In the Matter of the Involuntary Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of J.W., J.W., D.B., Minor Children and Their Father, J.J., J.J v. Indiana Department of Child Services (mem. dec.)

MEMORANDUM DECISION
FILED
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
Oct 25 2017, 8:39 am
this Memorandum Decision shall not be
regarded as precedent or cited before any CLERK
Indiana Supreme Court
court except for the purpose of establishing Court of Appeals
and Tax Court
the defense of res judicata, collateral
estoppel, or the law of the case.
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Kimberly A. Jackson Curtis T. Hill, Jr.
Indianapolis, Indiana Attorney General of Indiana
James D. Boyer
Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
In the Matter of the Involuntary October 25, 2017
Termination of the Parent-Child Court of Appeals Case No.
Relationship of J.W., J.W., 49A02-1705-JT-1046
D.B., Minor Children and Their Appeal from the Marion Superior
Father, J.J. Court
J.J., The Honorable Marilyn A.
Moores, Judge
Appellant-Respondent,
The Honorable Scott B. Stowers,
v. Magistrate
Trial Court Cause No.
Indiana Department of Child 49D09-1601-JT-77, 49D09-1601-
Services, JT-78, 49D09-1601-JT-79
Appellee-Petitioner
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Altice, Judge.
Case Summary
[1] J.J. (Father) appeals the termination of his parental rights to Jr.W. and Ja.W.
(collectively, the Children). On appeal, Father argues that his due process
rights were violated when the Department of Child Services (DCS) placed the
children with a non-relative, rather than his mother (Paternal Grandmother).
Father also argues that the trial court’s termination order was not supported by
sufficient evidence.
[2] We affirm.
Facts & Procedural History
[3] R.W. (Mother) and Father have two children: Jr.W., born in 2006, and Ja.W.,
born in 2007. On March 10, 2014, DCS received a report that Mother had
placed the Children and their half-sibling, D.B., at the Children’s Bureau
because she was homeless and that she had not returned for the Children and
D.B. because she was subsequently arrested for assaulting her boyfriend.1 On
March 12, 2014, DCS filed a petition alleging the Children to be children in
1
The trial court terminated Mother’s parental rights to all three children and D.B.’s father’s parental rights.
Neither Mother nor D.B.’s father participates in this appeal. Our review concerns only the termination of
Father’s parental rights to the Children.
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need of services (CHINS) because Mother was unable to care for them due to
her incarceration and Father’s whereabouts were unknown.
[4] On May 8, 2014, the trial court adjudicated the Children as CHINS after
Mother admitted the CHINS allegations and Father waived a factfinding
hearing. That same day, the trial court entered a parental participation order
that required Father to successfully complete the Father Engagement Program.
At that time, the court ordered that Father have unsupervised visits with the
Children. A Family Case Manager (FCM) was ordered to assess Father’s home
for possible placement of the Children. Following the assessment, the FCM did
not recommend placement of the Children with Father due to his admitted drug
use.2
[5] Father had requested that the Children be placed with Paternal Grandmother.
DCS considered placement with Paternal Grandmother “[o]ver quite a bit of
time,” but her “CPS history” and criminal history precluded her from being a
placement option. Transcript Vol. 2 at 171, 174. DCS applied for waivers on
two occasions so that the Children could be placed in Paternal Grandmother’s
care, but both requests were denied. Although Paternal Grandmother indicated
that she intended to ask the court to consider placement of the Children with
2
Father’s girlfriend, whose name was on the apartment lease, also admitted to drug use and refused to
submit to a drug screen.
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her, she did not follow through and make such request during the course of
several hearings.
