Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services sought termination of the mother’s parental rights after the child reported being shaken by her boyfriend and later tested positive for an extremely high level of methamphetamine. The mother’s March 2025 hair-follicle test was also positive for methamphetamine. During the case, she repeatedly declined requested drug tests, and every test she did take was positive for an illegal drug.
The evidence also showed a history of drug-related child-welfare involvement. The child had previously been removed after the mother used illegal drugs during pregnancy, and her rights to another child had been terminated after that child tested positive for methamphetamine and marijuana at birth. Although the mother completed some services, she did not comply with drug-testing requirements, lacked stable housing for part of the case, and did not demonstrate that she could provide a safe, drug-free home. Meanwhile, the child improved behaviorally and academically in foster care, and the Department planned to pursue adoption.
The trial court terminated the mother’s parental rights after finding statutory endangerment grounds and determining that termination was in the child’s best interest. On appeal, the mother challenged only the legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence supporting the best-interest finding; she did not challenge the endangerment findings.
The Court’s Holding
The Eleventh Court of Appeals held that legally and factually sufficient evidence supported the trial court’s finding, by clear and convincing evidence, that termination was in the child’s best interest. The court emphasized the mother’s persistent drug use, repeated failures to submit to testing, prior drug-related child-welfare history, incomplete compliance with her service plan, unstable housing, and lack of a concrete plan for the child.
The court explained that the trial court could infer continued drug use from the mother’s repeated refusal to test and could use her past conduct to assess future danger and parenting ability. Her partial completion of services did not require a different result because it did not resolve the Department’s concerns about substance abuse, safety, and stability.
The child’s improvement after removal and the Department’s plan for adoption also favored termination. Concluding that returning the child to the mother would expose him to further risk, uncertainty, and instability, the appellate court overruled her sole issue and affirmed the termination order.
Key Takeaways
- A parent’s repeated refusal to take requested drug tests can support an inference that the parent continued using illegal drugs during termination proceedings.
- Partial compliance with a reunification plan does not defeat a best-interest finding when the parent fails to address the safety concerns that led to removal.
- A parent’s substance-abuse history, instability, treatment of other children, and the child’s improvement in foster care may collectively support termination.
Why It Matters
The decision illustrates how Texas courts apply the child-centered best-interest inquiry when substance abuse and instability persist throughout a termination case. Evidence supporting an unchallenged statutory ground for termination may also bear directly on best interest, particularly when it indicates an ongoing danger to the child.
The opinion also underscores that appellate courts defer to the trial court’s credibility determinations while still reviewing the entire record under the clear-and-convincing-evidence standard. A parent’s claimed sobriety or recent improvement may carry limited weight when unsupported by testing and contradicted by a longer pattern of drug use and noncompliance.