A petition to terminate the paternal rights of the child’s parent(s) shall be filed by the juvenile officer or the Children’s Division (CD) or if the petition is filed by another party, the Juvenile Officer or CD shall seek to be joined as a party to petition when the following grounds are present:

• Child has been in foster care for at least fifteen (15) of the most recent twenty-two (22) months; or
• A court of competent jurisdiction has determined the child to be an abandoned infant:
  • The parent has left the child under circumstances that the identity of the child was unknown and could not be ascertain, despite diligent searching, and the parent has not come forward to claim the child; or
  • 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
• A court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the parent has:
  • Committed murder of another child of the parent; or
  • Committed voluntary manslaughter of another child of the parent; or
  • Aided or abetted, attempted, conspired or solicited to commit such a murder or voluntary manslaughter; or
  • Committed a felony assault that resulted in serious bodily injury to the child or to another child of the parent.

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 of the following exists:

• The child has been abandoned for the 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 (6) months or longer:
  • The parent has left the child under such circumstance 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
  • The parent has, without good cause, left child without any provision for parental support and without making arrangements to visit or communicate with the child, although able to do so;
• 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 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;
  • Chemical dependency which prevents the parent from consistently providing the necessary care, custody and control of the child which cannot be treated to enable the parent to consistently provide such care, custody and control;
  • A severe act or recurrent acts of physical, emotional or sexual abuse toward the child or any child in the family by parent, including an act of incest, or by another under circumstances that indicate that the parent knew or should have known that such acts where being committed toward the child or any child in the family; or
  • 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.
  • Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit discrimination on the basis of disability or disease;
• The child has been under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court for a period of one (1) year, and the court finds that the conditions which led to the assumption of jurisdiction still persist, or condition 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 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:
  • Treatment Plan Progress:  Utilization of the Social Service Plan developed with the parent and the Family Support Team shall be assessed to determine the extent to which the parties have made progress toward completion of the safety goals to successfully demonstrate the necessary behavioral changes which supports the ability to safely care and provide for the child(ren).  Should TPR occur, the Social Service Plan should continue to be utilized and reassessed every 90 days after the last completion date to continue planning for the needs of the child(ren);
  • Efforts:  The success or failure of the efforts of the juvenile officer, Children’s 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.  Such efforts should be clearly documented during each reassessment period in the Social Service Plan;
  • Mental Condition:  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;
  • Chemical Dependency:   such 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
• 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 victim, or a violation of section 568.020, RSMo, when the  “child or any child in the family was 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;
• The child was conceived and born as a result 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
• 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 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 section 211.447 subsection 2 or 3 or section 211.447 subdivisions (1), (2), (3) or (4) of subsection 4 or similar laws of other states.
  • If the parent is the birth mother and within eight hours after the child’s birth, the child’s birth mother tested positive and over .08 blood alcohol content pursuant to testing under section 577.020 for alcohol, or tested positive for cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, a controlled substance as defined in section 195.010, or a prescription drug as defined in section 196.973, excepting those controlled substances or prescription drugs present in the mother’s body as a result of medical treatment administered to the mother, and the birth mother is the biological mother of at least one other child who was adjudicated an abused or neglected minor by the mother or the mother has previously failed to complete recommended treatment services by the children’s division through a family-centered services case;
  • If the parent is the birth mother and at the time of the child’s birth or within eight hours after a child’s birth the child tested positive for alcohol, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, a controlled substance as defined in section 195.010, or a prescription drug as defined in section 196.973, excepting those controlled substances or prescription drugs present in the mother’s body as a result of medical treatment administered to the mother, and the birth mother is the biological mother of at least one other child who was adjudicated an abused or neglected minor by the mother or the mother has previously failed to complete recommended treatment services by the children’s division through a family-centered services case; or
  • Within a three-year period immediately prior to the termination adjudication, the parent has pled guilty to or has been convicted of a felony involving the possession, distribution, or manufacture of cocaine, heroin, or methamphetamine, and the parent is the biological parent of at least one other child who was adjudicated an abused or neglected minor by such parent or such parent has previously failed to complete recommended treatment services by the children’s division through a family-centered services case.

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 to adoption case, 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 211.447 subsection 2, 3 or 4.

Pursuant to 211.447.7, when considering whether to terminate the parent-child relationship, the court shall evaluate and make findings on the following factors, when appropriate and applicable to the case:

• The emotional ties to the birth parent;
• The extent to which the parent has maintained regular visitation or other contact with the child;
• 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;
• 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;
• The parent’s disinterest in or lack of commitment to the child;
• 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;
• 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.

The disability or disease of a parent shall not constitute a basis for a determination that a child is a child in need of care, for the removal of custody of a child from the parent, or for the termination of parent rights without a specific showing that there is a causal relation between the disability or disease and harm to the child.

Considerations Based on Child’s Best Interest
When considering whether to terminate the parent-child relationship the court shall consider all relevant factors of the child’s best interest including:

• The emotional ties to the birth parents
• The extent to which the parent has maintained regular visitation or other contact with the child
• 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 child is in the custody of the division or other child-placing agency
• Whether additional services would be likely to bring about lasting parental adjustment enabling a return of the child to the parent within and ascertainable period of time
• The parent’s disinterest in or lack of commitment to the child
• 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 the parental rights
• 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

The judge shall make written findings of fact and conclusions of law in any order pertaining to the placement of the child.

Section 211.444 allows the court to terminate parental rights of a child if it finds that termination is in the best interest of the child and the parent has consented in writing to the termination.

Paternity: It is imperative to identify any man/all men having/claiming interest in the child. Men having an interest could include alleged father, man named by mother as biological father of child; putative father, man who claims to be biological father of child; and, legal father, man, if applicable, married to mother at time child is conceived. See sections 210.817 to 210.853 and 193.225 to 193.325 of the Missouri Revised Statutes for information on establishment of paternity.

Section 211.447 allows any person to make a referral to the juvenile office for the termination of parental rights and establishes grounds for termination. This section also requires the juvenile officer or the Division to file a petition for termination of parental rights in certain circumstances. Sections 211.447.3 and 211.447.4 set out grounds when the juvenile officer or the Division may, but is not required to file a petition for termination of parental rights.

Related Practice Alerts and Memos:

2-18-20 – PA20-CM-01 – Termination of Parental Rights Referral Form