### IN THE CO URT OF APPEALS OF TE NNE SS EE

AT NASHVILL E

Ass ig ne d o n B rie fs Ju ly 31, 2 01 3

I N T H E M A T T E R O F 

### LAKI TA E. P. A N D 

### MICH AEL A. P. 1

A p p e a l f r o m t h e J u v e n i l e C o u r t f o r C l a y C o u n t y

N o

. J 3 0 7 8 1 2 J i m m y W h i t e , J u d g e

N o

. M 2 0 1 3

- 0 0 3 8 4

- C O A

- R 3

- P T

- F i l e d A u g u s t 2 8

, 2 0 1 3

A f a t h e r ’ s p a r e n t a l r i g h t s t o h i s t w o c h i l d r e n w e r e t e r m i n a t e d o n t h e g r o u n d s o f a b a n d o n m e n t

b y e n g a g i n g i n c o n d u c t e x h i b i t i n g a w a n t o n d i s r e g a r d f o r t h e w e l f

a r e o f t h e c h i l d r e n

, n o n

c o m p l i a n c e w i t h t h e p e r m a n e n c y p l a n

, a n d s e v e r e c h i l d a b u s e a g a i n s t c h i l d r e n w h o r e s i d e d

w i t h F a t h e r

. H e a p p e a l s

, c o n t e n d i n g t h a t t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s S e r v i c e s f a i l e d t o

e x p e n d r e a s o n a b l e e f

f o r t s t o r e u n i t e h i m w i t h t h e c h i l d r e n a n d t h a t t e r m i n a t i o n o f h i s r i g h t s

w a s n o t i n t h e c h i l d r e n ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t

. F i n d i n g n o e r r o r

, w e a f f i r m t h e j u d g m e n t o f t h e t r i a l

c o u r t

.

T e n n

. R

. A p p

. P

. 3 A p p e a l a s o f R i g h t ; J u d g m e n t o f t h e J u v e n i l e C o u r t A f f i r m e d

R IC H A R D H

. D IN K IN S

, J

. , d e l i v e r e d t h e o p i n i o n o f t h e c o u r t

, i n w h i c h F R A N K G

. C LE M E N T

,

J R

. , J

. , j o i n e d

. P A T R IC IA J

. C O T T R E LL

, P

. J

. , M

. S

. , n o t p a r t i c i p a t i n g

.

J o s h u a V e r n o n H o e p p n e r

, L i v i n g s t o n

, T e n n e s s e e

, f o r t h e a p p e l l a n t

, M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

.

R o b e r t E

. C o o p e r

, J r

. , A t t o r n e y G e n e r a l a n d R e p o r t e r ; L e s l i e C u r r y

, A s s i s t a n t A t t o r n e y

G e n e r a l

, f

o r t h e T e n n e s s e e D e p a r t m e n t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s S e r v i c e s

.

O P I N I O N

H IS T O R Y O F T H E C A S E

M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. ( “ F a t h e r ” ) a n d E r i c a D

. P

. H

. ( “ M o t h e r ” ) a r e t h e p a r e n t s o f t w o

c h i l d r e n

, L a k i t a E

. P

. , b o r n D e c e m b e r 2 9

, 2 0 0 0

, a n d M i c h a e l A

. P

. , J r

. , b o r n J a n u a r y 3 1

,

2 0 0 3

. T h e T e n n e s s e e D e p a r t m e n t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s S e r v i c e s ( “ D C S ” ) f i l e d a p e t i t i o n i n t h e C l a y

C o u n t y J u v e n i l e C o u r t t o h a v e t h e c h i l d r e n d e p e n d e n t a n d n e g l e c t e d a n d f o r t e m p o r a r y l e g a l

T his Cour t has a pol ic y o f p rot ect ing the ide nti ty of chi ldr en in par ent al te rminat ion cas es by 1

ini ti al izing th e l ast names of th e pa rt ie s.c u s t o d y o n S e p t e m b e r 7

, 2 0 1 1

. T h e C l a y C o u n t y p e t i t i o n a l l e g e d t h a t b e g i n n i n g o n J u n e 2 4

, 2

2 0 1 1

, D C S h a d b e e n i n v e s t i g a t i n g a r e f e r r a l r e g a r d i n g M o t h e r

, a l l e g i n g l a c k o f s u p e r v i s i o n

a n d d r u g e x p o s e d c h i l d r e n ; t h a t M o t h e r h a d b e e n i n c a r c e r a t e d s i n c e J u n e 2 9 a n d p l e d g u i l t y

t o a d r u g o f

f e n s e f o r w h i c h s h e h a d b e e n s e n t e n c e d t o s e r v e f o u r y e a r s ; t h a t t h e c h i l d r e n w e r e

i n t h e c u s t o d y o f a n a c q u a i n t a n c e o f M o t h e r

, b u t t h a t t h e f a m i l y w i t h w h o m t h e c h i l d r e n w e r e

r e s i d i n g w e r e n o t a b l e t o c a r e f o r t h e m ; a n d t h a t t h e c h i l d r e n h a d b e e n i n f o s t e r c a r e s i n c e

A u g u s t 3 1

, 2 0 1 1

. T h e c o u r t e n t e r e d a P r o t e c t i v e C u s t o d y O r d e r o n S e p t e m b e r 7 ; a h e a r i n g

w a s h e l d O c t o b e r 1 1

, a t w h i c h b o t h p a r e n t s w e r e p r e s e n t

, a f t e r w h i c h t h e c o u r t e n t e r e d a n

o r d e r d e c l a r i n g t h e c h i l d r e n t o b e d e p e n d e n t a n d n e g l e c t e d

