IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA
No. 21-0704
Filed August 18, 2021
IN THE INTEREST OF L.F. and L.F.,
Minor Children,
T.F., Mother,
Appellant,
S.F., Father,
Appellant.
________________________________________________________________
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, David F. Staudt,
Judge.
A mother and father separately appeal the termination of their parental
rights to their son and daughter. AFFIRMED ON BOTH APPEALS.
Jamie L. Schroeder of The Sayer Law Group, P.C., Waterloo, for appellant
mother.
Christina M. Shriver, Waterloo, for appellant father.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, and Mary A. Triick, Assistant Attorney
General, for appellee State.
Tammy Banning of the State Public Defender Office, Waterloo, attorney and
guardian ad litem for minor children.
Considered by Tabor, P.J., Greer, J., and Doyle, S.J.*
*Senior judge assigned by order pursuant to Iowa Code section 602.9206
(2021).
2
TABOR, Presiding Judge.
“If they don’t think they need it, they won’t participate in it.” So goes the
juvenile court’s description of the defiance exhibited by parents, Tricia and Shane,
toward services recommended by the Iowa Department of Human Services
(DHS). Because they refused services critical to reunification, including drug
testing and mental-health treatment, the court ordered termination of their parental
rights to five-year-old Li.F. and two-year-old La.F. Challenging that order, both
parents insist the children could be safely returned to their care. See Iowa Code
§ 232.116(1)(f)(4), (h)(4) (2020). They also argue termination would be detrimental
due to the closeness of their relationships with the children. See id. § 232.116(2),
(3). Plus, Tricia argues the children should be placed in a guardianship.
After examining the record, we reach the same result as the juvenile
court.1 Clear and convincing evidence shows Li.F. and La.F. could not return to
parental care without an appreciable risk of abuse or neglect. And denying the
children permanency would be more harmful than terminating the parents’
rights. In that same vein, guardianship is not the preferred resolution. Thus, we
affirm.
1 We review termination-of-parental-rights appeals de novo, which means we
examine the facts and law and adjudicate anew those issues properly preserved
and presented. In re L.G., 532 N.W.2d 478, 480 (Iowa Ct. App. 1995). The State
must prove its allegations by clear and convincing evidence. Iowa Code
§ 232.96(2). That standard requires more than a preponderance but less than
proof beyond a reasonable doubt. L.G., 532 N.W.2d at 481. To affirm, we must
have no serious or substantial doubt about the correctness of a particular
conclusion the juvenile court has drawn from the evidence. Id. “The juvenile
court’s fact findings do not bind us, but we give them weight, particularly with
regard to credibility.” In re A.H., 950 N.W.2d 27, 33 (Iowa Ct. App. 2020). Our key
consideration is the children’s best interests. Id.
3
I. Facts and Prior Proceedings
The DHS took notice of this family in early 2019 when video surveillance at
Menards recorded Tricia shoving toddler Li.F. down into a shopping cart and
striking him. Infant La.F. also was in the cart. The child protection worker decided
the incident would be founded for failure to supervise, but not confirmed for
physical abuse. The DHS placed the children with both their grandmothers in an
initial safety plan over concerns the parents were using methamphetamine while
caring for them. Drug testing and individual therapy were part of that safety plan.
And because Shane had a history of domestic violence against Tricia, they were
ordered to participate in separate visits with the children. After an April family team
meeting, the DHS returned the children to Tricia’s care because she tested
negative for drugs. But the DHS prevented Shane from having unsupervised
contact based on founded allegations he had used methamphetamine while the
children were in the home.
By fall of 2019, the parents’ drug use posed a significant risk to the children.
The DHS learned from a credible source the parents had drug paraphernalia with
possible methamphetamine residue inside the family home. The juvenile court
approved removal of the children in October while awaiting DHS
investigation. Indeed, testing confirmed the children’s exposure to the drug. The
DHS placed the children in foster care, where they have since remained.
