Court of Appeals reverses family court order refusing to terminate parental rights

A South Carolina family court refused to terminate the parental rights of a father who had murdered the child's mother and had inhibited the child from receiving monies from the mother's estate. In Stinecipher v. Ballington, the South Carolina Court of Appeals reversed. According to the court:

We therefore find clear and convincing evidence that Ballington not only failed to send any money to aid in Austin's support, but that he actually prevented Austin from deriving the benefits of Edna's estate. Were it only a failure to send money to Austin, we might be inclined to defer to the trial court's determination that such a failure was not wilful; however, considering Ballington's actions which actually impeded Austin from receiving money from his mother's estate, we are compelled to find Ballington's failure to provide for Austin was wilful. Finding the Stineciphers proved a ground for termination of parental rights by clear and convincing evidence, we move on to determine whether termination would be in Austin's best interest.

. . . .

We find persuasive evidence in the record indicating that termination of Ballington's rights to Austin would be in Austin's best interest. Austin was only three-and-a-half years old when Ballington was incarcerated for the murder of Austin's mother, and Austin has since had no contact with Ballington. Because Ballington is serving a sentence of life without parole, there is no possibility that Austin would ever be able to have a normal father-son relationship with Ballington. Moreover, as numerous witnesses testified, including the guardian, Austin has bonded with the Stineciphers and has thrived in their care.