North Carolina Divorce Lawyers Blog
In re J.J.H., Supreme Court of North Carolina, No. 430A19, December 18, 2020
This is Respondent Mother’s Appeal to the termination of her parental rights.
- Facts: Guilford County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) filed petitions alleging that three of the five minor children involved were neglected and dependent juveniles. The remaining two minor children were alleged to be neglected juveniles. The agency reported receiving eleven reports on this family between October 2011 and February 2016. DHHS had substantiated nine of these reports. The reports alleged inadequate supervision. DHHS found that the two-year-old female was taken to the hospital twice for burns to her hands, arms, and buttocks. The five-year-old male received a school suspension for hitting and kicking daycare teachers. The Respondent Mother’s elderly grandmother, who suffered from seizures, reported that the mother had left the children in her care without permission. DHHS found that the respondent-mother left the children alone in the home only supervised by a five-year-old. Reports included the child drawing pictures of sexual acts, explaining human anatomy to classmates, attempting to engage in sexually inappropriate conduct with siblings, and describing acts of sexual abuse by an older cousin, who also acted as an overnight caregiver. The respondent-mother missed multiple medical appointments for one minor child that suffered from a large mass in his nose. The children were returned to school when the respondent mother failed to be present when they arrived home on the bus. DHHS reports noted the home’s utility services were disconnected.