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NON

- PRECEDENTIAL DECISION

- SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37

IN THE INTEREST OF: R.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: T.S., MOTHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1111 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000088

- 2022

IN THE INTEREST OF: D.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: T.S., MOTHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1113 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000142

- 2020

IN THE INTEREST OF: D.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: T.S., MOTHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1115 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022

In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000070

- 2016

IN THE INTEREST OF: J.S., A MINOR :

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIAJ

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- APPEAL OF: T.S., MOTHER :

:

:

:

:

:

: No. 1118 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000143

- 2020

IN THE INTEREST OF: Z.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: T.S., MOTHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1120 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000069

- 2016

IN THE INTEREST OF: R.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: C.S., FATHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1112 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022

In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000088

- 2022

IN THE INTEREST OF: D.S, A MINOR

APPEAL OF: C.S., FATHER :

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIAJ

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- :

:

:

: No. 1114 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000142

- 2020

IN THE INTEREST OF: D.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: C.S., FATHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1116 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000070

- 2016

IN THE INTEREST OF: J.S., A MINOR

APPEAL OF: C.S., FATHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1117 WDA 2022

Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022

In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000143

- 2020

IN THE INTEREST OF: Z.S., A

MINOR

APPEAL OF: C.S., FATHER :

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

: IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF

PENNSYLVANIA

No. 1119 WDA 2022J

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- Appeal from the Dispositional Order Entered September 7, 2022 In the Court of Common Pleas of Westmoreland County Criminal Division

at No(s): CP

- 65

- DP

- 0000069

- 2016

BEFORE: BENDER, P.J.E., LAZARUS, J., and McLAUGHLIN, J.

MEMORANDUM BY BENDER, P.J.E.: FILED: MAY 3, 2023

T.S. ( “ Mother ” ) and C.S. ( “ Father ” ) appeal from the dispositional order s ,

dated August 26, 2022, and entered on September 7, 2022, in which R.S (born

in January of 2022 ), J.S. (born in November of 2019), D.S. or DZ.S. (born in

February of 2018), D.S. (born in October of 2 014 ), and Z.S. (born in October

of 2013 ) (collec tively “Children”) were adjudicated dependen t together with a

finding of aggravated circumstances and were to remain in their current

placement. 1 These orders were the result of the dependency actions brought

by the Westmoreland C ounty Children’s Burea u ( “ WCCB ” or “ Agency ” )

. After

review, we affirm.

Mother’s brief contains the following list of issues:

I. Whether the trial court erred as a matter of law and abuse d its discretion in finding clear and convincing evidence existed to
support [that] the children were without proper care o r control,

s ubsistence, education as required by law, or other control necessary for the child’s physical, mental or emotional health,

or morals?

_________________ __________ ______ ____ _______

1 This Court b y order dated October 27, 2022, consolidated Father’s five appeals identified at Nos. 1112 WDA 2022, 11 14 WDA 2022, 1116 WDA 2022

, 1117 WDA 2022 and 1119 WDA 2022

. This C ourt by order dated November 9, 2022 , consolidated Mother’s five appeals identified at 1111 WDA 2022, 1113 WDA 2022, 1115 WDA 2022, 111 8 WDA 2022 and 1120 WDA 2022

. Additionally, this Court now consolidates both Father’s and Mother’s appeal s in that these appeals involve related parties and issues. See Pa.R.A.P. 513

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- II. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in admitting evidence of Mother’s prior bad acts to allo w the Agency to show

that Mother acted in accordance with the character or trait?

III. Whether the [t]rial [c]ourt erred in finding the Agency made reasonable efforts to prevent the removal of the children from

their home?

Mother’s brief at 4.

