Opinion ID: 2371857
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Mother's Substance Abuse and Criminal History

Text: At the show cause hearing, the mother, L.H., admitted to a long history of drug abuse and instability, which led to her children being removed from her care. Specifically, L.H. testified that she began using crack cocaine and PCP in 1985. As a result of her addiction, she was involved in several instances of criminal activity, incarceration, and physical abuse. [5] L.H. sold drugs to support her addictions and was arrested for drug-related crimes in October 1986 and July 1989. As a result of these arrests, L.H. was incarcerated for three years and spent three years and six months on probation. [6] L.H. testified that she used drugs during her pregnancies, despite knowing that this could harm her children and cause medical problems for them. Despite L.H.'s long history of drug abuse, the record also shows, and the trial court explicitly acknowledged, that L.H. has taken steps to free herself from her addiction. [7] L.H. began this process of recovery in 1996 after her children were removed from her care with an enrollment in a 28-day drug treatment program at Kerrick Hall. In November 1998, L.H. entered the House of Ruth Program, which provided her with housing and drug treatment. In August 1999, L.H. transitioned into the House of Ruth's reunification program, which made it possible for at least one of her children to be placed with her. In 1999, the trial court allowed E.H. to live with L.H., and in 2000, allowed D.H. and M.H. to live with her as well. During this time that L.H. resided at the House of Ruth, CFSA provided L.H. with services to assist her in caring for her children, and also monitored her progress in the program. These services included drug treatment referrals, rental and monetary assistance, clothing vouchers, mentoring services for her children, and inhome family counseling. Despite her efforts at treatment and services from CFSA, L.H. relapsed from 2001-2003, shortly after moving into her own apartment with her children. During this two year period, D.H., M.H., E.H., and T.H. were once again removed from her care and placed into foster care with the petitioners J.B.N. and T.F.N. After the children were removed from her care, L.H. became homeless from September 2002 to September 2003 and continued to use drugs. In a third attempt to overcome her drug addiction, L.H. moved into the Naomi Transformation Center, a housing and drug treatment program, in September 2003. L.H. testified that at this point, she finally started to turn things around, and that her time at the center was her phoenix rising. At the time of the 2005 show cause hearing, L.H. was living in her own one bedroom apartment in Washington, D.C. with C.H., her youngest daughter, who is not subject to this appeal. L.H. was also working as a pizza delivery person, and estimated her yearly income to be between $15,000 and $16,000. [8] At the show cause hearing, L.H. testified that she had not used drugs or alcohol for approximately eighteen months.