High Court Reverses Termination Of Father’s Parental Rights
High Court Reverses Termination Of Father’s Parental Rights
Olivia Covington for www.theindianalawyer.com
A Montgomery County father’s parental rights have been restored after the Indiana Supreme Court held Friday that lower courts erred in granting and affirming the Department of Child Services’ petition to terminate them.
In the Matter of the Termination of the Parent-Child Relationship of Bi.B. And Br.B, D.B. and V.G. v. Indiana Department of Child Services,54S01-1612-JT-630, D.B. and V.G. had custody of five children – their two daughters together, Bi.B. and Br.B., and V.G.’s three sons from a prior relationship whose father had died. After the Indiana Department of Child Services learned that the parents were using methamphetamine and leaving their children unsupervised in a dirty home, the children were adjudicated as children in need of services and were eventually removed from the home in July 2014.
As a result of the children’s removal, V.G. and D.B. were ordered to participate in drug screenings, supervised visits and various other services, but their participation was only sporadic. DCS thus moved to terminate their parental rights in October 2015.
In its petition for termination, DCS alleged that two out of three statutorily required waiting periods applied – that is, a court has found that reasonable reunification efforts were not required, and the children had been removed from the parents and placed under other supervision for at least 15 out of the last 22 months. However, DCS did not argue that the last waiting period, which required that the children were removed from the parents for at least six months under a dispositional decree, applied to the case.
D.B., the father, argued that DCS had failed to prove the first two waiting periods and failed to allege the third, which could have actually been proven. Specifically, he said DCS filed the petition five days short of the 15-month anniversary of his daughters’ removal.
Despite that argument, the Montgomery Circuit Court granted the petition to termination his and V.G.’s parental rights. The Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed that decision in September 2016, finding that although neither of the waiting-period allegations were true, such error was harmless. The appellate court also found sufficient evidence to support the trial court’s decision.
Only D.B. sought transfer, and in a unanimous opinion handed down on Friday, the Indiana Supreme Court reversed the lower courts’ decisions to terminate his parental rights.
In an opinion authored by Chief Justice Loretta Rush, the state’s high court first noted that “the right of parents to raise their children is ‘perhaps the oldest of the fundamental liberty interests.’â€
Under the plain language of Indiana Code 31-35-2-4(b)(2)(A) – which requires that the petition must allege that the 15-month basis “is,†not “will be,†true – the state legislature intended the 15-month waiting period to apply to the day when the petition is filed, as D.B. argued, not to the day of the evidentiary hearing, as DCS argued, Rush wrote.
Further, the statutory language holds that the petition “must†allege that at least one of the three waiting periods is true, Rush said. Thus, because DCS did not allege the six-month waiting period, the only one that could have been proven true, its petition for termination of D.B.’s rights fails, the chief justice said.
Finally, Rush wrote that state statute holds that “if the court does not finds that the allegations in the petition are true, the court shall dismiss the petition.â€
“Like ‘must,’ ‘shall’ is mandatory, and we cannot engraft qualifying language onto that directive,†she said.
However, because V.G. did not seek transfer, Rush wrote in a footnote that the court summarily affirmed the Court of Appeals’ disposition as to her, though not its reasoning.
Consumer Alert from the Office of the Indiana Attorney General
The Consumer Protection Division (CPD) of the Office of the Indiana Attorney General on Feb. 10 was notified of an attempted W-2 phishing scam that targeted a central Indiana school corporation.
A complainant notified the CPD that a staff member at a central Indiana school corporation received an email that appeared to be from the corporation’s superintendent requesting copies of employee W-2 records – a telltale sign of a recent scam that is targeting businesses, schools, hospitals and nonprofits across the country. The complainant told the CPD that the staff member checked with the superintendent and confirmed that the email was fraudulent.
Cybercriminals, or scammers, will make their personal emails appear as if they are sent from a high-ranking employee at the targeted business or other entity. The email, which requests names of each employee and their Form W-2, is sent to someone in a business, organization or corporation’s human resources or accounting department. If successful, the scammer is able to collect sensitive personal information of each employee.
If you work for a company that has been compromised by such a scam, the Office of the Indiana Attorney General encourages you to sign up for a credit freeze to protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft. Hoosiers can visit the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division for more information. You can also fill out an Identity Theft Complaint Form. Contact us at 1-800-382-5516 to speak to a consumer staff member who can help you in obtaining an Identity Theft Affidavit Form 14039, which can be submitted to the IRS if you are a victim of tax fraud. You can also call the Do Not Call Hotline at 1-888-834-9969 for number registration and to file complaints.
