outlined several medical conditions from which they suffer, including depression, diabetes, and heart problems.
Smith further acknowledged that the Bankses indicated in their home study that they would not speak ill of P.S.'s biological parents "in hopes that one day the child can be reunified" with them, would support visitation with the biological parents, and were willing to assist in family visitation. However, Smith testified that she did not interpret these statements as an indication that the Bankses wanted to reunify P.S. with her biological parents.[1]
Smith also acknowledged the presence of certain notes in P.S.'s file regarding the risk that the Bankses would allow their son to have access to P.S. but stated that she was not familiar with the notes in the case file because she had not been the Pope County supervisor at that time. She stated that she was not familiar with the June 2015 note stating that P.S.'s biological father had advised DHS that he was "just going to have a family member adopt P.S. so that he doesn't have to follow any orders of the court." Smith acknowledged that while she is the person who signed DHS's consent to the Bankses' adoption petition, she had neither read the Bankses' home study nor reviewed the notes in P.S.'s file. Smith also acknowledged that for approximately two months following P.S.'s removal from the Bartons' home, the Bartons, their attorney, and the CASA advocate had all tried to find out the nature of the allegations against the Bartons and that her office did not provide anyone with that information.
- ↑ In an order entered on January 20, 2017, the circuit court terminated the parental rights of both of P.S.'s biological parents, in part based on its finding that returning P.S. to her parents' custody posed a serious risk of potential harm to her health and safety and that reunification was not in P.S.'s best interest.
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