of Human Resources, 151 Ga.App. 19, 258 S.E.2d 680 (1979); Childers v. Clayton County Dept. of Family etc. Services, 147 Ga.App. 825, 250 S.E.2d 564 (1978); Madray v. Dept. ......
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Vermilyea v. Department of Human Resources
...a condition similar to one found to be a contributing factor and a cause to terminate parental rights in Kilgore v. Dept. of Human Resources, 151 Ga.App. 19, 258 S.E.2d 680. The evidence also established moderate developmental retardation because of the home environment, followed by dramati......