Matter of K.C.

• Decision Date: 12 November 2019
• Docket Number: Court of Appeals Case No. 19A-JT-685
• Citation: 138 N.E.3d 970 (Table)
• Parties: In the MATTER OF the Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of K.C., Mother, D.C., Father, and D.C., D'A.C., Da.C., and K.C., Children, K.C., Appellant-Respondent, v. Indiana Department of Child Services, Appellee-Petitioner.
• Court: Indiana Appellate Court

138 N.E.3d 970 (Table)

In the MATTER OF the Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of K.C., Mother, D.C., Father, and D.C., D'A.C., Da.C., and K.C., Children,K.C., Appellant-Respondent,

v.Indiana Department of Child Services, Appellee-Petitioner.

Court of Appeals Case No. 19A-JT-685

Court of Appeals of Indiana.

FILED November 12, 2019

Attorneys for Appellant: A. David Hutson, Hutson Legal, Jeffersonville, Indiana, John L. Grannan, Assistant Public Defender, Clark County Public Defender's Office, Jeffersonville, Indiana

Attorneys for Appellee: Curtis T. Hill, Jr., Attorney General of Indiana, Abigail R. Recker, Robert J. Henke, Deputy Attorneys General, Indianapolis, Indiana

MEMORANDUM DECISION

Kirsch, Judge.

[1] K.C. ("Mother") appeals the juvenile court's order terminating her parental rights to her children, D.C., D'A.C., Da.C., and K.C. ("Children"). Mother raises several issues on appeal, which we consolidate and restate as:

I. Whether the juvenile court abused its discretion when it admitted drug screen results under the business records exception to the rule against hearsay; and

II. Whether the juvenile court's order terminating Mother's parental rights to Children was clearly erroneous because (A) the evidence did not support the findings of fact and (B) the findings of fact did not support the juvenile court's conclusions that there was a reasonable probability that the conditions that resulted in Children being removed and placed outside of Mother's care would not be remedied and that termination of Mother's parental rights was in the best interests of Children.

[2] We affirm.

Facts and Procedural History

[3] Mother and D.C. ("Father")¹ are the parents of D.C., born January 27, 2008, D'A.C., born December 8, 2010, Da.C., born October 21, 2012, and K.C., born November 20, 2013. Appellant's App. Vol. 2 at 36, 40, 44, 48. Mother also has a sixteen-year-old daughter, M.M., who was not the biological daughter of Father. Tr. Vol. 2 at 7.

[4] In 2014, Mother became involved with the Indiana Department of Child Services ("DCS") because she was dealing marijuana out of her home while Children were present. Id. at 61. At that time, Children were removed from Mother's care for several months, and when they were returned to Mother's care, there was no running water or electricity. Id. at 9. At that time, there was also domestic violence occurring in the home, where Father would hit and choke Mother. Id. at 8.

[5] In May 2016, DCS received a report alleging Children were victims of neglect because Mother and a friend were parenting Children while under the influence of illegal substances. Id. at 61. DCS removed Children² from Mother's care on May 13, 2016, after Mother tested positive for methamphetamine and amphetamine. Ex. Vol. 3 at 33; Tr. Vol. 2 at 61-62. Father was incarcerated at that time for charges relating to domestic violence between him and Mother. Tr. Vol. 2 at 85-86. Mother had a history of DCS involvement due to her drug use and tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine on May 7, 2016. On May 16, 2016, DCS filed petitions alleging that Children were children in need of services ("CHINS") due to Mother's substance abuse issues and her admission that she wanted to kill herself. Ex. Vol. 3 at 24-27, 75-78, 130-33, 186-89. On June 2, 2016, Mother admitted that Children were CHINS due to her substance abuse issues, which required treatment. Id. at 6, 34, 85, 140, 196. On June 14, 2016, the juvenile court entered its order adjudicating Children as CHINS, and on August 20, 2016, it entered its dispositional decree and order of participation. Id. at 6-7, 8. The juvenile court ordered Mother to maintain contact with the Family Case Manager ("FCM"), keep all appointments with service providers, participate and complete an intensive family preservation program, complete a substance abuse assessment and follow all recommended treatment, submit to random drug screens, maintain suitable housing, and attend all scheduled visitations. Id. at 36-41, 87-92, 142-47, 198-203.

[6] Mother "had a lengthy history of using substances" and had used drugs since she was a teenager. Tr. Vol. 2 at 97. In November 2016, after being referred by DCS, Mother completed a substance abuse assessment with Danielle Blair ("Blair"), a clinical therapist. Id. at 96. During the assessment, Mother "presented with anxiety and depression symptoms[,] and ... she ... admitted to marijuana use at that time." Id. at 97. Mother also had a "lengthy history of domestic violence and early childhood trauma." Id. at 102. Blair recommended that Mother participate in individual therapy to address substance use, triggers, and coping skills; case management; parenting education; and more education on substance use." Id. at 98. Blair believed that without treatment, Mother would continue to have problems with substance abuse because Mother "was presenting with little coping skills or ability to manage her emotions," and "she needed more support." Id.

