Melinda Shaw v. Texas Department of Family and Protective Services ( 2006 )


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  •       TEXAS COURT OF APPEALS, THIRD DISTRICT, AT AUSTIN
    NO. 03-05-00682-CV
    Melinda Shaw, Appellant
    v.
    Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Appellee
    FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF TRAVIS COUNTY, 53RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT
    NO. FM4-06292, HONORABLE SUZANNE COVINGTON, JUDGE PRESIDING
    MEMORANDUM OPINION
    The trial court signed a final decree terminating appellant Melinda Shaw’s parental
    rights to her son, C.O., who was born on April 26, 2003. While a juvenile, Shaw was adjudicated
    delinquent on multiple occasions for possession of marijuana, possession of cocaine, several counts
    of assault, and several counts of failure to identify. The Department introduced evidence about her
    juvenile record at trial, and in her first issue, Shaw argues that the trial court erred in allowing the
    Department to introduce that evidence. In her next eight issues, she argues that the evidence is
    legally and factually insufficient to support the trial court’s findings that she placed or allowed C.O.
    to be placed in surroundings that endangered his well-being, placed him with persons who engaged
    in conduct that endangered his well-being, or failed to comply with a court order setting out
    conditions for C.O.’s return, or that termination was in C.O.’s best interest. In her final issue, she
    argues that the trial court erred in denying her motion for continuance. We affirm the trial court’s
    decree of termination.1
    Factual Summary
    Shaw was seventeen years old when she gave birth to C.O. in April 2003, while she
    was in TYC custody. He lived with her at a TYC facility for young mothers until her release in
    March 2004; Shaw was almost twenty at the time of trial. On September 17, 2004, she was arrested
    for attempted burglary of a habitation after she, her sister Erica, and their respective boyfriends went
    to get Erica’s baby from the baby’s father. Shaw left C.O. in the car while she and the other three
    went to the father’s apartment. The father refused to give the baby to Erica, so Shaw and her
    companions kicked open the door, injuring him.2 Shaw grabbed the baby and ran out of the
    apartment and was arrested before she could drive away. Unable to locate anyone to take care of
    C.O. after her arrest, the police sent him to a children’s shelter, where an employee discovered a bag
    of marijuana in C.O.’s diaper.
    The Department of Family and Protective Services was appointed C.O.’s temporary
    managing conservator in late September 2004. In orders issued in September and December 2004,
    the trial court required Shaw to complete a parenting class through Any Baby Can, a protective
    1
    The trial court found that Shaw knowingly placed C.O. or allowed him to remain in
    conditions that endangered his well-being, engaged in conduct that endangered or knowingly placed
    him with someone who engaged in conduct that endangered him, and failed to comply with a court
    order. See Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 161.001(1)(D), (E), (O) (West Supp. 2005).
    2
    The police report said that Shaw participated in kicking down the door and assaulting the
    victim, but Shaw denied it. She testified that she ran to her car to call the police when the father
    would not open the door, and when she returned, the door had already been kicked down.
    2
    parenting class, an anger management class, and a drug and alcohol assessment, submit to a
    psychological evaluation, undergo drug testing three times a week, attend five Alcoholics
    Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous (“AA” or “NA”) meetings a week, and maintain safe and
    stable housing and employment. Shaw remained in prison for about a month after her arrest and then
    was given deferred adjudication and placed on community supervision. In 2005, Shaw pled no
    contest to a charge of theft by check and was imprisoned from February through April 2005, when
    she was released on probation. Her community supervision and probation terms required her to
    submit to drug testing, undergo drug treatment, attend three AA or NA meetings a week, take
    parenting classes, work towards a high school diploma, and find and maintain employment.
    Amy Slayton, one of the caseworkers assigned to Shaw’s case, testified that until
    February 2005, Shaw did not make progress on the court’s orders “except perhaps sign her release
    of information.” Shaw missed several visits with C.O., was kicked out of anger management and
    parenting classes for poor attendance, missed a scheduled psychological evaluation, and never
    complied with Department-requested drug testing. Shaw agreed and said that when C.O. was first
    taken from her, she was depressed and felt sorry for herself. After her release from prison in April
    2005, she “decided to get it together” and began to comply with the court’s order.
