IN RE: Jahzline F. (2011)

Graziani, Edward C., J. Opinion TitleMEMORANDUM OF DECISION In accordance with General Statute 46b–124 and Practice Book 32a–7, the names of the parties involved in these cases are not to be disclosed, and the records and papers of these cases shall be open for inspection only to persons having a proper interest therein and only upon order of the Superior Court.   The cases regarding Jahzline F. and Johnathan F. present petitions of neglect filed by the Department of Children and Families on December 18, 2009.   The petitioner represents that the above referenced children are neglected within the meaning of General Statute 46b–120 in that they are being denied proper care and attention, physically, educationally, emotionally or morally and that they are being permitted to live under conditions, circumstances or associations injurious to their well-being.   The matters of the neglect petitions were tried to this court over nine days ending on May 6, 2011.   The petitioner, the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families, was represented by an assistant attorney general.   The mother and father of the children were each present during the trial and each was represented by an attorney.   The children were represented by an attorney who also served as their guardian ad litem.   The court finds that notice has been given in accordance with the General Statutes and the Connecticut Practice Book. The court finds that it has jurisdiction in this matter.   There are no other actions pending in any other court affecting the custody of the minor children known to this court.   The court has reviewed the verified petitions, heard the testimony of the witnesses produced at the hearing and considered each full exhibit.   The credible and relevant evidence submitted during the trial reveals the following facts which were proven by a fair preponderance of the evidence.   At the beginning of the first day of the trial, the mother entered a plea of nolo contendere to the allegations in the neglect petitions that the children have been neglected in that they have been permitted to live under conditions, circumstances or associations injurious to their well being and that they were denied proper care and attention, physically, educationally, emotionally or morally.   The plea was accepted by the court.   It was also reported to the court that the mother had agreed with the state's request that the children be committed to the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families.   The history of the file reveals that on December 16, 2009, the Department of Children and Families invoked a 96–hour hold on behalf of said children.   On December 18, 2009, motions for Orders of Temporary Custody and Petitions of Neglect were filed by DCF in the Superior Court for Juvenile Matters on behalf of said children.   Orders of Temporary Custody were granted on December 18, 2009 and were sustained on December 22, 2009 after the agreement of both parents.   Permanency plans were filed on September 20, 2010 seeking the termination of the parental rights of the parents and adoption.   There were no objections to the permanency plans filed by the parents or the children.   On December 8, 2010, the court approved the permanency plans of termination of the parental rights of the children and adoption.   The mother is twenty-eight years old.   She has had a long history of mental health issues and has been diagnosed with PTSD, anxiety disorder and a bipolar disorder.   The mother has also had a history of substance abuse when she was in high school.   She was arrested on March 21, 2009, for risk of injury to a minor and breach of peace as a result of leaving her two young children alone in a parking lot.   She was also arrested for larceny 6th on June 4, 2010.   The mother and father divorced on July 13, 2009.   The court ordered joint custody of the two children, Jahzline and Johnathan with the mother and the father with the primary residence of the children being awarded to the mother.   The father was given significant visitation of the children including overnight visits.   On July 13, 2009, the court orders were modified which changed the terms of the access of the children by both parties.   On December 11, 2009, the mother attempted suicide by overdosing on medicine.   She had related that she was overwhelmed by everything that was going on in her life.   DCF had entered into a safety plan to allow the children to reside with the maternal grandmother and grandfather.   On December 16, 2009, the maternal grandmother had transported Jahzline to the Aetna Children's Foundation for a medical examination.   It was reported by the staff at the foundation that the maternal grandmother appeared to be under the influence, was slurring her words and acting inappropriately.   The mother had reported to DCF that the maternal grandmother may have been abusing medications.   It was also learned that the maternal grandfather had recently experienced suicidal ideations in which he locked himself in the garage with an automobile running.   The father was still being investigated for potential sexual abuse of Jahzline.   Accordingly, DCF instituted a 96–hour hold on both children.   As previously reported in this decision, DCF filed motions for Orders of Temporary Custody and Petitions of Neglect on December 18, 2009.   The Orders of Temporary Custody were granted on December 18, 2009 by the court and sustained with the agreement of the parents on December 22, 2009.   The mother testified at the trial that she has been in a domestically violent relationship with the father for nine years.   She testified that the father has subjected her to physical and verbal abuse.   The physical abuse the father has inflicted on the mother includes him spitting on her, kicking her, including when she was pregnant with Jahzline, throwing coffee at her, and threatening to slice her throat.   Some of the domestic violence took place in front of the children.   The mother also acknowledged that some of her conduct was also domestically violent.   The father is thirty-one years old.   He has a criminal history that spans fourteen years.   In 1997, he was convicted on charges of breach of the peace and failure to appear.   In 1997, he was convicted on a charge of disorderly conduct.   