Over the next fourteen months, the parents took a hostile stance against
the DHS and their own attorneys. The juvenile court described the parents’
pointless pursuit:
4
The couple spent valuable time and effort in researching and filing
legal-appearing documentation that was mere gibberish. They
mailed documents informing the [DHS] that they were suing the
Department for millions of dollars. Following a hearing, the Court
dismissed their motions.
The couple did not cease their defiance. The couple pieced
together a falsified official-looking court order. The falsified order
granted them custody of their children. The couple enlisted the
assistance of the Cedar Falls police department in an attempt to
illegally obtain the physical custody of their children. At one point
they also enlisted the assistance of the Waterloo police
department. Ultimately their plan to utilize the falsified court order
failed. A no-contact order was imposed on the couple to prevent
them from further contact with the foster parents.
Both Tricia and Shane missed many random drug tests or provided diluted
samples.2 They did not follow through with individual or relationship
counseling. And they asked for their attorneys to withdraw.
The one bright spot for the parents was their participation in visits. They
rarely missed the twice per week supervised interactions. In fact, they provided
elaborate entertainment, such as a bounce house and power wheels, for the
visits. But as the juvenile court noted, despite the parents’ efforts to make visitation
an enjoyable experience, they “exerted little effort in any other aspect of the case
permanency plan.”
By October 2020, the juvenile court saw a glimmer of hope for
reunification. Tricia secured employment. Both parents improved their
participation in random drug testing. They started couple’s counseling. And they
agreed to have new attorneys represent them in the child-welfare
proceedings. Given these developments, the court delayed permanency for three
2When Tricia did submit to a hair test in February 2020, she tested positive for
methamphetamine. Shane also provided two positive sweat-patch tests in late
July and mid-August.
5
months so the parents could receive legal advice and work to comply with DHS
recommendations. But the parents squandered the extra time. In November,
Tricia had another hair test with positive results for methamphetamine. And by
December, the DHS reported that both parents were again missing random drug
tests and skipping counseling sessions.
In January 2021, the State petitioned to terminate their parental rights. After
a combined permanency and termination hearing in March, the juvenile court
issued its decision granting the State’s petition. Both Shane and Tricia appeal.
II. Analysis
A. Statutory Grounds
The parents first contend the State failed to prove the grounds for
terminating their rights under section 232.116(1).3 The juvenile court relied on
three grounds—paragraphs (e), (f), and (h). We may affirm on any ground
supported by the record. In re L.H., 949 N.W.2d 268, 270 (Iowa Ct. App.
2020). We opt to focus on section 232.116(1)(f) and (h).4
3 We recognize that termination proceedings are—both factually and
legally—separate adjudications of the rights of each parent. See In re D.G., 704
N.W.2d 454, 459 (Iowa 2005). So we consider each parent’s claims on their own
merits.
4 Paragraph (f) applies to children ages four or older (here Li.F.) who have been
out of parental custody for at least twelve of the last eighteen months and any trial
period at home has been less than thirty days. Iowa Code § 232.116(1)(f)(1)–(3).
Paragraph (h) applies to children ages three or younger (here La.F.) who have
been out of parental custody for at least six of the last twelve months and any trial
period at home has been less than thirty days. Id. § 232.116(1)(h)(1)–(3). Both
paragraphs require the State to prove by clear and convincing evidence that at the
present time the child cannot be returned to parental custody as provided in section
232.102. Id. § 232.116(1)(f)(4), (h)(4).
6
The parents contend the State did not prove by clear and convincing
evidence that the children could not be returned to their care. Shane argues they
are both “attentive parents who are bonded to their children. They have an
appropriate residence and ample toys for the children.” Tricia contends “she has
made reasonable efforts to comply with the case permanency plan.” She blames
her November 2020 positive drug test on “environmental exposure”—possibly from
Shane’s use of methamphetamine in the home without her knowledge.
