A.E., Mother of G.E-M., S.E-M. and S.E-M., Minor Children vs Department of Children and Families
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FIRST DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL STATE OF FLORIDA _____________________________ No. 1D21-0388 _____________________________ A.E., Mother of G.E-M., S.E-M. and S.E-M., Minor Children, Appellant, v. DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, Appellee. _____________________________ On appeal from the Circuit Court for Escambia County. Jeffrey Burns, Judge. October 5, 2021 PER CURIAM. A.E. appeals the trial court’s final judgment terminating her rights as to three of her children based on abandonment. We affirm. Under our “highly deferential” standard, S.C. v. Dep’t of Children & Families, 311 So. 3d 971, 972 (Fla. 1st DCA 2020), the trial judge did not err. A.E.’s admitted failures to maintain a significant relationship with her children both in and out of incarceration, even “considered in light of the limited opportunities to assume those duties” while incarcerated, B.F. v. Dep’t. of Children & Families, 237 So. 3d 390, 393 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018), support the trial judge’s findings on both abandonment and the manifest best interests of the children. AFFIRMED. LEWIS, NORDBY, and LONG, JJ., concur. _____________________________ Not final until disposition of any timely and authorized motion under Fla. R. App. P. 9.330 or 9.331. _____________________________ Kevin Coyle Colbert, Miami, for Appellant. Sarah J. Rumph of Children’s Legal Services, Tallahassee, for Appellee Department of Children and Families. Kristie L. Hatcher-Bolin of Gray Robinson, P.A., Lakeland; and Thomasina F. Moore, Statewide Director of Appeals, and Sara Elizabeth Goldfarb, Senior Attorney, Appellate Division, Tallahassee, for Guardian ad Litem o/b/o G.E-M., S.E-M., S.E-M. 2
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