Opinion ID: 2326676
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Domestic Abuse

Text: [¶ 33] The jeopardy order also contained the finding that the children have been ... subject to emotional abuse by exposure to domestic discord. [6] In her July 2002 letter to William, the Department's caseworker stated that she expected William to attend and complete Violence No More. At the termination hearing, the court received evidence that at the time the children went into the Department's custody, the parents frequently argued and that the father had, on one occasion, pulled the phone cord out of the wall during an argument. The court also found that during the months following the jeopardy determination, the mother had, for a time, discontinued her relationship with [William], and admitted to [the DHS Caseworker] ... that her relationship with [William] had been `at least emotionally abusive.' In its termination decision, the court concluded that William was unable to prevent Thomas from being in jeopardy and take responsibility for him within a period that is reasonably calculated to meet his needs, in part, because he had not commenced or completed a certified batterers intervention program such as Violence No More. [¶ 34] Because there was no rehabilitation and reunification plan requiring William to complete a certified batterers intervention program, his failure to complete such a program is not, taken alone, clear and convincing evidence supporting the court's conclusion regarding prospective jeopardy. The evidence regarding the parties' arguments and Angela's realization, expressed to her counselor, that William was controlling and that the relationship had been emotionally abusive relates almost entirely to the status of the parties' relationship as of January 2002. Subsequent to the jeopardy finding and following their resumption of cohabitation, Angela and William engaged in individual and joint counseling, completed parent education programs, and improved the condition of their shared residence. [¶ 35] The jeopardy order did not find that William committed domestic violence or domestic abuse; rather, it found that the children were subjected to emotional abuse by exposure to domestic discord. Certified batterers intervention programs are, however, reserved for perpetrators of domestic abuse. [7] 1A C.M.R. 03 201 015-5 § 4.1(B)(3) (2003). In the absence of a plan establishing as a benchmark that William must complete a certified batterers intervention program, the record does not otherwise support a conclusion by clear and convincing evidence that William was an appropriate candidate for a batterers intervention program and that his failure to complete such a program results in prospective jeopardy to the child.