The State counters that both parents continue to suffer from unaddressed
substance-abuse issues, which prevent safe reunification. We agree. The parents
have balked at random drug testing. Without regular testing, the DHS cannot tell
if they have addressed their addictions. And “[w]hen a parent is actively using
methamphetamine, we may conclude a child is imminently likely to suffer harmful
effects due to the parent’s inability to exercise a reasonable degree of care in
supervising the child.” In re P.H., No. 20-0372, 2020 WL 5650628, at *3 (Iowa
Ct. App. Sept. 23, 2020). As the juvenile court found, these parents have “made
no commitment to obtaining or maintaining sobriety.” Without that commitment,
the children could not return to their custody by the time of the termination
hearing. See In re A.M., 843 N.W.2d 100, 111 (Iowa 2014). Termination of the
parents’ rights was proper under paragraphs (f) and (h).
B. Closeness of Parent-Child Relationships
Even when the State proves a ground for termination, the juvenile court may
decline to sever the parent-child relationship if that severance is not in the
children’s best interests under Iowa Code section 232.116(2) or a permissive factor
in section 232.116(3) compels preservation of the parents’ rights. See In re A.S.,
7
906 N.W.2d 467, 472 (Iowa 2018) (describing three-step analysis of termination
cases). Both Shane and Tricia argue that the court should have declined to
terminate their rights because of the closeness of the parent-child bonds.5 See
Iowa Code § 232.116(3)(c); see also A.S., 906 N.W.2d at 476–77 (holding parent
resisting termination bears burden to establish exception under section
232.116(3)).
Both parents highlight how much the children enjoy visitation. Tricia points
to testimony from the DHS caseworker and the family support specialist that the
children have a strong bond with their parents. In fact, when Li.F. was sometimes
inconsolable at the end of a visit, Tricia would reassure him by counting the days
until the next scheduled interaction. Similarly, Shane asserts both parents “were
active participants in visits, and the testimony reflects that the children greatly
enjoyed these visits, and in fact were impacted negatively when visitations were
occasionally canceled.”
No doubt, visitation between a parent and child is a key “ingredient to the
goal of reunification.” See In re M.B., 553 N.W.2d 343, 345 (Iowa Ct. App.
1996). Our record shows Shane and Tricia went to great lengths to entertain the
children during their supervised visitations. But the juvenile court wisely
recognized that a healthy bond required more: “The couple has limited their
relationship to that of being weekly playmates with their children.” While
concentrating on amusements for the children, Tricia and Shane failed to address
5 Both parents’ petitions on appeal mention best interests, but neither argue the
factors under section 232.116(2). So we interpret their arguments as raising only
section 232.116(3)(c).
8
fundamental parenting issues, like their substance abuse, mental health, and
Shane’s history of domestic violence. Under these circumstances, neither parent
proved termination would disadvantage the children or that such a disadvantage
would overcome the parents’ refusal to confront obstacles to providing safe and
reliable care. See In re D.W., 791 N.W.2d 703, 709 (Iowa 2010).
C. Guardianship
Finally, Tricia contends the juvenile court should have placed Li.F. and La.F.
in a guardianship with their maternal aunt and uncle, who traveled to Iowa from
their home in Arkansas for weekend in-person visits with the children. The State
counters that a guardianship “would not be a suitable permanency plan for these
young children.” We agree with the State.
In most cases, a guardianship “is not a legally preferable alternative to
termination.” See A.S., 906 N.W.2d at 472 (quoting In re B.T., 894 N.W.2d 29, 32
(Iowa Ct. App. 2017)); see also In re W.M., 957 N.W.2d 305, 315 (Iowa 2021).
This case is no exception. These children, both under the age of six, need a long-
term permanent placement. And the juvenile court expressed another valid
concern: “The parents’ prior falsification of documentation, and lack of
trustworthiness throughout this case additionally leads the Court to believe that a
guardianship would be potentially detrimental to the children.” Termination of
parental rights is a better option than a guardianship for these children.
AFFIRMED ON BOTH APPEALS.