In the Int. of: R.R.D., a Minor Appeal of: M.L.D. ( 2023 )

J-A04007-23 & J-A04008-23
2023 PA Super 152IN THE INTEREST OF: R.R.D., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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APPEAL OF: M.L.D., MOTHER :
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: No. 1357 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Decree Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 2021-00019
IN THE INTEREST OF: J.J.C., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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APPEAL OF: M.L.D., MOTHER :
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: No. 1358 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Order Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 2021-00020
IN THE INTEREST OF: A.T.D., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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APPEAL OF: M.L.D., MOTHER :
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:
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: No. 1359 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Decree Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 2021-00021
IN THE INTEREST OF: R.R.D., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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J-A04007-23 & J-A04008-23
APPEAL OF: K.J.D., FATHER :
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: No. 1360 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Decree Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 19-2021
IN THE INTEREST OF: J.J.C., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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APPEAL OF: KJ.D., FATHER :
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: No. 1361 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Decree Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 2021-00020
IN THE INTEREST OF: A.T.D., A : IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF
MINOR : PENNSYLVANIA
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APPEAL OF: K.J.D., FATHER :
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: No. 1362 MDA 2022
Appeal from the Decree Entered August 26, 2022
In the Court of Common Pleas of Clinton County Orphans' Court at
No(s): 2021-00021
BEFORE: STABILE, J., DUBOW, J., and McCAFFERY, J.
OPINION BY DUBOW, J.: FILED: AUGUST 9, 2023
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In this consolidated appeal, M.L.D. (“Mother”) and K.J.D. (“Father”)
(collectively, “Parents”) appeal from the August 26, 2022 decree that
terminated their parental rights to their children, twelve-year-old R.R.D.,
eight-year-old J.J.C., and six-year-old A.T.D. (collectively, “Children”),
pursuant to 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8).1 After careful review, we conclude that
the Agency failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that the condition
which led to the removal or placement of Children—inadequate housing—
continues to exist as required by the statute. Accordingly, we reverse.
In its August 26, 2022 Opinion and Decree, the trial court authored a
thorough, accurate, and comprehensive factual and procedural history, which
we adopt for purposes of this appeal. Trial Ct. Op., filed 8/26/22, at 1-24.
Briefly, in November 2018 the Clinton County Children and Youth Social
Services (the “Agency”) learned that Parents were living in a hotel, which the
Agency deemed inadequate housing for Children. On November 7, 2018, the
trial court awarded physical and legal custody of Children to their paternal
aunt and her paramour. On January 29, 2019, the Agency obtained
emergency custody of Children and placed them in foster care due to
inadequate living conditions at the paternal aunt’s home. The trial court
adjudicated Children dependent on February 7, 2019, and Children remained
in foster care. The court ordered Parents to participate in a mental health
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1 These appeals involve related parties and issues. Accordingly, we sua
sponte consolidate the appeals at Nos. 1357, 1358, 1359, 1360, 1361, and
1362 MDA 2022. See Pa.R.A.P. 513.
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evaluation, participate in a drug and alcohol evaluation, follow any
recommended services, obtain suitable housing, and cooperate with
supervised visitation with Children.
On August 5, 2021, the Agency filed petitions to involuntarily terminate
Parents’ parental rights to Children pursuant to Sections 2511(a)(2), (5), (8),
and (b) of the Adoption Act.2 In its petitions, the Agency averred, inter alia,
that Parents “have more consistently attended visits and appear to have
achieved stable housing, but their interactions with [C]hildren during visits
and responses thereto suggest a lack of engagement on the part of Father
and an incapacity or inability on the part of Mother.” Petition, 8/5/21, at ¶ VI
(emphasis added).
The trial court held hearings on August 23, 2021; December 22, 2021;
February 24, 2022; April 12, 2022; May 23, 2022; and May 27, 2022.3 The
Agency presented over twenty witnesses, including current and former Agency
caseworkers, elementary school teachers, licensed psychologists, and current
foster parents. Father testified on his own behalf and presented testimony
from Danial Plock, a Family Finding caseworker. Mother presented testimony
from guardian ad litem (“GAL”) Patrick A. Johnson, Esq.
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2 The Agency amended the petitions on August 23, 2021, to include Sections
2511(a)(5) and (8) without objection.
