How Do i Terminate the Parental Rights of an Incarcerated Parent in Missouri?
Full Question:
Answer:
A parent may also have rights terminated, either by voluntary relinquishment or judicial termination. A judicial termination requires proof that the parent is unfit and/or poses a threat of harm to the child. The court may order termination of the parent-child relationship if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the parent engaged in conduct or knowingly placed the child with persons who engaged in conduct which endangers the physical or emotional well-being of the child, or the parent is convicted an a child abuse offense. A termination of parental rights voids any rights and obligations toward the child. The parent will no longer have rights to custody or visitation and will no longer owe a duty of support.
Termination of parental rights will typically end the obligation for child support at that point, but not erase liability for past due support. Often, relinquishment of parental rights will not be allowed if done for the purpose of avoiding child support payments.
Please see the following Missouri statutes:
211.444. Termination of parental rights upon consent of parent, when —
execution of written consent — acknowledgment. —
1. The juvenile court may, upon petition of the juvenile officer or a
child-placing agency licensed under sections 210.481 to 210.536, RSMo, in
conjunction with a placement with such agency under subsection 6 of
section 453.010, RSMo, or the court before which a petition for adoption
has been filed pursuant to the provisions of chapter 453, RSMo, terminate
the rights of a parent to a child if the court finds that such
termination is in the best interests of the child and the parent has
consented in writing to the termination of his or her parental rights.
2. The written consent required by subsection 1 of this section may be
executed before or after the institution of the proceedings and shall be
acknowledged before a notary public. In lieu of such acknowledgment, the
signature of the person giving the written consent shall be witnessed by at
least two adult persons who are present at the execution whose signatures
and addresses shall be plainly written thereon and who determine and
certify that the consent is knowingly and freely given. The two adult
witnesses shall not be the prospective parents. The notary public or
witnesses shall verify the identity of the party signing the consent.
3. The written consent required by subsection 1 of this section shall be
valid and effective only after the child is at least forty-eight hours old
and if it complies with the other requirements of section 453.030, RSMo.
211.447. Petition to terminate parental rights filed, when — juvenile court
may terminate parental rights, when — investigation to be made — grounds
for termination. —
1. Any information that could justify the filing of a petition to
terminate parental rights may be referred to the juvenile officer by any
person. The juvenile officer shall make a preliminary inquiry and if it
does not appear to the juvenile officer that a petition should be filed,
such officer shall so notify the informant in writing within thirty days of
the referral. Such notification shall include the reasons that the petition
will not be filed. Thereupon, the informant may bring the matter directly
to the attention of the judge of the juvenile court by presenting the
information in writing, and if it appears to the judge that the information
could justify the filing of a petition, the judge may order the juvenile
officer to take further action, including making a further preliminary
inquiry or filing a petition.
2. Except as provided for in subsection 4 of this section, a petition to
terminate the parental rights of the child's parent or parents shall be
filed by the juvenile officer or the division, or if such a petition has
been filed by another party, the juvenile officer or the division shall
seek to be joined as a party to the petition, when:
(1) Information available to the juvenile officer or the
division establishes that the child has been in foster care for at least
fifteen of the most recent twenty-two months; or
(2) A court of competent jurisdiction has determined the child to be an
abandoned infant. For purposes of this subdivision, an "infant" means any
child one year of age or under at the time of filing of the petition. The
court may find that an infant has been abandoned if:
(a) The parent has left the child under circumstances that the identity
of the child was unknown and could not be ascertained, despite diligent
searching, and the parent has not come forward to claim the child; or
(b) The parent has, without good cause, left the child without any
provision for parental support and without making arrangements to visit or
communicate with the child, although able to do so; or
(3) A court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the parent has:
(a) Committed murder of another child of the parent; or
(b) Committed voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent; or
(c) Aided or abetted, attempted, conspired or solicited to commit such a
murder or voluntary manslaughter; or
(d) Committed a felony assault that resulted in serious bodily injury to
the child or to another child of the parent.
3. A termination of parental rights petition shall be filed by the
juvenile officer or the division, or if such a petition has been filed by
another party, the juvenile officer or the division shall seek to be
joined as a party to the petition, within sixty days of the judicial
determinations required in subsection 2 of this section, except as
provided in subsection 4 of this section. Failure to comply with this
requirement shall not deprive the court of jurisdiction to adjudicate a
petition for termination of parental rights which is filed outside of
sixty days.
4. If grounds exist for termination of parental rights pursuant to
subsection 2 of this section, the juvenile officer or the division may, but
is not required to, file a petition to terminate the parental rights of the
child's parent or parents if:
(1) The child is being cared for by a relative; or
(2) There exists a compelling reason for determining that filing such a
petition would not be in the best interest of the child, as documented in
the permanency plan which shall be made available for court review; or
(3) The family of the child has not been provided such services as
provided for in section 211.183.
