Opinion
No. 2-374 / 01-1952.
Filed July 19, 2002.
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, SUSAN FLAHERTY, Associate Juvenile Judge.
A mother appeals from the juvenile court order terminating her parental rights. AFFIRMED.
Michael M. Lindeman of Lindeman Law, Cedar Rapids, for appellant.
Richard Pazdernik, Cedar Rapids, for father.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Tabitha Gardner, Assistant Attorney General, Denver D. Dillard, County Attorney, and Lance Heeren, Assistant County Attorney, for appellee-State.
Lucy E. Harrington, Cedar Rapids, guardian ad litem for minor child.
Considered by SACKETT, C.J., and HUITINK and HECHT, JJ.
A mother appeals from the juvenile court order terminating her parental rights. We affirm.
I. Factual Background and Proceedings. Yvette is the mother of Brandon, born September 30, 1999. A child in need of assistance (CINA) petition was filed on behalf of Brandon and his three older siblings on July 5, 2000, after Yvette brought all four children to the Department of Human Services (DHS) requesting foster care placement. At the time, Yvette was homeless, unemployed, and stated that she felt overwhelmed by her parenting responsibilities. Brandon was placed with his maternal aunt Kathy; however, she was forced to discontinue his care because of threats and harassment by Yvette and other family members.
While Brandon was in foster care, Yvette missed many scheduled visits. When Yvette attended visitation, she was often verbally hostile and physically intimidating to the visit coordinator. Her many outbursts to visit coordinators included: "this is my baby and you can't tell me what to do," "you better shut up or I will hurt you," and "I hate all you white people." The results of her psychological evaluation indicated she might suffer from Major Depressive Disorder with mild to moderate symptoms in addition to a hot, short temper with a "low boiling point."
On June 19, 2001, the State filed a petition to terminate Yvette's paternal rights to Brandon. The court terminated Yvette's parental rights pursuant to Iowa Code sections 232.116(1) (e) and (h) (Supp. 2001). On appeal, Yvette contends the State failed (1) to prove the statutory requirements for termination and (2) to make reasonable efforts to reunite her with her child.
Iowa Code section 232.116 was amended effective April 24, 2001. The district court referred to the prior code sections in its opinion; however, we will refer to the amended sections.
II. Standard of Review. The standard of review in termination cases is de novo. In re M.N.W. 577 N.W.2d 874, 875 (Iowa Ct.App. 1998).
III. Sufficiency of the Evidence. Yvette contends the State did not prove by clear and convincing evidence that Brandon could not be returned to her care at the time of termination pursuant to the last requirement of section 232.116(1)(h). To satisfy this requirement, the State must show by clear and convincing evidence that the child cannot be returned to the parent because the child remains in need of assistance as defined by section 232.2(6). In re R.R.K., 544 N.W.2d 274, 277 (Iowa Ct.App. 1995).
Based upon our de novo review of the record, we find clear and convincing evidence Brandon remains in need of assistance and therefore cannot be placed in Yvette's care. Throughout this case, Yvette has failed to establish her own residence or secure employment. At the time of the termination hearing, Yvette was unemployed and living with her sister, her sister's boyfriend, and her sister's five children in a very small residence. Because of these fundamental inadequacies, Yvette never advanced beyond supervised visitation to semi-supervised visitation. During visits, Yvette was hostile and made threats to visit coordinators. Additionally, she missed approximately one-third of her scheduled supervised visits during the six months prior to the termination.
Accordingly, we find clear and convincing evidence supports termination under section 232.116(1)(h). See In re S.R., 600 N.W.2d 63, 64 (Iowa Ct.App. 1999) (holding "we need only find grounds to terminate under one of the sections cited by the juvenile court to affirm").
IV. Reasonable Efforts. Lastly, we decline to address Yvette's reasonable efforts argument because it was not preserved for our review. See In re J.L.W., 570 N.W.2d 778, 781 (Iowa Ct.App. 1997) (holding preservation of error requires parents to demand services prior to the termination hearing).
The juvenile court's termination order is affirmed in its entirety.
AFFIRMED.