3 During the proceedings, the trial court appointed counsel to represent
Children’s legal interests and a guardian ad litem (“GAL”) to represent
Children’s best interests.
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On August 26, 2022, the trial court issued an Opinion and Decree which
terminated Parents’ parental rights to Children. Notably, the trial court denied
the Agency’s petitions pursuant to Sections 2511(a)(2) and (5). Specifically,
the court found that while the Agency proved Mother’s incapacity to parent
and Father’s “disinterest” in parenting, the Agency failed to offer appropriate
services and, therefore, failed to prove that the incapacity or disinterest could
not be remedied as required by Section 2511(a)(2). Trial Ct. Op. at 27-28.
Moreover, the trial court evaluated Parents’ remedial efforts and found that
their “remedial efforts have been at least moderate as the natural parents
have adequate housing, completed parenting classes, have been involved
in mental health counseling, and continue to parent the youngest child . . .
[they have] done almost everything that the Agency had requested.” Id. at
32 (emphasis added). The trial court found that the Agency failed to provide
the parents with available services to reunite Parents with Children, and,
therefore the Agency failed to prove that “services or assistance reasonably
available to the parent are not likely to remedy the conditions which led to the
removal or placement of [Children] within a reasonable period of time” as
required by Section 2511(a)(5). Id. at 29-32.
Nevertheless, the trial court granted the Agency’s petition under Section
2511(a)(8). In doing so, the court conceded that Parents remedied the
inadequate housing, but relied instead on the fact that Parents continue to
exhibit an incapacity to parent Children. Id. at 33. The court also found that
the Agency presented clear and convincing evidence to terminate pursuant to
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Section 2511(b) because Children are beneficially bonded with their foster
parents and there was expert testimony that no bond exists between Children
and Parents. Id. at 36-37.
Parents timely appealed. Neither Mother nor Father filed a
contemporaneous Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a) statement as required by Rule
1925(a)(2)(i) in Children’s Fast Track cases, however each filed a Rule
1925(b) statement fourteen days after filing a notice of appeal. Prior to
Parents filing their individual Rule 1925(b) statements, the trial court issued
a Rule 1925(a) opinion concluding that Parents had waived all issues on
appeal. As an initial matter, we disagree.
A.
Pennsylvania Rule of Appellate Procedure 1925(a)(2)(i) provides that
for Children’s Fast Track appeals, the “concise statement of errors complained
of on appeal shall be filed and served with the notice of appeal.”
Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a)(2)(i) (emphasis added). An appellant’s failure to file the
Rule 1925(b) statement contemporaneously with the notice of appeal,
however, does not affect the validity of the appeal, but “is subject to such
action as the appellate court deems appropriate, which may include, but is not
limited to, remand of the matter to the lower court so that the omitted
procedural step may be taken.” In re K.T.E.L., 983 A.2d 745, 747 (Pa. Super.
2009) (citing Pa.R.A.P. 902). When determining how to address a Children’s
Fast Track Appeal in which the appellant has not filed the Rule 1925(b)
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statement contemporaneously with the notice of appeal, this Court has
cautioned that “[t]he extreme action of dismissal should be imposed by an
appellate court sparingly, and clearly would be inappropriate when there has
been substantial compliance with the rules and when the party moving for
quashal of the appeal has suffered no prejudice.” Id. (citation omitted).
Here, the Agency and the GAL both purport to be prejudiced because
the trial court did not opine on Parents’ precise allegations of error. Agency
Brief at 10; GAL Brief at 4-5. Our review of the record belies this claim.
Parents’ issues were readily discernable, and the trial court thoroughly
addressed Parents’ challenges to its decision in its 37-page Opinion and
Decree that included extensive Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law. See
Trial Ct. Op. at 1-37. We conclude that Parents substantially complied with
the requirements of Rule 1925 and the parties suffered no prejudice from
Parents filing their individual Rule 1925(b) statements fourteen days after
filing their notices of appeal. Accordingly, we decline to find waiver and will
proceed to address the merits of Parents’ appeal.
B.
In her Brief to this Court, Mother raises the following issues on appeal:
1. Did the trial court err in finding, under 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8),
the [Agency] met [its] burden by showing that “the conditions
that led to the removal or placement of the child continue to
exist[,”] despite that Mother and Father had resolved the initial
cause of placement.
