In re J.M.M.6/13/2002
I. INTRODUCTION
This is an appeal from a judgment rendered on a jury verdict, terminating parental rights. The judgment terminated the parental rights of Appellant Marium M. and her husband James M. as to three of their children, J.M.M., B.R.M., and W.T.M. Marium was the only parent to appear at trial and is the only parent appealing. In ten issues, Marium complains of the submission of two jury instructions regarding alternative means of endangerment of her children, no evidence to support termination on any of four grounds submitted, legal and factual insufficiency of the evidence of each ground to support the verdict, lack of an instruction submitting an affirmative defense, and the constitutionality of the broad-form jury questions inquiring as to termination with respect to each child with instructions constituting a disjunctive submission of all grounds asserted. We will affirm.
II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Marium and James M. are the natural parents of J.M.M., four years old, B.R.M., three years old, and W.T.M., twenty-two months old at the time of trial. Marium and James are also the natural parents of two other children, J. and C.; however, their parental rights were terminated as to those children on June 19, 1997, on grounds of endangerment and abandonment.
In May of 1991, the parents' first child, J., was born in Dallas, Texas. Due to J.'s premature birth, the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services (TDPRS) investigated the parents and took J. into protective custody. After six months, TDPRS returned J. to the parents' custody.
After J. was returned to the parents, they began to travel through various states. The parents moved first to West Virginia, then to Arkansas. In 1992, while they were in Arkansas, C. was born. After C.'s birth, the parents moved to Daytona Beach, Florida. While in Florida, Marium decided to leave James. Marium took the children and moved to her mother's home in Arkansas.
On February 10, 1993, shortly after Marium moved to Arkansas, James pleaded guilty to lewd and lascivious conduct, assault on a child. He was sentenced to four and one-half years' imprisonment. Some time in 1993, Marium and the children moved back to West Virginia. When James was released from prison in 1995, Marium reunited with him, giving him full access to the children, and they moved to Lebanon, Missouri.
While living in Missouri, the parents became friends with Clarence and Reina Krusen. After six or seven months, the parents left their children, J. and C., with the Krusens and moved to Houston, Texas. The parents executed a signed statement giving the Krusens temporary custody of the children "until further notice." After the parents arrived in Houston, Marium wrote two letters to the Krusens; both letters were returned. The parents contacted the Houston police and were told the Krusens had moved to an undisclosed address. In an effort to find their children, the parents joined a traveling carnival. By this time, Marium was pregnant with J.M.M.
While the carnival was in Arizona, in April of 1996, J.M.M. was born four-weeks premature and underweight. J.M.M.'s premature birth prompted the Arizona Department of Protective Services to initiate an investigation of the parents. The Arizona officials notified the parents that Texas authorities were looking for them in connection with the abandonment of J. and C. Marium asked the Arizona authorities to contact whoever had J. and C. and ask them to get in touch with her. The Arizona authorities concluded their investigation, allowing J.M.M to leave the hospital with the parents.
After J.M.M. was released from the hospital, the
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