State of Utah, in the interest of A.Z

----ooOoo----

State of Utah, in the interest of A.Z.,
a person under eighteen years of age.
______________________________

T.Z.,
Appellant,

v.

State of Utah,
Appellee.

MEMORANDUM DECISION
(Not For Official Publication)

Case No. 20010591-CA

F I L E D
April 11, 2002 2002 UT App 104 -----

Third District Juvenile, Salt Lake Department
The Honorable Robert S. Yeates

Attorneys:
John E. Laherty, Salt Lake City, for Appellant
Mark L. Shurtleff and John M. Peterson, Salt Lake City, for Appellee
Martha Pierce and Tracy Mills, Salt Lake City, Guardians Ad Litem -----

Before Judges Davis, Greenwood, and Thorne.
DAVIS, Judge:

T.Z. appeals from a juvenile court order terminating his parental rights to his daughter, A.Z., pursuant to Utah Code Ann. § 78-3a-407(2)-(5) & (8) (Supp. 2001).(1) We affirm.

A.Z. was first removed from her home in September 1997 and adjudicated an emotionally abused child. As part of those proceedings, Dr. Icke performed his psychological evaluation of Appellant in November 1997. In September 1998, Appellant was found to be in compliance with his service plan, full custody of A.Z. was returned to him, and court jurisdiction was terminated. However, in September 2000, after two years where T.Z. had full custody of A.Z. and the State was not involved, A.Z. was removed again based upon allegations similar to those in the first removal. This case deals with the second petition filed and the proceedings that followed.

Following the termination trial, the court based its conclusion that T.Z.'s parental rights should be terminated on the following grounds: (1) A.Z. was abused and neglected; (2) T.Z. was an unfit parent and/or incompetent parent due to emotional and/or mental illness; (3) A.Z. was cared for in an out-of-home placement under the supervision of DCFS; (4) T.Z. failed to make a parental adjustment; and (5) after a trial home placement, T.Z. substantially and continuously or repeatedly refused or failed to give A.Z. proper parental care and protection. See Utah Code Ann. § 78-3a-407(2), -(5), -(8). On appeal, T.Z. takes issue with only three of the court's findings to the effect that Appellant posed an ongoing risk to his child at the time of trial. T.Z. does not challenge the other grounds. Section 78-3a-407 states that parental rights may be terminated if the juvenile court "finds any one of the following." Id. (emphasis added). T.Z.'s challenge does not address the juvenile court's conclusion that, based upon T.Z.'s admission regarding the allegations contained in the State's petition, T.Z. abused A.Z., or that A.Z. was in the custody of DCFS and had been cared for in an out-of-home placement for an extensive period during which T.Z. did not make the changes necessary to regain custody. Either of these conclusions supports the juvenile court's determination that T.Z.'s parental rights should be terminated. To prevail, T.Z. must show that all of the court's grounds for termination were erroneous, not just one.

Accordingly, the judgment of the juvenile court is affirmed.
 
 

______________________________
James Z. Davis, Judge

----- WE CONCUR:
 

______________________________
Pamela T. Greenwood, Judge
 

______________________________
William A. Thorne Jr., Judge

1. For convenience we cite to the most recent version of Utah Code Ann. § 78-3a-407 (Supp. 2001). The portions of the statute referred to in this opinion were the same, in all material respects, throughout the proceedings.