In re N.N., ___ N.C. App. ___ (October 15, 2024)

Held: 
Affirmed in Part; Vacated in Part; and Remanded
  • Facts: Mother and Father claim ineffective assistance of counsel during the adjudication of their infant as abused and neglected. At the adjudicatory hearing, neither parent’s counsel presented evidence, made objections, moved to dismiss the petition, or made any arguments.
  • A claim of ineffective assistance of counsel (IAC) requires a respondent to show that counsel’s performance was deficient and deprived the respondent of a fair hearing such that there is a reasonable probability that there would have been a different result in the proceeding but for counsel’s deficiency.
  • Parents did not receive IAC. Review of the transcript suggests that both counsel strategized not to contest the adjudication and instead focus on arguing to continue reunification efforts with parents at disposition. As both parents were each facing two felony charges related to the infant’s injuries alleged in the abuse and neglect petition, counsel’s strategy to have parents not testify and for counsel not to contest the evidence offered by DSS at the adjudicatory hearing was reasonable. Both counsel actively participated in the dispositional portion of the hearing by cross-examining witnesses, making objections and arguments to the court, and thereby demonstrated their thorough understanding of the facts and issues of the case. There is no reasonable probability that the result would have been different if counsel had performed differently; the evidence is sufficient to find the child suffered unexplained, non-accidental injuries while in the sole care of the parents and support the adjudications.
Category:
Abuse, Neglect, Dependency
Stage:
Appointment of Counsel
Topic:
Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
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ineffective assistance of counsel