Court Opinion

ID: 9766633
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 04:55:47.083849+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:24.351689
License: Public Domain

DANA, J.,
with whom ALEXANDER and CALKINS, JJ., join, dissenting.
[¶ 16] I respectfully dissent. The record certainly reveals instances of parental carelessness. Parenting is difficult. Few parent perfectly. But one or a few bad parenting decisions do not equate to the constitutionally-mandated standard for a jeopardy finding necessary for the State to invade the family and separate a ten-year-old child from his mother.
[¶ 17] As we recently held, “the parental interest in maintaining the parent-child relationship is one of the most fundamental liberty interests protected by our constitution.” In re Jazmine L., 2004 ME 125, ¶ 12 861 A.2d 1277, 1280, 2004 WL 2192317, *3. See also In re Alana S., 2002 ME 126, 1116, 802 A.2d 976, 980; In re Scott S., 2001 ME 114, ¶ 20 n. 12, 775 A.2d 1144, 1151; Rideout v. Riendeau, 2000 ME 198, ¶ 12, 761 A.2d 291, 297. This fundamental liberty interest of parents in maintaining the parent-child relationship and protecting the integrity of the family was most recently recognized by the United States Supreme Court in Troxel v. Granville, 530 U.S. 57, 65-66, 120 S.Ct. 2054, 147 L.Ed.2d 49 (2000).
[¶ 18] Respecting society’s interest in protecting the integrity of the family and the fundamental liberty interest involved, the statutory standard for a jeopardy finding necessary to justify State invasion of the family and separation of children from parents is very high indeed. The protection order here may issue only if the court finds, by a preponderance of the evidence, that “the child is in circumstances of jeopardy to the child’s health or welfare.” 22 M.R.S.A. § 4035(2) (2004). In the statute, “jeopardy” means:
serious abuse or neglect, as evidenced by:
A. Serious harm or threat of serious harm;
B. Deprivation of adequate food, clothing, shelter, supervision or care, including health care when that deprivation causes a threat of serious harm;
C. Abandonment of the child or absence of any person responsible for the child, which creates a threat of serious harm; or
D. The end of voluntary placement, when the imminent return of the child to his custodian causes a threat of serious harm.
22 M.R.S.A. § 4002(6) (2004).
[¶ 19] The jeopardy definition is the basic guide for determining parental unfitness to trigger a final protection order. Notably for a jeopardy determination, harm to a child, or abuse or neglect must be “serious.” “Serious harm” is then defined in section 4002(10) as:
A. Serious injury;
B. Serious mental or emotional injury or impairment which now or in the future is likely to be evidenced by serious mental, behavioral or personality disorder, including severe anxiety, depression or withdrawal, untoward aggressive behavior, seriously delayed development or similar serious dysfunctional behavior; or
*1292C. Sexual abuse or exploitation.
22 M.R.S.A. § 4002(10) (2004).
[¶20] The jeopardy and serious harm definitions may be fairly read to indicate that parental unfitness sufficiently dangerous to the child to justify a jeopardy finding may only occur when the trial court finds evidence demonstrating physical or sexual abuse, abandonment, repeated exposure of a child to danger, gross and long-term emotional or physical neglect, or some other serious threat to the safety of a child resulting from the parent’s acts or omissions. The Court’s opinion equates bad parenting with jeopardy and in doing so lowers the very high standard that the constitution requires be met to justify the invasion of family integrity.
[¶ 21] Inferior parenting may properly be subject to reproach and, hopefully, may generate assistance to the parent to reduce parenting problems, but a jeopardy finding is justified only if far more serious problems are identified. Because the record in this case does not reveal a threat of serious harm sufficient for a determination of jeopardy, I would vacate the judgments.
[¶ 22] With regard to Adrian, the court based its judgment on the following factual findings:
(1) Chronic failure to follow up on medical issues. (2) Failure to address serious behavioral problems or to try to assess cause. (3) Inadequate supervision to and after school. (4) Puts too much responsibility on Adrian and doesn’t respond when he fails to achieve goals (school attendance/performance/loose awareness of after school).
[¶ 23] Let us examine the record to see if these findings can support the serious harm/jeopardy determination.
[¶ 24] The court first found that the mother’s “chronic failure to follow up on medical issues” presented a threat of serious harm to Adrian, nine, and his one-year-old sister, Diamond. Dr. Thomas Walters testified regarding the children’s history at a family practice center in Bangor. Dr. Walters testified that he had never seen any of the children personally, and said they only came to his attention after DHS contacted him with concerns about the mother’s problems getting the children to follow-up appointments. The only health problems Dr. Walters described were that Adrian is obese and that he failed a hearing screening at school, possibly because he was suffering from an ear infection. Although the doctor said that the children had missed several follow-up appointments, he did not describe any serious threats to their well being, and testified that the mother brings the children in when there is an “urgent medical concern.” The record does not reveal any further evidence that the children suffered a “[deprivation of ... health care ... causing] a threat of serious harm.” 22 M.R.S.A. § 4002(6)(B).
