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In the Interest of O.F. and G.F., Minor Children
Tammy Banning, Guardian ad Litem-Appellant
State of Iowa, Appellant
Attorney Appellant Guardian ad Litem
Tammy Banning
Attorney for Appellee State
Erin Mayfield and Mary A. Triick (until withdrawal), Assistant Attorneys General
Attorney for Appellee Father
Michele R. McCann
Attorney for Appellee Mother
Michelle M. Jungers
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Daniel L. Block, Associate Juvenile Judge. REVERSED IN PART ON BOTH APPEALS. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Greer, JJ. Opinion by Greer, J. (11 pages)
O.F. (born in 2020) and G.F. (born in 2022) were removed from their parents’ care in July 2022 after G.F. presented at the emergency room with serious injuries that neither parent could adequately explain. In the May 2023 dispositional order, the juvenile court ordered the children to remain in the custody of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. No party challenges this ruling. The court also ruled “that the best interests of the children require that a transition should begin while under the supervision of the juvenile court.” The transition, as outlined by the court, allowed the mother semi-supervised visits with the children and allowed her to supervise the father’s contact with the children. Both the State and the children, through their attorney and guardian ad litem (GAL), challenge this portion of the dispositional order. OPINION HOLDS: Without more than the juvenile court’s belief that services must be working, we cannot conclude that the transition in visitation laid out by the juvenile court is in the children’s best interests. We reverse the juvenile court’s dispositional ruling to the extent it orders visitation to transition to semi-supervised. Visitation is to remain at the discretion of the department in consultation with the GAL.
