In re: A.U.

Summary

The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia affirmed an order terminating the parental rights of petitioner mother F.H. to A.U. The court held that termination was permissible without a less-restrictive dispositional alternative because there was no reasonable likelihood that the conditions of abuse and neglect could be substantially corrected in the near future. The decision also noted substantial procedural delays in the abuse and neglect proceedings.

Holdings

1. Termination of parental rights may be ordered without an intervening less-restrictive alternative when the court finds that there is no reasonable likelihood that the conditions of abuse or neglect can be substantially corrected in the near future.
2. Legal conclusions are reviewed de novo, while factual findings are reviewed for clear error and must be affirmed if plausible in light of the record viewed in its entirety.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the circuit court erred by terminating Mother's parental rights without first employing a less-restrictive dispositional alternative.
2. Whether termination was authorized when the conditions of abuse and neglect could not be substantially corrected in the near future.

Disposition

affirmed