[¶ 25] The court also found that Adrian’s mother had failed to “address serious behavioral problems or ... try to assess [the] cause.” Elementary school principal Paul Butler and DHS caseworker Dawn Arbo testified about Adrian’s behavioral issues. Butler said that early in the year Adrian was “habitually tardy” to school, but testified that the situation improved after the mother cooperated with him in developing a disciplinary plan.6 Butler *1293also said that Adrian repeatedly engaged in “horseplay” in the bathroom — sometimes peering over the stalls at other students — and was therefore put on a “bathroom plan” whereby his bathroom use was supervised. Butler also recounted some inappropriate behavior on the playground, and testified that Adrian had once forged his mother’s signature on a report card, though he did not report this incident to the mother. Finally, Butler testified that Adrian’s mother had been agreeable and had appropriately addressed the issues he brought to her attention.
[¶ 26] Regarding the incident of sexual conduct between Adrian and the four-year-old boy, Arbo testified that Adrian and his brother Benjamin said the four-year-old asked them to touch his penis, and no evidence in the record suggests that the brothers initiated the behavior. Nonetheless, Arbo was concerned that Adrian’s mother did not take the incident seriously enough and failed to get the boys into counseling.
[¶27] Neither Butler nor Arbo’s testimony suggests that Adrian’s behavioral problems are evidence of sexual abuse or a threat of serious harm. In fact, the record indicates that the mother responded adequately to his problems at school.
[¶ 28] The court further found that Adrian was “inadequately supervised] ... after school.” The only evidence in the record regarding Adrian’s after school supervision is testimony about an accident in which Adrian was struck by a vehicle on a street near his home. The evidence also established, however, that Adrian was at a friend’s house under the supervision of another adult, that Adrian called his mother that afternoon to let her know that he had arrived at the friend’s house, and that the vehicle that struck Adrian was speeding. While unfortunate, an accident under these circumstances is not persuasive evidence of Adrian’s mother’s failure to supervise him.
[¶ 29] Finally, the court found that Adrian’s mother puts “too much responsibility” on him and “doesn’t respond when he fails to achieve goals.” In its oral findings, the court expressed concern that Adrian’s mother had not accompanied him to school when she found out he was showing up late. Adrian’s mother testified, however, that her need to care for her younger children made it difficult for her to walk Adrian to school, and principal Butler testified that Adrian’s tardiness had improved after his mother cooperated in developing a disciplinary plan. The court was also concerned about Adrian’s academic performance. Though Butler testified that he thought Adrian was doing poorly in school, the court excluded the only direct evidence of his grades. Butler also testified that Adrian’s mother had cooperated with him and responded appropriately to his requests. The evidence in the record does not demonstrate that the mother’s failure to walk Adrian to school or respond to his academic troubles constituted a threat of serious harm.
[¶ 30] The court based its factual findings regarding Diamond largely on the evidence presented about Adrian. Diamond’s father did testify that he wanted to share custody, and the court found that the child would benefit from the cooperation of two parents. The court also heard testimony that the mother had refused services and had denied the guardian ad litem access to Diamond after she learned that DHS was exploring the possibility of reuniting the child with the father. The mother, however, testified that she was willing to cooperate with DHS services if the court ordered her to do so. The court itself recognized that problems of parental cooperation and visitation take place “in a lot of cases where DHS doesn’t pull jeop*1294ardy.” The mother’s decision to temporarily refuse services and parental access did not present a threat of serious harm to the child sufficient to support a finding of jeopardy.
[¶ 31] All of this demonstrates parent conduct sufficient to justify reproach, but insufficient to demonstrate the danger or serious harm necessary to support a jeopardy finding. In my opinion, the evidence relied upon by the District Court was insufficient to support the finding of serious harm that is necessary to justify the removal of children from the parent’s care. I would vacate the District Court’s judgments.

. Butler testified that the school classified Adrian as a "walker” because he lived so close to the school. Adrian had to walk across a playground on his way in, and it later became apparent that he was late because he was stopping to play with other children there. Adrian’s tardiness improved after the principal began holding him after school when he arrived late in the morning.