Opinion ID: 2518840
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Termination Based on Alyssa's Mental Illness

Text: Alyssa argues that the superior court improperly used her past or present or future mental illness to terminate [her] parental rights. She relies on our statement in V.S.B. v. State that [m]ental illness, absent related conduct, cannot be a basis for termination of parental rights. [46] We first observe that the department's petition for termination was based on the grounds that Jaclyn was a child in need of aid under five separate provisions of Alaska law: AS 47.10.011(1), (6), (8)(B)(i), (9), and (11). [47] At the conclusion of the trial, the superior court found by clear and convincing evidence that Jaclyn was a child in need of aid under two alternative grounds: Alyssa's mental illness under AS 47.10.011(11) and Alyssa's abandonment of Jaclyn under AS 47.10.011(1). Because either finding alone would support the termination order and because Alyssa does not challenge the court's finding of abandonment, her challenge to the mental illness finding has no impact on the outcome of the case. In any event, we conclude that Alyssa's argument regarding mental illness lacks merit, since the trial court did not terminate her parental rights merely because she suffered from a mental illness. Although the expert testimony at trial certainly supported the conclusion that Alyssa suffered from chronic depression and borderline personality disorder, the superior court did not ground its termination order on these signs of mental illness alone. Instead, the court relied on specific conduct by Alyssa that would continue to place Jaclyn at risk if she were placed in Alyssa's custody: Alyssa's complete refusal to work with the department and her consequent failure to develop any attachment or bond with Jaclyn in the three years since Jaclyn's birth. The court emphasized that Alyssa also refused to get psychological treatment and had not taken the first step of obtaining a valid psychological evaluation in accordance with her case plan. And it further found that Alyssa was completely unable to cooperate with authority figures, expressing concern that she would not be able or willing to get adequate help for Jaclyn if the child needed it for medical or other problems. We conclude that the superior court adequately combined the finding that Alyssa suffered from a mental illness to evidence of actual, conduct-based problems creating a risk of substantial harm to Jaclyn. Because the court's decision to terminate Alyssa's parental rights was not based on her mental illness alone, we affirm the superior court's ruling that Jaclyn was a child in need of aid under AS 47.10.011(11).