A court should evaluate a juvenile’s claim of ineffective counsel in a delinquency disposition-modification hearing by using a due process standard; it should consider counsel’s overall performance to determine if the child received a fundamentally fair hearing resulting in a disposition that served his best interests.
Juvenile
C.S. v. State, No. 19S-JV-137, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind., Oct. 1, 2019).
Ind. Admin. Rule 14(B) permits remote participation in juvenile disposition-modification hearings where the parties have agreed or where the court issues a good cause order based on the factors listed in the rule including the child’s best interest.
In re J.C., No. 19A-JT-350, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Sept. 24, 2019).
Trial court did not err by denying Mother’s motion to dismiss the petition to terminate her parental rights because the evidentiary hearings were not completed within the statutory 180-day time frame when Mother affirmatively waived the time frame.
In re K.R., No. 19A-JT-487, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind. Ct. App., Sept. 26, 2019).
Parents’ drug test results were admissible pursuant to the records of regularly conducted activity exception to the hearsay rule.
In re M.I., No. 19S-JT-281, __ N.E.3d __ (Ind., Aug. 9, 2019).
Despite Mother’s ongoing inability to secure suitable housing, the trial court properly concluded that terminating her parental rights would not be in her children’s best interests.