In the Matter of J.M. and P.M. (Minor Children), Children in Need of Services, and V.M. (Father) v. The Indiana Department of Child Services (mem. dec.) ( 2016 )

MEMORANDUM DECISION FILED
Jun 03 2016, 6:18 am
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
CLERK
this Memorandum Decision shall not be Indiana Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
regarded as precedent or cited before any and Tax Court
court except for the purpose of establishing
the defense of res judicata, collateral
estoppel, or the law of the case.
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Dylan A. Vigh Gregory F. Zoeller
Law Offices of Dylan A. Vigh, LLC Attorney General of Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Robert J. Henke
James D. Boyer
Deputy Attorneys General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
In the Matter of J.M. and P.M. June 3, 2016
(Minor Children), Children in Court of Appeals Case No.
Need of Services, 49A02-1510-JC-1763
Appeal from the Marion Superior
and Court
The Honorable Marilyn A.
V.M. (Father), Moores, Judge
Appellant-Respondent, Trial Court Cause Nos.
49D09-1505-JC-1486, -1487
v.
The Indiana Department of
Child Services,
Appellee-Petitioner
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Crone, Judge.
Case Summary
[1] V.M. (“Father”) appeals a trial court adjudication designating his children J.M.
and P.M. (collectively “the Children”) as children in need of services
(“CHINS”). Finding the evidence sufficient to support the CHINS designation,
we affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[2] In 2012, Father and A.M. (“Mother”) dissolved their marriage. Pursuant to the
dissolution decree, they had joint custody of their daughter J.M. (born April 21,
2006) and son P.M. (born March 21, 2008), with the Children together
alternating between the parents on a weekly basis.
[3] In April 2015, the Department of Child Services (“DCS”) investigated a report
that Father had inappropriately touched the Children and that there was a
history of domestic violence in the home. Seven-year-old P.M. told a DCS case
manager that Father had touched him “on the inside of his butt,” and it made
him feel “uncomfortable and sad.” Appellant’s App. at 37-39. A few days
later, the Children underwent forensic interviews, during which P.M. disclosed
that Father had touched him inside his buttocks while he and J.M. were lying
on a bed watching a movie. J.M. reported that she did not see Father touch
P.M.’s buttocks but that P.M. had told her about it. P.M. also reported that
Father had touched his penis while giving him an oil massage.
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[4] In May 2015, DCS filed a CHINS petition, alleging that Father had touched
P.M. inside his buttocks and had touched his penis during an oil massage; that
Father had bitten J.M. on her cheek and kissed her lips; that Father’s new wife
had given J.M. an oil massage while J.M. was naked; and that Father had a
history of abuse and control over Mother. The trial court reviewed the petition,
removed the Children from each parent’s care, and granted temporary wardship
to DCS.
[5] At a child hearsay hearing in July 2015, Mother admitted to the CHINS
allegations based on the Children’s exposure to Father’s acts of domestic
violence, the reports of his inappropriate touching, and her inability to protect
the Children due to Father’s unsupervised parenting time. She agreed to
participate in home-based services, therapy, and a domestic violence
assessment. Father requested that the trial court admit the forensic interviews
of the Children and render its decision based on that evidence in lieu of a
contested factfinding hearing. The trial court admitted the forensic interviews
and indicated that it would render its decision based on those interviews and
Mother’s admissions. Father did not request the admission of additional
evidence.
[6] In July 2015, the trial court issued an order designating the Children as CHINS.
The court held a hearing and issued a dispositional order placing the Children
with Mother, giving Father supervised parenting time, and ordering both
parents to participate in home-based therapy.
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[7] On August 26, 2015, Father filed a motion to correct error as to the trial court’s
CHINS designation, asserting that the trial court erred in ruling primarily on
the forensic interviews and in failing to consider additional information that
was not part of the hearing record. He attached to his motion an opinion letter
from a clinical psychologist and copies of DCS reports not previously in the
hearing records. Father’s motion to correct error was deemed denied pursuant
to Indiana Trial Rule 53.3(A). He now appeals the CHINS designation. 1
Additional facts will be provided as necessary.
Discussion and Decision
[8] Father challenges the sufficiency of evidence to support the CHINS
determination. When reviewing the sufficiency of evidence, we give due regard
to the trial court’s ability to assess the credibility of witnesses. In re Des.B., 2
N.E.3d 828, 836 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014). We neither reweigh evidence nor judge
witness credibility; rather, we consider only the evidence and reasonable
inferences most favorable to the trial court’s decision. In re K.D., 962 N.E.2d
1249, 1253 (Ind. 2012). Where, as here, the trial court sua sponte issues
findings of fact and conclusions thereon, we apply a clearly erroneous standard
for matters covered by the trial court’s findings. In re S.D., 2 N.E.3d 1283, 1287
(Ind. 2014). In so doing, we apply a two-tiered standard of review, considering
first whether the evidence supports the findings and then whether the findings
1
Mother admitted to the CHINS designation and is not participating in this appeal.
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support the judgment. Id. As for matters not covered in the findings, we apply
a general judgment standard, pursuant to which a judgment “will be affirmed if
it can be sustained on any legal theory supported by the evidence.” Id.[9] In a CHINS proceeding, the State bears the burden of proving by a
preponderance of the evidence that a child meets the statutory definition of a
CHINS. In re N.E., 919 N.E.2d 102, 105 (Ind. 2010). To meet its burden of
establishing CHINS status, the State must prove that the child is under age
eighteen,
(1) the child’s physical or mental condition is seriously impaired
or seriously endangered as a result of the inability, refusal, or
neglect of the child’s parent, guardian, or custodian to supply
the child with necessary food, clothing, shelter, medical care,
education, or supervision; and
(2) the child needs care, treatment, or rehabilitation that:
(A) the child is not receiving; and
(B) is unlikely to be provided or accepted without the
coercive intervention of the court.