    Shaw testified that she started smoking marijuana when she was twelve or thirteen
    and had not used any other kind of drug. She began attending AA and NA meetings in late July
    2005, less than two months before trial, but said, “I don’t think I have a drug problem, but I just
    chose—I just chose to smoke as a result of my emotions.” She explained, “Like when I get
    depressed, I think smoking eases the pain, and that’s not correct. So I just—I could stop any time
    3
    I want to, and I decided to stop.” She said she had last used marijuana before she was incarcerated
    in February 2005, and her probation drug tests in April, May, July, and August 2005 were negative.
    However, her probation officer testified that test results from the week before trial were positive for
    marijuana and that Shaw was upset about those results and said she had not smoked any marijuana
    but might have “been around someone who does.” Shaw was ordered to re-test the next day, but did
    not come in for that test. The Department also argued that Shaw’s drug tests taken for her probation
    officer did not satisfy the Department’s requests for drug testing.3
    In October 2004, Shaw was kicked out of a parenting class for failure to attend. She
    contacted the Department in April 2005, and rescheduled the parenting class for mid-May, but was
    again discharged for non-attendance because she did not have transportation. She successfully
    completed parenting classes in the summer of 2005, receiving a certificate of completion in early
    September. Shaw started anger management classes in June 2005, but was discharged after she
    missed two classes because of work, and she missed a December 2004 appointment for a court-
    ordered psychological evaluation. The evaluation was rescheduled for March 2005, when she was
    in jail, and she completed the evaluation in May 2005.
    3
    The Department argued that Shaw’s monthly drug tests for her probation did not satisfy
    the court’s order of random drug testing in this case. Shaw testified, however, that she was told she
    did not have to do the court-ordered weekly drug tests because she was taking drug tests for her
    probation. Amy Slayton, Shaw’s Department caseworker, testified that she asked Shaw to submit
    to drug testing. Slayton told Shaw that if she provided proof of her probation drug tests, “then
    [Slayton] probably would not be asking as many times, but [Slayton] did reserve the right to still
    request random” tests; Slayton said Shaw never provided proof of drug tests taken through the
    probation office.
    4
    Russell Oldaker, C.O.’s father and Shaw’s ex-boyfriend, testified that he had a history
    of domestic violence against the mother of his older child, he was arrested several times for
    assaulting her, and she obtained a protective order against him. After Shaw’s release from TYC in
    March 2004, she and C.O. moved in with Oldaker. In June 2004, Oldaker assaulted Shaw, pushing
    her to the ground, hitting her, and locking her in a closet. Shaw called the police and obtained an
    emergency protective order against Oldaker, but after her release from prison in April 2005, she
    reunited with him and lived with him until July 2005. In June 2005, Shaw’s probation officer saw
    bruises on Shaw, and Shaw said that “she’d had an abusive boyfriend and she had left him.” The
    officer did not think Shaw was referring to Oldaker.
    At the time of trial, Shaw was moving around, sometimes staying with her
    grandmother or her sister and, although they were no longer a couple, sometimes staying in motel
    rooms with Oldaker. Asked what she would do if C.O. was returned to her care, she said, “I’m in
    the process of looking for an apartment right now, so we would have an apartment. If not, he’s
    always welcome to come to my grandma’s house, just like I am.” Before being incarcerated in 2005,
    Shaw worked at a fast food restaurant for a “couple of months.” About a month and a half before
    trial, Shaw worked at a Denny’s restaurant for a “couple of weeks,” but she left because she had to
    go to her court-ordered classes and her manager felt she was not dedicated to her job. She testified
    that her anger management classes and scheduled visits with C.O. conflicted with her work hours
    and that she tried unsuccessfully to contact the Department about rescheduling her visits. She was
    not employed at the time of trial, but was looking for a job and was going to start taking a class about
    job searches and resume preparation through her probation office. She agreed that she had “trouble
    5
    with authority figures” and acted before or without thinking, admitting that during a break in trial
    the day before, she called the Department’s attorney a “stupid bitch” because she was angry and
    frustrated. Shaw said she loves C.O., believes she can care for him with the skills she has learned,
    and will never act rashly toward C.O. or call him names if frustrated.
    Shaw was allowed to have supervised visitation with C.O. once a week, but admitted
    that she missed several visits, usually because she had difficulty arranging transportation. According
    to Department records, Shaw did not visit C.O. between January 11 and May 18, 2005; she was
    incarcerated from February 15 until April 23. Shaw testified that after her release in April, Oldaker
    tried to arrange for visitation and was told that he and Shaw would first have to attend a “meeting
    about services.” Shaw did not call the Department herself and relied on Oldaker. Shaw and Oldaker
    eventually met with the Department in mid-May.