Air Quality Forecast For Vanderburgh County
Air quality forecasts for Evansville and Vanderburgh County are provided as a public service. They are best estimates of predicted pollution levels that can be used as a guide so people can modify their activities and reduce their exposure to air quality conditions that may affect their health. The forecasts are routinely made available at least a day in advance, and are posted by 10:30 AM Evansville time on Monday (for Tuesday through Thursday) and Thursday (for Friday through Monday). When atmospheric conditions are uncertain or favor pollution levels above the National Ambient Air Quality Standards, forecasts are made on a daily basis.
Ozone forecasts are available from mid-April through September 30th. Fine particulate (PM2.5) forecasts are available year round.
| Friday
February 17 |
Saturday February 18 |
Sunday February 19 |
Monday February 20 |
Tuesday February 21 |
|
| Fine Particulate (0-23Â CST avg) Air Quality Index |
moderate | moderate | moderate | moderate | NA* |
| Ozone Air Quality Index |
NA* | NA* | NA* | NA* | NA* |
| Ozone (peak 8-hr avg) (expected) |
NA* | NA* | NA* | NA* | NA* |
* Not Available and/or Conditions Uncertain.
Air Quality Action Days
Ozone Alerts are issued by the Evansville EPA when maximum ozone readings averaged over a period of eight hours are forecasted to reach 71 parts per billion (ppb), or unhealthy for sensitive groups on the USEPA Air Quality Index scale.
Particulate Alerts are issued by the Evansville EPA when PM2.5 readings averaged over the period of midnight to midnight are forecasted to reach 35 micrograms per meter cubed (µg/m3).
Current conditions of OZONE and FINE PARTICULATE MATTER are available in near real-time on the Indiana Department of Environment Management’s website.
National and regional maps of current conditions are available through USEPA AIRNow.
Adopt A Pet
Betty is a female American Fuzzy Lop rabbit. She’s about 1 ½ years old. She has the typical bunny story: purchased online, and then someone realized that bunnies live 10+ years and can be a lot of work. Betty is a sweet & soft bunny seeking an indoor-only permanent home. Her $30 adoption fee includes her spay and cardboard carrier. Contact the Vanderburgh Humane Society at (812) 426-2563 or adoptions@vhslifesaver.org for adoption details!
Women’s tennis set for three weekend matches
Aces on the road for two and home Sunday
 Three matches over the next two days are on tap for the University of Evansville women’s tennis team will be on the road Saturday before heading home on Sunday.
The weekend begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. as the Purple Aces take on Valparaiso at 10 a.m. in Niles, Mich. at the Lakeland Tennis Academy. The Crusaders begin the weekend with an 0-4 mark following losses to Dayton and the University of Indianapolis last weekend.
From there, the Aces head south later in the day to Muncie, Ind. where they face Ball State at 5:15 p.m. ET. The Cardinals stand at 5-2 with their lone losses coming to Cincinnati and North Carolina.
On Sunday, UE will be at Tri-State Athletic Club for a match against in-city rival USI. That match will begin at 5 p.m. The Screaming Eagles are 3-1.
Last time out, UE came just short of a big win at Indiana, losing by a final of 4-3. Despite a tough start in doubles, the women were able to get it together in singles play, earning victories in flights 2, 4 and 6. Leading the way in the second flight was freshman Diana Tkachenko. She defeated the Hoosiers’ Caitlin Bernard, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4).
In the fourth flight, Andrea Pascual-Larrinaga defeated Alicia Robinson, 6-2, 6-3. Andjela Brguljan helped the Aces earn the split in singles play with an exciting matchup in #6 singles. She earned the win over Emma Love, 4-7, 7-4 (10-8), 1-0 (10-8).
TAPS By Jim Redwine
Gavel Gamut
By Jim Redwine
www.jamesmredwine.com
(Week of 20 February 2017)
TAPS
I do not play the bugle so any veteran’s farewell from me must come in words. I wrote this tribute to Gene McCoy, Harold Cox and all Korean War Veterans in September 2005. When my friend Gene McCoy passed away February 12 (Lincoln’s birthday), I was reminded of his many years of service to the rest of us about which I had written twelve years ago. Gene told me then he appreciated the bon mots. Because he was such a considerate friend, I am confident he would say the same thing now.
AN UNKNOWN VICTORY
You name the WAR:
Two countries are created from one by the greatest military power in
the world and are monitored by the United Nations;
One country led by a ruthless dictator invades the other in spite of
the United Nations warnings not to;
The Secretary General of the United Nations declares, “This is a war
against the United Nations.â€;
A United States President leads a coalition of world leaders to unite to
drive the invaders out and re-establish the status quo;
An American general was placed in charge of the United Nations
forces;
While many countries offered some help, the American military
provided more than half of a million personnel in the war;
The aggressors were driven out of and liberty was restored to the
invaded country; and
The mission for which Americans fought and died was accomplished.
If you said The Gulf War of 1990-1991, that is understandable. Almost all Americans supported that war and recognized that victory. However, I am talking about the Korean War of 1950-1953. It too was a great victory for American and United Nations interests and helped prevent World War III. We owe a huge debt to our Korean War veterans.
