By Liz Nass
Gongwer News Service
The Department of Health and Human Services is not required to make reasonable efforts to reunify a family in cases where the parent has subjected their child to aggravated circumstances, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Thursday.
In re Barber/Espinoza (MSC Docket No. 167745), written by Chief Justice Megan Cavanagh, the court held that the Department of Health and Human Services does have to make
reasonable efforts to reunify parents and students, but with judicial exception from a trial court that determines a child was under “aggravated circumstances.”
The case had to do with a mother permitting others to sexually assault her daughter in exchange for drugs.
The court also held that a parent does not personally have to commit an act of harm but instead fail to take “reasonable steps to eliminate the risk” to create aggravated circumstances.
After the trial court hearing, which removed the parent’s right to custody of her daughter, the respondent claimed that she had not been told her rights to appeal this decision.
The court said although the trial court “plainly erred,” the error did not affect her rights because the respondent could not show evidence that if she would have been advised of her appellate rights that the outcomes would have been different.
This decision turns over the Court of Appeals opinion that said the department should have worked with the family for reunification, that the respondent was prejudiced by the error and that the trial court’s failure to not tell the respondent about the appeal process was worthy of an appeal of the original decision.
Justice Kyra Harris Bolden concurred separately, but also clarified c that aggravated circumstances are only found “in rare situations and must be considered on a case-by-case basis.”
Gongwer News Service
The Department of Health and Human Services is not required to make reasonable efforts to reunify a family in cases where the parent has subjected their child to aggravated circumstances, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Thursday.
In re Barber/Espinoza (MSC Docket No. 167745), written by Chief Justice Megan Cavanagh, the court held that the Department of Health and Human Services does have to make
reasonable efforts to reunify parents and students, but with judicial exception from a trial court that determines a child was under “aggravated circumstances.”
The case had to do with a mother permitting others to sexually assault her daughter in exchange for drugs.
The court also held that a parent does not personally have to commit an act of harm but instead fail to take “reasonable steps to eliminate the risk” to create aggravated circumstances.
After the trial court hearing, which removed the parent’s right to custody of her daughter, the respondent claimed that she had not been told her rights to appeal this decision.
The court said although the trial court “plainly erred,” the error did not affect her rights because the respondent could not show evidence that if she would have been advised of her appellate rights that the outcomes would have been different.
This decision turns over the Court of Appeals opinion that said the department should have worked with the family for reunification, that the respondent was prejudiced by the error and that the trial court’s failure to not tell the respondent about the appeal process was worthy of an appeal of the original decision.
Justice Kyra Harris Bolden concurred separately, but also clarified c that aggravated circumstances are only found “in rare situations and must be considered on a case-by-case basis.”
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