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2. By erring in finding that the [Agency] had met [its] burden
under [23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8)], did the trial court move to 23
Pa.C.S. § 2511(b) analysis in error.
Mother’s Br. at 2-3.
Similarly, Father raises the following issue for our review:
1. Did the [l]ower [c]ourt have adequate grounds to terminate
the parental rights of [Father]?
Father’s Br. at 8.
In addressing Parents’ issues, we are mindful of our well settled
standard of review. When we review a trial court’s decision to grant or deny
a petition to involuntarily terminate parental rights, we must accept the
findings of fact and credibility determinations of the trial court if the record
supports them. In re T.S.M., 71 A.3d 251, 267 (Pa. 2013). “If the factual
findings are supported, appellate courts review to determine if the trial court
made an error of law or abused its discretion.” Id. (citation omitted). “Absent
an abuse of discretion, an error of law, or insufficient evidentiary support for
the trial court’s decision, the decree must stand.” In re R.N.J., 985 A.2d 273,
276 (Pa. Super. 2009) (citation omitted).
Section 2511 of the Adoption Act, 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511, governs
termination of parental rights, and requires a bifurcated analysis. “Initially,
the focus is on the conduct of the parent.” In re Adoption of A.C., 162 A.3d
1123, 1128 (Pa. Super. 2017) (citation omitted). “The party seeking
termination must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the parent’s
conduct satisfies the statutory grounds for termination delineated in Section
2511(a).” Id. (citation omitted). If the court determines that the parent’s
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conduct warrants termination of his or her parental rights, the court then
engages in “the second part of the analysis pursuant to Section 2511(b):
determination of the needs and welfare of the child under the standard of best
interests of the child.” Id. (citation omitted).
Parents both aver that the trial court erred in terminating their parental
rights pursuant to Section 2511(a)(8), which authorizes the trial court to
terminate parental rights if the parent has not resolved the conditions which
led to placement of Children. 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8). Parents argue that
the trial court found that the initial cause of placement was lack of adequate
housing, which Parents have resolved and, thus, the trial court erred in
terminating pursuant to this section. Mother’s Br. at 6; Father’s Br. at 12.
We agree.
Section 2511(a)(8) provides:
The child has been removed from the care of the parent by the
court or under a voluntary agreement with an agency, 12 months
or more have elapsed from the date of removal or placement, the
conditions which led to the removal or placement of the
child continue to exist and termination of parental rights would
best serve the needs and welfare of the child.
23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8) (emphasis added).
In addressing this subsection, the trial court acknowledged that Mother
had remedied the conditions which initially caused placement of Children, but
nevertheless concluded that termination under Section 2511(a)(8) was
proper. The court opined:
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the conditions which have caused this continued placement still
exist. Although adequate housing initially caused the
placement, which has been resolved, Father’s nonengagement
with [C]hildren and Mother’s incapacity and/or inability to parent
[C]hildren continues to exist and prevents reunification.
Trial Ct. Op. at 33.
A plain reading of the statute requires that “the conditions which led to
the removal or placement . . . continue to exist.” 23 Pa.C.S. § 2511(a)(8)
(emphasis added). Here, the conditions which led to the removal or placement
of Children do not continue to exist—in fact, the trial court found the conditions
to be “resolved.” Trial Ct. Op. at 33. The Agency, thus, failed to demonstrate
that the reason for Childrens’ removal continues to exist. The trial court’s
finding that Parents resolved their housing issue is supported in the record.
Therefore, the court erred as a matter of law in terminating Parents’ rights
pursuant to Section 2511(a)(8). Accordingly, we reverse.4
C.
In conclusion, the Agency failed to prove by clear and convincing
evidence that the condition which led to the removal or placement of
Children—inadequate housing—continues to exist as required by the statute.
Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court erred in terminating Parents’
parental rights pursuant to Section 2511(a)(8).
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4 In light of our disposition, we need not address whether the court erred in
terminating Parents’ parental rights pursuant to Section 2511(b). We likewise
decline to address whether the court erred in denying termination of parental
rights under Sections 2511(a)(2) and (5) because this issue was not raised
for our review.
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Decree reversed.
Judgment Entered.
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary
Date: 8/9/2023
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