[6] Initially the Children and D.B. were placed in the same foster home. Ja.W.
was eventually placed in a separate foster home because of her severe
behavioral issues, including outbursts at home and school that were
characterized by physical aggression, property destruction, and acting out with
sexually charged behaviors. A behavioral consultant working with Ja.W.
observed Ja.W. at her foster home throw things, break a bed frame, hit Jr.W.
and D.B., and put her exposed breast up to Jr.W.’s mouth. Ja.W. later pulled
down her pants exposing her buttocks and put her finger in her rectum in front
of Jr.W. When informed of Ja.W.’s behaviors, Father tended to minimize the
severity and would not consent to use of medications recommended by a
physician. DCS invited Father to a team meeting to discuss the use of
medication for Ja.W., but he did not attend. DCS thus sought and obtained a
court order to provide Ja.W. with the recommended medication.
[7] At a subsequent team meeting that Father did attend, the importance of Ja.W.
taking her psychotropic medication was discussed. Father, however, continued
to adamantly express his disapproval of providing medication to Ja.W. The
behavioral consultant noted that with treatment, including therapy and
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medication, Ja.W. was making “a lot of progress in controlling her behavior.” 3
Id. at 101.
[8] In July 2014, the FCM requested suspension of Father’s visitation with the
Children because of Father’s “anger outbursts” and threats to “whoop” the
children in addition to his failure to report that Jr.W. was burnt by a lit
cigarette. Id. at 16. The trial court denied the request, but ordered that Father’s
visitation be supervised. Also in July of 2014, Father pled guilty to battery
resulting in bodily injury, which offense arose out of a domestic violence
incident. On August 14, 2014, the trial court modified its dispositional order to
require Father to participate in additional services, including substance abuse
and domestic violence assessments and follow all recommendations, and to
submit to random drug screens.
[9] Initially, Father participated in the Father Engagement Program, but then he
“just stopped participating in those services.” Id. at 58. DCS made an
additional referral for Father to participate in the Father Engagement Program,
but he continued to have “minimal participation.” Id. Father also “refused” to
complete the substance abuse assessment and never started the domestic
violence assessment because he did not believe he needed those services. Id. at
18.
3
There is some indication in the record that Ja.W.’s behavior did not significantly improve after she first
started taking the medication, but that with adjustments to her medication and continued therapy, positive
changes in her behavior were observed.
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[10] Sometime between 2015 and 2016, DCS referred Father to participate in home-
based therapy as an alternative to the Father Engagement Program. Father,
however, refused to participate because he did not feel it was necessary. For
approximately seven months between May 2015 and January 2016, Father did
not participate in any services as ordered in the CHINS case.
[11] On July 31, 2015, Father was found to have violated probation after being
arrested and charged with possession of marijuana, testing positive for
marijuana, and failing to submit to drug screens. The court revoked Father’s
probation and ordered him to serve seventy days in the Marion County Jail.
Father was subsequently convicted of possession of marijuana and, as a
condition of his probation, he was required to submit to random drug screens.
Father maintained that the probation department was supposed to submit the
results of those drug screens to DCS. Just before Christmas 2015, DCS
conducted a home visit and, on account of Father’s demeanor and appearance
during the visit, asked Father to submit to a drug screen, which he refused.
[12] On January 7, 2016, the trial court issued a permanency order finding that
Father was not compliant with services and changing the permanency plan to
adoption. On January 22, 2016, DCS filed a petition to terminate Father’s
parental rights. Around this same time, Father expressed an interest in again
engaging in services. Father, however, indicated to DCS that he had complied
with treatment for substance abuse and domestic violence through his
probation, and thus, he was not willing to participate in such services a second
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time through DCS. Father also claimed he had signed a release with probation
authorizing disclosure of such information to DCS.
[13] Based on Father’s representations, DCS worked to increase Father’s visitation
and move toward unsupervised visits. DCS ultimately recommended that the
Children be placed with Father for a trial home visit, but the trial court would
not permit the placement until Father provided documentation of his
compliance with services. Father did not provide the requested documentation
and DCS’s attempts to acquire the information by directly contacting Father’s
probation officer and service providers were unsuccessful because, contrary to
Father’s claim, he never signed a release authorizing disclosure. About six
months later, Father admitted to DCS that he had not participated in the
required services through probation. Father also never provided the results of
his drug screens through probation to DCS.