    Dr. William Dubin conducted a psychological evaluation of Shaw in May 2005. She
    told Dubin that she had been abused and molested during her childhood and that she ran away from
    her grandmother’s house and foster homes several times. She told Dubin that “she uses marijuana
    ‘to help me relieve stress,’” but denied using alcohol or other illegal drugs. She said that she used
    marijuana almost daily after C.O. was removed until February 2005 “to help her reduce stress and
    that the removal itself was a stressor,” but she did not believe she had a substance abuse problem.
    Dubin determined that she “met the diagnostic criteria of anti-social personality disorder,” had an
    anxiety disorder, marijuana dependence, and borderline intellectual functioning. Asked about her
    ability to care for a child, Dubin answered, “That’s the problem, is that the poor judgment, both the
    anti-social issues and the intellectual issues make it problematic for her to provide a safe
    6
    environment for the child.” Regarding Shaw’s relationship with her child, he said “her lie score was
    so high, it made the test . . . uninterpretable.” He thought there was “good bonding” with C.O., but
    he could not be sure.
    Amy Slayton, Shaw’s caseworker, testified that she had seen a worrisome pattern of
    behavior by Shaw. Slayton testified that at the time she was assigned to the case in February 2005,
    she did not think Shaw had complied with the court’s orders “except perhaps [to] sign her release
    of information.” Shaw had missed a scheduled psychological evaluation and had not completed any
    drug tests or participated in parenting or anger management classes. Shaw did not visit C.O. or
    contact the Department between January 11 and April 26, when Oldaker tried to try to arrange
    visitation for himself and Shaw. Slayton arranged a meeting for the next day, but Shaw did not
    attend and Oldaker was thirty minutes late. Slayton rescheduled the meeting for May 4, but neither
    Shaw nor Oldaker appeared. Slayton rescheduled again for May 11, confirming the new date with
    Oldaker by phone and by letter; Oldaker attended, but Shaw did not. Slayton did not recall that
    Shaw attempted to contact her by letter or phone between April 26 and May 18, when she finally met
    to discuss her progress under the Department’s reunification plan. Shaw missed the next week’s
    visitation, but met with Slayton again on May 31.
    Slayton did not believe Shaw had “taken any responsibility for the situation or the
    reasons that [C.O.] was brought into the Department’s care,” and testified that she believed
    termination and adoption were in C.O.’s best interest. She said, “I feel it’s in his best interest to be
    adopted because there has not been any significant progress by the parents. There hasn’t been any
    significant change in their lifestyle that led to the Department being involved in the first place. There
    7
    is a lack of responsibility, I feel, on the parents’ part to acknowledge the problems that exist in this
    case. There’s been a lack of participation in services, a lack of contact with their child. And [C.O.]
    needs permanency.” Slayton believed that C.O. had become more trusting and outgoing while in
    foster care, and his speech had improved through speech therapy. Slayton believed that Shaw had
    endangered C.O. “by continuing to be involved with someone who has a criminal history, herself
    having a criminal history and continuing with that criminal history throughout the life of our case,
    not having a stable home to live in, not having stable employment[,] . . . [l]iving in motels, clearly
    not having anything stable for him and not making any significant changes.” Slayton summarized
    her opinion, saying C.O. had been in foster care for almost a year and “deserves permanency and .
    . . Ms. Shaw has not made any significant progress in her services. I don’t feel that she’s made any
    significant efforts to change her lifestyle or to acknowledge the problems that brought the
    Department . . . into her life.”
    Carolyn Hansen, the court-appointed representative for C.O., testified that she had
    been working on the case since November 2004. She believed that C.O. needed loving parents who
    were active and could give him the attention he craves. Hansen observed many of Shaw’s visits with
    C.O., and testified that Shaw does not really play with C.O. and instead “gives him orders.” She did
    not believe Shaw was using any skills she had learned in her parenting classes, saying, “He plays
    with a toy, she’ll grab it and say ‘Mine,’ and she pulls it away from him. And she waits until he cries
    before she’ll hand it back to him.” Hansen said “there just is not a relationship, in my opinion.” She
    also testified that she had heard Shaw tell C.O. that his father, Oldaker, was “a sorry dad” or a “no
    good dad.” Hansen believed that C.O. was very adoptable and testified that he was happy and
    8
    thriving in his current foster home and that his speech had improved greatly since his removal.