5. The juvenile officer or the division may file a petition to terminate
the parental rights of the child's parent when it appears that one or more
of the following grounds for termination exist:
(1) The child has been abandoned. For purposes of this subdivision a
"child" means any child over one year of age at the time of filing of the
petition. The court shall find that the child has been abandoned if, for a
period of six months or longer:
(a) The parent has left the child under such circumstances that the
identity of the child was unknown and could not be ascertained, despite
diligent searching, and the parent has not come forward to claim the child;
or
(b) The parent has, without good cause, left the child without any
provision for parental support and without making arrangements to visit or
communicate with the child, although able to do so;
(2) The child has been abused or neglected. In determining whether to
terminate parental rights pursuant to this subdivision, the court shall
consider and make findings on the following conditions or acts of the
parent:
(a) A mental condition which is shown by competent evidence either to be
permanent or such that there is no reasonable likelihood that the condition
can be reversed and which renders the parent unable to knowingly provide
the child the necessary care, custody and control;
(b) Chemical dependency which prevents the parent from consistently
providing the necessary care, custody and control of the child and which
cannot be treated so as to enable the parent to consistently provide such
care, custody and control;
(c) A severe act or recurrent acts of physical, emotional or sexual abuse
toward the child or any child in the family by the parent, including an act
of incest, or by another under circumstances that indicate that the parent
knew or should have known that such acts were being committed toward the
child or any child in the family; or
(d) Repeated or continuous failure by the parent, although physically or
financially able, to provide the child with adequate food, clothing,
shelter, or education as defined by law, or other care and control
necessary for the child's physical, mental, or emotional health and
development;
(3) The child has been under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court for a
period of one year, and the court finds that the conditions which led to
the assumption of jurisdiction still persist, or conditions of a
potentially harmful nature continue to exist, that there is little
likelihood that those conditions will be remedied at an early date so that
the child can be returned to the parent in the near future, or the
continuation of the parent-child relationship greatly diminishes the
child's prospects for early integration into a stable and permanent home.
In determining whether to terminate parental rights under this subdivision,
the court shall consider and make findings on the following:
(a) The terms of a social service plan entered into by the parent and the
division and the extent to which the parties have made progress in
complying with those terms;
(b) The success or failure of the efforts of the juvenile officer, the
division or other agency to aid the parent on a continuing basis in
adjusting his circumstances or conduct to provide a proper home for the
child;
(c) A mental condition which is shown by competent evidence either to be
permanent or such that there is no reasonable likelihood that the condition
can be reversed and which renders the parent unable to knowingly provide
the child the necessary care, custody and control;
(d) Chemical dependency which prevents the parent from consistently
providing the necessary care, custody and control over the child and which
cannot be treated so as to enable the parent to consistently provide such
care, custody and control; or
(4) The parent has been found guilty or pled guilty to a felony violation
of chapter 566, RSMo, when the child or any child in the family was a
victim, or a violation of section 568.020, RSMo, when the child or any
child in the family was a victim. As used in this subdivision, a "child"
means any person who was under eighteen years of age at the time of the
crime and who resided with such parent or was related within the third
degree of consanguinity or affinity to such parent; or
(5) The child was conceived and born as a result of an act of forcible
rape. When the biological father has pled guilty to, or is convicted of,
the forcible rape of the birth mother, such a plea or conviction shall be
conclusive evidence supporting the termination of the biological father's
parental rights; or
(6) The parent is unfit to be a party to the parent and child
relationship because of a consistent pattern of committing a specific
abuse, including but not limited to, abuses as defined in section 455.010,
RSMo, child abuse or drug abuse before the child or of specific
conditions directly relating to the parent and child relationship either
of which are determined by the court to be of a duration or nature that
renders the parent unable, for the reasonably foreseeable future, to care
appropriately for the ongoing physical, mental or emotional needs of the
child. It is presumed that a parent is unfit to be a party to the
parent-child relationship upon a showing that within a three-year period
immediately prior to the termination adjudication, the parent's parental
rights to one or more other children were involuntarily terminated
pursuant to subsection 2 or 4 of this section or subdivisions (1), (2),
(3) or (4) of subsection 5 of this section or similar laws of other
states.
6. The juvenile court may terminate the rights of a parent to a child
upon a petition filed by the juvenile officer or the division, or in
adoption cases, by a prospective parent, if the court finds that the
termination is in the best interest of the child and when it appears by
clear, cogent and convincing evidence that grounds exist for termination
pursuant to subsection 2, 4 or 5 of this section.
