Opinion ID: 1997862
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Abuse of Discretion in Disposition of the Case.

Text: In the trial court, the father argued that the GAL's motion for a TPR should be denied because there was no information in the record regarding A.R.'s opinion as to his own best interest. Although it is not altogether clear that the father is reiterating this argument on appeal, [12] we are prepared to treat his submission in this court as preserving this contention. See Part III B., supra. A TPR, as we have noted, is a drastic remedy. It severs forever all of the ties between parent and child. The burden on the moving party is therefore a heavy one. The GAL must demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence, see D.C.Code § 16-2359(f), that it is in A.R.'s best interest to terminate his relationship, actual or potential, with someone who brought him into this world. If the TPR in this case is affirmed, then in the eyes of the law, this son no longer has a father. One of the specific criteria set forth in the statute for determining whether parental rights should be terminated is the child's opinion regarding his own best interest. Where, as here, the judge has made no finding regarding that issue and the record is barren of any evidence with respect to it, we think it incumbent upon the appellate court to scrutinize the record critically. We must be sure that the TPR was providently issued, in A.R.'s best interest, notwithstanding the absence of any evidence as to A.R.'s opinion. We have no doubt that, in the generality of cases, termination is much less troubling if the child's opinion is before the court, and if a finding has been made with respect to it. Our prior cases have implied as much, see, e.g., I.B., supra, 631 A.2d at 1230-32 (citing authorities), and common sense reinforces the point. Nevertheless, as the father's attorney explicitly conceded in the trial court, the absence of evidence regarding the child's opinion of his own best interest is not dispositive. [13] The criteria set forth in section 16-2353(b) are not comparable to the elements of a criminal offense. A TPR may be entered if the moving party has prevailed with respect to some but not all of the statutory factors. In some cases, the evidence with respect to one factor may point in one direction, while the evidence as to a second factor may suggest a contrary disposition. The judge's responsibility is to consider the evidence in the record with respect to all of the statutory criteria. He or she must balance all of the relevant considerations, and choose between the available alternatives, all of which may well be less than perfect. The judge must do all of this with a single goal in mind, namely to protect and promote the best interest of the child. A child custody case thus demands the paradigmatic discretionary call, often a very difficult one. See In re Petition of D.I.S., 494 A.2d 1316, 1323 (D.C.1985) (citations omitted). There is no single litmus test. Each case must be decided on its own facts. In some circumstances, the lack of information as to a child's preference may loom very large indeed. If, for example, A.R. were sixteen years of age, and if he were well-acquainted with his father and with his prospective adoptive parents, it would be difficult to imagine how a court could appropriately terminate the father's rights without meaningful input from the teenager whose future hangs in the balance. Without any information as to the boy's opinion, the evidence supporting a termination of all ties between father and son could rarely be viewed as clear or convincing. One would expect, in such a case, that the party whose position would be enhanced by disclosure of the boy's preference could find a way to present the information to the court. But even in such a case, the youngster's preference, though important, is not necessarily dispositive. See 1 ATKINSON, supra, §§ 4.44-4.46, at 295-99. At the time of the fact-finding hearing in this case, A.R. was not sixteen years old, but six. [14] To be sure, in the trial judge's view, A.R. was old enough presumably to understand what it means not to ever see his mother or father again ... and to be asked what he wants. Nevertheless, as we have noted, A.R.'s father had dropped out of the boy's life, and A.R. did not know him at all. An impartial judge could reasonably conclude that in these circumstances, the lack of any record information regarding A.R.'s opinion of his own best interest should not, standing alone, preclude termination of the father's rights. Indeed, the father's counsel has not argued, either in the trial court or on appeal, that the absence of evidence on this statutory factor is dispositive.