    Asked whether permanency was important for C.O., she said it was, explaining, “He’s having that
    now and you can see how well emotionally and educationally that he’s doing with the speech, with
    his affection for other people, how he gets along, how he plays with other children.” Hansen did not
    believe Shaw should be given more time to obtain services because “it would hurt” C.O. Hansen
    believed Shaw had been “dilly-dallying” with satisfying the court order and said she once asked
    Shaw why she was not making efforts to meet the court’s requirements. Shaw said, “Well, nobody’s
    made any appointments,” and Hansen told her to contact her case worker and to “[g]et it going if you
    want him,” but Shaw “just sort of ignored” her. Hansen did not think that Shaw’s visits with C.O.
    had improved since November 2004, and in fact she thought “they have gone downhill.”
    Sufficiency of the Evidence
    Even if we assume that it was error to admit evidence about Shaw’s juvenile record
    and disregard that evidence, the record is legally and factually sufficient to support the trial court’s
    termination of her parental rights. Therefore, we need not decide whether a juvenile’s criminal
    records may be used in a termination case such as this one.
    A parent’s rights to her child may be terminated only if the trial court finds (1) she
    has engaged in conduct set out as statutory grounds for termination, and (2) termination is in the
    child’s best interest. Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 161.001 (West Supp. 2005); In re C.H., 
    89 S.W.3d 17
    ,
    23 (Tex. 2002). The Department must prove those elements by clear and convincing evidence,
    which is evidence that “will produce in the mind of the trier of fact a firm belief or conviction as to
    the truth of the allegations” supporting termination. 
    C.H., 89 S.W.3d at 23
    (quoting State v.
    9
    Addington, 
    588 S.W.2d 569
    , 570 (Tex. 1979)). In reviewing the legal sufficiency of the evidence,
    we consider all of the evidence in the light most favorable to the trial court’s finding and ask whether
    a reasonable fact-finder could have formed a firm belief or conviction that the finding was true. In
    re J.F.C., 
    96 S.W.3d 256
    , 266 (Tex. 2002). In a factual sufficiency review, we consider all of the
    evidence and ask whether a reasonable fact-finder could have resolved any evidentiary disputes in
    favor of a finding that the State’s allegations are true. 
    Id. We must
    maintain appropriate deference
    to the trial court’s role as fact-finder by assuming that it resolved evidentiary conflicts in favor of its
    finding when reasonable to do so and by disregarding evidence that it reasonably could have
    disbelieved. 
    Id. at 266-67.
    In determining a child’s best interests, we consider factors such as: the child’s
    emotional and physical needs now and in the future; emotional or physical danger to the child now
    and in the future; the parenting abilities of the parties seeking custody; programs available to help
    those parties; plans for the child by the parties seeking custody; the stability of the proposed
    placement; the parent’s conduct indicating that the parent-child relationship is improper; and any
    excuses for the parent’s conduct. Holley v. Adams, 
    544 S.W.2d 367
    , 372 (Tex. 1976). The
    Department need not prove all nine Holley factors, and the absence of some of those factors does not
    bar a finding that termination is in the child’s best interest, especially in the face of undisputed
    evidence that the parental relationship endangered the child. 
    C.H., 89 S.W.3d at 27
    . No one factor
    is controlling, and evidence of one factor may be sufficient to support a finding that termination is
    in the child’s best interest. In re J.O.C., 
    47 S.W.3d 108
    , 115 (Tex. App.—Waco 2001, no pet.).
    Parental conduct giving rise to grounds for termination under section 161.001 is often intertwined
    10
    with the best interest determination. See Horvatich v. Texas Dep’t of Protective & Regulatory
    Servs., 
    78 S.W.3d 594
    , 601 (Tex. App.—Austin 2002, no pet.); In re D.M., 
    58 S.W.3d 801
    , 814
    (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2001, no pet.). However, the best-interest determination generally “must
    have a firm basis in facts standing apart from the offending behavior.” 
    D.M., 58 S.W.3d at 814
    ; see
    
    Horvatich, 78 S.W.3d at 601
    . Permanence is of paramount importance in considering a child’s
    emotional and physical needs. In re T.D.C., 
    91 S.W.3d 865
    , 873 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2002, pet.
    denied); In re M.A.N.M., 
    75 S.W.3d 73
    , 77 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2002, no pet.); see Lehman
    v. Lycoming County Children’s Servs. Agency, 
    458 U.S. 502
    , 513 (1982) (children need stable,
    long-term relationships with caretakers). A fact-finder may consider the possible consequences of
    a decision not to terminate and may compare the parent’s and the Department’s plans for the child.
