Dept. of Human Services v. F. Y. D.

ORS 419B.100(1)(c) provides that "a juvenile court has jurisdiction in a dependency case when a child’s ‘condition or circumstances are such as to endanger the welfare’ of the child.” “A child is endangered if the child is exposed to conditions or circumstances that ‘present a current threat of serious loss or injury.’” Dept. of Human Services v. A. L., 268 Or App 391, 397, 342 P3d 174 (2015).

Father appealed the juvenile court’s judgment establishing jurisdiction over his child. On appeal, Father argued that because his sister was available to care for the child while Father was incarcerated, DHS failed to present sufficient evidence of a current threat of harm to the child. In response, DHS argued that Father failed to preserve his argument of no current risk of harm, and also that the record supported the juvenile court’s determination. ORS 419B.100(1)(c) provides that "a juvenile court has jurisdiction in a dependency case when a child’s ‘condition or circumstances are such as to endanger the welfare’ of the child.” “A child is endangered if the child is exposed to conditions or circumstances that ‘present a current threat of serious loss or injury.’” Dept. of Human Services v. A. L., 268 Or App 391, 397, 342 P3d 174 (2015). The Court held that Father had preserved his argument but nonetheless held that the juvenile court did not err in establishing jurisdiction over the child. The Court reasoned that Father would likely assume his parental responsibilities after his period of incarceration and that this posed a risk to the child’s welfare given father’s poor judgement. Affirmed.