, g r a n t i n g c o n t i n u e d c u s t o d y t o

D C S

, a n d s e t t i n g a r e v i e w h e a r i n g f o r D e c e m b e r 1 3

. A t t h e r e v i e w h e a r i n g a p e r m a n e n c y

p l a n w h i c h h a d b e e n p r e p a r e d o n O c t o b e r 1 4 w a s a p p r o v e d b y t h e c o u r t

. A s e p a r a t e r e v i e w

h e a r i n g o r d e r w a s a l s o e n t e r e d r e c i t i n g

, i n t e r a l i a

, t h a t F a t h e r r e m a i n e d i n c a r c e r a t e d a t t h e

N a s h v i l l e D e t e n t i o n C e n t e r c o m p l e t i n g h i s s e n t e n c e f o r r a p e o f a c h i l d a n d t h a t

, b e c a u s e o f

t h e i r i n c a r c e r a t i o n s

, D C S w a s u n a b l e t o p r o v i d e s e r v i c e s t o M o t h e r a n d F a t h e r ; t h e o r d e r s e t

t h e n e x t h e a r i n g f

o r S e p t e m b e r 1 1

, 2 0 1 2

.

A n o r d e r w a s e n t e r e d o n N o v e m b e r 1 4

, 2 0 1 2

, f o l l o w i n g t h e S e p t e m b e r 1 1 h e a r i n g t o

c o n s i d e r t h e p e r m a n e n c y p l a n w h i c h h a d b e e n r e v i s e d o n M a y 1

, 2 0 1 2

. P e r t i n e n t t o t h e

i s s u e s i n t h i s a p p e a l

, t h e o r d e r d e t e r m i n e d : t h a t D C S w a s i n s u b s t a n t i a l c o m p l i a n c e w i t h t h e

r e q u i r e m e n t s o f t h e p r e v i o u s p e r m a n e n c y p l a n ; t h a t M o t h e r s u r r e n d e r e d h e r p a r e n t a l r i g h t s

t o t h e c h i l d r e n o n J u n e 7

, 2 0 1 2 ; t h a t F a t h e r w a s n o t i n s u b s t a n t i a l c o m p l i a n c e “ i n t h a t h e i s 3

n o w o u t o f p r i s o n

, h e i s n o t c o m p l i a n t w i t h h i s m e n t a l h e a l t h t r e a t m e n t

, h e r e f u s e s t o o b t a i n

a p s y c h o s e x u a l e v a l u a t i o n

, a n d h e i s a r e g i s t e r e d s e x o f f e n d e r ” ; t h a t F a t h e r p a r t i c i p a t e d i n

t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e p e r m a n e n c y p l a n b u t w a s n o t i n a g r e e m e n t w i t h t h e g o a l o f a d o p t i o n

b e c a u s e h e w a n t e d t o p a r e n t t h e c h i l d r e n ; t h a t t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s o f t h e p l a n w e r e r e a s o n a b l e

a n d r e l a t e d t o t h e r e m e d y i n g t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s t h a t b r o u g h t a b o u t t h e p r o c e e d i n g ; a n d t h a t

D C S w a s r e l i e v e d o f d u t i e s t o p r o v i d e r e a s o n a b l e e f f o r t s t o F a t h e r b e c a u s e o f h i s c o n v i c t i o n

f o r t h r e e c o u n t s o f a g g r a v a t e d s e x u a l a s s a u l t o f a m i n o r u n d e r t h e a g e o f t h i r t e e n

. T h e c o u r t

a p p r o v e d t h e M a y 1 p l a n

.

T he chi ldr en had bee n the s u b j e c t o f a n ear li er pet it ion to be dec la re d dep end ent and neglec te d 2

fi le d i n t he Over ton Coun ty J uvenil e Cou rt on Dece m ber 17, 2009

. T he Overto n Count y pe ti ti on al le ged,

int er ali a , th at Fat her had bee n ar re st ed upon an ind ic tment for agg ra vated sex ual bat te ry on De cember 6,

2009

. T he chi ldr en wer e pla ced in the te m p o r a r y p r o t ect ive cus tod y of DCS wher e the y re m ai ned unt il

Oct obe r 7 , 201 0, whe n cu st ody was r est ore d t o M oth er . M oth er sub seq uen tl y m oved to C la y Count y and

, by ord er ent er ed Sept ember 7, 2011

, the cas e was tr ans fe rr ed to Cla y Count y J uvenil e Cour t; the m oti on to

tr ans fe r the cas e re ci te d tha t Fat her re m ai ned in c a rc er at ed wit hin the Depa rt m ent of Corr ect ion s as of

Sept ember 7, 201 1.

T he t er m ina ti on o f M oth er ’s par ent al ri ghts t o t he c hil dre n ar e no t a t i ssu e i n t his app eal

. 3

-2-T h e N o v e m b e r 2 4 o r d e r a l s o s e t a h e a r i n g f o r c o n s i d e r a t i o n o f t h e p e t i t i o n t o

t e r m i n a t e F a t h e r ’ s p a r e n t a l r i g h t s w h i c h h a d b e e n f i l e d b y D C S o n J u l y 1 0

, 2 0 1 2

. T h e

p e t i t i o n s o u g h t t o t e r m i n a t e F a t h e r ’ s r i g h t s o n t h e g r o u n d s o f a b a n d o n m e n t b y i n c a r c e r a t e d

p a r e n t ( T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( g ) ( 1 ) a n d 3 6

- 1

- 1 0 2 ( 1 ) ( A ) ( i v ) )

, s u b s t a n t i a l n o n

c o m p l i a n c e w i t h p e r m a n e n c y p l a n ( T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( g ) ( 2 ) )

, a n d s e v e r e c h i l d

a b u s e a s d e f

i n e d b y T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

- 1

- 1 0 2 ( 2 3 ) f o r w h i c h F a t h e r w a s s e n t e n c e d t o

m o r e t h a n t w o y e a r s ’ i m p r i s o n m e n t ( T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( g ) ( 4 ) a n d ( 5 ) )

.

