Fourth Court of Appeals San Antonio, Texas MEMORANDUM OPINION No. 04-19-00566-CV IN THE INTEREST OF J.E.R., a Child From the 45th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas Trial Court No. 2018PA00940 Honorable Richard Garcia, Associate Judge Presiding Opinion by: Luz Elena D. Chapa, Justice Sitting: Rebeca C. Martinez, Justice Luz Elena D. Chapa, Justice Beth Watkins, Justice Delivered and Filed: February 12, 2020 AFFIRMED Joe 1 appeals an order terminating his parental rights regarding J.E.R., arguing the trial court’s findings in support of termination are not supported by legally and factually sufficient evidence. We affirm the order of termination. BACKGROUND On May 2, 2018, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services filed an original petition seeking conservatorship of J.E.R. and for termination of the parental rights of Joe and J.E.R.’s mother, Amber. J.E.R. was removed from Amber shortly after his birth because “he tested 1 To protect the identity of the minor child, we refer to the child’s parents by their first names and the child by his initials. See TEX. FAM. CODE § 109.002(d); TEX. R. APP. P. 9.8(b)(2). 04-19-00566-CV positive for several drugs.” A few days after J.E.R. was born, he was placed with a foster-adopt family. The case proceeded to a bench trial. The trial court admitted the Department’s family service plans for both parents, and a final judgment in a prior case terminating Joe’s and Amber’s parental rights to two of their other children. The trial court also heard the testimony of several witnesses, including the Department’s caseworker Elaine Perez, Joe, J.E.R.’s foster mother Olivia, and Joe’s brother’s girlfriend, Maria. Generally, the undisputed evidence establishes the day J.E.R. was born, in March 2018, was the only time Joe saw J.E.R. Joe then left San Antonio to work in the City of Pearsall for three months, then visited his brother, and then went to work in Victoria. In November 2018, Joe was arrested for possession of methamphetamine. The record does not establish where Joe was arrested, but it is undisputed Joe was incarcerated in Bexar County. Joe was released on bond, but then was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement until the time of trial. After trial, the trial court rendered judgment, ordering the termination of Joe’s and Amber’s parental rights. The trial court found Joe abandoned and constructively abandoned J.E.R., and failed to comply with court-ordered provisions of his family service plan. The trial court also found termination of Joe’s parental rights is in J.E.R.’s best interest. Joe appeals. 2 TERMINATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS To terminate parental rights, the Department must prove by clear and convincing evidence: (1) one of the predicate grounds for termination in subsection 161.001(b)(1); and (2) termination is in the child’s best interest. TEX. FAM. CODE §§ 161.001(b), 161.206(a). We review the legal and 2 Amber did not appeal. -2- 04-19-00566-CV factual sufficiency of the evidence using well-established standards of review. See id. § 101.007; In re J.F.C., 96 S.W.3d 256, 263–67 (Tex. 2002). A. Findings of Grounds for Termination The ...
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