SUMMARY: Evidence supported the mother’s termination of parental rights when there was testimony that the mother was given sufficient time to place herself in a position to parent and was either unable or unwilling to do so, even though there was some evidence that showed the mother had made progress.
In October of 2009, Danial (DOB 1/14/2003) was removed from his mother’s home after law enforcement observed the home to be in a filthy condition. Danial was adjudicated later that year due to the faults or habits of his mother, Shawna. In January of 2012, the juvenile court ordered that no reasonable efforts were required. A motion to terminate Shawna’s parental rights was filed in January of 2012, and a termination hearing was held in July, August, and November of 2012. At the termination hearing, evidence was introduced that Danial had been removed from Shawna’s home due to a filthy condition. The State had offered Shawna numerous services, including a parenting assessment, individual and family therapy, and intensive family preservation services. Evidence showed that Shawna demonstrated improvement and a willingness to participate in services early in the case, and Danial was returned home. Testimony showed that Shawna and Danial moved into a shelter, where Shawna continued to demonstrate an inability to keep her room clean and to care for Danial. However, Danial was again removed from Shawna’s care in October of 2010. Shawna continued to have semi-supervised visits with Danial, but these were changed to supervised visits due to Shawna bringing unauthorized people to the visitations and other concerns with Shawna’s ability to parent. Testimony demonstrated that Shawna consistently attended visitation, made some progress in her parenting skills, and shared a bond with Danial, but also that Shawna failed to provide documentation of employment, a lease, or completion of required services and that Shawna was no longer taking her psychotropic medication. Shawna also exhibited difficulty in disciplining Danial. The court terminated Shawna’s parental rights as to Danial.
The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the termination of parental rights. The Court noted that Danial had been in foster care for almost two years prior to the petition to terminate Shawna’s parental rights. Termination was also in Danial’s best interest because Shawna failed to take advantage of the numerous services offered to her throughout the years and had failed to make any significant progress in the behavior that led to Danial’s initial removal. Shawna had been given sufficient time to place herself in a position to parent Danial and had been either unable or unwilling to do so, while Danial needed stability and permanency.