Background
The West Virginia Department of Human Services filed an abuse and neglect petition in July 2024 against Petitioner Mother A.S.-C. regarding her child A.C. The petition alleged that the mother failed to provide stable housing — she had been discharged from a homeless shelter due to combative behavior — admitted to marijuana use, and had mental health issues affecting her parenting. Child Protective Services had attempted to implement safety plans since May 2023 to help the mother obtain housing and develop parenting and life skills.
At an adjudicatory hearing in February 2025, the mother stipulated to substance abuse issues and that her mental health impaired her parenting. The circuit court adjudicated A.C. as abused and neglected and granted the mother a post-adjudicatory improvement period requiring her to obtain suitable housing, submit to random drug screening, and participate in mental health treatment and parenting skills training.
By a May 2025 review hearing, the mother had failed multiple drug screens — testing positive for marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol on eleven occasions across the proceedings and missing thirty-three screens — and her parenting skills provider had terminated services after she engaged in a physical altercation with a minor during a session. At a July 2025 dispositional hearing, the CPS worker characterized the mother’s compliance as “very minimal,” noted that supervised visitation had ceased due to the mother’s disruptive behavior during visits, and testified that she did not believe the mother could resolve the conditions of neglect “in the near future or even at all.” The mother had participated in individual therapy only four or five times since the case began and was not taking her prescribed antipsychotic medication. The circuit court terminated the mother’s post-adjudicatory improvement period and, by written order of July 17, 2025, terminated her parental rights to A.C.
The Court’s Holding
The Supreme Court of Appeals affirmed the circuit court’s order in a unanimous memorandum decision, finding no abuse of discretion in either the termination of the improvement period or the termination of parental rights. On the improvement period, the court cited West Virginia Code § 49-4-610(7), which permits termination upon a finding that a parent has failed to fully participate, and reaffirmed that the circuit court’s discretion to grant an improvement period carries with it the discretion to terminate one when the parent is not making necessary progress. The mother’s admitted drug screen failures and the cessation of parenting services due to her aggressive conduct provided ample basis for that finding.
On the termination of parental rights, the court held that sufficient evidence supported the circuit court’s conclusion that there was no reasonable likelihood the conditions of neglect could be substantially corrected in the near future, as required under W. Va. Code § 49-4-604(c)(6). The mother’s continued substance abuse throughout the proceedings, minimal engagement in therapy, and failure to take prescribed medication demonstrated an inadequate capacity to resolve the problems of neglect on her own or with help. The court further found that termination was necessary for A.C.’s welfare given the child’s young age and specialized needs, and that no less restrictive alternative was required before termination could be ordered.
The court also rejected the mother’s argument that the circuit court erred by refusing to extend or reinstate her improvement period, noting that she had not preserved an extension argument below and that no authority permits a motion to reinstate a previously terminated improvement period.
Key Takeaways
- A circuit court may terminate a post-adjudicatory improvement period under W. Va. Code § 49-4-610(7) whenever a parent fails to fully participate; positive drug screens and loss of parenting services due to aggressive behavior are sufficient grounds.
- Termination of parental rights requires no intervening less restrictive alternatives when the court finds no reasonable likelihood that conditions of neglect can be substantially corrected in the near future and termination is necessary for the child’s welfare. W. Va. Code § 49-4-604(c)(6).
- There is no procedural mechanism in West Virginia law to reinstate a previously terminated improvement period; a request to do so preserves no argument on appeal.
- Arguments not raised below — such as a request to extend (rather than reinstate) an improvement period — will not be considered on appeal absent citation to where the issue was presented to the lower tribunal.
Why It Matters
This decision reinforces the considerable deference West Virginia appellate courts extend to circuit courts in child welfare cases, particularly where a parent’s noncompliance is both documented and admitted. The opinion underscores that partial compliance — here, obtaining housing for a period — does not insulate a parent from termination when substance abuse, mental health non-engagement, and behavioral problems persist throughout the proceedings.
The court’s categorical rejection of any authority for reinstating a terminated improvement period is a practical reminder for practitioners: once an improvement period is terminated for noncompliance, there is no procedural path to restore it. Counsel representing parents in West Virginia abuse and neglect proceedings should raise all requests — extension, reinstatement, or otherwise — with specificity in the trial court to preserve those arguments for appeal.