STATE OF MINNESOTA
IN COURT OF APPEALS
C5-99-380
In the Matter of the Welfare of: M.G., S.G., and A.C.
Filed August 24, 1999
Affirmed
Kalitowski, Judge
Hennepin County District Court
File No. J798062702
Mark D. Fiddler, Fiddler Law Office, 4751 Dupont Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55409 (for appellant Sue Mart)
William E. McGee, Hennepin County Public Defender, Peter W. Gorman, Assistant Public Defender, 317 Second Avenue South, Suite 200, Minneapolis, MN 55401 (for respondent Penny Mart)
Amy J. Klobuchar, Hennepin County Attorney, Mary M. Lynch, Assistant County Attorney, C-2000 Government Center, Minneapolis, MN 55487 (for respondent Hennepin County Department of Children and Family Services)
Anita P. Fineday, P.O. Box 272, White Earth, MN 56591 (for respondent Leech Lake Bank of Ojibwe)
Considered and decided by Kalitowski, Presiding Judge, Schumacher, Judge, and Thoreen, Judge.[*]
After the district court granted appellant Sue Mart permanent custody of her step-grandchildren, M.G., S.G. and A.C., appellant brought this appeal, contending the district court erred by: (1) making inadequate written findings; (2) failing to order the Hennepin County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) to petition the court to terminate the parental rights of Penny Mart; and (3) finding that the children were subject to the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). We affirm.
Appellant also contends the district court erred by not granting appellant's motion requesting the district court to order DCFS to petition the court to terminate the parental rights of Penny Mart. We disagree. Even assuming the district court had the authority to grant appellant's motion, we find no statutory authority or precedential caselaw requiring the court to issue such an order. Moreover, if appellant wanted the issue of the termination of Penny Mart's parental rights before the court, appellant could have filed a termination petition pursuant to Minn. Stat § 260.231, subd. 1 (1998). We conclude the district court did not err by denying appellant's motion.
Finally, because we affirm the district court on the termination issue, we need not reach the issues raised by appellant regarding the application of the ICWA.
Affirmed.
[*] Retired judge of the district court, serving as judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals by appointment pursuant to Minn. Const. art. VI, § 10.