[14] During the time frame from January 2016 to June 2016, a court appointed
special advocate (CASA) attempted four in-home visits with Father, who either
cancelled or was incarcerated during each of the scheduled visits. The Children
had also informed the CASA that Father instructed them not to talk to her or
they would get their “ass whooped.” Id. at 150.
[15] In May 2016, Father’s unsupervised visitation with the Children stopped
because of problems with the Children’s behaviors upon their return, in
addition to their complaints of being hungry. DCS sought to implement
therapeutic visitation to address the Children’s behaviors, but Father did not
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begin this service because he was arrested in June 2016 for felony possession of
marijuana. Starting in August or September, DCS no longer had contact with
Father except for one occasion when he appeared at a hearing in September
that concerned Ja.W.’s medication.
[16] On September 8, 2016, the CHINS court found Father was not participating in
services and had refused to submit to drug screens since his most recent release
from incarceration. The CHINS court ordered that the permanency plan
remain adoption despite the request of the Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) that the
plan be changed back to reunification.
[17] Jr.W. is in a foster/pre-adoptive home with D.B. and is doing well. When
Jr.W. first entered foster care, he struggled in school and was at risk of
retention. He has since improved in school and is now on the honor roll. Jr.W.
has indicated his desire to be placed separately from Ja.W.
[18] After approximately nine different placements, Ja.W. is now in a pre-adoptive
home where her behaviors are being addressed. Ja.W.’s pre-adoptive parents
are “well versed in her behaviors and they are educated in how to deal with
behaviors like this . . . through their own education.” Id. at 119. Ja.W. has
indicated that she is happy and wants to be adopted and “part of a family with a
mom and dad.” Id.
[19] By December 5, 2016, DCS had discharged Father from all services due to non-
participation. DCS moved forward with the petition to terminate Father’s
parental rights. The court held an evidentiary hearing on the termination
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petition on January 10, January 31, and February 7, 2017. The court issued its
order, including findings of fact and conclusions of law, terminating Father’s
parental rights on April 18, 2017. Father now appeals. Additional facts will be
provided as necessary.
Discussion & Decision
Due Process
[20] Intertwined with his challenge to the court’s determination of the best interests
of the Children, Father argues that DCS’s alleged failure to comply with Ind.
Code § 31-34-4-2 and place the Children with Paternal Grandmother
constituted a violation of his due process rights. Father’s argument is misplaced
and otherwise without merit.
[21] As pertinent here, I.C. § 31-34-4-2 requires DCS to consider placing a child
determined to be a CHINS with a “suitable and willing relative . . . before
considering any other out-of-home placement.” We first note that I.C. § 31-34-
4-2 is found in Article 34 of the Indiana Code, which is titled “Juvenile Law:
Children in Need of Services” and applies to CHINS proceedings; it is therefore
not relevant to a termination proceeding such as this. See Hite v. Vanderburgh
Cnty. Office of Family and Children, 845 N.E.2d 175, 182 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006)
(“CHINS proceedings are separate and distinct from involuntary termination
proceedings because a CHINS cause of action does not necessarily lead to an
involuntary termination cause of action”). We also note that Father did not
raise this issue before the CHINS court and did not raise it below during the
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termination proceedings. Because Father presents this argument for the first
time on appeal, the argument is waived. In re K.S., 750 N.E.2d 832, 834 n.1
(Ind. Ct. App. 2001) (finding that mother waived her due process claim because
she raised it for the first time on appeal).
