Termination of mother’s parental rights to her three children, AFFIRMED, as evidence supported it; mother had history of displaying bizarre, paranoid behavior, she stopped taking her prescribed medication and skipped her mental health appointments, she failed to clean her home, she provided no evidence of employment or ability to pay monthly living expenses, she failed to pay child support and she failed to maintain bond with her children.

In the Interest of S.P., A09A15 (11/12/09)

From:  Fulton County Daily Report  (12/4/ 2009)

Termination of father’s parental rights, AFFIRMED, as evidence supported it; father never contacted children nor DFACS during his 5-year incarceration, he failed to maintain or establish meaningful bond with children, essentially abandoning them and, even before his incarceration, he only saw children sporadically, despite his purported concern that mother abused drugs; continued deprivation was likely to cause harm due to children’s emotional and psychological frailty and termination was in children’s best interest.

In the Interest of T.L.H. and O.D.H., A09A1177

From:  Fulton County Daily Report, 12/4/2009

Deprivation order AFFIRMED as evidence supported it; mother repeatedly subjected children to unwarranted and unnecessary forensic interviews and medical exams in her unsuccessful attempts to substantiate sexual abuse by their father.

In the Interest of S.K. and A.K., A09A1357 (11/13/09)

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (12/4/2009)

Termination of mother and father’s parental rights and award of custody to DHR, AFFIRMED, juvenile court did not lack jurisdiction to proceed with dispostional hearing, even though parents executed voluntary surrender in favor of maternal great-grandparents on September 15, 2008, since juvenile court’s order, wich was not filed until September 17, 2008, clearly stated that it was nunc pro tunc to September 3, 2008, date of termination hearing; juvenile court did not abuse its discretion in treating great-grandparents’ ages as dispositive factor in dispositional hearing, because juvenile’s court’s duty to consider best interest of child gives court discretion to consider many factors and evidence showed that DHR recommended foster family for child’s long-term placement and child had developed attchements to family.

In the Interest of D.C.H., A09A1557 (11/06/09)

From:  Fulton County Daily Report, 12/4/2009

Order finding child deprived AFFIRMED as evidence supported it; evidence showed that then 5-month-old infant was sexually abused while she was solely in care of her mother and father and mother failed to protect infant from injury.

IN THE INTEREST OF K.L., (a09a1449 (10/21/09)

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (11/06/2009)

Termination of parents’ rights AFFIRMED, as evidence supported it; mother failed to comply with reunification case plans, was uncooperative with drug screener, failed to pay child support consistently and failed to maintain stable housing and employment; father was incarcerated majority of time between shelter order and hearing on termination petition, he continued his alcohol abuse and was terminated from program to assist with his drinking and anger problems; continued deprivation was likely to cause harm, since children had been in foster care for three years and foster parents provided children with security and stability that mother did not.

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (10/16/2009)

In the Interest of A.J.D.S., A09A1883, A09A1884 (09/25/09), 09 FCDR 3203.

Attorneys:  Earle W. Angell, Willie J. Woodruff Jr., Marie K. Evans, thurbert E. Baker, Shalen S. Nelson, Elizabeth M. Williamson.

Judges:  Robert Cullifer, Stephens Juvenile Court; Ellington, Mikell,  Johnson;  Georgia Court of Appeals
.

Order placing 4-year-old boy in DFACS’s custody, rather than with his paternal uncle and aunt, AFFIRMED; OCGA 19-8-7(a) did not require juvenile court to place child with his relatives, regardless of whether child’s father validly surrendered his parental right to them;  OCGA 15-11-103 does not require courts to give preference to family members in placing child following termination of parental rights and, in this case, juvenile court did not abuse its discretion in finding that immediate placement with uncle and aunt was not in child’s best interest, due to emotion impact of abrupt transition away from his foster family; uncle and aunt had right to directly appeal dispositional order placing boy in DFACS’s custody.

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (10/16/2009)

In the Interest of C.B., A09A1099 (10/01/09), 09 FCDR 3202

Attorneys:  Larry A. Ballew, Randall A. Meincke, thurbert E. Baker, Shalen S. Nelson, Kathryn A. Fox, Rochelle A. Doyle, Jennifer L. Pirrung

Judges:   J. Russell Jackson, Forsyth Juvenile Court; Phipps, Smith, Bernes, Georgia Court of Appeals.

Termination of father’s parental rights affirmed as clear and convincing evidence that incarcerated father sexually abused child supported it;

Court could address father’s constitutional challenge to OCGA 5-6-36 (a)(12), requiring decretionary appeals by application from orders terminating parental rights, rather than by direct appeal, even though father did not raise issue in trial court, since challenge fell within limited exception to general rule in instance of challenge to consitutionality of statue governing appellate procedure that is necessarily made for first time on appeal;

5-16-35 (a)(12) did not deny father equal protection, since it does not treat similarly-situated individuals differently; individual subject to termination of parential rights cannot be equated to individual, who faces interruption of custody, since termination is much more severe measure;

Assuming arguendo that father demonstrated similarly-situated requirement, equal protection challenge still failed, since classification is reasonable and state has legitimate interest in not permitting children determined to be deprived to languish in temporary care, but instead, to leave this situation for permanent stable homes as expeditiously as possible, and discretionary appeal process helps accomplish this goal.

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (12/16/09)

In re:  A.C., S09A0931 (10/05/09), 09 FCDR 3148

Attorney:  Phillip Jackson, Abdulhakim Saadiq, Tyrone M. Hodnett II

Judges:  Sanford J. Jones, Fulton Juvenile Court; Supreme Court of Georgia:  Hines

Denial of petition to terminate mother’s parental rights to three children, AFFIRMED, as DFACS failed to present clear and convincing evidence that deprivation was likely to continue; evidence showed that mother had made progress on her case plan, including maintaining housing and employment, undergoing mental health evaluations, completing parenting classes and visiting children; limitation forbidding judge from expressing or intimating his opinion did not apply to termination hearing, since it was not conducted in front of jury.

From:  Fulton County Daily Report (10/9/2009)

In the Interest of D.W., A09A0900 (09/23/09)

Attorneys:  Anissa R. Patton, Waymon Sims, Thurbert E. Baker, Shalen S. Nelson, Robert E. Hall, Victoria Warren

Judges:  George Blau, Fulton Juvenile Court; Georgia Court of Appeals, Smith, Bernes, Phipps

A GA mother who suffers from a mood and personality disorders but is adverse to medication, does not comply with the goals of a reunification plan, fails to stabilize her volatility, and fails to maintain steady employment and stable housing, is evidence of a lack of parental care or control causing a child’s deprivation, the deprivation is likely to continue, and the deprivation is likely to cause the child serious harm.

Termination of parental rights is in the best interest of the child when she has been in DFACS custody for all but eight of her 27 months.

Judicial notice of evidence, exhibits, testimony and unappealed court orders in an underlying deprivation proceedings in the same court is not an abuse of discretion when the parent was allowed to confront the witnesses.

Trail counsel is not deficient for stipulating to evidence admitted in prior deprivation proceedings.

In the Interest of S.N.H.   A09A0159 (08/18/09)

Judges:  Phyllis Miller, Gwinnett Juvenile Court;  Mikell, Johnson, Ellington.

For more information contact:  CJ Remboldt