In re Interest of Joel T. et al.

Summary

The Nebraska Supreme Court affirmed termination of Oscar Kazadi Mukoma’s parental rights to his four children. The court held that his due process challenge to the juvenile court’s case plan was an impermissible collateral attack on a prior, appealable disposition order. It also concluded that statutory grounds for termination and the children’s best interests were established by clear and convincing evidence, based on Mukoma’s minimal progress toward rehabilitation and failure to comply with the case plan.

Holdings

1. Mukoma could not challenge the factual basis for the previously entered case plan in the termination appeal because his argument constituted an impermissible collateral attack on the final, appealable disposition order; he did not challenge the juvenile court's jurisdiction over the parties or subject matter.
2. The State proved by clear and convincing evidence a statutory basis for terminating Mukoma's parental rights, including that the children had been in out-of-home placement for 15 or more of the most recent 22 months.
3. Termination of Mukoma's parental rights was in the children's best interests because the State proved by clear and convincing evidence that he was unfit and unable or unwilling to rehabilitate himself within a reasonable period of time.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the juvenile court violated Mukoma's due process rights by conditioning reunification on case-plan requirements based in part on domestic-violence allegations that Mukoma contended were not properly adjudicated.
2. Whether the State proved a statutory basis for termination of Mukoma's parental rights by clear and convincing evidence.
3. Whether termination of Mukoma's parental rights was in the children's best interests by clear and convincing evidence.

Disposition

affirmed