MAY, Judge.
S.C. ("Mother") appeals a termination of her parental rights to her son, Z.C. ("Child"). She asserts the trial court proceedings denied her due process and the evidence is insufficient to support termination of her rights. We affirm.
On July 6, 2012, Child was born with controlled substances in his bloodstream. Mother admitted using heroin, morphine, Xanax, and Oxycontin. Due to the severe withdrawal symptoms he was experiencing, Child remained hospitalized for a number of weeks. Prior to Child's release, Mother was arrested on federal drug charges and incarcerated in Kentucky. Because Mother was incarcerated, the State obtained an emergency order to take
In September 2012, the court held a hearing on the State's petition to declare Child a child in need of services ("CHINS"). Mother admitted she was unable to take care of Child because of her incarceration and because, when released from incarceration, she would need "services to address her substance abuse." (DCS Ex. 13.) The court declared Child a CHINS. One month later, the court entered a dispositional order requiring Mother to complete a number of services following her release from incarceration.
On May 23, 2013, the court modified its dispositional order to indicate unification efforts between Mother and Child were ending because Mother had not participated in services or developed a relationship with Child. (DCS Ex. 16, 24.) In August 2013, the court approved a permanency plan calling for termination of parental rights. The State filed a petition to terminate Mother's rights on June 24, 2013, and the court held a hearing thereon. Thereafter, the court entered an order that included the following pertinent findings:
(Appellant's App. at 19-21.) Based thereon, the court concluded there was a reasonable probability the conditions resulting in Child's removal would not be remedied and the continuation of the parent-child posed a threat to Child's well-being. The court also concluded termination of rights was in Child's best interests and the State had a satisfactory plan for Child's future care and treatment and, therefore, the court terminated Mother's parental rights.
We review termination of parental rights with great deference. In re K.S., 750 N.E.2d 832, 836 (Ind.Ct.App. 2001). We will not reweigh evidence or
When, as here, a judgment contains specific findings of fact and conclusions thereon, we apply a two-tiered standard of review. Bester v. Lake Cnty. Office of Family & Children, 839 N.E.2d 143, 147 (Ind.2005). We determine whether the evidence supports the findings and whether the findings support the judgment. Id. "Findings are clearly erroneous only when the record contains no facts to support them either directly or by inference." Quillen v. Quillen, 671 N.E.2d 98, 102 (Ind.1996). If the evidence and inferences support the trial court's decision, we must affirm. In re L.S., 717 N.E.2d at 208.
"The traditional right of parents to establish a home and raise their children is protected by the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution." In re M.B., 666 N.E.2d 73, 76 (Ind. Ct.App.1996), trans. denied. A trial court must subordinate the interests of the parents to those of the child, however, when evaluating the circumstances surrounding a termination. In re K.S., 750 N.E.2d at 837. The right to raise one's own child should not be terminated solely because there is a better home available for the child, id., but parental rights may be terminated when a parent is unable or unwilling to meet his or her parental responsibilities. Id. at 836.
To terminate a parent-child relationship:
Ind.Code § 31-35-2-4(b)(2). The State must prove these allegations by clear and convincing evidence. In re G.Y., 904 N.E.2d 1257, 1260-61 (Ind.2009), reh'g denied. If the court finds the allegations in the petition are true, the court must terminate the parent-child relationship. Ind. Code § 31-35-2-8.
The trial court concluded there was a reasonable probability the conditions resulting in Child's removal would not be remedied and the continuation of the parent-child relationship posed a threat to Child's well-being. Because our legislature wrote subsection (B) in the disjunctive, stating only one of those three circumstances needed to exist, the trial court needed to find only one of the three established by clear and convincing evidence before terminating parental rights. See In re L.S., 717 N.E.2d at 209. Accordingly, we may affirm the trial court's decision if the evidence and findings support the court's determination as to the existence of one of those circumstances. See id. (finding supporting conclusion that one circumstance listed under Ind.Code § 31-35-2-4(b)(2)(B) is sufficient to affirm termination of parental rights).
We review first the finding the conditions that resulted in Child's removal would not be remedied. In making such a determination, a trial court must judge a parent's fitness to care for his or her child at the time of the termination hearing, taking into consideration evidence of changed conditions. In re J.T., 742 N.E.2d 509, 512 (Ind.Ct.App.2001), trans. denied. The court must evaluate a parent's habitual patterns of conduct to determine whether there is a substantial probability of future neglect or deprivation. Id. Pursuant to this rule, courts have properly considered evidence of a parent's prior criminal history, drug and alcohol abuse, history of neglect, failure to provide support, and lack of adequate housing and employment. A.F. v. Marion Cnty. Office of Family & Children, 762 N.E.2d 1244, 1251 (Ind.Ct.App.2002), trans. denied. The trial court may also properly consider, as evidence of whether conditions will be remedied, the services offered to the parent by DCS, and the parent's response to those services. Id. A trial court need not wait until a child is irreversibly influenced by a deficient lifestyle such that his or her physical, mental, and social growth are permanently impaired before terminating the parent-child relationship. In re E.S., 762 N.E.2d 1287, 1290 (Ind.Ct.App.2002).
Here, the Record indicated Child came into the State's custody because Mother was arrested on drug charges before Child was released from hospitalization for drug withdrawal symptoms. Mother admitted Child was a CHINS because she was incarcerated and would need substance abuse treatment when released. At the termination hearing, Mother's criminal defense counsel testified Mother had agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to deal heroin and her minimum sentence would be ten years. Counsel testified that he hoped to renegotiate Mother's plea agreement but at the time of the termination hearing, Mother's sentencing date and the length of her sentence remained unknown. That evidence supports the conclusion the conditions that resulted in Child's removal from Mother's custody would not be remedied. See In re L.S., 717 N.E.2d at 208 (appellate court must affirm trial court decision if evidence supports facts that lead to the conclusions of law).
Mother also asserts the court should not have concluded the reasons for Child's placement outside her care would not be remedied because the court's participation
Mother claims the same arguments demonstrate the court erred when determining the termination of her rights would not be in Child's best interests. We cannot agree. As the court found, both DCS and Child's CASA believed termination of Mother's rights was in Child's best interests. The testimony of such individuals supports the court's findings and conclusion. See In re L.S., 717 N.E.2d at 208 (appellate court must affirm trial court decision if evidence supports facts that lead to the conclusions of law).
Finally, Mother asserts a number of "procedural irregularities as to Father... violated her due process rights to family integrity." (Appellant's Br. at 16.) We decline to find a due process violation, as it was Mother who misled the court regarding Father's true identity for over six months, because she was concerned that his status as a prisoner might have a negative impact on her ability to maintain her own parental rights. Moreover, Mother cannot assert error in the termination of her rights based on an alleged denial of due process to Father. See Rumple v. Bloomington Hospital, 422 N.E.2d 1309, 1314 (Ind.Ct.App.1981) (litigants are normally barred "from asserting the rights or legal interests of others in order to obtain relief from injury themselves.") (quoting Warth v. Seldin, 422 U.S. 490, 509, 95 S.Ct. 2197, 45 L.Ed.2d 343 (1975)), trans. denied.
Mother's arguments are an invitation for us to reweigh the evidence, which we cannot do. See In re D.D., 804 N.E.2d at 265 (appellate court cannot reweigh evidence or judge credibility of witnesses). DCS presented sufficient evidence that the conditions under which Child was removed from Mother's care would not be remedied and that termination was in Child's best interests. Accordingly, we affirm.
Affirmed.
KIRSCH, J., and BAILEY, J., concur.