In 1998, he was convicted on charges of breach of the peace and failure to appear.   In 2003, he was arrested three separate times and was convicted on charges of evading responsibility, breach of peace and disorderly conduct.   In 2004, he was convicted on a charge of assault.   In 2009, he was convicted on charges of interfering/resisting, and threatening.   In 2009, he was convicted on a charge of breach of the peace.   The father was arrested on July 31, 2010 on charges of sexual assault in the first degree, and illegal sexual contact, which are both felonies.   These charges are still pending and resulted from allegations that the father sexually assaulted his daughter, Jahzline.   An order of protection was also entered by the criminal court on September 24, 2010 in favor of the child, Jahzline and the mother, as protected persons.   It required the father to not assault, threaten, abuse, harass, follow, interfere with or stalk the protected persons, and to stay away from their home or wherever they shall reside.   It further ordered him not to contact the protected persons in any manner, including by written, electronic or telephone contact, and do not contact the protected persons home, workplace or others with whom the contact would be likely to cause annoyance or alarm to the protected persons.   The father was also ordered to cooperate with DCF and to surrender or transfer all firearms.   The protective order is still in effect as of the date of the trial.   On March 23, 2011, the father's former live in girlfriend, Bobbie Jo T., reported to the police that she received a text message from the father in which he indicated his intent to commit suicide.   The Willimantic Police Department, in an attempt to check on the father, stopped his motor vehicle and transported him to a local hospital to assess his condition in light of the reported suicidal statements.   While at the hospital, the father refused to cooperate with the hospital policies and became violent.   He was ultimately restrained by multiple police officers.   The father was violent towards the officers, punching, kicking, and trying to bite them, until he was put into physical restraints.   The father was arrested on April 15, 2011 on a charge of breach of peace in the second degree.   The charge is still pending and resulted from allegations that the father threatened to break the neck of the his former girlfriend, Bobbie Jo. T., if she didn't allow him to see his daughter.   The father and the alleged victim have a one-year-old daughter issue of their relationship.   Bobbie Jo T. testified that despite the father's threat of suicide and his threatening to break her neck, she does not have any concerns regarding her own safety and that she has no concerns about his ability to care for the child they have in common.   The mother had also previously obtained a restraining order against the father on November 17, 2009, which was modified on November 30, 2009.   The restraining order also included Jahzline and Johnathan as protected persons.   The restraining order is no longer in effect.   DCF social studies and testimony presented by DCF social workers express concerns that the father has a long history of domestic violence, substance abuse, mental health issues and a long criminal history.   Including in his history is an incident that occurred on or about November 28, 2003 in which the mother and the father were involved in a physical altercation in a bar, with the father leaving the bar and jumping in front of a moving car in an attempt to commit suicide.   He suffered a traumatic brain injury as a result of his actions.   The father has a long history of substance abuse.   He reported to DCF that his drugs of choice were marijuana and cocaine.   He reports that his last use of cocaine was on November 28, 2003, the date of domestic violence incident referenced in this decision.   He reported that his last use of alcohol and marijuana was several years ago.   The father changed his residence at the end of December 2010 but has not allowed DCF to inspect it.   The last time DCF has inspected his residence was in July 2010.   He has also told his most recent social worker that if DCF showed up at his house, he would punch them in the face.   The last contact that DCF had with any of the father's therapists was in August 2010 as the father has not given releases to DCF. As a result of the father's pending criminal charges and the protective order, he has not maintained contact with Jahzline.   He has had contact and visitation with Johnathan, excluding a period of approximately a month, from the end of December 2010 to February 2011 reporting that he did not have transportation during that period of time.   He did not seek the assistance of DCF and did not respond to their inquiries to him during that time.   The father had a supervised visit with Johnathan on May 4, 2011, that was scheduled for a period of two hours.   The visit was terminated after twenty minutes due to inappropriate comments made by the father to Johnathan as result of the father being annoyed of the child's level of interaction with him.   The father stopped contact with DCF on September 1, 2010, until May 3, 2011, three days before the end of his trial.   On May 3, 2011, the father, with his attorney present had a meeting with DCF but he still did not provide any releases to DCF nor did he provide his willingness to participate in the court ordered psychological and psychosexual evaluation.   He based his lack of contact with DCF on the advise of his attorney.   The releases he had previously given to DCF to provide information from his service providers expired in August 2010, and he has declined to sign new releases.   He has not cooperated with the specific steps ordered by the court on December 18, 2009.   The father has also not complied with a court order of March 3, 2010 which ordered a psychosexual evaluation and a psychological evaluation of him.   Johnathan F. is three years old and Jahzline is four years old.   They have previously lived with both of their parents until 2008 when their parents separated.   They then lived with their mother with the father having visitation with the children.   The mother obtained a restraining order against the father in November 2009, and the children resided with her until they were removed from her care by an administrative hold on December 16, 2009, and ultimately by an order of temporary custody on December 18, 2009, and placed in DCF care.   