[7] In December 2016, Mother began treatment with Blair with the goals being to address past trauma, establish coping skills and emotion regulation, understand the link between her personal history and substance use, and develop a recovery and management safety plan. Id. at 98-99. Mother's participation in treatment was not consistent; there were periods where she would engage in treatment consistently for weeks or a month, and then her participation would "[f]all off." Id. at 99. There were several times when Mother was incarcerated and unable to attend. Id. Blair was able to provide treatment to Mother during her incarceration, but not as consistently as when she was not incarcerated. Id. It was difficult for Blair to manage Mother's recovery without long-term consistent treatment. Id. at 100. The last time Blair met with Mother was when she saw her in the Clark County Jail in November 2018. Id. at 99.

[8] While the present case was pending, Mother frequently tested positive for illegal substances, and in November 2017, the juvenile court, after a hearing on the parents' progress, found that Mother had ten positive drug screens since May 2017 and had refused two screens since September 2017. Ex. Vol. 3 at 52-54, 214-16. The State filed petitions to revoke Mother's probation, in part, because she tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine on September 11 and October 4, 2017. Ex. Vol. 4 at 39-41, 62, 68. Mother admitted that she did not refrain from drug use prior to her incarceration and that she would have "spurts where [she] would be clean" and then would relapse. Tr. Vol. 2 at 4. [9] On January 31, 2017, Mother was charged with Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine, Class C misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia, and Level 6 felony auto theft. Ex. Vol. 4 at 24, 33-36. On April 17, 2017, Mother pleaded guilty to Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine and Level 6 felony auto theft and was sentenced to an aggregate sentence of two years with one year suspended to probation. Id. at 27, 37. Several petitions to revoke probation were filed against Mother because she tested positive for illegal substances and failed to comply with substance abuse treatment. Id. at 28-31, 39-41, 43, 57-60, 63-66. As a result of these petitions to revoke, Mother's suspended sentence was revoked, and she was serving that sentence at the time of the termination proceedings. Tr. Vol. 2 at 41-44. During the CHINS and termination proceedings, Mother was also charged with several more offenses, including Level 6 felony escape, Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine, Level 6 felony possession of methamphetamine, Level 6 felony possession of a narcotic drug, Class A misdemeanor possession of a synthetic drug or lookalike substance, Class C misdemeanor possession of paraphernalia, Level 6 felony theft, and Class B misdemeanor unauthorized entry of a motor vehicle. Ex. Vol. 4 at 73, 78, 90, 98.

[10] Supervised visitation between Mother and Children began in July or August 2016, and Mother was mainly compliant and regularly participated, missing approximately one visit per month. Tr. Vol. 2 at 68, 124. Children enjoyed seeing Mother, and there were no major concerns during visitation. Id. at 124. The referral was closed in November 2017 when Mother was incarcerated. Id. at 68, 124. In January 2018, after Mother was released from jail, Children's therapist, Nina Fox ("Fox"), took over supervising visitations between Mother and Children. Id. at 23-24. Mother was supposed to contact Fox to schedule visits, but she failed to do so, and then she became incarcerated again. Id. at 24. The only visitation that Fox supervised between Mother and Children occurred during the summer of 2018 at the jail while Mother was incarcerated. Id. at 22, 24. That visitation was the last time Children saw Mother. Id. at 24.

[11] Since the beginning of the CHINS case, Children received therapeutic services from Fox. Id. at 21. She has sessions with Children once or twice a week, and she met with Children both individually and as a group. Id. at 28-29. Fox worked with Children on emotional stability because they had been through a lot of trauma and had attachment, anger, and behavioral issues. Id. at 21. Following the visit between Children and Mother in jail, Fox had to work with Children on anger and grief and dealing with the rejection of not having Mother in their lives. Id. at 25.

[12] On August 9, 2018, DCS filed petitions to terminate Mother's parental rights to Children. Appellant's App. Vol. 2 at 36-51. On January 8 and 15, 2019, the juvenile court held an evidentiary hearing on the petitions. Id. at 7, 13-14, 19-20, 25-26. At the time of the hearing, Mother was incarcerated in part for the probation revocations that were filed against her, and she had been incarcerated for approximately eight months. Tr. Vol. 2 at 40. Mother testified that her release date was in May 2019. Id. at 41.

[13] At the time of the evidentiary hearing,...