In re Z.C.

Summary

The Twelfth District Court of Appeals of Ohio affirmed a Butler County juvenile court judgment granting permanent custody of two children to a children services agency. The court held that clear and convincing evidence supported the finding that permanent custody was in the children's best interests, based on the parents' inconsistent progress, unsafe and unstable home conditions, and failure to implement case-plan services. The court also upheld the determination that the children's grandmother was not an appropriate alternative placement.

Holdings

1. The juvenile court properly applied the two-part permanent-custody test by finding that the children had been in agency custody for at least 12 months of a consecutive 22-month period and that permanent custody with the agency was in their best interest.
2. The permanent-custody judgment was supported by the record and was not against the manifest weight of the evidence.
3. The juvenile court properly determined that the grandmother was not an adequate alternative placement and that a legally secure placement could not be achieved without granting permanent custody to the agency.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the juvenile court's determination that permanent custody with the children services agency was in the children's best interest was supported by clear and convincing evidence.
2. Whether the juvenile court's permanent-custody judgment was against the manifest weight of the evidence.
3. Whether the grandmother provided an appropriate alternative placement such that permanent custody could be granted without terminating the parents' rights.

Disposition

affirmed