    See D.O. v. Texas Dep’t of Human Servs., 
    851 S.W.2d 351
    , 358 (Tex. App.—Austin 1993, no writ).
    The trial court found that Shaw knowingly placed C.O. or allowed him to remain in
    conditions that endangered his well-being, engaged in conduct that endangered or knowingly placed
    him with someone who engaged in conduct that endangered him, and failed to comply with a court
    order. See Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 161.001(1)(D), (E), (O). If the evidence is sufficient to support
    any one of those grounds and a finding that termination is in the child’s best interest, we will sustain
    the trial court’s termination decree. See In re M.C.M., 
    57 S.W.3d 27
    , 32 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st
    Dist.] 2001, pet. denied).
    After C.O. was removed from her care in September 2004, Shaw was ordered to
    participate in parenting and anger management classes, undergo a psychological evaulation, and
    submit to random drug testing. After a status hearing in December, she was ordered to complete a
    11
    psychological exam, complete twelve parenting classes at Any Baby Can, complete protective
    parenting classes, complete a drug and alcohol assessment and follow all recommendations, submit
    to random drug testing three times a week, attend five AA or NA meetings a week, and obtain and
    maintain stable and safe housing and employment. Shaw did not begin to attempt to comply with
    either court order in any real sense until her release from prison in late April 2005, more than six
    months after C.O. was removed. Shortly before trial, Shaw completed one parenting class, she
    completed her psychological evaluation in May, and she began attending AA meetings in July. She
    had not, however, submitted to the Department’s requests for drug testing or taken the ordered
    protective parenting class; she attempted to enroll in that class during trial, but the class was full.
    Nor had she completed the ordered anger management class; she attended two of those classes in
    June and early July and then was discharged after she missed three classes. The week before trial
    she tested positive for marijuana, after having negative test results through her probation officer for
    several months. She had not yet started the drug treatment program ordered by the terms of her
    probation. She did not have stable housing and was moving around between staying at her
    grandmother’s home, with friends, or in motel rooms with Oldaker. She had recently been hired at
    a restaurant but had not started work yet. About a month and a half before trial, she left her former
    job, where she worked for several weeks, and before that, she had another job for a short period of
    time. She brought C.O. with her to the scene of the assault and burglary leading to her arrest and his
    removal, admitted to using marijuana in the past, and pled no contest to charges of theft that led to
    her incarceration for several months in early 2005.
    12
    Based on this record, there was both legally and factually sufficient evidence on
    which the trial court could find that, despite her recent efforts, Shaw had failed to comply with the
    court orders that established requirements for C.O.’s return by failing to complete the anger
    management or protective parenting classes and by failing to submit to Department-ordered drug
    testing. The court could also have considered that she made no effort to comply with the orders until
    about eight months after C.O.’s removal and that she tested positive for marijuana shortly before
    trial. Further, the evidence supports a finding that Shaw engaged in conduct that endangered C.O.
    by bringing him to the scene of a crime, engaging in other criminal conduct that led to her 2005
    imprisonment, and continuing to stay with a man who had been physically abusive in the recent past.
    As for the best-interest finding, both Slayton and Hansen testified that they believed
    termination was in C.O.’s best interest. They explained that his speech development has improved
    and that he has been thriving in a stable, secure, and loving foster home. Hansen believed that C.O.
    was very adoptable and said he had become more trusting, affectionate, and outgoing since his
    removal from Shaw. Hansen and Slayton testified that C.O. needed permanency, which would be
    best accomplished through adoption. Although Shaw had recently begun to make progress on the
    court’s orders and testified that she loved C.O. and believed she could be a good parent with the
    skills she had been learning, Slayton and Hansen believed that Shaw had not made significant
    progress in her parenting skills or her compliance with the court orders. Although Shaw testified that
    she had just found a job and that she was seeking an apartment, in the year since C.O.’s removal, she
    had not found stable employment or housing. Further, Slayton did not believe Shaw had taken
    responsibility for the circumstances that led to C.O.’s removal or that she had achieved any stability
    13
    or made significant changes in her lifestyle. Dr. Dubin opined that Shaw had an unacknowledged
    marijuana dependence and was concerned that her poor judgment, anti-social personality disorder,
    and “intellectual issues” made it “problematic for her to provide a safe environment” for C.O. Based
    on this record, the evidence is both legally and factually sufficient to show that termination is in
    C.O.’s best interest. See Smith v. Texas Dep’t of Protective & Regulatory Servs., 
    160 S.W.3d 673
    ,
    681 (Tex. App.—Austin 2005, no pet.) (“in considering the best interest of the child, evidence of a
    recent turn-around in behavior by the parent does not totally offset evidence of a pattern of instability
    and harmful behavior in the past”).
