SUMMARY: A preponderance of the evidence established that keeping the newborn with the mother in a prison nursery is contrary to the child’s welfare based on the mother’s past criminal and child welfare history.
Kenyetta, DOB 3/11, was removed from the mother, Crystalynn, immediately after birth after the juvenile court issued an ex parte order. Crystalynn was incarcerated at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women (NCCW) and had been approved to have the child live with her in the prison nursery program. The Protective Custody hearing was held on April 12, 2011. Evidence was presented establishing that Crystalynn has had child welfare involvement since 2002, that three of her children have been removed for abandonment or neglect due to drug use and that she lost her parental rights to all three children, the most recent on December 10, 2010. Crystalynn had been incarcerated in the past for two drug convictions and a burglary conviction, the longest period of incarceration lasting almost three years. After the hearing, the juvenile court continued out of home placement and Crystalynn appealed challenging that placement with her was contrary to the child’s welfare.
The Nebraska Court of Appeals affirmed the juvenile court’s order. Specifically, the Court of Appeals recognized that Crystalynn when outside of a controlled environment would have a strong likelihood of relapse given her history, which includes a 10-year ongoing drug problem, a 9-year history with child welfare, and a criminal history, and that the juvenile court must consider this when deciding whether current placement is contrary to the child’s welfare.