T h e m a t t e r w a s h e a r d o n D e c e m b e r 1 8

, 2 0 1 2 a n d

, f o l l o w i n g t h e h e a r i n g

, t h e c o u r t

e n t e r e d t h e F i n a l D e c r e e o f G u a r d i a n s h i p t e r m i n a t i n g F a t h e r ’ s p a r e n t a l r i g h t s

, s t a t i n g a s

g r o u n d s t h e f

o l l o w i n g : 4

I n sup por t of the grounds for te rminat ion

, the cou rt m ade the fol lowi ng fi ndi ngs of fa ct

, per ti nen t 4

to the is sue s i n t his app eal :

10. Lakit a E. P. and Mi cha el A. P. have re m ai ned con ti nuou sl y in fos te r car e si nce

8- 31- 11.

11. T h e R e spo nde nt, Mi cha el A. P., Sr., has bee n inc ar cer at ed dur ing the fou r

con sec uti ve m ont hs pri or to t h e f il ing of thi s pet it ion

. Mi cha el A. P., Sr. has bee n

inc ar cer at ed f

rom 12- 7- 09 t o 6- 14- 12.

12. T he Resp onde nt, Mi cha el A. P

. , Sr., engaged in suc h con duc t pri or to

inc ar cer at ion as to exh ibi t a want on d is re gard f or the wel fa re of the chi ldr en. Mi cha el A.

P., Sr. has bee n con victe d on two cou nts of Att empted Agg ra vated Bat te ry of V ic ti m s Under

13 Year s of Age. T he Resp onde nt’ s con duc t in want on dis r e ga r d f o r the wel fa re of the

chi ldr en wa s t o se xua ll y abuse hi s ni ece and nep hew, wh o r esi ded wit h hi m at th e ti m e of

the abu se. Lakit a E. P

. and Mi cha el A. P. wer e in Mi cha el A. P., Sr. le gal cus tod y at the

ti m e of th is abu se. M ic hae l A. P., Sr . ha s a le ngthy cri m ina l h is tor y.

13. Mi cha el A. P., Sr. was a dvise d on 5- 22- 12 a nd 1 0- 17- 11 t hat con duc t pri or to

inc ar cer at ion in want on dis re gard for the wel fa re of the chi ldr en wa s gr ound s for

te rminat ion of par ent al ri ghts. Mi cha el A. P., Sr. si gned the acknowl edgm ent of re cei pt of

the Cri te ri a a nd Pr oce dur e f or T er m ina ti on o f Pa re nta l Ri ghts o n 5- 22- 12 a nd 1 0- 17- 11.

14. Resp onde nt, Mi cha el A. P., Sr., has aba ndon ed Lakit a E. P. and Mi cha el A. P.

pur sua nt to T enn

. Code Ann. § 36- 1- 113( g)(1) and T enn

. 36- 1- 102( 1)( A)( iv) and the re for e

his par ent al ri ghts s houl d be te rminat ed.

15. T he Re s p onde nt, Mi cha el A. P., Sr., has not sub st ant ia ll y co m pli ed wit h the

pro visio ns of t he p er m ane ncy pla ns a nd t her ef ore hi s pa re nta l r ights sho uld be ter m ina te d

pur sua nt to T .C.A. 36

- 1- 113( g)(2)

. 16. T he ini ti al per m ane ncy pla n dat ed 10- 1 4- 11 re qui re s him to complet e the

fol lowi ng re qui re m ent s tha t he cou l d h a ve c om ple te d whil e inc ar cer at ed: sub m it to a

psycho-sexua l exa m ina ti on, fo l l o w al l re comm end at ion s fr om the psycho-sexua l

exa m ina ti on, complying wit h the rul es of the fa ci li ty wher e he is hous ed in ord er to obt ai n

an ear ly re le ase or be abl e to complet e his ti m e wit hout re cei ving oth er c h a r ges, avoid

cr iminal beh avior

, re ad par ent ing books, par ti ci pat e in a par ent ing ass ess m ent and fol lowi ng

re comm end at ion s for par ent ing tr ai nin g. T he Cour t ra ti fi ed the ini ti al per m ane ncy pla n on

12- 13- 11 and fou nd t hat th e pla n was re aso nab le

, nec ess ar y an d in the bes t int er est of the

chi ldr en.

( c o n t i n u e d

. . . )

-3-T h a t [ F a t h e r ] h a s w i l l f u l l y a b a n d o n e d t h e m i n o r c h i l d r e n

, L a k i t a E

. P

.

a n d M i c h a e l A

. P

. , J r

. , f o r m o r e t h a n f

o u r ( 4 ) c o n s e c u t i v e m o n t h s p r i o r t o h i s

i n c a r c e r a t i o n ; t h a t p r i o r t o i n c a r c e r a t i o n h e e n g a g e d i n c o n d u c t e x h i b i t i n g a

w a n t o n d i s r e g a r d f

o r t h e w e l f

a r e o f t h e c h i l d r e n ; t h a t h e h a s b e e n s u b s t a n t i a l l y

n o n

- c o m p l i a n t w i t h t h e s t a t e m e n t o f r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s i n t h e p e r m a n e n c y p l a n s ;

t h a t h e h a s c o m m i t t e d s e v e r e c h i l d a b u s e a s d e f i n e d b y T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

-

1

- 1 0 2 a g a i n s t c h i l d r e n w h o r e s i d e d w i t h [ F a t h e r ] e i t h e r p e r m a n e n t l y o r

t e m p o r a r i l y ; t h a t h e h a s b e e n s e n t e n c e d t o m o r e t h a n t w o ( 2 ) y e a r s ’

i m p r i s o n m e n t f

o r c o n d u c t a g a i n s t c h i l d r e n w h o r e s i d e d w i t h [ F a t h e r ] e i t h e r

p e r m a n e n t l y o r t e m p o r a r i l y

, w h i c h i s f o u n d t o b e s e v e r e c h i l d a b u s e ; a n d t h a t

i t i s i n t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t o f t h e c h i l d r e n t h a t t h e p a r e n t a l r i g h t s o f [ F a t h e r ] b e

f o r e v e r t e r m i n a t e d

.

