APPEAL
FROM THE FAULKNER COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT [NO. 23JV-17-169]
HONORABLE DAVID M. CLARK, JUDGE
Leah
Lanford, Arkansas Public Defender Commission, for appellant.
One
brief only.
ROBERT
J. GLADWIN, JUDGE
Appellant
Stephanie Meisch appeals the September 21, 2018 order by the
Faulkner County Circuit Court terminating her parental rights
to her two-year-old daughter, J.S.[1]Pursuant to Linker-Flores
v. Arkansas Department of Human Services, 359 Ark. 131,
194 S.W.3d 739 (2004), and Arkansas Supreme Court Rule 6-9(i)
(2018), Meisch's counsel has filed a motion to withdraw
and a no-merit brief asserting that there are no issues of
arguable merit to support an appeal. The clerk of our court
sent copies of the brief and the motion to withdraw to
Meisch's address of record informing her of her right to
file pro se points for reversal pursuant to Rule 6-9(i)(3).
The packet was returned undeliverable, marked "return to
sender."[2] No additional contact information has been
provided for Meisch to either the clerk's office or to
the Public Defender Commission. Meisch has not filed any pro
se points for reversal. We affirm the termination of parental
rights and grant counsel's motion to withdraw.
I.
Facts and Procedural History
The
case began on June 12, 2017, when a caller reported to the
Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline that Meisch was on
methamphetamine "really bad," that she was blowing
smoke into J.S.'s face, that J.S. had
"horrible" diaper rash, and that Meisch would stay
up for days and then pass out for a week. An investigation
resulted in appellee Arkansas Department of Human Services
(DHS) exercising an emergency removal of J.S. An affidavit
attached to the emergency petition filed on June 15 noted
that Meisch smelled of marijuana and was acting erratically
while holding then six-month-old J.S. The following day, the
court signed an emergency order giving custody of J.S. to DHS
based on Meisch's drug use as alleged in the affidavit.
The circuit court's emergency order noted that the family
had a history with the state of Arizona, where Meisch
previously had her parental rights terminated to four other
children.
On June
27, the circuit court held a combined probable-cause and
adjudication hearing and found that J.S. was
dependent-neglected because Meisch was "visibl[y]"
under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol while caring for
J.S. The court also made a factual finding that Meisch had
given birth to several other children and had lost custody of
those children through legal proceedings in Arizona. The
court ordered Meisch to cooperate and stay in contact with
DHS; keep DHS informed of any and all status changes;
participate in individual and family counseling as
recommended by a therapist; refrain from illegal drugs and
alcohol; submit to a drug-and-alcohol assessment; attend
Alcoholics Anonymous/ Narcotics Anonymous (AA/NA) meetings at
least three times a week and provide written documentation of
attendance to DHS; complete parenting classes and demonstrate
appropriate parenting skills; obtain and maintain stable
housing and employment; maintain a clean and safe home for
herself and for J.S.; and demonstrate an ability to protect
J.S.
In
October 2017, the circuit court noted in a review-hearing
order that Meisch had (1) failed to appear at the hearing,
(2) failed to comply with the case plan and court orders, (3)
stopped attending visitation with J.S., and (4) made no
progress toward alleviating or mitigating the causes of
J.S.'s removal. The court further noted that DHS had
provided information that Meisch had moved to Arizona.
At the
January 2018 review hearing, the circuit court noted that
Meisch's lack of compliance had not changed. She again
failed to appear at the hearing, and she had neither had
meaningful contact with DHS nor made any progress toward
alleviating or mitigating the causes of J.S.'s removal.
Similar findings were made at the April 10 review hearing,
except that Meisch made a request-though not appearing-for
her mother to be considered for placement in Arizona. The
court noted that Meisch had relocated to Arizona.
On June
5, 2018, the court held a permanency-planning hearing and
found in a subsequent order dated August 3 that the goal of
the case would be adoption because J.S. was not being cared
for by a relative and that it was not in her best interest to
be placed with Meisch's mother. The court found that
Meisch had not complied with the case plan or court orders in
that she (1) had not had any contact with DHS or J.S. in five
months;[3](2) was living in Arizona and had not
completed the services outlined in the case plan and court
orders, including drug rehabilitation, counseling, parenting,
and visitation with her child; and (3) she had made no
progress toward alleviating or mitigating the causes of
J.S.'s removal from the home. The court set the case for
a termination-of-parental-rights (TPR) hearing, and its
findings were not appealed.
On June
20, 2018, DHS filed a TPR petition alleging that Meisch was
unfit to parent J.S. for the following reasons:
a. That [J.S.] has been adjudicated by the [c]ourt to be
dependent-neglected on June 27, 2017 and has continued out of
the custody of [Meisch] for twelve (12) months and, despite a
meaningful effort by [DHS] to rehabilitate the parent and
correct the conditions which caused removal, those conditions
have not been remedied by [Meisch]. Ark. Code Ann. §
9-27-341(b)(3)(B)(i)(a) [Supp. 2017)].
b. That [J.S.] has been adjudicated by the [c]ourt to be
dependent-neglected on June 27, 2017, and has continued out
of the home of the noncustodial parent, Frank Sutter, for
twelve (12) months and, despite a meaningful effort by [DHS]
to rehabilitate the parent and correct the conditions that
prevented the child from safely being placed in the
parent's home, the conditions have not been remedied by
Frank Sutter. Ark. Code Ann. §
9-27-341(b)(3)(B)(i)(b).
c. [J.S.] has lived outside the home of [Meisch] and Frank
Sutter for a period of twelve (12) months and both parents
have willfully failed to provide significant material support
in accordance with the parent's means or to maintain
meaningful contact with the juvenile. Ark. Code Ann. §
9-27-341(b)(3)(B)(ii)(a).
d. The parents, [Meisch] and Frank Sutter, have abandoned the
juvenile. Ark. Code Ann. ยง ...