Opinion ID: 874107
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: John Doe.

Text: The trial court found that John Doe neglected S.S. and T.S., both of whom have special needs, concluding that John Doe is barely able to provide for himself and that termination is in both his and the children's best interests. John Doe argues that the trial court's decision to terminate his parental rights in both S.S. and T.S. was not supported by substantial and competent evidence. Specifically, John Doe argues that he did not neglect the children based on the following: (1) before his incarceration, he had both telephone and physical contact with them; (2) while in prison, he arranged for telephone visits with them and made positive steps on his case plan; and (3) after his incarceration, he immediately contacted the Department, arranged for visitation, and completed most of his case plan despite facing significant difficulties. John Doe does not challenge the best interests of the children prong of the trial court's decision to terminate his parental rights. In reaching its decision, the trial court noted that John Doe completed some of the requirements of his case plan: taking parenting classes, obtaining a substance abuse evaluation in 2007, and regularly attending supervised visits with the children after his release from prison. However, the trial court found that, even though John Doe received services under a case plan for two years and had been out of prison for over seven months on the date of the trial, John Doe utterly and completely failed to complete the two primary requirements of his case plan: (1) providing a safe and stable home environment; and (2) providing a legal source of income for his family. John Doe admitted at trial that he does not have a suitable home environment for his children and that he has no money or job. Since his release from prison on May 6, 2010, he has bounced between friends for his living arrangements, and he has worked only one day and has lived off of support from friends, food banks, food stamps and clothing vouchers. He says his future plan is to return to his mother's property in Mississippi, purchase a trailer home for the property and work for $8.50 per hour on a water-well drilling rig with his brother. In Doe v. Department of Health and Welfare, this Court upheld the trial court's decision to terminate parental rights where two of the primary factors upon which the trial court found neglect as defined in I.C. § 16-2005(b) were the parents' unfavorable living arrangements and employment situation. 141 Idaho 511, 513-16, 112 P.3d 799, 801-04 (2005). Similarly, in this case, John Doe admits that he does not have suitable living arrangements and employment. In addition to John Doe's failure to establish a suitable residence and obtain adequate employment, John Doe has a criminal history, including convictions for misdemeanor injury to a child, misdemeanor assault, lack of vehicle insurance, and felony writing checks with insufficient funds. John Doe also has multiple convictions for driving without privileges, including one since his release from prison. He has no driver's license, and his driving privileges are suspended. He has not been paying child support for S.S. and T.S., nor has he been paying child support for his two other children. He has not yet obtained a GED. While he was initially sentenced to probation for the felony insufficient funds conviction, he violated his probation for drinking alcohol on the job. He failed his programming under the retained jurisdiction program. He was denied parole, because as he explained, he would rather do his time than the programming. Despite John Doe's efforts to maintain some contact with his children and despite some progress on his case plan, we hold that the trial court had substantial and competent evidence to find that John Doe neglected S.S. and T.S. under I.C. § 16-1602(25)(a) and (b) and I.C. § 16-2002(3)(b). John Doe argues that his case is similar to Doe v. State, 137 Idaho 758, 53 P.3d 341 (2002). In Doe v. State , the district court affirmed the trial court's decision to terminate the father's parental rights on the grounds of abandonment and neglect where the father was incarcerated on the child's date of birth, failed his rider program, never met his child, and never provided child support. Id. at 759-61, 53 P.3d at 342-44. This Court held that the finding of neglect and abandonment was not supported by substantial and competent evidence, finding that the Department trivialized the father's efforts to have a relationship with his son, which were significant in light of the reality of the father's situation (being incarcerated from birth through a significant portion of the child's life up to the time of the termination), and that the Department did little or nothing to assist in the father's efforts. Id. at 762, 53 P.3d at 345. This Court remanded the case for consideration of the evidence already presented as well as evidence of Doe's conduct since his release from the penitentiary, stating: The record stops short of evidence as to [the father's] conduct since his release. If he has taken no steps to establish a parental relationship since his release that evidence may be considered.... The case at hand is distinguishable. John Doe was not incarcerated when his children were born, yet he did little at that time to provide parental care. While incarcerated, John Doe had phone visits with his children, but he failed to take advantage of work opportunities which could have allowed him to help provide for his children. John Doe received assistance from the Department in working on his case plan. Most significantly, there is evidence in the record of the steps John Doe has and has not taken since his release from prison, including his failure to establish suitable living arrangements, his failure to obtain adequate employment and his conviction for driving without privileges. Finally, John Doe claims that since his release from prison he has faced logistical difficulties which prevented him from discharging his parental duties. However, John Doe fails to point to neglect cases where logistical difficulties were deemed to excuse a parent from discharging their parental duties. John Doe relies on Doe v. Doe, 150 Idaho 46, 244 P.3d 190 (2010). In Doe v. Doe, this Court held that the trial court's finding that the father abandoned his child based upon the failure to maintain a normal parental relationship without just cause was not supported by substantial and competent evidence, because the record showed that the father had just cause based upon the fact that he did not have the time, money or requisite permission from the military to regularly visit his son. Id. at ___, 244 P.3d at 195-96. Doe v. Doe is inapplicable to the case at hand because it concerns the just cause defense to abandonment; there is no just cause defense for neglect.