SUMMARY: Termination of parental rights was proper when the father took over a year to establish paternity, did not participate in offered services, and was incarcerated for most of the child’s life.
In April, 2009, Kaira (DOB 1/2009) was removed from her mother’s home following her mother’s arrest. The Stat filed a petition as to Craig alleging Craig failed to provide Kaira with safe and appropriate housing; this was dismissed in July of 2009 because Craig indicated he was not sure he was Kaira’s biological father. Despite this, Craig requested he be involved with the juvenile court proceedings. Craig submitted to a paternity test in July 2010 that confirmed he was Kaira’s biological father. The State filed a supplemental petition in September 2010 as to Craig; Craig admitted to the allegations and Kaira was adjudicated in October 2010. The State subsequently filed a motion to terminate Craig’s parental rights to Kaira. At a termination hearing in December 2011, evidence was introduced that Craig did participate in an ordered pretreatment assessment but did not participate in the recommended therapy and classes. In addition, Craig attended 14 visits with Kaira and appropriately parented her during these times, but the visits ceased following Craig’s arrest for assault and possessing a weapon. The juvenile court terminated Craig’s parental rights.
The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the termination of parental rights. First, the Court noted that the Department offered Craig numerous services, including a family support worker, that Craig refused. Additionally, termination was in Kaira’s best interests because Craig originally denied paternity and did not submit to a paternity test for over a year. Craig also never followed up on the recommendations from the pretreatment assessment. Though Craig did participate in visits for a short period of time, the visits ceased due to his incarceration. Craig consistently failed to cooperate with offered services and there was no bond between him and Kaira, so termination of his parental rights was proper.