[22] Seemingly acknowledging his failure to challenge DCS’s placement of the
Children in the proceedings below, Father argues that DCS’s alleged failure to
comply with I.C. § 31-34-4-2 constitutes fundamental error. Citing In re D.D.,
804 N.E.2d 258 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004), trans. denied, Father maintains DCS’s
compliance with the kinship placement statute is a “prerequisite” to termination
of his parental rights and that such compliance “would have negated the need
for the filing of the termination of parental rights petition.” Appellant’s Brief at
28. Father’s reliance on D.D., however, is misplaced. In D.D., the court
addressed DCS’s failure to comply with the termination statute that required
DCS prove that the child had been removed from a parent for at least six
months under a dispositional decree before termination of parental rights could
occur. As noted above, the kinship placement statute applies to CHINS
proceedings; it does not create a “prerequisite” to termination of parental rights.
Id.
[23] Finally, Father asserts, without citation to authority, that DCS’s failure to
comply with the kinship placement statute “changed the entire course of this
case” and “deprived Father of his right to due process.” Appellant’s Brief at 27.
Father does not explain how generally claimed procedural irregularities
amounted to a violation of his due process rights. “Bald assertions of error
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unsupported by either cogent argument or citation to authority result in waiver
of any error on review.” See Pasha v. State, 524 N.E.2d 310, 314 (Ind. 1988).
[24] Notwithstanding the forgoing, Father’s argument is without merit.
Undermining his due process claim, the record indicates that DCS did in fact
“consider” Paternal Grandmother for placement of the Children.4 See I.C. § 31-
34-4-2. In February 2015, DCS informed the court that it was examining the
possibility of an adoption placement with Paternal Grandmother. Ultimately,
the Children were not placed with Paternal Grandmother because her CPS and
criminal history precluded such placement. DCS twice sought a waiver to
permit such placement, but such requests were denied. Father has not
established any error, let alone fundamental error, with regard to placement of
the Children.
Sufficiency
[25] Father argues that the evidence is insufficient to support the court’s termination
of his parental rights. When reviewing the termination of parental rights, we
will not reweigh the evidence or judge the credibility of the witnesses. D.D.,
804 N.E.2d at 265. Instead, we consider only the evidence and reasonable
inferences most favorable to the judgment. Id. In deference to the trial court’s
unique position to assess the evidence, we will set aside its judgment
4
Paternal Grandmother acknowledged at the termination hearing that DCS considered her for placement of
the Children.
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terminating a parent-child relationship only if it is clearly erroneous. In re L.S.,
717 N.E.2d 204, 208 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999), trans. denied. Thus, if the evidence
and inferences support the decision, we must affirm. Id.
[26] The trial court entered findings in its order terminating parental rights. When
the court enters specific findings of fact and conclusions thereon, we apply a
two-tiered standard of review. Bester v. Lake Cnty. Office of Family & Children, 839
N.E.2d 143, 147 (Ind. 2005). First, we determine whether the evidence
supports the findings, and second, we determine whether the findings support
the judgment. Id. “Findings are clearly erroneous only when the record
contains no facts to support them either directly or by inference.” Quillen v.
Quillen, 671 N.E.2d 98, 102 (Ind. 1996). A judgment is clearly erroneous only if
the findings do not support the court’s conclusions or the conclusions do not
support the judgment thereon. Id.
[27] We recognize that the traditional right of parents to “establish a home and raise
their children is protected by the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States
Constitution.” In re M.B., 666 N.E.2d 73, 76 (Ind. Ct. App. 1996), trans. denied.
Although parental rights are of constitutional dimension, the law provides for
the termination of these rights when parents are unable or unwilling to meet
their parental responsibilities. In re R.H., 892 N.E.2d 144, 149 (Ind. Ct. App.
2008). In addition, a court must subordinate the interests of the parents to those
of the child when evaluating the circumstances surrounding the termination.
K.S., 750 N.E.2d at 836. The purpose of terminating parental rights is not to
punish the parents, but to protect their children. Id.
