In the Matter of the Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of: A.B. (Minor Child),
v.
Indiana Department of Child Services, Appellee-Petitioner and C.B. (Mother), Appellant-Respondent,
Appeal
from the Tippecanoe Superior Court The Honorable Faith A.
Graham, Judge The Honorable Tricia L. Thompson, Magistrate
Trial Court Cause No. 79D03-1804-JT-48
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT Amanda McIlwain Legal Aid Corporation
of Tippecanoe County Lafayette, Indiana
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE Curtis T. Hill, Jr. Attorney General
of Indiana Abigail R. Recker Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
BAKER,
JUDGE.
[¶1]
C.B. (Mother) appeals the trial court's order terminating
her parent-child relationship with her child, A.B. (Child).
Mother argues that there is insufficient evidence supporting
the trial court's conclusion that the conditions
resulting in the placement of Child outside Mother's
custody will not be remedied, that the continuation of the
parent-child relationship poses a threat to Child's
well-being, and that the termination of the parent-child
relationship is in the child's best interest. Finding the
evidence insufficient, we reverse and remand for further
proceedings.
Facts
[¶2]
Child was born in January 2011 to Mother and B.B.
(Father).[1] On April 18, 2017, the Department of Child
Services (DCS) and law enforcement officers went to
Mother's home after receiving a report that Child's
half-brother (Sibling), who was then three years old, had
been neglected due to lack of supervision by Mother. When
they arrived, Sibling was walking down the street
unsupervised; Mother was inside, passed out on the couch with
burnt spice cigarettes near her and within a child's
reach. The officers tried several times to wake Mother. Once
they did, they arrested her, and DCS placed Child and Sibling
in relative care. The State charged Mother with Level 6
felony neglect of a dependent and Class A misdemeanor
possession of a synthetic drug or lookalike substance. Mother
remained incarcerated until April 22, 2017.
[¶3]
On April 19, 2017, DCS filed a petition alleging both
children to be children in need of services (CHINS) based on
the above facts.[2] On May 15, 2017, a factfinding hearing
took place, after which the juvenile court adjudicated Child
to be a CHINS. On May 25, 2017, the juvenile court entered
its dispositional and parental participation decrees,
ordering Mother to participate in parenting time, a substance
abuse assessment and all recommendations, case management, a
parenting assessment and all recommendations, random drug
screens, a mental health evaluation and all recommendations,
individual counseling and all recommendations, and family
therapy and all recommendations.
Mother's
Participation with Services and Visits
[¶4]
In May 2017, DCS referred Mother to Bauer Family Resources
for parenting time and case management. In May and June 2017,
Mother participated in case management and her parenting
visits were positive, with Mother providing appropriate care
for the children and no safety concerns reported. Mother then
missed multiple visits in July and August 2017. Mother
reported that she was depressed and that her depression was
why she disengaged with visitation. Because Mother missed
visits, in August 2017, Bauer closed its services to her.
[¶5]
In May 2017, DCS referred Mother to Wabash Valley Alliance
(WVA) for a mental health evaluation, which Mother completed.
WVA also recommended that Mother participate in individual
therapy and family therapy.
[¶6]
On June 13, 2017, Mother completed an intake assessment with
an addictions counselor at WVA. Mother told the counselor
that she had used alcohol in the past but that she had never
used illegal drugs. Following the assessment, the counselor
recommended that Mother complete a substance abuse assessment
and participate in individual counseling for her symptoms of
depression.
[¶7]
On July 31, 2017, Mother completed her substance abuse
assessment at WVA. During the assessment, Mother indicated
that she was using alcohol, methamphetamine, and opiates, and
that she had used methamphetamine three days before the
assessment. The treatment provider recommended that Mother
attend an intensive outpatient program (IOP). On September 5,
2017, Mother attended one IOP session at WVA; she was later
discharged for noncompliance. In October 2017, DCS referred
Mother to Bauer for another IOP, which Mother did not
complete. On August 22, 2017, Mother requested a medication
evaluation; it is unclear from the record whether she
received a referral for it.
[¶8]
On August 30, 2017, the juvenile court stated that
Mother's parenting time may continue so long as she
submitted to all requested drug screens and refrained from
using or testing positive for methamphetamine, but that if
she tested positive, her parenting time would be immediately
suspended and would not resume until further order of the
juvenile court. After Mother tested positive for
methamphetamine on September 28, 2017, the juvenile court
suspended her parenting time. Family Case Manager (FCM)
Samantha Goltz testified that Mother "was given the
opportunity to participate in I believe 30 days of clean
screens and not be missing any screens" but that Mother
did not comply with those terms and has not been allowed to
visit Child since then. Tr. Vol. II p. 77.
[¶9]
Mother requested that visitation be reinstated. Mother
testified that in October 2017, she requested a Skype or
telephone visit if she could not have an in-person visit due
to her failing the drug screen. DCS denied her request,
believing it would be detrimental to Child. In February 2018,
DCS denied Mother's request because Mother did not
participate in drug screens and had not seen Child in a long
time. In June 2018, DCS denied Mother visitation because of
the length of time that had passed since Mother's last
visit with Child. DCS never reinstated visits during these
proceedings.
[¶10]
In November 2017, DCS referred Mother to case management at
Lifeline Youth and Family Services; Lifeline later discharged
her due to lack of contact. However, Mother was incarcerated
from November 6 through December 16, 2017, for contempt of
court because she failed to pay child support for another
child. She was then on work release until January 5, 2018.
[¶11]
FCM Goltz made a referral for a psychological evaluation on
March 5, 2018, and although Mother was incarcerated again on
March 26, 2018, FCM Goltz did not renew the referral because
she did not know when Mother would be released. Mother's
incarceration, which was for the neglect of a dependent
charge (to which Mother had pleaded guilty) that led to this
case, lasted through May 23, 2018. Following her arrest, she
was on house arrest through August 1, 2018. Mother was on
probation at the time of the termination hearing.
[¶12]
At the start of these proceedings, Mother was seeking housing
because her residence at the time was being investigated for
mold. She testified that she had been living in the same
place since November 2017, and at the time of the termination
hearing, she was facing eviction because the property owners
sold the building. She testified that she was actively
looking for housing, and that if she needed to, she could
stay with her father or her boyfriend's mother. As for
employment, at the time of the termination hearing, Mother
was in her second month of employment at Steak 'n'
Shake; she had previously worked for a cleaning company.
Mother was also taking prescribed medication to treat her
depression and was working to obtain health insurance.
Mother's
Drug Use and Screens
[¶13]
DCS referred Mother for drug screens. Mother missed
twenty-two screens between August 22, 2017, and October 10,
2017. Mother completed eleven screens from September 27,
2017, to November 1, 2017, that were negative of all
substances. On October 13 and 26, 2017, she tested positive
for alcohol. On September 28, 2017, Mother tested positive
for methamphetamine.
[¶14]
In the three months leading up to the termination hearing,
Mother consistently participated in drug screens, all of
which were clean, and she was still participating at the time
of the hearing.[3] FCM Goltz testified that because Mother
had been incarcerated before the three months in which she
consistently tested clean, Mother could have been clean for
approximately five ...