F a t h e r a p p e a l s

, s t a t i n g t h e f o l l o w i n g i s s u e s :

A

. D i d t h e C l a y C o u n t y J u v e n i l e C o u r t e r r i n f i n d i n g t h a t t h e

D e p a r t m e n t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s S e r v i c e s m a d e r e a s o n a b l e e f f o r t s t o r e u n i f

y t h e

c h i l d r e n a n d t h e A p p e l l a n t a s r e q u i r e d i n T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

- 1

- 1 6 6

, s o t h a t

t e r m i n a t i o n o f t h e A p p e l l a n t ’ s p a r e n t a l r i g h t s w a s n o t i n t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t o f t h e

m i n o r c h i l d r e n a t i s s u e i n t h i s c a s e ?

(

. . . c o n t i n u e d ) 4

1 7

. T he re vised per m ane ncy pla n dat ed 5- 1- 12 re qui re s him to complet e t h e

fol lowi ng re qui re m ents tha t he cou ld have complet ed whil e inc ar cer at ed: sub m it to a cl ini cal

par ent ing asse ss m en

t, su cc es sf ul ly co m pl et e re co m

m en de d pa

re nting tr eat m ent or edu cat ion

, be sup por ti ve of the chi ldr en’ s pla cement, re fr ai n fr om dis cus si ng the cas e or othe r family

m embers in a negati ve m ann er in fr ont of the chi ldr en, sub m it to an al coh o l a n d dru g

ass ess m ent

, complet e al l re comm end at ion s fr om th e A &D ass ess m ent

, sub m it to a

psychol ogical e x a mina ti on, complet e al l re comm end at ion s fr om the psychol ogical

evalua ti on, and sign rele ase s of inf ormati on so the dep ar tment can m oni tor his pro gress in

the se ser vices

. 18. T he r e q u i r e me n t s in the per m ane ncy pla ns ar e al l re aso nab ly re la te d to

re m edying th e c ondi ti ons th at nec ess it at e f ost er ca re

. 19. [ F at her ] has not complet ed the fol lowi ng re qui re m ent s in the per m ane ncy

pla ns: a psycho-sexua l evalua ti on, sex ual off end er cou nse l i n g, a n A&D ass ess m ent

,

par ent ing as ses sment.

20. T he De par tment made r eas ona ble ef for ts to as si st [Fa the r] in complying wit h

the re qui re m ent s in the per m ane ncy pla n by m eet ing w it h him to go over his req uir ements

in the per m ane ncy pla n con fi rming whic h ser vices w e r e a vaila ble to him at the fa ci li ty

wher e he was hou sed

. 21. Mi c h a e l A. P., Sr. was advis ed on 5- 22- 12 and 10- 17- 11 tha t fa il ure to

sub st ant ia ll y comply wit h the p e r manen cy pla ns was grounds for te rminat ion of par ent al

ri ghts.

***

-4-B

. W a s t h e d e c i s i o n o f t h e C l a y C o u n t y J u v e n i l e C o u r t b a s e d u p o n

m i s t a k e s u f

f i c i e n t t o s a t i s f

y t h e l e g a l r e q u i r e m e n t s i n a n y o t h e r c i v i l a c t i o n

,

p u r s u a n t t o T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

- 1

- 1 3 9

, w h e n t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s

S e r v i c e s p r e s e n t e d f

a l s e e v i d e n c e a t t r i a l t h a t t h e A p p e l l a n t w a s H I V p o s i t i v e ?

S T A N D A R D O F R E V I E W

A p a r e n t h a s a f

u n d a m e n t a l r i g h t t o t h e c a r e

, c u s t o d y

, a n d c o n t r o l o f h i s o r h e r c h i l d

.

S t a n l e y v

. I l l i n o i s

, 4 0 5 U

. S

. 6 4 5

, 6 5 1 ( 1 9 7 2 ) ; N a s h

- P u t n a m v

. M c C l o u d

, 9 2 1 S

. W

. 2 d 1 7 0

,

1 7 4 ( T e n n

. 1 9 9 6 )

. T h u s

, t h e s t a t e m a y i n t e r f e r e w i t h p a r e n t a l r i g h t s o n l y i f t h e r e i s a

c o m p e l l i n g s t a t e i n t e r e s t

. N a s h

- P u t n a m

, 9 2 1 S

. W

. 2 d a t 1 7 4

– 7 5 ( c i t i n g S a n t o s k y v

. K r a m e r

,

4 5 5 U

. S

. 7 4 5 ( 1 9 8 2 ) )

. O u r t e r m i n a t i o n s t a t u e s i d e n t i f y “ t h o s e s i t u a t i o n s i n w h i c h t h e s t a t e ’ s

i n t e r e s t i n t h e w e l f

a r e o f a c h i l d j u s t i f

i e s i n t e r f e r e n c e w i t h a p a r e n t ’ s c o n s t i t u t i o n a l r i g h t s b y

s e t t i n g f o r t h g r o u n d s o n w h i c h t e r m i n a t i o n p r o c e e d i n g s c a n b e b r o u g h t

. ” I n r e W

. B

. , N o

.