After eighteen months, the children still remain in the care of DCF as of the date of this trial.   They have remained in the same foster home since May 17, 2010.   Johnathan F. is in good health and is developmentally on target.   He has adjusted well to his foster care placement.   Jahzline is also in good health and is also on target developmentally.   She has also adjusted well to her foster placement.   Regarding the allegations of sexual abuse of Jahzline by the father, the child has made a multitude of disclosures regarding his contact to a variety of people.   A DCF social worker testified that on November 17, 2009, the mother reported that Jahzline told her that the father had touched her vagina and as such, the mother believed that the father had sexually molested Jahzline.   The mother reported that the child told her that “Daddy pulled my skin and put his finger in the hole to get the blood out.”   The mother applied for and received a restraining order against the father on November 17, 2009 based upon said allegations.   A DCF social worker also testified that on November 17, 2009, as part of her investigation of the mother's allegations, she interviewed the child.   The child disclosed to her that she was touched in a private area by her father who played with her private parts.   It did not appear to the social worker that the mother coached the child.   The mother contacted Jahzline's pediatrician and reported her concerns as to the child's statements of being touched by her father.   The pediatrician conducted a physical examination of Jahzline on November 17, 2009.   He reported that he found no evidence of trauma and that the examination did not show anything out of the ordinary.   He testified at the trial that normal exam findings does not rule out sexual abuse.   He did not find any evidence that the child had been coached by the mother or was told to fabricate anything.   The mother appeared to be genuinely concerned as to her daughter's condition and he did not see any evidence that the mother was trying to hurt anyone as a result of the daughter's disclosure.   Based upon the representations made by the mother, the pediatrician believed it would be appropriate to have the child examined by the Aetna Foundation Children's Center.   Testimony was presented from a clinical child interview specialist for the Aetna Foundation Children's Center, Children's Advocacy Center.   The interview specialist testified as an expert in the clinical interviewing of children who were alleged to have been victims of sexual abuse.   In addition, the summary of the November 20, 2009 interview was entered by the petitioner as an exhibit.   The clinician testified that Jahzline told her that her father pulled her skin out, that it broke her skin and that he did that with his finger.   Jahzline used a anatomical drawing to show that the fathers contact with her was in her genital area.   As a result of that disclosure, the clinician recommended counseling for Jahzline.   In addition, she also testified that she did not see any evidence that Jahzline had been coached as to her disclosure.   A medical examination was then recommended as well as therapy for the child.   Jahzline was then referred by DCF to the Aetna Children's Foundation for a medical evaluation.   Testimony was presented by the pediatric nurse practitioner that conducted the medical examination on December 16, 2009, that based upon her medical evaluation of the child, she could not make any conclusions as to whether the child had been abused.   On December 16, 2009, DCF invoked an administrative hold on the child.   A DCF social worker that transported Jahzline to a DCF office testified that Jahzline made a spontaneous disclosure to her that he father had touched her and is the bad person.   The foster mother for the children testified that they were placed with her in May 2010.   She testified that in response to her question to Jahzline, “Do you like your Daddy?” that Jahzline responded to her that “Daddy used to put his finger in my private.”   She was alarmed by this disclosure and reported it to DCF. Additionally, the foster mother testified that approximately at the end of July 2010, in response to a telephone conversation that Jahzline had with her father, she became upset and reported that “Daddy told me not to say anything about my boo-boos.”   Testimony was also presented by a clinician at the Village for Children and Families.   She was permitted to testify as an expert in clinical social work, for children who are trauma based.   The clinician was assigned to be the therapist for Jahzline and started her therapy on January 22, 2010.   The child has met her treatment objectives at the end of January 2011, but the case is still open.   The clinician testified that “when I was asking Jahzline about her experiences with her biological parents, Jahzline reported that “My Daddy touch me in my hole, and she pointed to her vaginal area.”   The clinician also testified that the child told her that her Daddy pinched her in her hole and that he did it numerous times while pointing to her vaginal area.   She also testified that she did not believe that the child had been coached.   Testimony was also presented that the clinician was given information that the child was displaying behaviors at the safe home of touching herself inappropriately and talking about spiders and snakes.   She testified that “It indicates a level of anxiety with—given the other information, it is an indicator of possible trauma.”   It was her opinion that the child's presentation was consistent with a child that has been traumatized.   The clinician also testified that during the course of Jahzline's therapy, there was nothing that caused her to question the validity of her disclosure of her father's touching her.   The parents have been offered a multitude of services by DCF during the pendency of this case.   The father has not cooperated with DCF for the past eight months and as such DCF can make no assessment of him.   He had a single meeting with DCF three days before the trial was concluded but still did not comply with the court orders including the specific steps.   