J.W. v. State of Indiana (mem. dec.)

MEMORANDUM DECISION
Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D),
this Memorandum Decision shall not be FILED
regarded as precedent or cited before any Sep 12 2019, 9:04 am
court except for the purpose of establishing CLERK
the defense of res judicata, collateral Indiana Supreme Court
Court of Appeals
estoppel, or the law of the case. and Tax Court
ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE
Jeremy P. Gooch Curtis T. Hill, Jr.
Chief Public Defender, Attorney General of Indiana
Hendricks County Lauren A. Jacobsen
Danville, Indiana Deputy Attorney General
Indianapolis, Indiana
IN THE
COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
J.W., September 12, 2019
Appellant-Respondent, Court of Appeals Case No.
19A-JS-468
v. Appeal from the Hendricks
Superior Court
State of Indiana, The Honorable Karen M. Love,
Appellee-Petitioner. Judge
Trial Court Cause No.
32D03-1810-JS-205
Mathias, Judge.
[1] J.W. appeals the Hendricks Superior Court’s dispositional order following his
admission to the delinquent act of truancy. He presents one issue for our
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review: whether the juvenile court abused its discretion in ordering J.W. placed
in the custody of White’s Residential Treatment Facility (“White’s”). We
affirm.
Facts and Procedural History
[2] J.W. is a sixteen-year-old boy in the care of his father. He was enrolled in tenth
grade at Plainfield High School (“PHS”) during the 2018–2019 academic
school year, when the events giving rise to the instant case occurred.
[3] Previously, J.W.’s history with the juvenile justice system was limited to one
delinquency action for truancy.1 That action was based on J.W.’s twenty-two
unexcused absences during the 2017–2018 school year. Appellant’s App. p. 21.
J.W. admitted to the offense in April 2018 and was placed on four months of
probation. Id. He was discharged from probation on August 13, 2018. Id.
[4] Shortly after, on August 29, PHS administrators, Hendricks County prosecutor,
and J.W.’s father met to discuss the matter of J.W.’s school attendance in the
new school year. J.W. did not attend this meeting. Then on September 13,
J.W.’s father and the prosecutor met again, this time with J.W. present. After
the second meeting, J.W. accumulated two more unexcused absences. As of
September 28, J.W. had eighteen unexcused absences from PHS. Appellant’s
App. p. 20.
1
This initial delinquency action for truancy was filed under cause number 32D03-1702-JD-48.
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[5] On October 19, 2018, the State filed a petition alleging delinquency against
J.W. based on the status offense of truancy. The petition alleged that J.W.
failed and refused to attend school and needed “care, treatment or rehabilitation
that he would not receive without the coercive intervention of the court.”
Appellant’s App. pp. 14–15. J.W. was then expelled from PHS for the
remainder of the semester due to his failure to attend. Tr. pp. 17, 30.
[6] A preliminary inquiry report prepared by probation officer Rebecca Schrock
(“Schrock”) was also filed on October 19. Appellant’s App. pp. 20–25. The
report revealed that J.W.’s father had no criminal history. Id. at 22. J.W.’s two
older brothers had previously been placed on probation for truancy. Id. at 22–
23. The probation department recommended that J.W. be placed on probation
for one year subject to conditions including compliance with Cross Systems of
Care Coordination (“CSCC”). Id. at 24–25. Possible CSCC services identified
in the report included home and family therapy, tutoring, and social
mentorship. Id.
[7] A pre-trial conference before the juvenile court was held on December 10.
J.W.’s father appeared, but J.W. did not. Tr. p. 20. At that time, probation
officer Schrock amended her recommendation and stated that J.W. should be
placed in a residential setting as soon as possible. Tr. p. 21. The juvenile court
continued the conference to that afternoon to allow J.W. to appear, which he
did. Id. at 25. The juvenile court informed J.W. that it was considering placing
him in a residential facility based on Schrock’s recommendation and on J.W.’s
failure to appear that morning. Id. at 26.
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[8] J.W. returned to PHS the next semester on January 7, 2019. Only four weeks
passed before he again appeared before the juvenile court on February 4.
During that time, J.W. was absent from school on two more occasions. Tr. p.
42. The juvenile court accepted J.W.’s admission of truancy and found him to
be a delinquent child. Id. at 54. J.W. was placed on probation for eight months
and ordered to complete residential programming at White’s in Wabash
County. Id. J.W. filed his notice of appeal on February 28.
Discussion and Decision
[9] J.W. argues that the juvenile court abused its discretion by ordering him into
White’s residential treatment program. Appellant’s Br. at 7. We reverse a
dispositional order only for abuse of discretion, because the placement of a
juvenile adjudicated a delinquent child is a matter within the sound discretion
of the juvenile court. K.S. v. State, 849 N.E.2d 538, 544 (Ind. 2006). An abuse of
discretion occurs when the juvenile court’s action is clearly erroneous and
against the logic and effect of the facts and circumstances before the court, or
the reasonable, probable, and actual deductions to be drawn therefrom. Id.[10] J.W. contends that, by placing him at White’s, the juvenile court failed to
consider the statutory directive to select the least restrictive placement.
