Third District Court of Appeal
State of Florida
Opinion filed July 12, 2017.
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No. 3D17-979
Lower Tribunal No. 15-15572
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S.C.P., the Mother,
Petitioner,
vs.
Department of Children & Families, et al.,
Respondents.
A Writ of Certiorari to the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Maria
Sampedro-Iglesia, Judge.
Eugene F. Zenobi, Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel, Third
Region, and Kevin Coyle Colbert, Assistant Regional Counsel, for appellant.
Karla Perkins, for respondent Department of Children and Families; Laura J.
Lee (Sanford), for respondent Guardian ad Litem Program.
Before ROTHENBERG, C.J., and EMAS and LOGUE, JJ.
ON CONFESSION OF ERROR
PER CURIAM.
S.C.P., the Mother, petitions this Court for a writ of certiorari quashing the
trial court’s March 30, 2017 order that changed the goal of her case plan from
reunification to permanent guardianship. We grant the petition and quash the order.
The Mother’s children were adjudicated dependent on February 10, 2016.
On January 4, 2017, the trial court accepted a case plan which set forth the primary
goal of reunification. On March 30, 2017, however, the trial court entered the
order under review. The order found that the Mother was in compliance with her
case plan but nevertheless, it changed the goal from reunification to permanent
guardianship. This change could prevent the Mother from eventually reuniting
with her children.
The governing rules and statutes contemplate an evidentiary basis to support
a case plan amendment. See § 39.621, Fla. Stat. (2016); R.N. v. Dep’t of Children
& Families, 25 So. 3d 697, 700 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010) (“Rule 8.420 contemplates an
evidentiary basis to support a case plan amendment”). The Department properly
and commendably concedes that the trial court order lacks an adequate evidentiary
basis to support the case plan amendment, and the guardian ad litem also indicated
that it has no argument against granting the petition. Based upon our independent
review of the record and the Department’s confession of error, we grant the
petition and quash the order.
Petition granted.
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