In re Tr.T.
Kelly Zacharias
5546 Pearl Road
Parma, Ohio 44129
Michael S. Weiss
602 Rockefeller Building
614 W. Superior Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44113
ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE, C.C.D.C.F.S.
Michael C. O‘Malley
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor
BY: Rachel V. Eisenberg
Assistant Prosecuting Attorney
C.C.D.C.F.S.
3955 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
BY: Cheryl Rice
Assistant Prosecuting Attorney
C.C.D.C.F.S.
8111 Quincy Avenue, Room 440
Cleveland, Ohio 44104
Also listed:
Guardian ad litem
Anna Markovich
18975 Villaview Road, #3
Cleveland, Ohio 44119
For Mother
W.T., pro se
7911 Pinegrove Avenue
Parma, Ohio 44129
{1} Appellant Father appeals from the orders awarding permanent custody of his three children, Tr.T., Te.T., and Th.T. (collectively “the children“), to the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services (“CCDCFS“). Upon review, we affirm.
{2} On June 17, 2014, CCDCFS filed a complaint for neglect and temporary custody of the children. CCDCFS alleged, among other allegations, that both Father and Mother, T.W., suffered substance abuse problems, that neither was providing appropriate care for the children, that Mother‘s whereabouts were unknown, and that Father was unable to provide for the children‘s basic needs. On September 3, 2014, the trial court adjudicated each child as neglected, terminated emergency temporary custody to Father, and committed the children to the emergency custody of CCDCFS. On October 14, 2014, the trial court granted temporary custody to CCDCFS.
{3} The children were placed in a foster-to-adopt home in Toledo, Ohio. On April 1, 2015, CCDCFS filed a motion to modify temporary custody to permanent custody. The motion was held in abeyance, and two extensions of temporary custody were granted.
{4} During the course of the proceedings, Father engaged in case plan services and was provided visitation with the children. Case plan objectives included substance abuse treatment, parenting, basic needs, medical, and housing. Mother did not participate in the proceedings or engage in case plan services.
{5} In August 2015, the trial court assigned a new social worker to the case. By August 2016, Father was continuing to make progress on his case plan; he had attained housing and was
{6} On August 31, 2016, CCDCFS filed a motion to terminate temporary custody with legal custody to Father and an order of protective supervision. However, on October 27, 2016, CCDCFS filed an emergency motion to modify visitation of Father from unsupervised at his home to supervised by CCDCFS. Father had tested positive for cocaine and marijuana. It was also reported that Father was allowing Mother to have unsupervised visits with the children, which was in direct defiance of court orders, and that Father had not fulfilled the children‘s basic needs in the home. The trial court suspended overnight visitation with Father and ordered Father to submit to random urine screenings. Father did not attend the urine screenings and asserted a lack of transportation. The trial court ordered that transportation be provided.
{7} On April 28, 2017, Father filed a motion to terminate temporary custody and for legal custody to Father or in the alternative to his sister, either as sole legal custodian or for shared parenting custody with Father.
{8} Trial was held on May 9, 2017. Evidence was presented that the children had been removed from the home on September 3, 2014, and that CCDCFS received temporary custody of the children on October 14, 2014. Although Father had provided the names of a relative and a friend for placement, the record reflects neither was a suitable placement. The children were placed in a foster home in Toledo, Ohio. Although the children were placed in Toledo, they were brought in regularly for visitation.
{9} At the time of the trial, the children had been in the temporary custody of CCDCFS for over two and one-half years. Mother did not participate in the proceedings and was found to have abandoned the children.
{11} Father had completed parenting classes, but he did not successfully demonstrate parenting skills and was not always consistent with visitation. He had continued substance abuse issues. His sister, who was willing to be a co-parent with Father, admitted Father needed substance abuse treatment. Also, Father had allowed Mother to be alone with the children, which was a violation of a court order prohibiting Mother from having unsupervised contact with the children.
{12} Father failed to establish sobriety, consistent employment, or an ability to meet the children‘s basic needs. CCDCFS assisted Father in attaining housing in 2016. Father had not demonstrated meaningful employment or provided any verified income. Also, Father had failed to financially support the minor children. The record reflects CCDCFS made referrals for substance abuse, drug screens, and employment, and provided Father‘s rental deposit.
{13} The guardian ad litem recommended permanent custody to CCDCFS. The guardian ad litem noted in her report that Father had plenty of time to meet the objectives of his case plan, yet he failed to demonstrate an ability to meet and a commitment to the children‘s basic needs and to provide a safe and secure environment for them. The guardian ad litem did not recommend legal custody to Father or the two relatives that testified. Neither relative had established a relationship with the children, and Father‘s cousin never filed a motion for legal custody.
