[Cite as In re A.M.A., 2023-Ohio-723.] IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO TENTH APPELLATE DISTRICT In the matter of: : [A.M.A.], : No. 22AP-325 [D.A.A.], : (C.P.C. No. 22JU-5392) Plaintiff-Appellant. : (REGULAR CALENDAR) : D E C I S I O N Rendered on March 9, 2023 On brief: Advocating Opportunity, and Emily Dunlap, Law Office of Karin L. Coble, and Karin L. Coble, for appellant. Argued: Karin L. Coble. APPEAL from the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Division of Domestic Relations, Juvenile Branch BEATTY BLUNT, P.J. {¶ 1} Plaintiff-appellant, D.A.A., appeals the June 2, 2022 judgment of the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, Division of Domestic Relations, Juvenile Branch, vacating its emergency custody order for A.M.A. with special findings issued the prior day, and issuing a new emergency custody order without the requested special findings. We reverse and vacate the June 2, 2022 order, thereby reinstating the June 1, 2022 order. {¶ 2} This appeal stems from an unusual immigration status that is available to noncitizen children who are found in the United States in the custody of persons other than their parents. This "special immigrant juvenile" status is a legally protected resident status that a noncitizen child can apply for if the child is in the custody of a legal resident or citizen other than the child's own parents, if the child is placed in the legal custody of that legal resident or citizen by the state juvenile court having jurisdiction over the case, and that court issues particular required factual findings regarding that child's placement and need for both custody and legal status. No. 22AP-325 2 {¶ 3} A.M.A, (d.o.b. 6/4/2004) was born in Ghana, is a citizen of that country, and was a minor at the time of the proceedings under review. A.M.A's parents are deceased, and he was placed in the care of his brother-in-law, D.A.A. ("appellant"), in the United States by the U.S. Office of Refugee Resettlement, Division of Children's Services, after he was detained by I.C.E. A.M.A. does not have legal status in the U.S., but according to documentation filed with the trial court, the Department of Health and Human Services concluded that he had been "subjected to a severe form of trafficking in persons." (See Eligibility Letter from Administration for Children and Families, Office on Trafficking in Persons, attached to May 23, 2022 Mot. for Emergency Custody and Special Findings at Ex. 1.) {¶ 4} Appellant filed a motion for legal custody of A.M.A. and requested "special" findings of fact that "the minor child is unable to reunify with one or both of his parents due to neglect, abandonment, or some similar basis under state law, and that it is not in his best interests to be returned to Ghana." (Mot. at 1.) These findings would allow A.M.A. to apply for "Special Immigrant Juvenile Status" under 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(J), which provides that a "special immigrant" is: (J) an immigrant who is present in the United States— (i) who has …
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