M 2 0 0 4

- 0 0 9 9 9

- C O A

- R 3

- P T

, 2 0 0 5 W L 1 0 2 1 6 1 8

, a t * 7 ( c i t i n g T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

-

1 1 3 ( g ) )

. A p a r t y s e e k i n g t o t e r m i n a t e t h e p a r e n t a l r i g h t s o f a b i o l o g i c a l p a r e n t m u s t p r o v e

a t l e a s t o n e o f

t h e s t a t u t o r y g r o u n d s f

o r t e r m i n a t i o n

. T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( c ) ( 1 ) ; I n

r e D

. L

. B

. , 1 1 8 S

. W

. 3 d 3 6 0

, 3 6 7 ( T e n n

. 2 0 0 3 ) ; I n r e V a l e n t i n e

, 7 9 S

. W

. 3 d 5 3 9

, 5 4 6 ( T e n n

.

2 0 0 2 )

. S e c o n d l y

, t h e p a r t y m u s t p r o v e t h a t t e r m i n a t i o n o f t h e p a r e n t a l r i g h t s o f t h e b i o l o g i c a l

p a r e n t i s i n t h e c h i l d ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t

. T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( c ) ( 2 )

.

B e c a u s e o f t h e f

u n d a m e n t a l n a t u r e o f t h e p a r e n t ’ s r i g h t s a n d t h e g r a v e c o n s e q u e n c e s

o f t h e t e r m i n a t i o n o f t h o s e r i g h t s

, c o u r t s m u s t r e q u i r e a h i g h e r s t a n d a r d o f p r o o f i n d e c i d i n g

t e r m i n a t i o n c a s e s

. S a n t o s k y

, 4 5 5 U

. S

. a t 7 6 6

– 6 9 ; I n r e M

. W

. A

. , J r

. , 9 8 0 S

. W

. 2 d 6 2 0

, 6 2 2

( T e n n

. C t

. A p p

. 1 9 9 8 )

. T h u s

, b o t h t h e g r o u n d s f o r t e r m i n a t i o n a n d t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t i n q u i r y

m u s t b e e s t a b l i s h e d b y c l e a r a n d c o n v i n c i n g e v i d e n c e

. T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 3

- 1 1 3 ( c ) ; I n

r e V a l e n t i n e

, 7 9 S

. W

. 3 d a t 5 4 6

. I n l i g h t o f t h e h e i g h t e n e d s t a n d a r d o f p r o o f i n t h e s e c a s e s

,

a r e v i e w i n g c o u r t m u s t a d a p t t h e c u s t o m a r y s t a n d a r d o f r e v i e w s e t f o r t h b y T e n n

. R

. A p p

.

P

. 1 3 ( d )

. I

n r e M

. J

. B

. , 1 4 0 S

. W

. 3 d 6 4 3

, 6 5 4 ( T e n n

. C t

. A p p

. 2 0 0 4 )

. A s t o t h e c o u r t ’ s

f i n d i n g s o f f

a c t

, o u r r e v i e w i s d e n o v o w i t h a p r e s u m p t i o n o f c o r r e c t n e s s u n l e s s t h e e v i d e n c e

p r e p o n d e r a t e s o t h e r w i s e

, i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h T e n n

. R

. A p p

. P

. 1 3 ( d )

. I d

. W e m u s t t h e n

d e t e r m i n e w h e t h e r t h e f a c t s

, a s f o u n d b y t h e t r i a l c o u r t o r a s s u p p o r t e d b y t h e p r e p o n d e r a n c e

o f t h e e v i d e n c e

, c l e a r l y a n d c o n v i n c i n g l y e s t a b l i s h t h e e l e m e n t s n e c e s s a r y t o t e r m i n a t e

p a r e n t a l r i g h t s

. I

d

.

-5-D I S C U S S I O N

I

. R E A S O N A B L E E F F O R T S

W e f i r s t a d d r e s s F a t h e r ’ s c o n t e n t i o n t h a t t h e t r i a l c o u r t e r r e d i n f i n d i n g t h a t D C S m a d e

r e a s o n a b l e e f

f o r t s t o r e u n i f

y t h e c h i l d r e n w i t h h i m

. 5

O n N o v e m b e r 1 4

, 2 0 1 2

, t h e c o u r t e n t e r e d t h e a n n u a l p e r m a n e n c y h e a r i n g o r d e r i n t h e

d e p e n d e n t a n d n e g l e c t p r o c e e d i n g i n w h i c h t h e c o u r t

, i n t e r a l i a

, r e m o v e d t h e r e q u i r e m e n t

t h a t D C S p r o v i d e r e a s o n a b l e e f f o r t s i n l i g h t o f F a t h e r ’ s c o n v i c t i o n s f o r t h r e e c o u n t s o f

a g g r a v a t e d s e x u a l a s s a u l t o f a m i n o r u n d e r t h e a g e o f t h i r t e e n

. F a t h e r d i d n o t a p p e a l t h a t

o r d e r a n d h a s n o t s o u g h t t o c h a l l e n g e t h e o r d e r a s p a r t o f t h e p r e s e n t a p p e a l

. N e i t h e r h a s

F a t h e r c h a l l e n g e d i n t h i s a p p e a l t h e t e r m i n a t i o n o f h i s r i g h t s o n t h e g r o u n d o f s e v e r e c h i l d

a b u s e p u r s u a n t t o T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( g ) ( 4 )

.

T e n n C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

- 1

- 1 6 6 ( g ) ( 4 ) r e l i e v e s D C S o f t h e r e q u i r e m e n t t o u s e r e a s o n a b l e

e f f o r t s t o p r o v i d e s e r v i c e s m e e t i n g t h e n e e d s o f t h e f a m i l y w h e r e

, a s h e r e

, t h e p a r e n t h a s

s u b j e c t e d a c h i l d r e s i d i n g i n t h e h o m e t o a g g r a v a t e d c i r c u m s t a n c e s

, a s d e f i n e d a t T e n n

. C o d e

A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 0 2

. O n c e t h e c o u r t h e l d t h a t F a t h e r c o m m i t t e d s e v e r e c h i l d a b u s e

, D C S w a s 6

e x c u s e d f

r o m m a k i n g r e a s o n a b l e e f f o r t s t o r e u n i t e t h e f

a m i l y

. C o n s e q u e n t l y

, F a t h e r ’ s

c o n t e n t i o n i s a n o n

- i s s u e

. 7

DCS has “t he re spo nsi bil it y to m ake re aso nab le ef for ts to re uni fy chi ldr en and the ir par ent s af te r 5

re m oving the chi l d r e n fr om the ir par ent s’ home.” In re Tif fan y B

., 228 S.W .3d 148, 158 (T enn

. Ct. App.