Two of those heroes (they just hate to be called that but, hey, it’s my column and facts are facts) are Posey County natives and brothers-in-law Harold Cox and Gene McCoy.
Harold fought with the U.S. Army’s 25th Division which suffered many casualties and bore much of the fighting in Korea. Harold was an infantry rifleman and was the jeep driver for his company commander.
Gene was a combat engineer with the Army’s 84th Engineers Battalion and, also, served as a courier/mail deliverer.
Harold was on the frontlines and Gene was building wooden bridges about 1000 yards behind those lines. Gene says Harold had it a lot rougher than Gene.
Both suffered the 20 below zero cold, the stifling heat and humidity, the loneliness, home sickness and fear in what those not there called a “police action.â€
Harold said one of his worst memories, outside of dodging enemy mortar rounds for a solid year of combat, was the stench of the human waste the impoverished Koreans would save all winter and fertilize their rice paddies with in the spring. Gene, also, mentioned that nauseating smell and the mud and flooding caused by the lack of vegetation due to constant shelling.
When Gene first arrived in Korea they put his outfit on a train which stopped frequently. Each time it stopped the young soldiers were given a few rounds of ammunition and ordered out to guard the train from sabotage. Gene said this initiation to Korea was more than a little unsettling.
Harold told me that the traffic signs in the war were a bit more to the point than those back home. On one particularly dangerous stretch of road a sign advised:
“Get your ____ in gear and drive like ____!
The NK can see you.â€
Harold paid attention.
Harold and Gene came home and re-started their lives. Harold served as Mt. Vernon’s Water Superintendent for several years in the 1980’s and1990’s. Gene served as a Mt. Vernon City Councilman and the Posey County Recorder. Gene is (in 2005) currently Posey County’s Veterans Affairs Officer. They both raised families and went on publicly as if there had been no Korean War. However, privately what General Douglas MacArthur called “the strange, mournful mutter of the battlefield†never left their consciousness.
Of course, there was a Korean War and it helped save you and me from another world war. It was a largely unappreciated “mission accomplished.â€Â Thank you Harold and Gene and all your fellow Korean War veterans.
As General MacArthur might have said, both the old song and those it honors quietly fade away:
Sun has set, shadows come,
Soldier rest, your race is run.
For more Gavel Gamut articles go to:
www.jamesmredwine.com
Trip to Bradley up next for UE Men’s Basketball
 Aces and Braves to meet on Saturday at 1 p.m.
 Part one of the final road trip of the regular season is up next for the University of Evansville men’s basketball team as they travel to Bradley for a 1 p.m. game on Saturday at Carver Arena in Peoria.
Evansville led from wire-to-wire in an 87-70 win over Drake on Tuesday night at the Ford Center. Three UE players finished with 20 or more points, led by Jaylon Brown and Ryan Taylor, who notched 22 apiece. David Howard added a career-high 21 points as he hit all nine free throws. UE shot 57.9% on the night while outrebounding the Bulldogs by a final tally of 36-20. For the night, UE hit 17 out of 18 free throws (94.4%), its best effort of the season.
Brown, Taylor and Howard each finished with 20+ points on Tuesday; it marked the first time three Aces registered 20 or more points in the same game since Matt Webster, Kyle Anslinger and Bradley Strickland had 20 apiece on Dec. 30, 2006 against Bradley.
Tuesday’s win over Drake marked the fourth conference win in a row for the Aces. UE accomplished the feat twice last year and once in the 2010-11 and 2012-13 campaigns. Head coach Marty Simmons is looking for his first 5-game MVC win streak in his tenure as UE’s head coach. The last 5-game streak for UE in MVC play came from January 27 through February 10 1999.
A stellar streak of play continued for David Howard as he set his career mark with 21 points in the win over Drake. A 64.2% free throw shooter on the season, Howard went a perfect 9-for-9 against the Bulldogs; Howard has hit 17 of his last 19 free throws over the last four games (89.5%) after starting the season shooting just 32% (8/25) in the first 24 games this season.
Bradley comes into Saturday’s meeting with a 9-19 overall mark and 4-11 in the Valley. The Braves have dropped nine of their last 10 games, including a 64-61 loss at UNI on Wednesday. Darrell Brown paces his team with 12 points per game; he also leads the team with a total of 76 assists. Donte Thomas sits atop the Bradley list with 6.3 rebounds per game.
In the first meeting of the season, the Braves earned a 74-63 win over UE to move the series to a 26-22 tally in their favor. In games in Peoria, Bradley has been dominant, going 18-5; Evansville has had the upper hand on the road as of late, winning three of the last five match-ups.
ASG Monthly Meeting February 28,2017
The area chapter of the American Sewing guild will meet Tuesday February 28Â at McCollough Branch Library’s Community Room on Washington Avenue.