IN THE INTEREST OF C.S., Minor Child, C.K.F., Mother, Appellant.
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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA
No. 8-954 / 08-1665
Filed December 17, 2008
IN THE INTEREST OF C.S.,
Minor Child,
C.K.F., Mother,
Appellant.
________________________________________________________________
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Wapello County, William S. Owens,
Associate Juvenile Judge.
A mother appeals from the order terminating her parental rights.
AFFIRMED.
Lloyd E. Keith, Ottumwa, for appellant mother.
J.M., Greeley, Colorado, father, pro se.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Kathrine S. Miller-Todd, Assistant
Attorney General, Mark Tremmel, County Attorney, and Seth Harrington,
Assistant County Attorney, for appellee State.
Victoria Siegel, Ottumwa, for minor child.
Considered by Vogel, P.J., and Mahan and Miller, JJ.
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MAHAN, J.
Crystal is the mother of a two-year-old boy, C.S. She appeals the district
court’s order terminating her parental rights. She does not contest the statutory
ground for termination. She contends, however, that the juvenile court should
have given her more time to be reunited with her son. We affirm.
I. Background.
C.S. was removed from his mother’s care in October 2007 due to denial of
critical care. Crystal had taken an overdose of prescription medication because
she was “stressed out” and then her boyfriend (not knowing of the overdose) left
her alone with C.S. Crystal has a long history of suicide attempts. As she told a
child protective worker, she had “attempted suicide more times than she can
count.”
She moved to Colorado in November 2007 because she was “too
stressed out” to deal with what was happening with her and her son. Crystal was
informed by Iowa Department of Human Services that she should participate in
parenting classes while in Colorado. She signed up for a parenting program and
attended only three of twelve classes. Crystal did attend supervised visits with
C.S. when in Iowa for court proceedings.
She returned to Iowa in June 2008.
Crystal was offered weekly
supervised visits with C.S. and parenting classes upon her return to Iowa. She
was again pregnant and not taking psychotropic medication because of the
pregnancy.
The termination hearing was held in September 2008. Leisa Cloke, the
social worker assigned to the case, testified that Crystal had been participating in
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visits and parenting training, but was not at a point of unsupervised visits. She
testified that Crystal “is loving” to C.S., but the connection is “more like a childcare provider . . . entertaining the child.” Cloke’s testimony indicates Crystal had
made little, if any progress, since the inception of the case. She testified that
most of the concerns that led to the department’s involvement with Crystal and
C.S. remain, including Crystal’s poor decision making, her history of not taking
mental health medications, her history of attempting suicide, her history of
psychiatric hospitalizations, and her lack of appropriate housing. Cloke testified
Crystal had three mental health hospitalizations in Colorado: in December 2007
and then in April and May 2008.
Paige Clouse, case coordinator for the family, provided transportation
services, supervised visits, and the parenting skills services. Clouse testified that
Crystal did not have stable housing upon her return to Iowa, so visits were
offered at her office. Since her return to Iowa, Crystal attended all but three of
the weekly visits:
Crystal is able to comfort and play with C.S. and she
participates in the parenting skills training. Clouse testified that Crystal loves
C.S., but there does not appear to be a “typical mother/son bond.” Clouse had
not recommended unsupervised visits at the time of the termination hearing
because she continued to have a variety of concerns, including Crystal’s mental
health and her unstable housing. In addition, Crystal’s brother, who had a prior
child endangerment charge, was currently living with Crystal and her boyfriend.
Crystal testified at the termination hearing. She testified she had only
completed three of the twelve parenting classes in Colorado because of
transportation issues. She asked for the additional time to become an adequate
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parent to C.S.
Crystal testified she was attending her weekly visits and
participating in parenting training. She testified she had not gotten unsupervised
visits because she “didn’t have a stable home.”
She testified she did not
remember the April or May 2008 Colorado hospitalizations, she had not signed a
release to the department of human services for her most recent mental-health
services, and it did not occur to her that moving to Colorado might be detrimental
to the reunification process.
The district court found clear and convincing evidence supporting
termination of Crystal’s parental rights pursuant to Iowa Code sections
232.116(1)(h) (2007) (child age three or younger, adjudicated CINA, removed for
six of the last twelve months, and cannot be returned to parent at time of
hearing). The court determined termination was in the best interests of the child
because “there is simply no evidence to suggest that additional time would allow
[C.S.] to be returned.” By order filed September 30, 2008, Crystal’s parental
rights were terminated.
Crystal appeals. She contends she is now cooperating with services and
should be provided additional time to be able to parent her son.
II. Scope and Standard of Review.
We review termination of parental rights de novo. In re Z.H., 740 N.W.2d
648, 650-51 (Iowa Ct. App. 2007). We give weight to the findings of the juvenile
court, particularly with respect to the credibility of witnesses, but are not bound by
them. In re L.L., 459 N.W.2d 489, 493 (Iowa 1990). Grounds for termination
must be proved by clear and convincing evidence. In re J.E., 723 N.W.2d 793,
798 (Iowa 2006). Our primary concern is the best interests of the child. Id.
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III. Termination of Mother’s Rights.
We find that clear and convincing evidence supports the juvenile court’s
finding that termination of Crystal’s parental rights is appropriate under Iowa
Code section 232.116(1)(h). C.S. is three years of age or younger; he has been
adjudicated a child in need of assistance pursuant to section 232.96; he has
been removed from Crystal’s physical custody for at least six of the last twelve
months; and there is clear and convincing evidence he cannot be returned to
Crystal’s custody at the present time. Crystal does not contest the statutory
ground for termination. Nonetheless, she contends termination is not in C.S.’s
best interests. We disagree.
Crystal has made little progress in reaching a stable place, either
physically or mentally. She has a history of unstable living arrangements. Upon
her return to Iowa in June 2008, she lived in various places and testified she
could not have unsupervised visits with C.S. because she did not have a stable
home.
She has a history of admitted mental health issues and numerous
hospitalizations due to suicidal tendencies. She has a history of not taking her
medication and she is currently not able to take medication because she is
pregnant. She did not sign a release to the department of human services for
her most recent mental-health services, and we are unable to determine what
treatment, if any, she is currently receiving. The social worker reported a history
of poor judgment on Crystal’s part, including inappropriate relationships, unstable
housing, and two prior founded child abuse reports.
We consider both the long-term and immediate interests of the child when
terminating parental rights. In re C.W., 554 N.W.2d 279, 283 (Iowa Ct. App.
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1996). Evidence from a parent’s past performance may be used to gauge the
quality of life the child may receive in the future. Id. We agree with the district
court that there is no evidence that even with additional time C.S. would be
allowed to return to Crystal’s custody. We agree with the juvenile court’s finding
that a termination of parental rights is in the best interests of the child.
We affirm the court’s termination of Crystal’s parental rights.
AFFIRMED.
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