Ind. Code § 31-34-1-1.
[10] A CHINS designation focuses on the condition of the child rather than on an
act or omission by the parent. N.E., 919 N.E.2d at 105. Whereas the acts or
omissions of one parent can cause a condition that creates the need for court
intervention,
[a] CHINS adjudication can also come about through no
wrongdoing on the part of either parent, e.g., where a child
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substantially endangers the child’s own health or the health of
another individual; or when a child is adjudicated a CHINS
because the parents lack the financial ability to meet the child’s
extraordinary medical needs. While we acknowledge a certain
implication of parental fault in many CHINS adjudications, the
truth of the matter is that a CHINS adjudication is simply that—
a determination that a child is in need of services.
Id. (citations omitted). A trial court need not wait until a tragedy occurs to
intervene. In re A.H., 913 N.E.2d 303, 311 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009).
[11] Here, Father has not specifically challenged any of the trial court’s findings but
instead makes general denials of inappropriate conduct and general assertions
concerning the strength of the evidence and inferences drawn from the forensic
interviews. The trial court’s findings include the following: 2
4. Father maintained his denial of the allegations but stipulated
to the authenticity and admissibility of the video of his children’s
forensic interviews regarding some of the allegations.
5. And the Court having reviewed the video and being duly
advised in the premises thereof, now finds:
6. Father inappropriately touched the inside of P.M.’s buttocks
and it felt “bad” to the child.
2
To the extent that the findings include proper names for Mother, Father, J.M., and P.M., we have removed
those designations.
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7. Father touched his son P.M. in an inappropriate and sexual
manner while giving him an oil massage.
8. Father’s wife … gave J.M. an oil massage while [J.M.] was
naked.
9. P.M. did not seem coached in any way during the video. On
the contrary, the child provided details that would have been very
difficult for a child his age to remember, if he were lying and
made time errors that are also very common among children his
age when they are telling the truth.
10. P.M. came across as very natural, forthright, embarrassed,
troubled and … confused by his father’s and his wife’s actions.
11. J.M., a teenager made no disclosures during her forensic
interview, but apparently made disclosures once she was reunited
with her mother.
….
13. Accordingly, the Court finds that the children’s physical and
mental conditions are seriously impaired and seriously
endangered as a result of the Father’s commission of sexual
abuse against at least P.M. and that Mother is unable to protect
the children while they are in Father’s care because he has
unsupervised parenting time under the terms of their divorce.
Appellant’s App. at 5.
[12] Interestingly, after stipulating to the trial court basing its ruling on the forensic
interviews in lieu of a factfinding hearing, Father now argues that the trial court
accorded too much weight to those interviews. As support, he relies on
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documents attached to his motion to correct error. These documents – an
opinion letter from a child psychologist and several DCS reports – were not part
of the record when the trial court ruled on the CHINS petition. “[Indiana Trial]
Rule 59(H)(1) requires a motion to correct error that is based on evidence
outside the record to be ‘supported by affidavits showing the truth of the
grounds set out in the motion.’” Stoffel v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., 3 N.E.3d
548, 554 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014). Father could have submitted these documents
before or during the factfinding hearing, but instead, he stipulated to a
procedure that dispensed with the factfinding hearing altogether. See Mid-States
Aircraft Engines, Inc. v. Mize Co., 467 N.E.2d 1242, 1245 (Ind. Ct. App. 1984)
(“T.R. 59(H)(1) affidavits may not be used to present evidence the party
neglected to offer during the proceeding.”). Even so, the documents that Father
attached to his motion to correct error do not comply with Trial Rule 59(H)(1)
because they are not themselves affidavits, nor were they accompanied by
affidavits. 3 As such, they are not properly considerable under the Rule.
[13] Simply put, Father’s arguments amount to an invitation to reweigh evidence
and assess witness credibility, which we may not do. Having agreed to the
abbreviated procedure and then disagreed with the trial court’s decision, Father
3
One of the documents is an opinion letter from child psychologist Dr. Steven J. Couvillion. Although it is
titled, “Affidavit,” it is clearly an expert opinion provided for purposes of litigation. Appellant’s App. at 50-
54. It does not contain a signed verification, under penalty of perjury, of the truth of matters asserted therein
and therefore does not satisfy the requirements of an affidavit. Ind. Trial Rule 11(B). Similarly, the attached
DCS reports of other unsubstantiated neglect and abuse allegations against Father are not accompanied by
affidavits and thus do not comply with Trial Rule 59(H)(1).
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attempted to bolster his position by attaching unverified documents to his
motion to correct error. The unchallenged findings support the CHINS
designation. The Children were seriously impaired or endangered by Father’s
conduct 4 and Mother’s inability to supervise them while they were with Father.
Being subject to the dissolution court’s joint custody order, Mother could not
legally deny Father his parenting time. As such, absent the coercive
intervention of the trial court, it is unlikely that the Children would have
received much-needed care and treatment. Based on the foregoing, we
conclude that the trial court did not clearly err in designating the Children
CHINS. Accordingly, we affirm.
[14] Affirmed.
Najam, J., and Robb, J., concur.
4
Father cites as support for his insufficiency claim the State’s decision not to bring criminal charges against
him. We remind him that a determination of criminal liability requires a more rigorous standard of proof
than a CHINS designation.
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