Appellant’s Br. at 10. Specifically, J.W. argues that the juvenile court’s
disposition interfered with family autonomy, disrupted family life, imposed
restraint on his freedom, and neglected to provide a reasonable opportunity for
participation by his father. Id. Though we acknowledge the disruptive effect of
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the juvenile court’s order, J.W. has not demonstrated that the court’s order is
inconsistent with J.W.’s best interest.
[11] Indiana Code section 20-33-2-4 makes compulsory school attendance for
children under age eighteen. Failure or refusal to comply with this section
constitutes the delinquent act of truancy under Indiana Code section 31-37-2-3.
A juvenile court may intervene to coerce a truant child to attend school
regularly, provided that the court’s intervention is consistent with the safety of
the community and the best interest of the child. To wit:
If consistent with the safety of the community and the best
interest of the child, the juvenile court shall enter a dispositional
decree that:
(1) is:
(A) in the least restrictive (most family like) and most
appropriate setting available; and
(B) close to the parents’ home, consistent with the best
interest and special needs of the child;
(2) least interferes with family autonomy;
(3) is least disruptive of family life;
(4) imposes the least restraint on the freedom of the child and the
child’s parent, guardian, or custodian; and
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(5) provides a reasonable opportunity for participation by the
child’s parent, guardian, or custodian.
I.C. § 31-37-18-6. In other words, when it intervenes, a juvenile court need not
order the least restrictive disposition if a more restrictive–or even more
disruptive–solution better addresses the safety of a child’s community and the
child’s best interest.
[12] J.W. argues that because his attendance record improved in January 2019, the
juvenile court erred when it disregarded less restrictive dispositions in favor of
placement at White’s. Appellant’s Br. at 10. Juvenile courts have a range of
dispositional options for children in the juvenile justice system, including
supervision by a probation department and outpatient treatment under Indiana
Code section 31-37-19-5, or residential treatment and removal from the child’s
home under Indiana Code section 31-37-19-6. As a result of his twenty-two
unexcused absences during the previous school year, J.W. had already once
been adjudicated a delinquent child and completed four months of probation.
Appellant’s Br. at 5. By February 4, 2019, J.W. had twenty unexcused
absences. Tr. p. 42; Appellant’s App. p. 17. These absences represented
continued delinquent behavior in the new school year at approximately the
same level as in the prior school year. In this context, the juvenile court
reasonably concluded that a disposition harsher than probation was appropriate
for J.W.’s treatment. It was therefore not clearly erroneous for the juvenile
court to require J.W. to be schooled at White’s for the remainder of the 2018–
2019 school year.
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[13] J.W. further argues that the juvenile court’s order inappropriately interfered
with his family’s autonomy because White’s is located several hours from his
home in Hendricks County. Appellant’s Br. at 11. We have previously
addressed this issue in the case of a juvenile court that placed a child at an
Arizona residential facility instead of a similar, local facility. E.M.W. v. State,
762 N.E.2d 1283 (Ind. Ct. App. 2002). Due to the distance of E.M.W.’s
placement, reasonable opportunity for parental participation as recognized by
Indiana Code section 31-37-17-4 was diminished. Id. at 1285. We found that
this opportunity “need only be provided if consistent with the safety and best
interest of the child and community.” Id. at 1286. Because the juvenile court’s
decision was based on the out-of-state facility’s higher rate of success providing
the type of treatment and rehabilitation services E.M.W. needed, and thus was
in E.M.W.’s best interest, the placement was within the juvenile court’s
discretion despite its distance and the disruption it may have caused E.M.W.’s
family. Id.
[14] We take seriously J.W.’s contention that his placement at White’s puts a strain
on J.W.’s father, who is a single parent. Appellant’s Br. at 11. Our legislature
recognizes the importance of family and children in society, and accordingly we
caution the State against justifying the need for restrictive placement of
juveniles on the work schedules of their parents, as it did with J.W., his siblings,
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and their father.2 Nevertheless, in its placement order, the juvenile court
appropriately considered White’s success in providing the services J.W. needed,
including support and counseling available after J.W. completes the residential
program. Tr. p. 48. As for the opportunity for J.W.’s father to participate,
White’s was willing to allow J.W.’s father to participate in services by
telephone if the distance prohibited him from traveling. Tr. pp. 55, 57.
[15] The juvenile court treated J.W. as a person “in need of care, protection,
treatment, and rehabilitation.” I.C. § 31-10-2-1. Accordingly, its dispositional
order is consistent with J.W.’s best interest and does not constitute an abuse of
discretion. Affirmed.
Robb, J., and Pyle, J., concur.
2
“J.W. needs a solid foundation that is unavailable to him at home due to his father’s work hours. If J.W.
does not manage to find a way to gain that foundation, J.W. will continue down his current path and the
path of his brothers…” Appellee’s Br. at 10.
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