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[28] We first address Father’s challenge to the court’s Finding No. 13 in which the
court noted that DCS sought suspension of Father’s parenting time “following a
number of incidents of physical discipline by [F]ather.” Appellant’s Appendix at
48. In the affidavit in support of its request to suspend Father’s visitation, DCS
referenced only one incident in which Father admitted that he spanked Ja.W.
for misbehaving at school. DCS advised Father that physical discipline was not
acceptable and Father and his girlfriend signed a safety plan in which they
acknowledged such. DCS seemingly admits that the trial court’s finding of “a
number of incidents of physical discipline” was erroneous, noting that the
record “does not indicate any other incidents of physical discipline” aside from
the one identified in the affidavit. Appellee’s Brief at 25. Considering the totality
of the circumstances, this error is harmless.
[29] Finding No. 13 aside, we turn to Father’s challenge to the sufficiency of the
evidence. Before an involuntary termination of parental rights may occur in
Indiana, DCS is required to allege and prove by clear and convincing evidence,
among other things:
(B) that one (1) of the following is true:
(i) There is a reasonable probability that the conditions
that resulted in the child’s removal or the reasons for
placement outside the home of the parents will not be
remedied.
(ii) There is a reasonable probability that the continuation
of the parent-child relationship poses a threat to the
wellbeing of the child.
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(iii) The child has, on two (2) separate occasions, been
adjudicated a child in need of services[.]
Ind. Code § 31-35-2-4(b)(2)(B). DCS must also prove by clear and convincing
evidence that termination is in the best interests of the children and there is a
satisfactory plan for the children’s care and treatment. I.C. § 31-35-2-4(b)(2)(C),
(D).
[30] Father challenges the trial court’s conclusions as to subsection (b)(2)(B)(i) and
(ii). We note that DCS was required to establish only one of the three
requirements of subsection (b)(2)(B) by clear and convincing evidence before
the trial court could terminate parental rights. See In re L.V.N., 799 N.E.2d 63,
69 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003). Here, the court found that DCS presented sufficient
evidence to satisfy two of those requirements, namely, that there is a reasonable
probability the conditions resulting in the Children’s removal or continued
placement outside Father’s care will not be remedied and that the continuation
of the parent-child relationship poses a threat to the Children’s well-being. See
I.C. 31-35-2-4(b)(2)(B)(i), (ii). We focus our review on the requirements of
subsection (b)(2)(B)(i).
[31] In determining whether the conditions that resulted in placement of a child
outside the home will be remedied, the trial court must judge a parent’s fitness
to care for his or her child at the time of the termination hearing, taking into
consideration evidence of changed conditions. In re J.T., 742 N.E.2d 509, 512
(Ind. Ct. App. 2001), trans. denied. The court must also evaluate the parent’s
habitual patterns of conduct to determine whether there is a substantial
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probability of future neglect or deprivation of the child. Id. In conducting this
inquiry, courts may consider evidence of a parent’s prior criminal history, drug
and alcohol abuse, history of neglect, failure to provide support, and lack of
adequate housing and employment. A.F. v. Marion Cnty. Office of Family &
Children, 762 N.E.2d 1244, 1251 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002), trans. denied. The court
may also consider the parent’s response to the services offered through DCS.
Lang v. Starke Cnty. Office of Family & Children, 861 N.E.2d 366, 372 (Ind. Ct.
App. 2007), trans. denied. “A pattern of unwillingness to deal with parenting
problems and to cooperate with those providing social services, in conjunction
with unchanged conditions, support a finding that there exists no reasonable
probability that the conditions will change.” L.S., 717 N.E.2d at 210.
[32] Father acknowledges that the conditions that led to continued placement of
Children outside his care were his drug use, criminal activity (including
domestic violence) and related incarceration, use of physical discipline, and
failure to complete services. In an effort to reunify Father with the Children,
Father was ordered to participate in the Father Engagement Program,
substance abuse treatment, random drug screens, and services to address issues
of domestic violence.
[33] The record reveals that Father only minimally participated in the Father
Engagement Program and did not participate in alternative services offered by
DCS due to his periodic incarceration.