    The evidence is legally and factually sufficient to support at least one of the statutory
    grounds for termination, and we therefore overrule Shaw’s second, third, fourth, sixth, seventh, and
    eighth issues on appeal. The evidence further supports the finding that termination is in C.O.’s best
    interest, and we thus overrule her fifth and ninth issues. Because the evidence is legally and factually
    sufficient to support those findings without any reference to Shaw’s juvenile records, we need not
    consider her first issue.
    Motion for Continuance
    Shaw sought a continuance of the September 2005 bench trial, arguing that the one-
    year deadline imposed by the family code, see Tex. Fam. Code Ann. § 263.401 (West Supp. 2005),
    should be extended because Shaw had begun to make progress under the court’s orders. The
    Department and C.O.’s guardian ad litem objected to the request for a continuance, arguing that
    Shaw had not shown any extraordinary circumstances and that C.O. needed some permanence. The
    trial court denied Shaw’s motion, and Shaw complains of that denial in her tenth issue on appeal.
    14
    The family code provides that unless the trial court has granted an extension, it must
    either render a final order or dismiss the Department’s suit for termination “on the first Monday after
    the first anniversary of the date the court rendered a temporary order appointing the department as
    temporary managing conservator.” 
    Id. § 263.401(a).
    The trial court may grant up to a 180-day
    extension, but such an extension may only be granted if “the court finds that extraordinary
    circumstances necessitate” the Department’s continuing temporary managing conservatorship and
    that continuing the Department’s conservatorship is in the child’s best interest. 
    Id. § 263.401(b)
    (emphasis added).
    We review a trial court’s decision on a motion for continuance for an abuse of
    discretion. In re T.T., 
    39 S.W.3d 355
    , 361 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2001, no pet.). Shaw
    filed a motion arguing that she should be granted a four-month continuance to give her more time
    to take the protective parenting and anger management classes. The Department opposed the
    motion, arguing that Shaw had not shown extraordinary circumstances justifying a continuance and
    noting that Shaw had already been discharged from the protective parenting class due to absences
    twice and that she had not complied with the Department’s drug testing requirements. C.O.’s
    attorney ad litem did not take a position on Shaw’s motion, but stated that he thought “it’s very
    unlikely that the situation is going to be different if we rescheduled it” and that the guardian ad litem
    “is very much opposed to further extension.”
    Shaw knew the requirements necessary to regain C.O. since September and December
    2004. She did not begin to try to comply until April 2005, about eight months after his removal.
    Even after she began to make her efforts, she did not begin attending AA or NA meetings until July
    and did not take the parenting class until the month before trial. Shaw has not shown that needing
    15
    more time after failing to make progress for the first eight months of the court’s order amounts to
    “extraordinary circumstances” that “necessitate[d]” the granting of a continuance. See Tex. Fam.
    Code Ann. § 263.401(b); see also In re A.S.J., No. 04-06-00051-CV, 2006 Tex. App. LEXIS 5963,
    at *4-5 (Tex. App.—San Antonio July 12, 2006, no pet. h.) (parents “failed to provide any evidence
    of an extraordinary circumstance that would warrant an extension of time”; they “were aware they
    had one year to fulfill the requirements of their family service plans and failed to do so”). Therefore,
    Shaw has not shown that the trial court abused its discretion in refusing to grant the continuance.
    We overrule Shaw’s tenth issue on appeal.
    Conclusion
    Even without any reference to Shaw’s juvenile records, the evidence is legally and
    factually sufficient to support the trial court’s findings that Shaw failed to comply with the court’s
    orders or placed the child in circumstances that endangered his well-being and that termination was
    in the child’s best interest. Shaw has not shown that the trial court abused its discretion in denying
    her motion for a continuance. We therefore affirm the trial court’s termination decree.
    __________________________________________
    David Puryear, Justice
    Before Justices Puryear, Pemberton and Waldrop
    Affirmed
    Filed: August 31, 2006
    16