In the Interest of D.A., Minor Child
I.A., Mother-Appellant
F.A., Father-Appellant
Attorney for Appellant Mother
Kelsey Knight
Attorney for Appellant Father
Jeremy Feitelson
Attorney for Appellee State
Mary A. Triick, Assistant Attorney General
Attorney for Minor Child
Karen A. Taylor
Guardian ad Litem
Lynn Vogan
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Susan Cox, District Associate Judge. AFFIRMED ON BOTH APPEALS. Considered by Bower, C.J., Schumacher, J., and Potterfield, S.J. Opinion by Potterfield, S.J. (12 pages)
D.A., the teenaged child of the mother and father, was removed from the parents’ care in December 2019. The father filed a motion to modify the dispositional order, asking the court to end D.A.’s out-of-home placement and return her to the family home. The juvenile court denied the motion, which the parents separately appeal. They assert there has been a material and substantial change in circumstances and circumstances in Iowa Code section 232.103(4) (2019) exist so modification of the dispositional order is appropriate. They also contend returning D.A. to their care is in her best interests. OPINION HOLDS: The purpose of the dispositional order has not been accomplished and the family’s circumstances have not so materially and substantially changed that the best interests of D.A. require she be returned to her parents’ care. We also cannot find by a preponderance of the evidence that D.A. will not suffer adjudicatory harm if she is returned. For these reasons, we agree with the juvenile court’s denial of the motion to modify the dispositional order and the continued out-of-home placement of D.A. from the parents’ care.