7. When considering whether to terminate the parent-child relationship
pursuant to subsection 2 or 4 of this section or subdivision (1), (2), (3)
or (4) of subsection 5 of this section, the court shall evaluate and make
findings on the following factors, when appropriate and applicable to the
case:
(1) The emotional ties to the birth parent;
(2) The extent to which the parent has maintained regular visitation or
other contact with the child;
(3) The extent of payment by the parent for the cost of care and
maintenance of the child when financially able to do so including the time
that the child is in the custody of the division or other child-placing
agency;
(4) Whether additional services would be likely to bring about lasting
parental adjustment enabling a return of the child to the parent within an
ascertainable period of time;
(5) The parent's disinterest in or lack of commitment to the child;
(6) The conviction of the parent of a felony offense that the court finds
is of such a nature that the child will be deprived of a stable home for a
period of years; provided, however, that incarceration in and of itself
shall not be grounds for termination of parental rights;
(7) Deliberate acts of the parent or acts of another of which the parent
knew or should have known that subjects the child to a substantial risk of
physical or mental harm.
8. The court may attach little or no weight to infrequent visitations,
communications, or contributions. It is irrelevant in a termination
proceeding that the maintenance of the parent-child relationship may serve
as an inducement for the parent's rehabilitation.
9. In actions for adoption pursuant to chapter 453, RSMo, the court may
hear and determine the issues raised in a petition for adoption containing
a prayer for termination of parental rights filed with the same effect as a
petition permitted pursuant to subsection 2, 4, or 5 of this section.
211.452. Petition for termination, when filed
— contents — joinder of cases of more than one child. —
1. The petition for termination of parental rights shall be filed in
the juvenile court which has prior jurisdiction over the child or, if no
such prior jurisdiction exists, then the petition shall be filed where
the child is, and shall include:
(1) The name, sex, date and place of birth, and residence of the child,
if known after due and diligent search;
(2) If known after due and diligent search, the name, address and the
date of birth of the parent;
(3) The name and address of the person holding legal or actual custody of
the child, the guardian of the person of the child and the organization or
agency holding legal or actual custody or providing care for the child;
(4) The facts on which termination is sought and the ground or grounds
authorizing termination pursuant to section 211.447.
2. If there is more than one child in the family and a termination of
parental rights petition is being or has been prepared for each child, the
court may join the cases for disposition in one proceeding; provided,
however, that joinder of the cases is found to be in the best interests of
each child.
211.453. Service of summons, how made — when required — waiver of
summons. —
1. Service of summons shall be made as in other civil cases in the
manner prescribed in section 506.150, RSMo. However, if service cannot be
made as prescribed in section 506.150, RSMo, and it is not waived, then
the service shall be made by mail or publication as provided in
section 506.160, RSMo.
2. Persons who shall be summoned and receive a copy of the petition shall
include:
(1) The parent of the child, including a putative father who has
acknowledged the child as his own by affirmatively asserting his paternity,
unless the parent has filed a consent to the termination of parental rights
in court;
(2) The guardian of the person of the child;
(3) The person, agency or organization having custody of the child;
(4) The foster parent, relative or other person with whom the child has
been placed; and
(5) Any other person whose presence the court deems necessary.
3. The court shall not require service in the case of a parent whose
identity is unknown and cannot be ascertained, or cannot be located.
4. Any person required to receive summons may waive appearance or service
of summons.
211.455. Procedure after filing of petition — determination of service —
extension of time for service, when — investigation. —
1. Within thirty days after the filing of the petition, the juvenile
officer shall meet with the court in order to determine that all parties
have been served with summons and to request that the court order the
investigation and social study.
2. If, at that time, all parties required to be served with summons have
not been served, the court, in its discretion, may extend the time for
service if the court finds that service may be forthcoming and that the
best interests of the child would be served thereby.
3. The court shall order an investigation and social study except in
cases filed under section 211.444. The investigation and social study shall
be made by the juvenile officer, the state division of family services or a
public or private agency authorized or licensed to care for children or any
other competent person, as directed by the court, and a written report
shall be made to the court to aid the court in determining whether the
termination is in the best interests of the child. It shall include such
matters as the parental background, the fitness and capacity of the parent
to discharge parental responsibilities, the child's home, present
adjustment, physical, emotional and mental condition, and such other facts
as are pertinent to the determination. Parties and attorneys or guardians
ad litem or volunteer advocates representing them before the court shall
have access to the written report. All ordered evaluations and reports
shall be made available to the parties and attorneys or guardians ad litem
or volunteer advocates representing them before the court at least fifteen
days prior to any dispositional hearing.