2007 ) ( ci ti ng Te nn. Co de An n. § 37- 1- 166)

.

T enn

. Code An n

. § 3 6 -1-102(9 ) def ine s “aggravated ci rc um st anc es” to m ean “ab and onment, 6

aba ndon m ent of an inf

ant

, agg ra vated ass aul t, agg ra vated kidnap pin g, esp eci al ly agg ra vated kidnap pin g,

agg ra vated chi ld abu se and neglec t, agg ra vated sex ual exp loi ta ti on of a m ino r, esp eci al ly agg ra vated sex ual

exp loi ta ti on of a m ino r, agg ra vated ra pe, ra pe, ra pe of a chi ld, inc est

, or sever e chi ld abu se, as def ine d at §37-

1- 102. ”

Notwi ths ta ndi ng t he f act tha t DCS was exc use d fr om m aking r eas ona ble ef for ts to uni fy Fat her 7

wit h t he c hil dre n, we have r eviewe d t he rec ord and det er m ine d that it cl ear ly and con vinci ngly shows t hat

the ef for ts DCS exp end ed in at te m pti ng to ass is t Fat her wer e bot h re aso nab le and sub st ant ia l. Wh en the

chi ldr en fi rs t came int o cus tod y of DCS in 2009 Fat her was in j ai l; when the y nex t came int o DCS cus tod y

in 2011

, Fat her was ser ving his pri son sen te nce

. T he cas e m ana ger fr om DCS det er m ine d what ser vices wer e

avail abl e in Fat her ’s p l a c e of inc ar cer at ion and dis cus sed wit h him tho se ser vices whic h woul d le ad to

re uni fi cat ion wit h the chi ldr en. Fat her fa il ed to ta ke advant age of tho se ser vices whil e he was in pri son and

,

upon his re le ase

, did not see k DCS’ ass is ta nce in fi ndi ng avail abl e ser vi c e p r o vid er s. As not ed in In re

Geor gia nna H

., 205 S.W .3d 508, 519 (T enn

. Ct. App. 2006 ), Fat her had a re spo nsi bil it y to ta ke re aso nab le

and app rop ri at e ef

for ts to re uni fy wit h the chi ldr en and thi s re cor d is devoid of any pro o f t h a t F at her

complie d wi th his re spo nsi bil it ie s. T he c our t d id not er r i n ho ldi ng that DCS ex pen ded re aso nab le ef for ts

to re uni fy the chi ldr en wi th Fat her

. ( c o n t i n u e d

. . . )

-6-I I

. F A L S E E V ID E N C E

F a t h e r n e x t a r g u e s t h a t r e l i e f s h o u l d b e g r a n t e d f r o m t h e o r d e r o f t e r m i n a t i o n p u r s u a n t

t o T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 7

- 1

- 1 3 9 b e c a u s e D C S a l l e g e d l y p r e s e n t e d f a l s e t e s t i m o n y t h a t F a t h e r

w a s H I V p o s i t i v e a t t h e t i m e o f t r i a l a n d o n t h e d a t e s o f t h e o f f e n s e s f o r w h i c h h e w a s

c o n v i c t e d

.

T e s t i m o n y r e l a t i v e t o t h i s i s s u e w a s t h e f o l l o w i n g t e s t i m o n y f

r o m F a t h e r :

Q

. Y o u ’ r e H I V p o s i t i v e ; i s t h a t c o r r e c t ?

A

. W h e r e a r e y o u g e t t i n g t h i s ? N o

, I ’ m n o t H I V p o s i t i v e

. Q

. I s n ’ t i t t r u e

, s i r

, t h a t y o u w e r e H I V p o s i t i v e a t t h e t i m e y o u s e x u a l l y

a b u s e d y o u r n i e c e a n d n e p h e w ?

A

. M a ’ a m

, I a m n o t H I V p o s i t i v e

.

M s

. N e e l y a l s o t e s t i f

i e d a s f o l l o w s :

Q

. T o y o u r k n o w l e d g e i s [ F a t h e r ] H I V p o s i t i v e ?

A

. T o m y k n o w l e d g e

, y e s

. Q

. I n f a c t

, i s n ’ t h i s w i f

e H I V p o s i t i v e ?

A

. S h e i s

. Q

. A t t h e t i m e t h a t h e o f f e n d e d a g a i n s t h i s n i e c e a n d n e p h e w h e

w a s H I V p o s i t i v e ; i s t h a t c o r r e c t ?

A

. T o m y k n o w l e d g e

.

I n t h e o r d e r t e r m i n a t i n g F a t h e r ’ s r i g h t s

, t h e c o u r t d o e s n o t m a k e a f a c t u a l f i n d i n g t h a t

F a t h e r w a s H I V p o s i t i v e ; n e i t h e r d o e s t h e c o u r t r e f e r e n c e t h e t e s t i m o n y i n i t s d i s c u s s i o n o f

t h e g r o u n d s f

o r t e r m i n a t i o n

. F a t h e r d o e s n o t e x p l a i n

, o t h e r t h a n a r e f e r e n c e t o “ t h e s t i g m a

c r e a t e d b y t h e d e s i g n a t i o n o f H I V

- p o s i t i v e s t a t u s

, ” w h y h e c o n s i d e r s t h i s t o b e a n i s s u e i n

t h i s a p p e a l

, o n e w h i c h e n t i t l e s h i m t o r e l i e f

. T h e r e i s n o t h i n g t o i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e t r i a l c o u r t

c o n s i d e r e d t h e t e s t i m o n y f o r a n y p u r p o s e w h a t s o e v e r

. T h i s i s s u e i s w i t h o u t m e r i t

.

