Grounds for Involuntary Termination of Parental Rights - Arizona

Grounds for Termination of Parental Rights
Citation: Rev. Stat. § 8-533

Grounds to terminate the parent-child relationship shall include any of the following, with due consideration for the best interests of the child:

• The parent has abandoned the child.
• The parent has neglected or willfully abused a child.
• The parent is unable to discharge parental responsibilities because of mental illness, mental deficiency, or a history of chronic abuse of dangerous drugs or alcohol, and there are reasonable grounds to believe that the condition will continue for a prolonged period.
• The parent has been convicted of a felony of such nature as to prove the unfitness of that parent, including murder or manslaughter of another child of the parent, or if the sentence of that parent is of such length that the child will be deprived of a normal home for a period of years.
• The potential father failed to file a paternity action within 30 days of completion of service of notice, as prescribed in § 8-106(G).
• The putative father failed to file a notice of claim of paternity.
• The parents have relinquished their rights to a child to an agency or have consented to the child's adoption.
• The identity of the parent is unknown and continues to be unknown following 3 months of diligent efforts to identify and locate the parent.
• The parent has had parental rights to another child terminated within the preceding 2 years for the same cause and is currently unable to discharge parental responsibilities due to the same cause.

The following may also be grounds for termination of parental rights:

• The child is being cared for in an out-of-home placement, the agency responsible for the child's care has made a diligent effort to provide appropriate reunification services, and one of the following circumstances exists:
  • The child has been in an out-of-home placement for a cumulative total period of 9 months or longer, and the parent has substantially neglected or willfully refused to remedy the circumstances that cause the child to be in an out-of-home placement.
  • The child, who is under age 3, has been in an out-of-home placement for a cumulative total period of 6 months or longer, and the parent has substantially neglected or willfully refused to remedy the circumstances that cause the child to be in an out-of-home placement, including refusal to participate in reunification services offered by the department.
  • The child has been in an out-of-home placement for a cumulative total period of 15 months, the parent has been unable to remedy the circumstances that cause the child to be in an out-of-home placement, and there is a substantial likelihood that the parent will not be capable of exercising proper and effective parental care and control in the near future.
• All the following are true:
  • The child was cared for in an out-of-home placement pursuant to court order.
  • The agency responsible for the care of the child made diligent efforts to provide appropriate reunification services.
  • The child was returned to the legal custody of the parent from whom the child had been removed.
  • Within 18 months after the child is returned home, the child was removed from that parent's legal custody, the child is being cared for in an out-of-home placement, and the parent is currently unable to discharge parental responsibilities.
• There is clear and convincing evidence that the parent committed a sexual assault against the petitioning parent, and the child was conceived as a result of the sexual assault.

The failure of an alleged parent who is not the child's legal parent to take a test requested by the department or ordered by the court to determine if the person is the child's natural parent is prima facie evidence of abandonment unless good cause is shown by the alleged parent for that failure.

Timeframes for Termination Proceedings

This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

Exceptions

This issue is not addressed in the statutes reviewed.

When Parental Rights May Be Reinstated
Citation: Rev. Stat. § 8-547

If a child's parent-child relationship has been terminated, the Department of Child Safety, the child, an Indian child's Tribe, the child's attorney or guardian ad litem, or the child's parent may petition to have the child's parent-child relationship restored if all the following apply:

• The child is in the care or custody of the department.
• The child has not achieved permanency, is unlikely to achieve permanency, and is not in a preadoptive placement.
• At least 2 years have passed since the parent-child relationship was terminated unless there is a demonstration of good cause for an earlier filing.
• The parent-child relationship was not terminated because the parent committed or was found to have failed to protect a child from an act involving any of the following:
  • Serious physical injury
  • Sexual abuse or sexual conduct with a minor
  • Any conduct that resulted in the near-death or death of a minor
  • A dangerous crime against children as defined in § 13-705

The petition for restoration of the parent-child relationship shall include all the following:

• A statement explaining why the child is unlikely to obtain a permanent placement unless the child's parent-child relationship is restored
• The child's position on the restoration of the parent-child relationship
• The consent of the child's parent to the restoration of the parent-child relationship
• A statement explaining how the child's parent has demonstrated the remediation necessary for restoration of the parent-child relationship, including the ability and willingness to properly care for the child

If the department is the petitioner, the department shall include both of the following in the petition:

• A report of an assessment conducted by the department as to whether restoration of the parent-child relationship is in the best interests of the child
• Documentation of the department's diligent efforts to locate a permanent placement for the child

If the department is not the petitioner, the court shall order the department to conduct an assessment and submit a report to the court that includes both of the following:

• Whether restoration of the parent-child relationship is in the best interests of the child
• A description of the diligent efforts the department made to locate a permanent placement for the child

On completion of the department's assessment, if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that the restoration of the parent-child relationship is in the best interests of the child, including that the return of the child would not create a substantial risk of harm to the child's physical, social, mental, or emotional health or safety, the court shall order the department to conduct a trial in-home placement of the child with the child's parent. The department shall provide an evaluation of the trial in-home placement to the court within 3 to 6 months after the start of the in-home placement. After receiving the department's evaluation of the in-home placement, the court may grant the petition for restoration of the parent-child relationship, or the court may order the department to continue the in-home placement. If the court orders the department to continue the in-home placement, the court may not grant the petition for restoration of the parent-child relationship until the department has provided the court with an updated evaluation of the in-home placement. A trial in-home placement may not exceed 1 year.

The department shall establish trial in-home placement policies and procedures that include all the following:

• Adequate supervision of the child and the child's parent in the home
• Frequent communication with the child and the child's parent
• An individualized transition plan

The department shall immediately terminate the trial in-home placement if there is a substantiated report of abuse or neglect of the child by the parent or if the department determines that the child's health, safety, or well-being is threatened. If the department terminates the trial in-home placement, the department shall immediately notify the court and the child's attorney, the child's guardian ad litem, or an Indian child's Tribe.

After the trial in-home placement, if the court finds by clear and convincing evidence both that the child's parent has demonstrated the remediation necessary for the restoration of the parent-child relationship, including the ability and willingness to properly care for the child, and that the restoration of the parent-child relationship is in the best interests of the child, the court shall grant the petition. When making the best interests determination, the court shall consider the child's position on the restoration of the parent-child relationship and any other relevant factors.

If a child has been adopted but the adoption has been disrupted and the child is returned to the legal care of the department, the period of time that the child was adopted before the adoption disruption may be included as part of the 2-year time frame required by this section.