{15} The trial court issued a journal entry, journalized July 11, 2017, that briefly summarized the testimony presented. Thereafter, the trial court issued a journal entry for each child, journalized July 12, 2017, that granted permanent custody to CCDCFS and terminated the parental rights of Mother and Father. Father timely filed this appeal.
{16} Father raises three assignments of error. Under his first assignment of error, Father challenges the denial of his motion for legal custody to his sister. He claims two of the paternal aunts were willing to take the children, had stable housing, and would have been suitable for placement had CCDCFS conducted an appropriate investigation. Under his second assignment of error, Father claims that CCDCFS failed to attempt to preserve the family unit by placing the children in a foster home in Toledo. He asserts that had the children been placed in a local foster home, visitation with Father and the children‘s extended family would have been more accessible. He questions the efforts of CCDCFS to assist the family in remedying the conditions that caused the removal of the children.
{17} Although
{19} Insofar as legal custody to a paternal aunt was requested, as this court has stated, “[t]he willingness of a relative to care for a child does not alter what a court considers in determining whether to grant permanent custody. * * * If permanent custody to CCDCFS is in [the child‘s] best interest, legal custody to [a relative] necessarily is not.” In re V.C., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga Nos. 102903, 103061, and 103367, 2015-Ohio-4991, ¶ 60, citing In re M.S., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga Nos. 101693 and 101694, 2015-Ohio-1028, ¶ 11. In deciding what is in a child‘s best interest in a permanent custody proceeding, the trial court need not find by clear and convincing
{20} We shall proceed to review the trial court‘s judgment awarding CCDCFS permanent custody and terminating Father‘s parental rights.
{21} A trial court‘s decision in a custody proceeding will not be reversed absent a showing of abuse of discretion. In re A.J., 148 Ohio St.3d 218, 2016-Ohio-8196, 69 N.E.3d 733, at ¶ 27.
{22} The trial court found that the condition under
{24} In determining the best interest of a child,
{25} Here, the trial court‘s opinion demonstrates that it considered the factors in
{26} The trial court further considered
{27} The trial court also considered the report and testimony of the guardian ad litem, who recommended permanent custody to CCDCFS as being in the best interest of the children.
{28} Upon considering the testimony and evidence submitted, the trial court determined by clear and convincing evidence that a grant of permanent custody to CCDCFS would be in the best interest of the children. Upon our review of the record, we find there is competent, credible evidence supporting the trial court‘s best-interest determination.
{29} There is no question that a parent has an “essential” and “basic civil right” to raise his or her child and a “fundamental liberty interest” in the care, custody, and management of his or her own child. In re Murray, 52 Ohio St.3d 155, 157, 556 N.E.2d 1169 (1990). However,
{30} Under his third assignment of error, Father challenges whether CCDCFS made reasonable efforts to prevent the removal of the children. The Supreme Court of Ohio has held that the reasonable-efforts requirement set forth in
{31} Here, the record demonstrates that the trial court made reasonable-efforts findings at the time the children were adjudicated neglected and committed to the temporary custody of CCDCFS on October 14, 2014. The court magistrate found CCDCFS made reasonable efforts including parenting education classes, substance abuse assessment and treatment, and basic needs. It was also found that Father had failed to complete the services.
{32} In its decision to grant permanent custody to CCDCFS, the trial court again concluded CCDCFS had made reasonable efforts and provided relevant services including
{33} The record reflects that CCDCFS made referrals to Father to engage in substance abuse treatment, drug screens, and employment. Also, CCDCFS provided the rental deposit for Father‘s housing. Although Father complains about the social workers that were assigned to the case, the record contains ample evidence to support the trial court‘s determination that CCDCFS made reasonable efforts in this case.
{34} We recognize that Father made some efforts to engage in case plan services and is bonded to the children. However, the record demonstrates that Father failed to maintain sobriety, he demonstrated poor decision-making by leaving the children alone with their mother when she was not allowed to have unsupervised visits, he failed to maintain consistent employment, and he failed to meet the children‘s basic needs.
{35} We reiterate that it is the best interest of a child that is the pivotal factor in a permanency case, and that neglected and/or dependent children are entitled to a stable, secure, nurturing, and permanent home in the near term. In re N.B., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 105028, 2017-Ohio-1376, ¶ 30. Our review of the record shows that the trial court‘s determination as to each child is supported by clear and convincing evidence and is not against the manifest weight of the evidence in the record. We overrule the assignment of error and affirm the trial court‘s decisions awarding permanent custody of each child to CCDCFS and terminating Father‘s parental rights.
{36} Judgment affirmed.
It is ordered that appellee recover from appellant costs herein taxed.
The court finds there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
SEAN C. GALLAGHER, JUDGE
MARY EILEEN KILBANE, P.J., and
TIM MCCORMACK, J., CONCUR