I I I

. B E S T I N T E R E S T

O n c e a g r o u n d f

o r t e r m i n a t i o n h a s b e e n p r o v e n b y c l e a r a n d c o n v i n c i n g e v i d e n c e

, t h e

t r i a l c o u r t m u s t t h e n d e t e r m i n e w h e t h e r i t i s t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t o f t h e c h i l d f o r t h e p a r e n t ’ s

r i g h t s t o b e t e r m i n a t e d

, a g a i n u s i n g t h e c l e a r a n d c o n v i n c i n g e v i d e n c e s t a n d a r d

. T h e

l e g i s l a t u r e h a s s e t o u t a l i s t o f f a c t o r s a t T e n n

. C o d e A n n

. § 3 6

- 1

- 1 1 3 ( i ) f o r t h e c o u r t s t o

(

. . . c o n t i n u e d ) 7

-7-f

o l l o w i n d e t e r m i n i n g t h e c h i l d ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t

. T h e l i s t o f f a c t o r s i n t h e s t a t u t e i s n o t 8

e x h a u s t i v e

, a n d t h e s t a t u t e d o e s n o t r e q u i r e e v e r y f a c t o r t o a p p e a r b e f

o r e a c o u r t c a n f

i n d t h a t

t e r m i n a t i o n i s i n a c h i l d ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t

. S e e I n r e S

. L

. A

. , 2 2 3 S

. W

. 3 d 2 9 5

, 3 0 1 ( T e n n

. C t

.

A p p

. 2 0 0 6 ) ( c i t i n g T

e n n

. D e p ’ t o f C h i l d r e n ’ s S e r v s

. v

. T

. S

. W

. , N o

. M 2 0 0 1

- 0 1 7 3 5

- C O A

- R 3

-

C V

, 2 0 0 2 W L 9 7 0 4 3 4

, a t * 3 ( T e n n

. C t

. A p p

. M a y 1 0

, 2 0 0 2 ) ; I n r e I

. C

. G

. , N o

. E 2 0 0 6

- 0 0 7 4 6

-

C O A

- R 3

- P T

, 2 0 0 6 W L 3 0 7 7 5 1 0

, a t * 4 ( T e n n

. C t

. A p p

. O c t

. 3 1

, 2 0 0 6 ) )

.

T h e t r i a l c o u r t m a d e t h e f o l l o w i n g f

i n d i n g s i n s u p p o r t o f i t s d e t e r m i n a t i o n t h a t

t e r m i n a t i o n o f F a t h e r ’ s p a r e n t a l r i g h t s w a s i n t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t o f t h e c h i l d r e n :

1

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a s n o t m a d e a n a d j u s t m e n t o f c i r c u m s t a n c e s

,

c o n d u c t o r c o n d i t i o n s a s t o m a k e i t s a f e a n d i n t h e c h i l d r e n ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t t o

b e i n t h e h o m e o f t h e p a r e n t

.

2

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a s f a i l e d t o e f

f e c t a l a s t i n g a d

j u s t m e n t a f

t e r

r e a s o n a b l e e f

f o r t s b y a v a i l a b l e s o c i a l a g e n c i e s f o r s u c h d u r a t i o n o f t i m e t h a t

l a s t i n g a d

j u s t m e n t d o e s n o t r e a s o n a b l y a p p e a r p o s s i b l e

. W h i l e i n c a r c e r a t e d

,

M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a d t h e f o l l o w i n g s e r v i c e s a v a i l a b l e t o h i m : a p s y c h o

- s e x u a l

T he f act ors at T enn . Code Ann. § 36- 1- 113( i) ar e: 8

I n det er m ini ng whet her te rminat ion of par ent al or guardi ans hip ri ghts is in the bes t int er est

of the chi ld pur sua nt to thi s par t, the cou rt sha ll con si der

, but is not li m it ed to, the fol lowi ng:

(1) Wh et her the par ent or guardi an has m ade suc h an adj ust m ent of ci rc um st anc e, con duc t,

o r c o n dit ion s as to m ake it saf e and in the chi ld’ s bes t int er est to be in the home o f t h e

par ent or guardi an;

(2) Wh et her the par ent or guardi an has fa il ed to ef fe ct a la st ing adj ust m ent af te r re aso nab le

ef for ts by avail abl e soc ia l ser vices agenci es for suc h dur at ion of ti m e tha t la st ing adj ust m ent

doe s no t r eas ona bly app ear pos si ble ;

(3) Wh et her th e pa re nt or g uar dia n has m ai nta ine d r egular visi ta ti on o r o the r c ont act wit h

the chi ld;

(4) Wh et her a m ean ingfu l re la ti ons hip has oth er wis e bee n est abl is hed bet ween th e pa re nt

or guardi an a nd t he c hil d;

(5) T he ef

fe ct a cha nge of car et akers and physic al envir onment is li kel y t o h a ve on the

chi ld’ s e m oti ona l, p sychol ogical and m edi cal con dit ion ;

(6) Wh et her the par ent or guardi an, or oth er per son re si din g wit h the par ent or guardi an, has

sho wn brut al it y, physic al

, sex ual

, emotion al or psychol ogical abu se, or neglec t towa rd the

chi ld, or ano the r c hil d or adu lt in th e f amily or h ous eho ld;