The court entered orders of temporary custody of the children on December 22, 2009 with the agreement of the parents in that the children were found to be in immediate physical danger from their surroundings and that as a result of said conditions, the children's safety was endangered and that immediate removal from such surroundings was necessary to ensure the children's safety.   The court also found that continuation in the home was contrary to the welfare of the children.   The mother and the father have a long history of domestic violence.   The father has displayed a great deal of anger towards the mother and blames the mother for not recognizing the triggers for his anger and his aggression towards her.   The domestic violence is both physical and verbal.   The father has failed to recognize how his behavior is harmful to his children and does not take responsibility for his conduct.   The child, Jahzline, has made disclosures of the father's touching her in her genital areas to her mother, multiple DCF social workers, her foster mother, the clinical interview specialist for the Aetna Foundation Children's Center, Children's Advocacy Center, and the child's therapist at the Village for Children and Families.   The testimony presented, including expert testimony, showed that there was no evidence that Jahzline had been coached in regard to her disclosures of contact by the father.   There was also no evidence that the child made any similar allegations against any of her other caretakers.   In addition, the disclosures of the child as to the father's conduct has lead to his arrest on charges of sexual assault in the first degree and illegal sexual contact, both felonies.   His conduct has also resulted in the entry of criminal protective orders as well as restraining orders against him.   The criminal charges against him and the protective orders are still pending at the date of this trial.   The father also has a long history of criminal activity, including assaultive behavior, and has been involved with long periods of domestic violence with the mother and has had significant periods of substance and mental health issues.   The father was arrested in April 2011, for threatening to break the neck of his previous girlfriend who is the mother of another one of his children.   He also expressed suicidal intentions in March 2011.   As a result of him being in the hospital to be evaluated for his suicidal statements, he became physically violent in the hospital and had to be physically restrained.   He also threatened that if DCF came to his home, he would punch them in the face.   The father has not cooperated with the court ordered specific steps, the psychological evaluation or the psychosexual evaluation.   He has not allowed DCF to assess his current residence nor has he maintained any contact with DCF for the past eight months aside from a meeting three days before the completion of the trial.   DCF is unable to make an assessment of the father's mental health nor of his ability to safely parent either of the children which is clearly necessary due to the number of significant issues present in these cases.   He clearly still has severe anger issues and continues the pattern of domestic violence.   He is facing extremely serious criminal offenses that have not yet been resolved.   The court also finds that given the children are not safe in the father's care and that he represents a danger to the children as a result of the allegations of the child being directed only towards him.   The mother has a history of substance abuse, mental health issues, housing issues, parenting deficiencies, domestic violence issues and lack of a stable income.   The children are three and four years old and are completely dependent on competent caretakers for their safety, care and well-being.   Neither parent is capable at the present time from providing such a role for their children.   The court has a dearth of information in regard to the father since his refusal to cooperate with DCF on September 1, 2010, including his mental status, his employment status, his residence assessment, and the results of the court ordered psychological and psychosexual evaluation.   The father has not presented any evidence as to how he would be able to have Jahzline placed with him given the protective order that is in existence.   The guardian ad litem, and attorney for the children also reported to the court that it was his recommendation that it is in the children's best interest to be adjudicated neglected and that they be committed to the care and custody of DCF. Accordingly, by a fair preponderance of the evidence as of the date of the petition, the court finds that the children have been neglected in that they have been permitted to live under conditions, circumstances or associations injurious to their well-being and the children have been denied proper care and attention, physically, educationally, emotionally, or morally.   The court hereby finds by a fair preponderance of the evidence that the following disposition is in the best interest of the children, Jahzline and Johnathan.   The children are committed until further order of the court to the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families who shall be guardian of the children.   The court further finds that continuation in the home is contrary to the welfare of the children and that reasonable efforts to prevent or eliminate the need for the removal of the children were made by the state.   The court hereby orders and approves as final steps the specific steps attached hereto as part disposition of these cases.   The court hereby orders the mother to participate in a psychological evaluation as well as an interactional with the children.   The father was previously ordered on March 10, 2010 to participate in a psychosexual evaluation and a psychological evaluation as well as an interactional with the children.   The court hereby reaffirms the orders and orders the father to participate in said evaluations provided however that there shall be no interactional evaluation with the child, Jahzline, as long as the criminal protective order prohibiting his contact with the child is in effect.   By virtue of the commitment of the children as part of this order, the orders of temporary custody are terminated.   The parties shall arrange a conference with the court service officer for the purpose of working out the details for the evaluations.   BY THE COURT Graziani, J.