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[34] With regard to substance abuse, Father continued to use and possess marijuana
throughout the CHINS case. Father was convicted of marijuana possession in
August 2015 and pled guilty in yet another case in or about March 2017.
Father discounts his marijuana use, asserting that he only “occasionally smoked
marijuana” and that there was no evidence that he did so or was under the
influence in front of the Children. Appellant’s Brief at 19. We will not indulge
Father’s request to reweigh the evidence.
[35] DCS also had concerns about Father’s unresolved anger issues. In July 2014,
Father pled guilty to battery, which stemmed from a domestic violence incident
that occurred within days after Father signed a safety plan with regard to the
Children. Father minimizes the domestic violence incident, pointing to his self-
serving statement that the single incident arose from an argument in which he
threw his keys at his girlfriend. In contrast to Father’s version of events, a DCS
service provider reported that a visit to the home after the incident revealed that
Father’s girlfriend had a black eye and that Father was in jail on charges of
battery, domestic battery, and strangulation. Father’s version of events does not
undermine the trial court’s concern about Father’s unresolved anger issues and
the potential for physical violence as it concerns the Children. Indeed, DCS
service providers and the Children observed Father have angry outbursts at
other times. The Children reported that Father would threaten to “whoop”
them if they talked to service providers. Transcript Vol. 2 at 16. Father admitted
to spanking Ja.W. for misbehavior at school and he threatened to spank the
Children for other reasons.
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[36] Throughout much of the CHINS case, Father indicated that he did not need
services or he intentionally misled DCS by representing that he was
participating or had completed services through probation. DCS relied on
Father’s representations to reunify the Children with him, even going so far as
to request court authorization for a trial home visit. DCS sought documentary
proof of Father’s claimed compliance with services, but was unsuccessful. After
six months of trying to obtain information confirming Father’s representations,
Father admitted to DCS that he had not participated in services through
probation. Thereafter, Father did not participate in any services and by the
time of the termination hearing, had not visited with the Children in over a
year.
[37] Father’s lack of cooperation, manipulation of service providers, and minimal
participation in services substantially interfered with DCS furthering the goal of
reunification. Father’s history and actions throughout the CHINS case
demonstrate that he is unwilling to improve his parental fitness and to assume
full care of the Children. The court’s determination that there is a reasonable
probability that the conditions resulting in the continued placement of the
Children outside the home will not be remedied is not clearly erroneous.
[38] Father also argues that the court’s conclusion that termination was in the best
interests of the Children is clearly erroneous. In determining whether
termination of parental rights is in the best interests of a child, the juvenile court
is required to look beyond the factors identified by DCS and consider the
totality of the evidence. In re J.C., 994 N.E.2d 278, 290 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013).
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In so doing, the juvenile court must subordinate the interest of the parent to
those of the child, and the court need not wait until a child is irreversibly
harmed before terminating the parent-child relationship. McBride v. Monroe
Cnty. Office of Family & Children, 798 N.E.2d 185, 199 (Ind. Ct. App. 2003).
“Moreover, we have previously held that the recommendations of the case
manager and court-appointed advocate to terminate parental rights, in addition
to evidence that the conditions resulting in removal will not be remedied, is
sufficient to show by clear and convincing evidence that termination is in the
child’s best interests.” In re J.S., 906 N.E.2d 226, 236 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009).
[39] Much of Father’s argument in this regard is that the best interests of the
Children would have been served by placement of the Children with Paternal
Grandmother. Father asserts that “[s]uch placement would have allowed the
family to remain intact” and that “DCS’s efforts to seek termination of Father’s
parental rights would have been unnecessary.” Appellant’s Brief at 24. As noted
above, DCS considered placement of the Children with Paternal Grandmother,
but her CPS and criminal histories precluded such placement. DCS even went
so far as to seek a waiver on two different occasions, but such requests were
denied. We will not second-guess the determination that placement with
Paternal Grandmother was not a suitable arrangement for the Children.