(7) Wh et her the physic al envir onment of the par ent ’s or guardi an’ s home is hea lt hy and saf e,

whet her the re is cr iminal act ivit y in the h o me

, o r w het her the re is suc h use of al coh ol,

c ont rol le d sub st anc es or con tr oll ed sub st anc e ana logues as m ay re nde r the p a r e n t o r

guardi an c ons is te ntl y unabl e t o ca re fo r t he c hil d i n a saf e a nd s ta ble m ann er ;

(8) Wh et her the par ent ’s or guardi an’ s m ent al and /or emotion al st at us woul d be det ri m ent al

to the chi ld or pre vent the par ent or guardi an fr om ef fe ct ively pro vidin g saf

e and st abl e car e

and sup er visio n f

or the chi ld; or

(9) Wh et her the par ent or guardi an has pai d chi ld sup por t con si st ent wit h the chi ld sup por t

guidel ine s pr om

ulgat ed b y the d epa rt m ent pur sua nt to § 36

- 5- 101.

-8-e v a l u a t i o n

, s e x u a l o f f e n d e r c o u n s e l i n g

, a n A & D a s s e s s m e n t

, p a r e n t i n g

a s s e s s m e n t

.

3

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a s c o m m i t t e d b r u t a l i t y

, p h y s i c a l

, s e x u a l

, e m o t i o n a l

o r p s y c h o l o g i c a l a b u s e o r n e g l e c t t o w a r d o t h e r c h i l d r e n i n t h e f a m i l y o r

h o u s e h o l d

. H e s e x u a l l y a b u s e d h i s n i e c e a n d n e p h e w

.

4

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. e m o t i o n a l s t a t u s w o u l d b e d e t r i m e n t a l t o t h e c h i l d r e n

a n d / o r p r e v e n t h i m f

r o m e f f e c t i v e l y p r o v i d i n g s a f

e a n d s t a b l e c a r e a n d

s u p e r v i s i o n f

o r t h e c h i l d r e n

.

5

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a s n o t m a i n t a i n e d r e g u l a r c o n t a c t w i t h t h e c h i l d r e n

t h r o u g h t h e m a i l

.

6

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. h a s s h o w n l i t t l e o r n o g e n u i n e i n t e r e s t i n t h e w e l f a r e

o f t h e c h i l d r e n

.

7

. M i c h a e l A

. P

. , S r

. c o n t i n u e s t o m a k e l i f e s t y l e c h o i c e s t h a t p r e v e n t h i m

f r o m b e i n g a b l e t o p a r e n t t h e c h i l d r e n o r t o p r o v i d e a h o m e f o r t h e c h i l d r e n

.

8

. T h e c h i l d r e n a r e p l a c e d i n a f o s t e r h o m e t h a t w i s h e s t o a d o p t t h e

c h i l d r e n

.

9

. T h e c h i l d r e n h a v e e s t a b l i s h e d a s t r o n g b o n d w i t h t h e f o s t e r p a r e n t s

.

1 0

. T h e c h i l d r e n h a v e e x p r e s s e d a d e s i r e t o r e m a i n i n t h e i r f o s t e r h o m e

.

1 1

. T h e c h i l d r e n ’ s m e n t a l h e a l t h c o u n s e l o r h a s o p i n e d t h a t i t i s i n t h e

c h i l d r e n ’ s b e s t i n t e r e s t t o e s t a b l i s h p e r m a n e n c y f o r t h e c h i l d r e n a s s o o n a s

p o s s i b l e t h r o u g h a d o p t i o n

.

1 2

. L a k i t a E

. P

. h a s m e n t a l l i m i t a t i o n s a n d b e h a v i o r a l i s s u e s

. M i c h a e l A

.

P

. h a s d e p r e s s i v e a n d a n g e r m a n a g e m e n t i s s u e s

. B o t h n e e d a s t a b l e

, s t r u c t u r e d

l o v i n g h o m e

, w h i c h t h e y h a v e w i t h t h e f o s t e r p a r e n t s

.

1 3

. T h e c h i l d r e n n e e d t o b e r e l e a s e d f r o m t h e s t i g m a o f b e i n g f o s t e r

c h i l d r e n

.

W h i l e t h e e v i d e n c e s h o w s t h a t F a t h e r c o m p l e t e d a n a n g e r r e s o l u t i o n s e m i n a r a n d a

p a r e n t t r a i n i n g p r o g r a m a n d t h a t h e p r o g r e s s e d i n a c q u i r i n g v o c a t i o n a l s k i l l s w h i l e i n p r i s o n

, b e s t i n t e r e s t i s v i e w e d f r o m t h e p e r s p e c t i v e o f t h e c h i l d r e n

. T h e c h i l d r e n h a v e s u b s t a n t i a l

i s s u e s r e l a t e d t o t h e i r m e n t a l a n d e m o t i o n a l d e v e l o p m e n t a n d t h e r e i s n o t h i n g i n t h i s r e c o r d

t o s h o w t h a t F a t h e r c a n a d d r e s s t h e i r n e e d s

. T h e t e s t i m o n y a n d o t h e r e v i d e n c e c l e a r l y a n d

c o n v i n c i n g l y s u p p o r t s t h e t r i a l c o u r t ’ s d e t e r m i n a t i o n

.

C O N C L U S I O N

E v e n t h o u g h F a t h e r h a s n o t s p e c i f i c a l l y a p p e a l e d t h e o t h e r g r o u n d s u p o n w h i c h h i s

p a r e n t a l r i g h t s w e r e t e r m i n a t e d

, w e h a v e r e v i e w e d t h e r e c o r d a n d c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e

s u p p o r t s a l l g r o u n d s o f t e r m i n a t i o n

. A c c o r d i n g l y

, w e a f f i r m t h e d e c i s i o n o f t h e t r i a l c o u r t

.

-9-_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ R I C H A R D H

. D I N K I N S

, J U D G E

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