Father’s brief contains the following list of issues:

1. Did the [t]rial [c]ourt commit an error of law or abuse [] its discretion in finding that the five (5) children were without proper care or control, subsistence, education as required by law, or other c are or control necessary for the children’s physical, mental or emotional health, or morals; and did the [t]rial [c]ourt commit an error of law in find ing children, D.S. (No. 1114 WDA 2022), J.S. and R.S. each met the definition in 42 Pa.C.S. § 6302, of “D ependen t Child” (10), as the termination of Father’s parental rights pursuant to 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511 was not within three years immediately preceding the

dates of birth of these children?

2. Did the [t]rial [c]ourt abuse it discretion in admitting evidence

of Father’s [] prior bad acts and other wrongs to allow the Agency to prove that Father acted in accordance with the character or trait of neglect of children?

3. Did the [t]rial [c]ourt err in finding that the Westmoreland County Children’s Bureau made Reasonable Efforts to prevent the removal of the five (5) children from the Father’s home?

Father’s brief at 4.

Mother’s and Father’s issues are essentially comp ara ble and a single

op inion provided by the trial court set s forth its respon s e to both parents ’

issues on appeal. However, in Father’s first issue he adds an argument

involving subsection (10) of the definition of a “Dependent Child

, ” which heJ

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- did not include in his Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a)(2) (i) statement

. Nor did he in dicate

where in the record he raised this issue with the trial court. Thus, Father

waived that portion of his first issue. See Pa.R.A

. P

. 1925(b)(4)(vii) ( “Issues

not included in the [s ] tatement ... are waive d.”); Pa.R.A.P. 302(a) (“Issues

not raised in the lower court are waived and cannot be raised for the first time

on appeal.”). Notably, the trial court specifically acknowl edged that Father

raised his first issue in conjunction with subsection (1) of the definition of a

“Dependent Child

. ” See 23 Pa.C.S. § 6302(1). F ather made no reference to

subsection (10)

. Thus, it is evident that both parents are raising the same

issues.

Our scope and standard of review in dependency cases is as follows:

We must accept the facts as found by the trial court unless they are not supported by the record. Although bound by the facts, we are not bound by the trial court’s inferences, deductions, and conclusions therefrom; we must exercise our independent judgme nt in reviewing the court’s determination, as opposed to its findings of fact, and must order whatever right and justice dictate. We review for abuse of discretion. Our scope of review, accordingly, is of the broadest possible nature. It is this Court’s responsibility to ensure that the record represents a comprehensive inquiry and that the hearing judge has applied the appropriate legal principles to that record. Nevertheless, we accord great weight to the court’s fact

- finding function because

the cour t is in the best position to observe and rule on the credibility of the parties and witnesses.

In the Interest of A.N. , 39 A.3d 326, 330 (Pa. Super. 2012) (quoting In re

C.M.T. , 861 A.2d 348, 351 (Pa. Super. 2004) (citations omitted)). “The

burden of p roof in a dependency proceeding is on the petitioner to

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- statutory definition of dependency.” In re G., T. , 845 A.2d 870 , 872 ( Pa.

Super. 2004). Moreover, “the dependency of a child is n ot deter mined ‘as to’

a particular person, but rather must be based upon two f indings by the t rial

court: whether the child is currently lacking proper care and control, and

whether such care and control is immediately available.” In re J.C.

, 5 A.3d

284, 289 (Pa. Super. 2 0 10).

The trial court directly addressed the three issues raised by the parties

,

providing facts testified to by various witnesses

. We have reviewed the

certified record, the briefs of the parties, the applicable law, and the th o rough,

well

- written opinion authored by the Honorable Justin M. Walsh of the Court

of Common Pleas of Westmoreland Cou n t y, dated November 9, 2022 . We

conclu de that Judge Walsh’s opinion accurately disposes of the issues

presented by Mother and Father on appeal

, and we discern no abuse of

discretion or error of law. Accordingly, we adopt Judge Walsh’s opinion as our

own and affirm the September 7, 2022 orders on that basis.

Orders affirmed.

Judgment Entered.

Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq. Prothonotary

Date: 5/3/2023Circulated 04/13/2023 10:21 AM