Further, Father’s assertions that termination would not have been necessary if
the Children would have been placed with Paternal Grandmother from the
outset or even that he might have consented to adoption of the Children by
Paternal Grandmother are pure speculation.
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[40] The court concluded that termination of the parent-child relationship is in the
best interests of the Children because it “would allow them to be adopted into a
stable and permanent home where their needs will be safely met.” Appellant’s
Appendix at 50. The court found and the record supports that the Children have
suffered trauma as a result of Father’s drug use, criminal behavior, anger
control issues, and removal from their home. The children are “very confused”
about their circumstances and have remained out of their home for almost three
years. Trial Transcript Vol. 2 at 184. Father’s failure to participate in and
complete services and his continued drug use and criminal conduct has directly
impacted the lack of consistency in the Children’s lives.
[41] Of particular concern is that Ja.W. struggles with the trauma she has
experienced. Ja.W. exhibits extreme behaviors both at home and at school.
Father continues to minimize Ja.W.’s behaviors and disapproves of providing
Ja.W. with medication that is helping control her behavior. Service providers
expressed concern over Father’s lack of insight into Ja.W.’s needs and his
ability to handle her behaviors appropriately. Father’s own anger issues only
increased the concern about Father’s ability to provide the necessary treatment
for Ja.W.’s well-being and development.
[42] As this court long-ago stated and which continues to be true today, “children
continue to grow up quickly; their physical, mental and emotional development
cannot be put on hold while their recalcitrant parent fails to improve the
conditions that led to their being harmed and that would harm them further.”
Matter of D.T., 547 N.E.2d 278, 286 (Ind. Ct. App. 1989). The Children have
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been separated from the home for over three years. The Children need
permanency and stability that Father cannot provide and they have both
expressed a desire to be adopted into the family in which they have been placed.
Service providers also indicated their agreement with termination of Father’s
parental rights and adoption of the Children by their respective foster parents.
DCS recommended termination because the CHINS case had been open for
three years. The CASA opined that termination was in the Children’s best
interests because of their behavior after visits with Father and Father’s threats to
Children to maintain secrecy. The CASA further opined that Ja.W. was greatly
in need of a stable environment and consistent care, which Father was unable
to provide. Another service provider recommended termination because the
Children, especially Ja.W. needed stability, structure, and permanency. Father
was unable to provide a safe, healthy, and suitable environment for the
Children and he remains unable to do so. The court’s conclusion that
termination is in the best interests of the Children is not clearly erroneous.
[43] In arguing that there is not a satisfactory plan for the Children’s care and
treatment, Father asserts that the plan of adoption that “would separate
permanently these siblings cannot be in their best interest.” Appellant’s Brief at
25. Father maintains that the better choice for the Children is guardianship or
adoption by Paternal Grandmother.
[44] Generally, adoption is a satisfactory plan. In re S.L.H.S, 885 N.E.2d 603, 618
(Ind. Ct. App. 2008). Here, the plan is that the Children will be adopted by
their respective foster parents. The record demonstrates that Jr.W. indicated a
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desire to be placed separately from Ja.W. due to Ja.W.’s extreme behaviors,
some of which were directed toward Jr.W. Ja.W. has been placed separately
from Jr.W. in a home that is suitable and capable of handling her behavior
issues. She is doing very well in her placement and making progress with
controlling her behaviors. The Children have both expressed their desire to
remain in their current placement. Service providers also expressed concern
over the Children being placed together, noting the Jr.W. was a trigger for some
of Ja.W.’s behaviors. Overall, the record supports the determination that the
plan of adoption for the Children is a satisfactory plan for the future care and
treatment of the Children.
[45] In sum, the court’s termination of Father’s parental rights to Children is
supported by sufficient evidence.
[46] We affirm.
[47] Baker, J. and Bailey, J., concur.
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